Rail Yard Engineers and Hostlers

Transportation & Material Moving

AI exposure

  • 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

    0.000

    0.000Range of values carried here0.745
    Scale, basis and source

    Observed exposure index, 0–1 as published

    Mapped onto O*NET tasks

    Source dataset

  • Data source: ILOPublished: 2025

    0.20

    0.09Range of values carried here0.70

    Group-level value

    Scale, basis and source

    Generative AI exposure index, 0–1 as published

    ISCO-08 unit group — every occupation sharing the code gets this value

    Computed by this site, not published by the ILO: of the 1,012 occupations this site links to the ILO dataset, 86% score at or above this value.

    Source dataset

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

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.

TaskβE1 + 0.5 × E2
Confer with conductors and other workers via radiotelephones or computers to exchange switching information.

O*NET Task ID 10665

1.0
Read switching instructions and daily car schedules to determine work to be performed, or receive orders from yard conductors.

O*NET Task ID 10671

1.0
Receive, relay, and act upon instructions and inquiries from train operations and customer service center personnel.

O*NET Task ID 10678

1.0
Report arrival and departure times, train delays, work order completion, and time on duty.

O*NET Task ID 10680

1.0
Record numbers of cars available, numbers of cars sent to repair stations, and types of service needed.

O*NET Task ID 10684

1.0
Signal crew members for movement of engines or trains, using lanterns, hand signals, radios, or telephones.

O*NET Task ID 10666

0.0
Observe and respond to wayside and cab signals, including color light signals, position signals, torpedoes, flags, and hot box detectors.

O*NET Task ID 10667

0.0
Drive engines within railroad yards or other establishments to couple, uncouple, or switch railroad cars.

O*NET Task ID 10668

0.0
Inspect engines before and after use to ensure proper operation.

O*NET Task ID 10669

0.0
Apply and release hand brakes.

O*NET Task ID 10670

0.0
Inspect the condition of stationary trains, rolling stock, and equipment.

O*NET Task ID 10672

0.0
Observe water levels and oil, air, and steam pressure gauges to ensure proper operation of equipment.

O*NET Task ID 10673

0.0
Spot cars for loading and unloading at customer locations.

O*NET Task ID 10674

0.0
Inspect track for defects such as broken rails and switch malfunctions.

O*NET Task ID 10675

0.0
Ride on moving cars by holding onto grab irons and standing on ladder steps.

O*NET Task ID 10676

0.0
Operate track switches, derails, automatic switches, and retarders to change routing of train or cars.

O*NET Task ID 10677

0.0
Couple and uncouple air hoses and electrical connections between cars.

O*NET Task ID 10679

0.0
Pull knuckles to open them for coupling.

O*NET Task ID 10681

0.0
Provide assistance in aligning drawbars, using available equipment to lift, pull, or push on the drawbars.

O*NET Task ID 10682

0.0
Drive locomotives to and from various stations in roundhouses to have locomotives cleaned, serviced, repaired, or supplied.

O*NET Task ID 10683

0.0
Perform routine repair and maintenance duties.

O*NET Task ID 10685

0.0
Operate and control dinkey engines to transport and shunt cars at industrial or mine sites.

O*NET Task ID 10686

0.0
Operate flatcars equipped with derricks or railcars to transport personnel or equipment.

O*NET Task ID 10687

0.0
Provide assistance in the installation or repair of rails and ties.

O*NET Task ID 10688

0.0
Operate switching diesel engines to switch railroad cars, using remote controls.

O*NET Task ID 10689

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®, Eloundou et al. (2023): see full notices on the Credits page

Occupation information