Cutters and Trimmers, Hand
Also called: Cloth Cutter, Leather Cutter, Offline Cutter, TrimmerUse hand tools or hand-held power tools to cut and trim a variety of manufactured items, such as carpet, fabric, stone, glass, or rubber.
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What the data says: AI couldn't halve the time on any of its 18 tasks, and jobs are projected to shrink 18.9% 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, 4.6% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Cutting workers”
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 8.4 hires for every 10 job openings in nondurable goods manufacturing, which employs about 37% 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.8.4 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 | $35,160 | $30,450 to $38,380 | not published |
| Arizona | $31,110 | $31,110 to $36,290 | not published |
| California | $37,840 | $35,640 to $42,720 | 770 |
| Connecticut | $35,970 | $35,970 to $37,960 | 50 |
| Florida | $35,150 | $31,820 to $46,490 | 150 |
| Georgia | $37,480 | $27,040 to $41,970 | 290 |
| Illinois | $35,360 | $34,640 to $40,200 | 30 |
| Indiana | $41,740 | $35,880 to $49,390 | 360 |
| Iowa | $48,580 | $48,580 to $48,600 | not published |
| Kansas | $38,800 | $35,200 to $41,090 | 130 |
| Massachusetts | $39,970 | $34,880 to $44,810 | 110 |
| Michigan | $46,830 | $39,630 to $49,210 | 50 |
| Minnesota | $46,570 | $37,340 to $51,060 | 40 |
| Mississippi | $37,280 | $33,230 to $39,000 | 90 |
| Missouri | $40,560 | $37,500 to $46,110 | 110 |
| Nebraska | $48,830 | $41,530 to $52,840 | 60 |
| New Jersey | $34,600 | $32,220 to $42,620 | 380 |
| New York | $46,190 | $38,160 to $55,560 | 220 |
| North Carolina | $47,910 | $39,120 to $58,010 | 1,060 |
| Ohio | $35,360 | $32,600 to $45,100 | 120 |
| Oklahoma | $34,910 | $34,890 to $37,750 | not published |
| Pennsylvania | $35,560 | $28,820 to $38,260 | 140 |
| Rhode Island | $48,100 | $42,370 to $48,100 | 50 |
| South Carolina | $39,340 | $36,020 to $40,970 | 50 |
| Tennessee | $27,030 | $20,550 to $32,880 | 230 |
| Texas | $29,130 | $26,620 to $37,240 | 740 |
| Vermont | $48,670 | $38,650 to $65,930 | not published |
| Virginia | $32,470 | $30,160 to $36,050 | 60 |
| Washington | $35,960 | $35,440 to $41,990 | not published |
| Wisconsin | $39,010 | $31,570 to $39,610 | 60 |
Nationally: $38,020. 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 none of its 18 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Not much | Mark or discard items with defects such as spots, stains, scars, snags, chips, scratches, or unacceptable shapes or finishes. | Not published |
| Not much | Cut, shape, and trim materials, such as textiles, food, glass, stone, and metal, using knives, scissors, and other hand tools, portable power tools, or bench-mounted tools. | Not published |
| Not much | Mark cutting lines around patterns or templates, or follow layout points, using squares, rules, and straightedges, and chalk, pencils, or scribes. | Not published |
| Not much | Trim excess material or cut threads off finished products, such as cutting loose ends of plastic off a manufactured toy for a smoother finish. | Not published |
| Not much | Position templates or measure materials to locate specified points of cuts or to obtain maximum yields, using rules, scales, or patterns. | Not published |
| Not much | Read work orders to determine dimensions, cutting locations, and quantities to cut. | Not published |
See all 18 tasks
| Not much | Fold or shape materials before or after cutting them. | Not published |
| Not much | Separate materials or products according to size, weight, type, condition, color, or shade. | under 0.01% |
| Not much | Mark identification numbers, trademarks, grades, marketing data, sizes, or model numbers on products. | Not published |
| Not much | Unroll, lay out, attach, or mount materials or items on cutting tables or machines. | Not published |
| Not much | Replace or sharpen dulled cutting tools such as saws. | Not published |
| Not much | Stack cut items and load them on racks or conveyors or onto trucks. | Not published |
| Not much | Adjust guides and stops to control depths and widths of cuts. | Not published |
| Not much | Count or weigh and bundle items. | Not published |
| Not much | Clean, treat, buff, or polish finished items, using grinders, brushes, chisels, and cleaning solutions and polishing materials. | Not published |
| Not much | Lower table-mounted cutters such as knife blades, cutting wheels, or saws to cut items to specified sizes. | Not published |
| Not much | Transport items to work or storage areas, using carts. | Not published |
| Not much | Route items to provide cutouts for parts, using portable routers, grinders, and hand tools. | 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. 1 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 18 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.
- #8 Read documents or materials to inform work processes
| 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 cutting or grinding equipment | |||
| Measure physical characteristics of materials, products, or equipment | |||
| Mark materials or objects for identification | |||
| Cut materials | |||
| Position workpieces or materials on equipment | |||
| Read documents or materials to inform work processes | |||
| Adjust equipment to ensure adequate performance | |||
| Maintain tools or equipment |
Show all 18 activities
| Clean workpieces, finished products, or other objects | |||
| Sort materials or products | |||
| Inspect completed work or finished products | |||
| Position tools or equipment | |||
| Shape materials to create products | |||
| Repair tools or equipment | |||
| Position materials or components for assembly | |||
| Smooth surfaces of objects or equipment | |||
| Move materials, equipment, or supplies | |||
| 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
- Data or a spreadsheet24%
- Configuration or infrastructure19%
- A script or snippet12%
- An analysis or summary8%
- A document or report7%
How they worked with Claude
53% 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 cutters and trimmers, hand 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 304 moves in
- 1 Massage Therapists Low +15.3% 7%
- 2 Computer Systems Analysts Very high +7.9% 5%
- 3 Computer Programmers Very high -7.3% 4%
- 4 Retail Salespersons Very high -0.3% 4%
- 5 Computer, Automated Teller, and Office Machine Repairers High -3.0% 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
- 73% less than high school
- 16% high school
- 6% some college
- 5% associate's
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 20 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 21% less than high school
- 51% high school
- 17% some college
- 7% associate's
- 3% bachelor's
- 1% master's
Census ACS 2024, all workers in the Census group “Cutting workers” · 651 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 “Cutting workers”
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
<0.5% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| a license | <0.5% | 19.1% |
| a certification | <0.5% | 5.8% |
| an educational certificate | <0.5% | 2.8% |
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 “Cutters and Trimmers, Hand” 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
See it online, and explore any career: https://www.pathmosaic.com/card/51-9031.00