Weighers, Measurers, Checkers, and Samplers, Recordkeeping
Also called: Fluid Operator, Inventory Specialist, Quality Assurance Inspector (QA Inspector), Temperature TakerWeigh, measure, and check materials, supplies, and equipment for the purpose of keeping relevant records. Duties are primarily clerical by nature. Includes workers who collect and keep record of samples of products or materials.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 6 of its 18 tasks, and jobs are projected to shrink 4.8% 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, 7.4% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 9.0 hires for every 10 job openings in transportation, warehousing, and utilities, which employs about 30% 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.9.0 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 | $46,010 | $37,770 to $55,320 | 780 |
| Alaska | $45,760 | $42,840 to $46,440 | 30 |
| Arizona | $45,790 | $41,410 to $49,520 | 650 |
| Arkansas | $45,490 | $38,000 to $47,000 | 1,100 |
| California | $45,730 | $40,430 to $56,300 | 7,510 |
| Colorado | $46,160 | $40,600 to $53,820 | 770 |
| Connecticut | $46,540 | $39,000 to $57,190 | 370 |
| Delaware | $46,120 | $36,610 to $62,170 | 280 |
| Florida | $44,260 | $36,380 to $50,000 | 3,330 |
| Georgia | $45,180 | $37,490 to $50,610 | 2,370 |
| Hawaii | $46,050 | $40,410 to $51,740 | 100 |
| Idaho | $43,720 | $37,050 to $47,080 | 140 |
| Illinois | $48,680 | $38,110 to $57,810 | 1,790 |
| Indiana | $57,210 | $50,770 to $58,910 | 2,590 |
| Iowa | $47,180 | $42,780 to $51,540 | 410 |
| Kansas | $45,760 | $38,360 to $49,800 | 670 |
| Kentucky | $49,140 | $43,570 to $55,040 | 1,300 |
| Louisiana | $48,890 | $37,490 to $52,810 | 380 |
| Maine | $51,120 | $47,880 to $57,180 | 240 |
| Maryland | $46,170 | $38,880 to $57,790 | 450 |
| Massachusetts | $46,880 | $43,280 to $55,470 | 850 |
| Michigan | $43,950 | $36,590 to $51,410 | 700 |
| Minnesota | $49,830 | $47,640 to $60,210 | 250 |
| Mississippi | $38,900 | $37,250 to $44,110 | 780 |
| Missouri | $46,220 | $39,660 to $49,390 | 970 |
| Montana | $40,460 | $38,100 to $46,010 | 230 |
| Nebraska | $49,090 | $41,690 to $52,920 | 630 |
| Nevada | $46,430 | $39,410 to $56,660 | 510 |
| New Hampshire | $44,830 | $39,310 to $53,560 | 380 |
| New Jersey | $47,640 | $41,630 to $61,150 | 1,380 |
| New Mexico | $53,960 | $39,250 to $58,240 | 250 |
| New York | $46,970 | $39,530 to $56,700 | 2,240 |
| North Carolina | $43,680 | $37,820 to $49,420 | 1,560 |
| North Dakota | not published | not published | 110 |
| Ohio | $45,230 | $36,430 to $58,970 | 2,660 |
| Oklahoma | $37,350 | $35,790 to $47,410 | 710 |
| Oregon | $54,500 | $45,860 to $54,500 | 800 |
| Pennsylvania | $49,480 | $44,380 to $60,710 | 2,100 |
| Puerto Rico | $26,820 | $24,440 to $39,400 | 160 |
| Rhode Island | $40,300 | $37,970 to $45,710 | not published |
| South Carolina | $45,760 | $39,580 to $48,410 | 940 |
| South Dakota | $44,430 | $39,090 to $48,360 | 330 |
| Tennessee | $47,330 | $39,250 to $51,160 | 1,040 |
| Texas | $47,710 | $39,250 to $56,310 | 4,460 |
| Utah | $49,830 | $44,030 to $54,080 | 270 |
| Vermont | $46,440 | $45,070 to $54,300 | 120 |
| Virginia | $45,360 | $37,120 to $54,260 | 1,570 |
| Washington | $48,920 | $40,100 to $55,990 | 790 |
| West Virginia | $31,210 | $27,190 to $38,740 | 330 |
| Wisconsin | $48,030 | $42,820 to $57,180 | 680 |
| Wyoming | $62,840 | $43,920 to $64,550 | 60 |
Nationally: $46,380. 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 6 of its 18 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Not much | Weigh or measure materials, equipment, or products to maintain relevant records, using volume meters, scales, rules, or calipers. | under 0.01% |
| AI + software | Document quantity, quality, type, weight, test result data, and value of materials or products to maintain shipping, receiving, and production records and files. | Not published |
| AI alone | Signal or instruct other workers to weigh, move, or check products. | Not published |
| Not much | Examine products or materials, parts, subassemblies, and packaging for damage, defects, or shortages, using specification sheets, gauges, and standards charts. | Not published |
| Not much | Collect or prepare measurement, weight, or identification labels and attach them to products. | Not published |
| Not much | Collect product samples and prepare them for laboratory analysis or testing. | Not published |
See all 18 tasks
| Not much | Maintain, monitor, and clean work areas, such as recycling collection sites, drop boxes, counters and windows, and areas around scale houses. | Not published |
| Not much | Compare product labels, tags, or tickets, shipping manifests, purchase orders, and bills of lading to verify accuracy of shipment contents, quality specifications, or weights. | Not published |
| AI + software | Inspect products and examination records to determine the number of defects per worker and the reasons for examiners' rejections. | Not published |
| AI + software | Remove from stock products or loads not meeting quality standards, and notify supervisors or appropriate departments of discrepancies or shortages. | Not published |
| Not much | Count or estimate quantities of materials, parts, or products received or shipped. | Not published |
| Not much | Store samples of finished products in labeled cartons and record their location. | Not published |
| Not much | Sort products or materials into predetermined sequences or groupings for display, packing, shipping, or storage. | under 0.01% |
| Not much | Unload or unpack incoming shipments. | Not published |
| AI alone | Communicate with customers and vendors to exchange information regarding products, materials, and services. | 0.02% |
| AI alone | Fill orders for products and samples, following order tickets, and forward or mail items. | Not published |
| Not much | Transport materials, products, or samples to processing, shipping, or storage areas, manually or using conveyors, pumps, or hand trucks. | Not published |
| Not much | Operate scalehouse computers to obtain weight information about incoming shipments such as those from waste haulers. | 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. 3 of the 18 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 18 tasks fall under 19 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.
- #7 Explain technical details of products or services
- #13 Operate computer systems or computerized equipment
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inspect completed work or finished products | |||
| Explain technical details of products or services | |||
| Operate computer systems or computerized equipment | |||
| Communicate with others about operational plans or activities | |||
| Inspect characteristics or conditions of materials or products | |||
| Measure physical characteristics of materials, products, or equipment | |||
| Sort materials or products | |||
| Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas |
Show all 19 activities
| Mark materials or objects for identification | |||
| Maintain operational records | |||
| Train others on operational or work procedures | |||
| Process shipments or mail | |||
| Collect samples of products or materials | |||
| Package objects | |||
| Move materials, equipment, or supplies | |||
| Prepare specimens or materials for testing | |||
| Signal others to coordinate work activities | |||
| Stock supplies or products | |||
| Load products, materials, or equipment for transportation or further processing |
How people in this work use Claude
What people in this work made with Claude % of conversations
- An explanation or answer51%
- An analysis or summary21%
- Data or a spreadsheet6%
- An email or message5%
- Math or a calculation3%
How they worked with Claude
24% 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 weighers, measurers, checkers, and samplers, recordkeeping 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 55,997 moves out
- 1 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 6%
- 2 First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers High -3.7% 4%
- 3 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 3%
- 4 Transportation, Storage, and Distribution Managers Very high +6.1% 3%
- 5 General and Operations Managers High +5.0% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 53,406 moves in
- 1 Customer Service Representatives Very high -5.3% 5%
- 2 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 4%
- 3 First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers High -3.7% 4%
- 4 Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand Low +1.8% 4%
- 5 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 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
- 22% less than high school
- 50% high school
- 4% postsecondary certificate
- 19% some college
- 5% associate's
- 1% bachelor's
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 33 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 11% less than high school
- 40% high school
- 22% some college
- 8% associate's
- 14% bachelor's
- 4% master's
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 899 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
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
BLS publishes no credential figures for this occupation.
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
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