Career Explorer Installation and repair
Human edge, steady
Maintenance workers, machinery
Lubricate machinery, change parts, or perform other routine machinery maintenance.
In the middle of the pack: more resilient than 50% of the 831 careers we score. AI exposure is low (the Bureau of Labor Statistics rates it moderate), and US jobs are projected to change by -1.9% by 2035, expected to shrink. The work leans on physical dexterity.
AI struggles with much of this work. Hiring is expected to grow slower than average, or to shrink.
- Median pay (2025)
- $60,850
- Job growth to 2035
- -1.9%
- Openings a year
- 4,400
- People doing it (2025)
- 59,700
- Usual route in
- High school diploma, then long on-the-job training
Where people already use AI for this work
- Adjust equipment to ensure adequate performance
- Communicate with others about operational plans or activities
- Test performance of equipment or systems
From Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025).
Work AI rarely helps with
- Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas
- Assemble equipment or components
- Maintain operational records
What the work looks like
- Dismantle machines and remove parts for repair, using hand tools, chain falls, jacks, cranes, or hoists.
- Reassemble machines after the completion of repair or maintenance work.
- Record production, repair, and machine maintenance information.
- Lubricate or apply adhesives or other materials to machines, machine parts, or other equipment according to specified procedures.
- Install, replace, or change machine parts and attachments, according to production specifications.
From O*NET 31.0, US Department of Labor.
What the Bureau of Labor Statistics expects
- Fewer of these jobs, as maintenance services are performed by industrial machinery mechanics.
Careers using similar strengths, with a stronger outlook
- Electrical and electronics installers and repairers, transportation equipmentHuman edge, growing, Index 80, +5.4%
- Earth drillers, except oil and gasHuman edge, growing, Index 74, +3.6%
- Helpers--carpentersHuman edge, steady, Index 71, -1.7%
- Home appliance repairersHuman edge, steady, Index 60, +1.9%
Also known as: Maintainer, Maintenance Mechanic, Maintenance Technician (Maintenance Tech), Maintenance Worker, Lubricator, Machine Repairer, Maintenance Craftsman, Maintenance Man.
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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.