First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers
Also called: Department Manager, Meat Department Manager, Shift Manager, Store ManagerDirectly supervise and coordinate activities of retail sales workers in an establishment or department. Duties may include management functions, such as purchasing, budgeting, accounting, and personnel work, in addition to supervisory duties.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 14 of its 21 tasks, and jobs are projected to shrink 3.7% 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, 3.1% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 9.1 hires for every 10 job openings in retail trade, which employs about 89% 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.9.1 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 | $44,860 | $30,530 to $59,980 | 25,020 |
| Alaska | $57,080 | $47,130 to $69,020 | 3,030 |
| Arizona | $48,010 | $40,110 to $59,530 | 20,260 |
| Arkansas | $36,950 | $30,420 to $51,810 | 11,050 |
| California | $54,870 | $44,920 to $63,160 | 109,180 |
| Colorado | $58,200 | $47,020 to $70,890 | 26,390 |
| Connecticut | $56,510 | $44,830 to $68,750 | 13,910 |
| Delaware | $55,710 | $45,350 to $64,150 | 4,200 |
| District of Columbia | $58,470 | $47,470 to $75,920 | 1,470 |
| Florida | $48,410 | $37,800 to $62,050 | 80,470 |
| Georgia | $46,150 | $36,390 to $60,740 | 36,900 |
| Guam | $29,720 | $26,940 to $37,040 | 690 |
| Hawaii | $55,850 | $45,660 to $65,500 | 6,580 |
| Idaho | $46,140 | $37,490 to $59,680 | 7,330 |
| Illinois | $47,990 | $39,270 to $61,550 | 36,940 |
| Indiana | $47,790 | $37,470 to $60,500 | 22,090 |
| Iowa | $46,610 | $37,990 to $60,000 | 9,970 |
| Kansas | $46,950 | $36,890 to $59,530 | 9,250 |
| Kentucky | $40,080 | $30,310 to $56,150 | 18,290 |
| Louisiana | $43,860 | $30,530 to $57,920 | 16,910 |
| Maine | $53,580 | $46,660 to $64,060 | 5,760 |
| Maryland | $47,000 | $38,790 to $59,370 | 23,080 |
| Massachusetts | $57,490 | $45,970 to $67,930 | 20,240 |
| Michigan | $46,430 | $37,030 to $59,080 | 30,750 |
| Minnesota | $48,770 | $40,860 to $61,490 | 21,530 |
| Mississippi | $45,760 | $33,490 to $57,440 | 13,020 |
| Missouri | $46,860 | $36,930 to $59,830 | 19,160 |
| Montana | $49,300 | $38,940 to $63,360 | 5,830 |
| Nebraska | $45,280 | $37,750 to $53,060 | 7,010 |
| Nevada | $46,900 | $37,910 to $60,030 | 10,500 |
| New Hampshire | $51,650 | $44,010 to $63,760 | 6,610 |
| New Jersey | $57,320 | $46,490 to $70,460 | 31,160 |
| New Mexico | $46,550 | $37,770 to $60,250 | 7,660 |
| New York | $58,300 | $45,800 to $71,950 | 50,830 |
| North Carolina | $47,760 | $38,200 to $61,460 | 39,890 |
| North Dakota | $49,350 | $43,810 to $63,550 | 2,640 |
| Ohio | $45,680 | $35,430 to $58,500 | 39,110 |
| Oklahoma | $45,430 | $34,380 to $60,010 | 15,340 |
| Oregon | $50,660 | $44,030 to $64,550 | 13,940 |
| Pennsylvania | $46,690 | $37,500 to $60,070 | 40,970 |
| Puerto Rico | $30,090 | $26,380 to $37,520 | 12,700 |
| Rhode Island | $58,570 | $46,250 to $74,380 | 3,880 |
| South Carolina | $47,770 | $36,780 to $61,000 | 19,390 |
| South Dakota | $56,680 | $45,790 to $72,190 | 3,660 |
| Tennessee | $47,880 | $36,440 to $62,380 | 26,470 |
| Texas | $46,280 | $34,750 to $60,870 | 103,410 |
| Utah | $47,470 | $37,630 to $61,840 | 10,270 |
| Vermont | $55,760 | $46,550 to $62,880 | 2,310 |
| Virgin Islands | $44,880 | $36,330 to $56,570 | 440 |
| Virginia | $47,990 | $38,770 to $61,400 | 32,250 |
| Washington | $60,750 | $49,110 to $75,830 | 27,640 |
| West Virginia | $39,740 | $32,750 to $53,900 | 7,420 |
| Wisconsin | $49,550 | $40,660 to $62,800 | 17,750 |
| Wyoming | $45,980 | $36,170 to $61,430 | 3,060 |
Nationally: $48,520. 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 14 of its 21 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| AI alone | Provide customer service by greeting and assisting customers and responding to customer inquiries and complaints. | 0.02% |
| Not much | Direct and supervise employees engaged in sales, inventory-taking, reconciling cash receipts, or in performing services for customers. | Not published |
| AI + software | Monitor sales activities to ensure that customers receive satisfactory service and quality goods. | Not published |
| AI + software | Assign employees to specific duties. | Not published |
| Not much | Instruct staff on how to handle difficult and complicated sales. | under 0.01% |
| Not much | Perform work activities of subordinates, such as cleaning and organizing shelves and displays and selling merchandise. | Not published |
See all 21 tasks
| AI + software | Examine merchandise to ensure that it is correctly priced and displayed and that it functions as advertised. | Not published |
| AI + software | Enforce safety, health, and security rules. | Not published |
| Not much | Inventory stock and reorder when inventory drops to a specified level. | Not published |
| AI + software | Keep records of purchases, sales, and requisitions. | Not published |
| Not much | Examine products purchased for resale or received for storage to assess the condition of each product or item. | under 0.01% |
| AI + software | Estimate consumer demand and determine the types and amounts of goods to be sold. | Not published |
| Not much | Review inventory and sales records to prepare reports for management and budget departments. | under 0.01% |
| AI + software | Plan and prepare work schedules and keep records of employees' work schedules and time cards. | Not published |
| AI alone | Establish and implement policies, goals, objectives, and procedures for the department. | Not published |
| AI + software | Confer with company officials to develop methods and procedures to increase sales, expand markets, and promote business. | 0.01% |
| Not much | Hire, train, and evaluate personnel in sales or marketing establishments, promoting or firing workers when appropriate. | Not published |
| AI + software | Plan and coordinate advertising campaigns and sales promotions and prepare merchandise displays and advertising copy. | 0.01% |
| AI + software | Plan budgets and authorize payments and merchandise returns. | Not published |
| AI alone | Formulate pricing policies for merchandise, according to profitability requirements. | Not published |
| AI alone | Establish credit policies and operating procedures. | 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. 6 of the 21 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 21 tasks fall under 21 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.
- #3 Respond to customer problems or inquiries
- #19 Provide general assistance to others, such as customers, patrons, or motorists
- #32 Monitor external affairs, trends, or events
- and 1 more, in the table below
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Develop educational programs, plans, or procedures | |||
| Arrange displays or decorations | |||
| Inspect characteristics or conditions of materials or products | |||
| Develop business or marketing plans | |||
| Train others on operational or work procedures | |||
| Assign work to others | |||
| Monitor resources or inventories | |||
| Supervise personnel activities |
Show all 21 activities
| Respond to customer problems or inquiries | |||
| Provide general assistance to others, such as customers, patrons, or motorists | |||
| Monitor external affairs, trends, or events | |||
| Purchase goods or services | |||
| Monitor financial data or activities | |||
| Manage budgets or finances | |||
| Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas | |||
| Prepare financial documents, reports, or budgets | |||
| Sell products or services | |||
| Direct organizational operations, activities, or procedures | |||
| Maintain sales or financial records | |||
| Monitor safety or security of work areas, facilities, or properties | |||
| Authorize business activities or transactions |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- An explanation or answer24%
- A plan or strategy16%
- A document or report13%
- Marketing or social media content13%
- Advice or a recommendation7%
How they worked with Claude
60% of these conversations were about work. Anthropic Economic Index, May 2026.
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 first-line supervisors of retail sales 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 1,117,393 moves out
- 1 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 9%
- 2 General and Operations Managers High +5.0% 7%
- 3 Sales Managers High +4.5% 4%
- 4 Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products Very high -0.9% 4%
- 5 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 934,051 moves in
- 1 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 7%
- 2 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 6%
- 3 General and Operations Managers High +5.0% 5%
- 4 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 4%
- 5 Sales Managers High +4.5% 4%
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
- 14% less than high school
- 52% high school
- 9% postsecondary certificate
- 6% some college
- 19% associate's
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 30 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 6% less than high school
- 31% high school
- 27% some college
- 10% associate's
- 21% bachelor's
- 5% master's
- 1% professional degree
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 27,598 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 this occupation
8 programs, such as Floriculture/Floristry Operations and Management, Consumer Merchandising/Retailing Management and E-Commerce/Electronic Commerce.
See all
- Floriculture/Floristry Operations and Management
- Consumer Merchandising/Retailing Management
- E-Commerce/Electronic Commerce
- Retail Management
- Retailing and Retail Operations
- Selling Skills and Sales Operations
- General Merchandising, Sales, and Related Marketing Operations, Other
- Special Products Marketing Operations
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
24.5% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| a license | 1.4% | 19.1% |
| an educational certificate | <0.5% | 2.8% |
| a certification | 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
- Apprenticeship Finder ↗ DOL lists 4 registered apprenticeships in this occupation. Apprenticeship.gov can't be linked to one occupation, so search for “First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers” there.
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
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