Pest Control Workers

Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance Occupations

O*NET-SOC code: 37-2021.00

Apply or release chemical solutions or toxic gases and set traps to kill or remove pests and vermin that infest buildings and surrounding areas.

Data source: BLSPublished: 2026-08
Moderate· relative
LowFour relative bandsVery high
Group-level value
Scale, basis and source
Four relative bands (Low / Moderate / High / Very high)
831 detailed occupations in the BLS Employment Projections table. Assigned per National Employment Matrix (NEM) code, so occupations sharing a NEM code carry the same band
Source dataset (XLSX download)
Data source: AnthropicPublished: 2026-03
0.046
0.000Range of values carried here0.745
Scale, basis and source
Observed exposure index, 0–1 as published
Mapped onto O*NET tasks
Published per SOC 2018 occupation; every O*NET occupation with the same SOC 2018 code carries this value
Source dataset (CSV download)
Data source: ILOPublished: 2025
0.13
0.09Range of values carried here0.70
Group-level value
Scale, basis and source
Generative AI exposure index, 0–1 as published
Published per ISCO-08 unit group. Linked to this occupation, wholly or in part, by applying U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics crosswalks (ISCO-08 to 2010 SOC, 2010 SOC to 2018 SOC) as published
Source dataset (PDF download)

What kind of figure this source publishes

The BLS category is a relative rank, not an absolute level, and it is not a first-hand measurement: it groups an occupation's percentile ranks across several published studies into four bands. It is not an employment or wage forecast, not a probability of adoption, and it does not separate automation from augmentation.

Task-level exposure

Exposed tasks only

15 rated tasks · 4 tasks with β ≥ 0.5 (26.7%)

β = direct exposure (E1) + 0.5 × exposure when tools are available (E2), per the source repository's definition.

Source unit: O*NET 27.2 tasks → O*NET 31.0 occupation code
1 rated task is not in the O*NET 31.0 task list; its score is kept as published for O*NET 27.2.

Source: OpenAI "GPTs are GPTs" exposure rubric
Release: gh-main-0471612
License: MIT License, Copyright (c) 2024 OpenAI

Task (O*NET 20.1)	Claude.aiRaw / share %	APIRaw / share %
Recommend treatment and prevention methods for pest problems to clients. 37-2021.00	0.0057100.0	—0
Record work activities performed.	—0	0.0031100.0
Not observed on any surface — 13 task(s) — These tasks have no row in the source for this release. The 0 in the share row is a display-stage composition ratio; absence is what the — in the raw row states.
Inspect premises to identify infestation source and extent of damage to property, wall, or roof porosity and access to infested locations.	—0	—0
Spray or dust chemical solutions, powders, or gases into rooms, onto clothing, furnishings, or wood, or over marshlands, ditches, or catch basins.	—0	—0
Clean work site after completion of job.	—0	—0
Direct or assist other workers in treatment or extermination processes to eliminate or control rodents, insects, or weeds.	—0	—0
Drive truck equipped with power spraying equipment.	—0	—0
Study preliminary reports or diagrams of infested area and determine treatment type required to eliminate and prevent recurrence of infestation.	—0	—0
Measure area dimensions requiring treatment, calculate fumigant requirements, and estimate cost for service.	—0	—0
Post warning signs and lock building doors to secure area to be fumigated.	—0	—0
Cut or bore openings in building or surrounding concrete, access infested areas, insert nozzle, and inject pesticide to impregnate ground.	—0	—0
Dig up and burn, or spray weeds with herbicides.	—0	—0
Set mechanical traps or place poisonous paste or bait in sewers, burrows, or ditches.	—0	—0
Clean and remove blockages from infested areas to facilitate spraying procedures and provide drainage, using brooms, mops, shovels, or rakes.	—0	—0
Position and fasten edges of tarpaulins over building and tape vents to ensure air-tight environment and check for leaks.	—0	—0

Values in this tab are predicted labels, not observations. Eloundou et al. (2023) published two rating regimes — human raters and GPT-4 — and the β shown here is derived from the GPT-4 rater basis alone; the same task can take a different value under the other regime. The unit and the meaning differ from the observed shares (%) in the other tabs, so do not place them on the same axis.

Task (O*NET 27.2)	βE1 + 0.5 × E2
Record work activities performed. O*NET Task ID 7974	1.0
Measure area dimensions requiring treatment, calculate fumigant requirements, and estimate cost for service. O*NET Task ID 20760	1.0
Study preliminary reports or diagrams of infested area and determine treatment type required to eliminate and prevent recurrence of infestation. O*NET Task ID 7983	0.5
Recommend treatment and prevention methods for pest problems to clients. O*NET Task ID 20759	0.5
Inspect premises to identify infestation source and extent of damage to property, wall, or roof porosity and access to infested locations. O*NET Task ID 7975	0.0
Spray or dust chemical solutions, powders, or gases into rooms, onto clothing, furnishings, or wood, or over marshlands, ditches, or catch basins. O*NET Task ID 7976	0.0
Clean work site after completion of job. O*NET Task ID 7977	0.0
Direct, or assist other workers in, treatment or extermination processes to eliminate or control rodents, insects, or weeds. O*NET Task ID 7978	0.0
Drive truck equipped with power spraying equipment. O*NET Task ID 7979	0.0
Post warning signs and lock building doors to secure area to be fumigated. O*NET Task ID 7981	0.0
Cut or bore openings in building or surrounding concrete, access infested areas, insert nozzle, and inject pesticide to impregnate ground. O*NET Task ID 7982	0.0
Dig up and burn weeds, or spray them with herbicides. O*NET Task ID 7984	0.0
Set mechanical traps, or place poisonous paste or bait in sewers, burrows, or ditches. O*NET Task ID 7985	0.0
Clean and remove blockages from infested areas to facilitate spraying procedures and provide drainage, using brooms, mops, shovels, or rakes. O*NET Task ID 7986	0.0
Position and fasten edges of tarpaulins over building, and tape vents to ensure air-tight environment and to check for leaks. O*NET Task ID 7987	0.0

β = E1 + 0.5 × E2 · E1 = tasks where direct LLM access alone cuts time by at least 50%, E2 = tasks where software built on top of an LLM cuts time by at least 50%. Values take only 0 / 0.5 / 1.0.

Data sources & licenses — O*NET®, Anthropic Economic Index, Eloundou et al. (2023): see full notices on the Credits page

All O*NET 31.0 task statements (14)

All O*NET 31.0 task statements for this occupation (English, as published; task type core or supplemental). Exposure values are not listed here; they are in the table above, next to each task statement as worded in the O*NET version each source used.

Task (O*NET 31.0)	Type
Record work activities performed.	Core
Inspect premises to identify infestation source and extent of damage to property, wall, or roof porosity and access to infested locations.	Core
Spray or dust chemical solutions, powders, or gases into rooms, onto clothing, furnishings, or wood, or over marshlands, ditches, or catch basins.	Core
Clean work site after completion of job.	Core
Direct, or assist other workers in, treatment or extermination processes to eliminate or control rodents, insects, or weeds.	Core
Drive truck equipped with power spraying equipment.	Core
Study preliminary reports or diagrams of infested area and determine treatment type required to eliminate and prevent recurrence of infestation.	Core
Recommend treatment and prevention methods for pest problems to clients.	Core
Measure area dimensions requiring treatment, calculate fumigant requirements, and estimate cost for service.	Core
Post warning signs and lock building doors to secure area to be fumigated.	Supplemental
Cut or bore openings in building or surrounding concrete, access infested areas, insert nozzle, and inject pesticide to impregnate ground.	Supplemental
Set mechanical traps, or place poisonous paste or bait in sewers, burrows, or ditches.	Supplemental
Clean and remove blockages from infested areas to facilitate spraying procedures and provide drainage, using brooms, mops, shovels, or rakes.	Supplemental
Position and fasten edges of tarpaulins over building, and tape vents to ensure air-tight environment and to check for leaks.	Supplemental

Anthropic, "What work can robots do?"2026-09

0.68/ 3· Robot exposure index

0 none3 unstructured settings

Scale, basis and source

Each physical task is graded 0–3 by the setting in which robots that have been deployed, sold or demonstrated could do it (0 none · 1 purpose-built robot settings such as a fenced machine cell or a bottling line · 2 structured facilities such as a hospital pharmacy or a container port · 3 unstructured settings such as a private home or a construction site), and the grades are averaged by share of working time

Physical tasks among this occupation's O*NET 29.3 tasks

Anthropic estimated the grades and time shares with Claude Opus 5 using web search, as of 2026.

Source dataset

The robot exposure index is a different measure from the AI exposure figures on this site and cannot be added to or compared with them. It does not measure actual adoption or cost, and 0 also covers occupations with no physical tasks.

Tier of each physical task

Robot environment tiers (E0–E3)

E0 noneDetails
Rated not doable by robots that have been deployed, sold or demonstrated, even in a purpose-built setting
E1 purpose-built robot settingsDetails
Rated doable in a setting built around the machine, such as a fenced machine cell or a bottling line
E2 structured facilitiesDetails
Rated doable in a human work facility that an institution keeps to a working standard, such as a hospital pharmacy or a container port
E3 unstructured settingsDetails
Rated doable in a setting that no institution keeps to a working standard, such as a private home or a construction site

Only tasks classified as physical are listed; other tasks have no tier in the source.

Task (O*NET 29.3)	Robot environment tier
Inspect premises to identify infestation source and extent of damage to property, wall, or roof porosity and access to infested locations.	E0 none
Spray or dust chemical solutions, powders, or gases into rooms, onto clothing, furnishings, or wood, or over marshlands, ditches, or catch basins.	E0 none
Clean work site after completion of job.	E2 structured facilities
Direct, or assist other workers in, treatment or extermination processes to eliminate or control rodents, insects, or weeds.	E0 none
Drive truck equipped with power spraying equipment.	E3 unstructured settings
Measure area dimensions requiring treatment, calculate fumigant requirements, and estimate cost for service.	E2 structured facilities
Post warning signs and lock building doors to secure area to be fumigated.	E1 purpose-built robot settings
Cut or bore openings in building or surrounding concrete, access infested areas, insert nozzle, and inject pesticide to impregnate ground.	E1 purpose-built robot settings
Set mechanical traps, or place poisonous paste or bait in sewers, burrows, or ditches.	E0 none
Clean and remove blockages from infested areas to facilitate spraying procedures and provide drainage, using brooms, mops, shovels, or rakes.	E0 none

Employment outlook (BLS)

Employment, 2025: 109K
Projected employment, 2035: 115K
Change (2025–35): +5.5%
Median annual wage, 2025: $45,250
Typical education needed for entry: High school diploma or equivalent

lowest $30,890median wage across 825 detailed occupations, BLS EP 2025–35highest $559,030

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025–35 — Employment by detailed occupation, 2025 and projected 2035

Korea classification links (KSCO)

Links from the current release of the Korea Occupation Direct Crosswalk v1.1, made by AI Changing Work. Relation values are read from the O*NET-SOC occupation side.

KSCO code	KSCO title	Relation	Status
79920	방역원	Same scope	confirmed

Relation and status definitions(kr-direct v1.1)

ILO occupational description

AI Changing Work links the ISCO-08 unit groups below to this occupation by applying the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics crosswalks (2018 SOC to 2010 SOC, 2010 SOC to ISCO-08) as published, without case-by-case selection; each link may be whole or partial.

ISCO-08 7544Fumigators and Other Pest and Weed Controllers

The definition, tasks and examples below are the ILO's description of that unit group, not of this occupation.

Fumigators and other pest and weed controllers use chemicals to remove harmful insects, small animals, wild plants and other unwanted organisms, to prevent damage to crops and to buildings and other structures and their surroundings, and to prevent health risks.

Tasks

(a) operating and monitoring equipment for spraying pests and weeds;
(b) mixing chemicals according to instructions;
(c) covering areas to specified depths with pesticides, applying knowledge of weather conditions, droplet sizes, elevation-to-distance ratios, and obstructions;
(d) spraying or releasing chemical solutions or toxic gases and setting traps to kill pests and vermin, such as mice, termites and roaches;
(e) lifting, pushing and swinging nozzles, hoses and tubes in order to direct spray over designated areas;
(f) filling sprayer tanks with water and chemicals;
(g) cleaning and servicing machinery to ensure operating efficiency.

Example occupations

Fumigator · Pest controller · Weed controller

Sources: ILO ISCO-08 — details: Credits

ESCO occupational vocabulary

Each entry below is matched to this occupation in the published ESCO-O*NET Crosswalk (version 1, 2022). The match types are that crosswalk's; the wording is AI Changing Work's.

pest management workerESCO 7544.1Same scope
Pest management workers identify, eliminate and repel pests by applying specific chemical solutions, setting traps and other equipment to control pests such as rats, mice and cockroaches. They apply pesticides and clean and remove pests after extermination. Their tasks might include elimination of fungi, moisture or insects. They inform and advise clients, residents and facility owners on after care and preventive methods to keep away pests.
pesticides sprayerESCO 7544.1.1Overlapping, not the same
Pesticides sprayers mix pesticides, insecticides, fungicides, and other chemical solutions, and apply them via technical equipment such as sprayers on trees, plants and lawns. They clean and maintain operating machinery and ensure the overall safety in designated areas.

Source: European Commission, DG EMPL — ESCO API 2026-08-08 (bridge v1.2.1)

License: CC BY 4.0 (EU Reuse Notice)

View original

ESCO reuse terms and the modification notice are in Credits.

France classification links (ROME)

AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and ROME 4.0 job profiles, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side. Links marked “provisional” were adopted on the judgments of two judges from the same model family (Claude) alone, or by an operator rule applied to their judgments, so they rest on weaker evidence than confirmed links.

ROME code	ROME title (French)	Relation
K2305	Agent / Agente de désinsectisation	Same scopeprovisional
K2319	Technicien / Technicienne hygiéniste	Overlapping, not the sameprovisional

Source: France Travail — Répertoire Opérationnel des Métiers et des Emplois (ROME 4.0), version 61, last updated 15 June 2026 (https://www.data.gouv.fr/datasets/repertoire-operationnel-des-metiers-et-des-emplois-rome). Licence Ouverte 2.0.

ROME codes and titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET-SOC occupations are AI Changing Work's own judgment and are not a France Travail correspondence.

(AI Changing Work link release: fr-direct v1)

Spain classification links (CNO-11)

AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and CNO-11 occupations, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side.

CNO-11 code	CNO-11 title (Spanish)	Relation
7894	Fumigadores y otros controladores de plagas y malas hierbas	This occupation is narrowerprovisional

Source: Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), National Classification of Occupations 2011 (CNO-11, Royal Decree 1591/2010) — www.ine.es · Licensed CC BY 4.0. CNO-11 codes and Spanish titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET occupations are AI Changing Work's own judgment and are not an INE correspondence.

(AI Changing Work link release: es-direct v1)

Germany classification links (KldB)

AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and KldB occupations, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side.

KldB code	KldB title (German)	Relation
53342	Berufe in der Desinfektion und Schädlingsbekämpfung - fachlich ausgerichtete Tätigkeiten	This occupation is narrowerprovisional
33242	Berufe im Holz- und Bautenschutz - fachlich ausgerichtete Tätigkeiten	Related, not a matchprovisional
53393	Aufsichtskräfte - Gewerbe- und Gesundheitsaufsicht, Desinfektion	Related, not a matchprovisional

Source: © Statistik der Bundesagentur für Arbeit — Klassifikation der Berufe 2010 – überarbeitete Fassung 2020, https://statistik.arbeitsagentur.de. KldB codes and titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET occupations are AI Changing Work's own mapping (eigene Zuordnung) and are not a Bundesagentur für Arbeit correspondence.

(AI Changing Work link release: de-direct v1)

Japan classification links (JSCO)

AI Changing Work's links between this occupation and JSCO occupations, judged with AI models. Relations are read from this occupation's side.

JSCO code	JSCO title (Japanese)	Relation
719	その他の清掃従事者	This occupation is narrowerprovisional

Source: Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), Japan Standard Occupational Classification (Dec. 2009, MIC Notification No. 555). JSCO codes and Japanese titles are reproduced unchanged; the links to O*NET occupations are AI Changing Work's own judgment and are not a MIC correspondence.

(AI Changing Work link release: jp-direct v1)

Sources, licenses and AI Changing Work's modification and translation notices for this page: Credits & sources