AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 47-5044.00
Will AI replace Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining?
Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining: AI can already handle 1 of 25 tasks; most of the work is hands-on, and the part AI can address mostly needs a standard-tier model.
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Every task, scored
The 25 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining, from most to least exposed. 1 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Measure, weigh, or verify levels of rock, gravel, or other excavated material to prevent equipment overloads. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Clean, fuel, service, and perform safety checks on all equipment, and repair and replace parts as necessary. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Maintain records of materials moved. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Handle high voltage sources and hang electrical cables. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Pry off loose material from roofs and move it into the paths of machines, using crowbars. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Move trailing electrical cables clear of obstructions, using rubber safety gloves. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Stop gathering arms when cars are full. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Control conveyors that run the entire length of shuttle cars to distribute loads as loading progresses. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Examine roadway and clear obstructions from the path of travel. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Observe hand signals, grade stakes, or other markings when operating machines. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Operate levers to move conveyor booms or shovels so that mine contents such as coal, rock, and ore can be placed into cars or onto conveyors. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Move mine cars into position for loading and unloading, using pinchbars inserted under car wheels to position cars under loading spouts. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Advance machines to gather material and convey it into cars. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Signal workers to move loaded cars. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Oil, lubricate, and adjust conveyors, crushers, and other equipment, using hand tools and lubricating equipment. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Guide and stop cars by switching, applying brakes, or placing scotches, or wooden wedges, between wheels and rails. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Observe and record car numbers, carriers, customers, tonnages, and grades and conditions of material. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Read written instructions or confer with supervisors about schedules and materials to be moved. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Monitor loading processes to ensure that materials are loaded according to specifications. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Direct other workers to move stakes, place blocks, position anchors or cables, or move materials. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Replace hydraulic hoses, headlight bulbs, and gathering-arm teeth. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Push or ride cars down slopes, or hook cars to cables and control cable drum brakes, to ease cars down inclines. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Drive loaded shuttle cars to ramps and move controls to discharge loads into mine cars or onto conveyors. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Drive machines into piles of material blasted from working faces. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Clean hoppers, and clean spillage from tracks, walks, driveways, and conveyor decking. | Estimated | No tier |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 0 of 25 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 25 of 25. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.
The model tier this role needs
A standard-tier model or lower covers 11% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 11% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 89% is hands-on.
Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.
Wages, employment and outlook
- US employment
- 5,930
- Median annual wage
- $74,500
- Middle half of earners
- $61,410 to $79,150
- Projected change, 2024 to 2034
- -22.3%
Employment and wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national. Projection: BLS Employment Projections 2024 to 2034.
Adjacent roles
The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.
- Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining 79% skill overlap, about 8 months to move Exposure22
- Continuous Mining Machine Operators 76% skill overlap, about 9 months to move Exposure17
- Roof Bolters, Mining 65% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure16
- Tank Car, Truck, and Ship Loaders 62% skill overlap, about 14 months to move Exposure22
- First-Line Supervisors of Material-Moving Machine and Vehicle Operators 62% skill overlap, about 14 months to move Exposure34
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining and AI
Will AI replace Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining?
AI already handles 1 of the 25 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 17 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears. BLS projects employment to change by -22.3% from 2024 to 2034.
What is the AI exposure of Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining?
17 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 0 of the 25 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 25 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Measure, weigh, or verify levels of rock, gravel, or other excavated material to prevent equipment overloads. It is the only task that reach 60 or more.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A standard-tier model or lower covers 11% of the role's importance-weighted task work, and 89% is hands-on work that no model tier covers. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.
How many people work as Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining, and what do they earn?
5,930 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $74,500 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of -22.3% from 2024 to 2034.
How to cite
Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.
JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/loading-and-moving-machine-operators-underground-mining
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