Rock Splitters, Quarry
Also called: Driller, Quarry Worker, Rock Splitter, Stone SplitterSeparate blocks of rough dimension stone from quarry mass using jackhammers, wedges, or chop saws.
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What the data says: AI could halve the time on 1 of its 9 tasks, and jobs are projected to grow 5.8% 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, 7.0% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Other extraction workers”
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 8.7 hires for every 10 job openings in mining and logging, which employs about 91% 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.8.7 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Arkansas | not published | not published | 150 |
| California | $61,620 | $52,660 to $75,260 | 290 |
| Colorado | $46,590 | $45,340 to $49,000 | 100 |
| Georgia | $42,320 | $41,720 to $48,340 | 30 |
| Idaho | $35,880 | $30,210 to $44,090 | 90 |
| Indiana | $49,890 | $48,040 to $58,630 | 220 |
| Kansas | $42,560 | $39,110 to $43,850 | not published |
| Kentucky | $44,000 | $40,100 to $48,710 | 310 |
| Massachusetts | $66,000 | $48,280 to $70,940 | 90 |
| Minnesota | $57,970 | $55,140 to $60,440 | 80 |
| Missouri | $60,990 | $56,720 to $65,040 | 280 |
| Montana | $46,260 | $39,980 to $50,570 | 100 |
| North Carolina | $56,320 | $49,640 to $62,940 | 80 |
| Ohio | $48,560 | $46,240 to $48,950 | 50 |
| Oklahoma | $45,040 | $39,520 to $49,100 | 200 |
| Oregon | $59,760 | $50,510 to $74,230 | 50 |
| Pennsylvania | $48,580 | $46,880 to $54,560 | 260 |
| Puerto Rico | $22,810 | $22,280 to $26,320 | 70 |
| Tennessee | $48,160 | $44,550 to $56,880 | 300 |
| Vermont | $65,420 | $65,420 to $69,440 | not published |
| Wisconsin | $62,000 | $56,180 to $88,340 | 40 |
Nationally: $48,740. 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 1 of its 9 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Not much | Remove pieces of stone from larger masses, using jackhammers, wedges, and other tools. | Not published |
| Not much | Insert wedges and feathers into holes, and drive wedges with sledgehammers to split stone sections from masses. | Not published |
| AI + software | Locate grain line patterns to determine how rocks will split when cut. | Not published |
| Not much | Mark dimensions or outlines on stone prior to cutting, using rules and chalk lines. | Not published |
| Not much | Drill holes along outlines, using jackhammers. | Not published |
| Not much | Drill holes into sides of stones broken from masses, insert dogs or attach slings, and direct removal of stones. | Not published |
See all 9 tasks
| Not much | Set charges of explosives to split rock. | Not published |
| Not much | Cut slabs of stone into sheets that will be used for floors or counters. | Not published |
| Not much | Cut grooves along outlines, using chisels. | 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 9 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 9 tasks fall under 6 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.
| 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operate construction or excavation equipment | |||
| Cut materials | |||
| Inspect characteristics or conditions of materials or products | |||
| Position materials or components for assembly | |||
| Drill holes in earth or materials | |||
| Direct construction or extraction activities |
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 rock splitters, quarry 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 in from
of 38 moves in
- 1 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 23%
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
- 50% less than high school
- 31% high school
- 19% not published
O*NET marks 19% of the answers as too uncertain to publish, so the parts shown don't add up to 100%.
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 15 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 19% less than high school
- 50% high school
- 19% some college
- 5% associate's
- 6% bachelor's
- 1% master's
- 1% professional degree
Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Other extraction workers” · 526 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 extraction workers”
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
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/47-5051.00