Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers
Also called: Lifeguard, Ocean Lifeguard, Pool Attendant, Ski PatrollerMonitor recreational areas, such as pools, beaches, or ski slopes, to provide assistance and protection to participants.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 3 of its 15 tasks, and jobs are projected to grow 5.5% by 2035. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 8.9% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Other protective service workers”
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 4.3 hires for every 10 job openings in government, which employs about 36% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.4.3 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $28,130 | $23,010 to $31,020 | 1,080 |
| Alaska | $34,540 | $28,150 to $38,870 | 340 |
| Arizona | $35,380 | $31,030 to $36,720 | 3,950 |
| Arkansas | $27,000 | $24,480 to $29,700 | 530 |
| California | $42,720 | $37,320 to $44,960 | 22,620 |
| Colorado | $35,640 | $33,710 to $38,060 | 5,430 |
| Connecticut | $35,960 | $34,010 to $38,150 | 1,510 |
| Delaware | $31,930 | $31,200 to $33,280 | 360 |
| District of Columbia | $60,400 | $53,240 to $70,100 | 290 |
| Florida | $35,040 | $30,510 to $37,790 | 9,460 |
| Georgia | $30,880 | $26,000 to $34,990 | 2,840 |
| Hawaii | $52,630 | $45,260 to $64,740 | 720 |
| Idaho | $28,770 | $25,460 to $29,630 | 750 |
| Illinois | $33,710 | $31,200 to $35,250 | 5,880 |
| Indiana | $28,640 | $26,820 to $30,730 | 3,290 |
| Iowa | $25,460 | $22,200 to $28,890 | 1,410 |
| Kansas | $27,220 | $23,640 to $30,670 | 1,750 |
| Kentucky | $28,520 | $22,190 to $30,620 | 1,820 |
| Louisiana | $22,240 | $21,040 to $27,340 | 660 |
| Maine | $34,320 | $32,130 to $38,330 | 340 |
| Maryland | $34,520 | $31,540 to $35,880 | 4,160 |
| Massachusetts | $36,650 | $34,510 to $41,600 | 2,640 |
| Michigan | $29,760 | $27,350 to $35,360 | 3,770 |
| Minnesota | $31,870 | $28,990 to $35,360 | 2,130 |
| Mississippi | $24,440 | $22,460 to $27,610 | 330 |
| Missouri | $29,260 | $28,600 to $31,090 | 3,100 |
| Montana | $37,750 | $30,100 to $44,610 | 270 |
| Nebraska | $29,100 | $28,080 to $31,460 | 1,250 |
| Nevada | $30,830 | $28,850 to $33,780 | 2,630 |
| New Hampshire | $32,100 | $29,880 to $37,040 | 280 |
| New Jersey | $34,760 | $32,620 to $37,800 | 5,460 |
| New Mexico | $28,590 | $28,240 to $32,360 | 760 |
| New York | $36,590 | $34,110 to $39,900 | 8,740 |
| North Carolina | $27,310 | $25,140 to $32,380 | 4,850 |
| North Dakota | $28,430 | $25,080 to $29,830 | 580 |
| Ohio | $27,770 | $24,340 to $31,930 | 6,450 |
| Oklahoma | $25,250 | $23,070 to $27,040 | 650 |
| Oregon | $35,030 | $32,810 to $37,610 | 1,860 |
| Pennsylvania | $29,480 | $26,920 to $33,280 | 5,450 |
| Puerto Rico | $21,840 | $21,840 to $23,710 | 140 |
| Rhode Island | $35,770 | $34,070 to $37,440 | 370 |
| South Carolina | $26,210 | $21,360 to $33,170 | 1,900 |
| South Dakota | $30,990 | $28,230 to $34,010 | 490 |
| Tennessee | $28,200 | $26,240 to $31,200 | 2,330 |
| Texas | $29,450 | $26,420 to $33,180 | 11,320 |
| Utah | $28,720 | $25,280 to $36,080 | 2,550 |
| Vermont | $36,030 | $33,390 to $42,140 | 310 |
| Virginia | $30,070 | $28,320 to $34,340 | 8,920 |
| Washington | $37,770 | $35,310 to $44,550 | 4,720 |
| West Virginia | $24,670 | $21,760 to $28,270 | 450 |
| Wisconsin | $28,570 | $26,250 to $33,610 | 3,350 |
| Wyoming | $29,030 | $25,590 to $32,890 | 500 |
Nationally: $33,580. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on 3 of its 15 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Not much | Rescue distressed persons, using rescue techniques and equipment. | Not published |
| AI alone | Patrol or monitor recreational areas, such as trails, slopes, or swimming areas, on foot, in vehicles, or from towers. | Not published |
| Not much | Contact emergency medical personnel in case of serious injury. | Not published |
| Not much | Examine injured persons and administer first aid or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, if necessary, using training and medical supplies and equipment. | Not published |
| AI + software | Warn recreational participants of inclement weather, unsafe areas, or illegal conduct. | Not published |
| AI + software | Complete and maintain records of weather and beach conditions, emergency medical treatments performed, and other relevant incident information. | Not published |
See all 15 tasks
| Not much | Instruct participants in skiing, swimming, or other recreational activities and provide safety precaution information. | Not published |
| Not much | Inspect recreational equipment, such as rope tows, T-bars, J-bars, or chair lifts, for safety hazards and damage or wear. | Not published |
| Not much | Inspect recreational facilities for cleanliness. | Not published |
| Not much | Maintain quality of pool water by testing chemical levels. | Not published |
| Not much | Observe activities in assigned areas, using binoculars, to detect hazards, disturbances, or safety infractions. | Not published |
| Not much | Provide assistance with staff selection, training, and supervision. | Not published |
| Not much | Operate underwater recovery units. O*NET flags this task's ratings as uncertain | Not published |
| Not much | Provide assistance in the safe use of equipment, such as ski lifts. | Not published |
| Not much | Participate in recreational demonstrations to entertain resort guests. | Not published |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 0 of the 15 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 15 tasks fall under 15 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
- #19 Provide general assistance to others, such as customers, patrons, or motorists
- #22 Investigate individuals' background, behavior, or activities
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Notify others of emergencies or problems | |||
| Inspect facilities or equipment | |||
| Provide general assistance to others, such as customers, patrons, or motorists | |||
| Investigate individuals' background, behavior, or activities | |||
| Perform athletic activities for fitness, competition, or artistic purposes | |||
| Maintain operational records | |||
| Monitor environmental conditions | |||
| Train others on operational or work procedures |
Show all 15 activities
| Monitor safety or security of work areas, facilities, or properties | |||
| Operate transportation equipment or vehicles | |||
| Intervene in crisis situations or emergencies | |||
| Record information about environmental conditions | |||
| Teach safety procedures or standards to others | |||
| Inspect commercial, industrial, or production systems or equipment | |||
| Administer emergency medical treatment |
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for lifeguards, ski patrol, and other recreational protective service workers specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 43,983 moves out
- 1 Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors Moderate +7.3% 8%
- 2 Coaches and Scouts Moderate +6.1% 5%
- 3 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 5%
- 4 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 4%
- 5 Office Clerks, General Very high -6.0% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 24,527 moves in
- 1 Exercise Trainers and Group Fitness Instructors Moderate +7.3% 11%
- 2 Coaches and Scouts Moderate +6.1% 10%
- 3 Waiters and Waitresses Moderate +2.0% 4%
- 4 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 4%
- 5 Office Clerks, General Very high -6.0% 3%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
O*NET survey of workers in this occupation
- 39% less than high school
- 21% high school
- 17% postsecondary certificate
- 5% some college
- 16% associate's
- 1% bachelor's
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 33 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 40% less than high school
- 19% high school
- 26% some college
- 5% associate's
- 9% bachelor's
- 2% master's
Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Other protective service workers” · 2,261 people surveyed.
Why the two can differ
O*NET asks about 20 people in each occupation, which makes its shares uncertain, but it reports the exact occupation and counts certificates. The Census survey reaches thousands, but it groups some occupations together and counts degrees only. More in the Guide
Median pay by highest degree full-time, year-round · Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Other protective service workers”
1 program: Environmental/Natural Resources Law Enforcement and Protective Services.
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
>99.5% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| a certification | 56.3% | 5.8% |
| a license | not published | |
| an educational certificate | not published |
Share of jobs whose employer requires it. BLS doesn't say which credential. How to read this
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeships: DOL's list of apprenticeable occupations doesn't include this one.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/33-9092.00