Career Explorer Transport and logistics
Human edge, growing
Crane and tower operators
Operate mechanical boom and cable or tower and cable equipment to lift and move materials, machines, or products in many directions.
Among the most resilient careers: more resilient than 93% of the 831 careers we score. AI exposure is low (the Bureau of Labor Statistics rates it low), and US jobs are projected to change by +3.8% by 2035, faster than average. The work leans on physical dexterity and ethical judgement.
AI struggles with much of this work, and US employers are expected to hire more people into it than average.
- Median pay (2025)
- $68,080
- Job growth to 2035
- +3.8%
- Openings a year
- 3,500
- People doing it (2025)
- 42,900
- Usual route in
- High school diploma, then moderate on-the-job training
Where people already use AI for this work
- Measure physical characteristics of materials, products, or equipment
- Evaluate the quality or accuracy of data
- Read documents or materials to inform work processes
From Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025).
Work AI rarely helps with
- Inspect commercial, industrial, or production systems or equipment
- Maintain vehicles in working condition
- Operate lifting or moving equipment
What the work looks like
- Move levers, depress foot pedals, or turn dials to operate cranes, cherry pickers, electromagnets, or other moving equipment for lifting, moving, or placing loads.
- Inspect crane site conditions to determine ground stability.
- Inspect and adjust crane mechanisms or lifting accessories to prevent malfunctions or damage.
- Direct helpers engaged in placing blocking or outrigging under cranes.
- Determine load weights and check them against lifting capacities to prevent overload.
From O*NET 31.0, US Department of Labor.
What the Bureau of Labor Statistics expects
- Fewer of these jobs, as increased ship sizes are causing ports to automate their operations in order to meet shipping schedules and demand.
Careers using similar strengths, with a stronger outlook
- RoofersHuman edge, growing, Index 94, +5.3%
- Motorboat operatorsHuman edge, growing, Index 96, +4.9%
- Electrical power-line installers and repairersHuman edge, growing, Index 99, +10.3%
- Roustabouts, oil and gasHuman edge, growing, Index 95, +3.6%
Also known as: Crane Operator, Heavy Equipment Operator, Mobile Crane Operator, Overhead Crane Operator, Equipment Operator, Machine Operator, Port Crane Operator, Scrap Crane Operator.
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Sources: US Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections 2025 to 2035; O*NET 31.0; Microsoft Research (2025); Anthropic Economic Index (2026); Eloundou and colleagues (Science, 2024); Felten, Raj and Seamans (2023). How we score. Updated 12 October 2026.