Clean work areas.

Clean work areas. is a detailed work activity in O*NET — a concrete unit of work shared across 32 occupations and seen in 34 occupation-specific tasks. It rolls up into the broader work activity Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas. in Performing General Physical Activities .

Detailed work activities are the most granular shared layer in O*NET's work-activity hierarchy (Generalized → Intermediate → Detailed → occupation-specific task). The figures below describe how this activity shows up across the economy and what independent studies measure about AI and this kind of work — not a prediction that the work will be automated.

AI exposure

Of the 32 tasks under this activity that the OpenAI / Eloundou “GPTs are GPTs” study rated, 0 (0%) are flagged as directly exposed to language models (E1) or exposed via model-powered tools (E2).

Exposure estimates overlap with model capabilities — whether a model could speed the task up — not whether the work will be done by software. Observed AI use is augmentation and assistance today, not jobs replaced.

Member tasks

Occupation-specific tasks O*NET maps to this detailed work activity, most important first.

• Clean and sterilize vats and factory processing areas. · Food Batchmakers · importance 4.7 · no direct exposure
• Clean and disinfect areas in which bodies are prepared and embalmed. · Embalmers · importance 4.7 · no direct exposure
• Clean, wash, and sterilize equipment and cooking area, using water hoses, cleaning or sterilizing solutions, or rinses. · Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders · importance 4.7 · no direct exposure
• Keep areas neat while working and return items to correct locations following demonstrations. · Demonstrators and Product Promoters · importance 4.5 · no direct exposure
• Perform preventive or corrective containment or cleanup measures in hydroelectric plants to prevent environmental contamination. · Hydroelectric Plant Technicians · importance 4.3 · no direct exposure
• Clean equipment and work areas. · Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders · importance 4.3 · no direct exposure
• Perform work activities of subordinates, such as cleaning and organizing shelves and displays and selling merchandise. · First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers · importance 4.2 · no direct exposure
• Clean work areas to ensure compliance with safety regulations. · Biomass Plant Technicians · importance 4.2 · no direct exposure
• Maintain and clean work and inventory areas. · Parts Salespersons · importance 4.1 · no direct exposure
• Clean and tidy up the shop. · Tire Repairers and Changers · importance 4.1 · no direct exposure
• Clean recycling yard by sweeping, raking, picking up broken glass and loose paper debris, or moving barrels and bins. · Recycling and Reclamation Workers · importance 4.1 · no direct exposure
• Maintain cleanliness of work area. · Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics · importance 4.1 · no direct exposure
• Clean or maintain products, machines, or work areas. · Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing · importance 4.0 · no direct exposure
• Clean work areas. · Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic · importance 4.0 · no direct exposure
• Remove loose wires and other debris after work is completed. · Telecommunications Equipment Installers and Repairers, Except Line Installers · importance 4.0 · no direct exposure
• Clean biofuels processing work area, ensuring compliance with safety regulations. · Biofuels Processing Technicians · importance 4.0 · no direct exposure
• Maintain clean and orderly checkout areas, and complete other general cleaning duties, such as mopping floors and emptying trash cans. · Cashiers · importance 4.0 · no direct exposure
• Clean and maintain tanks, filter beds, and other work areas, using hand tools and power tools. · Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators · importance 4.0 · no direct exposure
• Clean casino areas. · Gambling Change Persons and Booth Cashiers · importance 3.9 · no direct exposure
• Conduct general housekeeping of units, including wiping up oil spills and performing general cleaning duties. · Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers · importance 3.9 · no direct exposure
• Clean or lubricate vehicles, machinery, equipment, instruments, tools, work areas, and other objects, using hand tools, power tools, and cleaning equipment. · Helpers--Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers · importance 3.9 · no direct exposure
• Clean work area. · Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic · importance 3.9 · no direct exposure
• Clean work areas, using air hoses, to remove damaged material and discarded fiberglass strips used in repair procedures. · Automotive Body and Related Repairers · importance 3.9 · no direct exposure
• Collect and discard worn machine parts and other refuse to maintain machinery and work areas. · Maintenance Workers, Machinery · importance 3.8 · no direct exposure
• Clean or sterilize tanks, screens, inflow pipes, production areas, or equipment, using hoses, brushes, scrapers, or chemical solutions. · Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders · importance 3.8 · no direct exposure
• Clean work areas. · Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders · importance 3.7 · no direct exposure
• Shovel, sweep, or otherwise clean work areas. · Team Assemblers · importance 3.7 · no direct exposure
• Clean shelves, counters, and tables. · Retail Salespersons · importance 3.7 · no direct exposure
• Help production workers by performing duties of lesser skill, such as supplying or holding materials or tools, or cleaning work areas and equipment. · Helpers--Production Workers · importance 3.5 · no direct exposure
• Clean the projection booth. · Motion Picture Projectionists · importance 3.4 · no direct exposure
• Perform general cleaning of buildings or properties. · Maintenance and Repair Workers, General · importance 3.4 · no direct exposure
• Wash work areas, machines, equipment, vehicles, or products. · Helpers--Production Workers · importance 3.2 · no direct exposure
• Clean work area. · 51-4034.00
• Clean work areas. · 51-9023.00

Occupations that perform this

• Food Batchmakers
• Embalmers
• Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders
• Demonstrators and Product Promoters
• Hydroelectric Plant Technicians
• Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders
• First-Line Supervisors of Retail Sales Workers
• Parts Salespersons
• Tire Repairers and Changers
• Recycling and Reclamation Workers
• Automotive Service Technicians and Mechanics
• Telecommunications Equipment Installers and Repairers, Except Line Installers
• Extruding and Drawing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
• Woodworking Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Except Sawing
• Biofuels Processing Technicians
• Cashiers
• Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators
• Gambling Change Persons and Booth Cashiers
• Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers
• Automotive Body and Related Repairers
• Helpers--Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers
• Cutting, Punching, and Press Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic
• Maintenance Workers, Machinery
• Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders
• Team Assemblers
• Crushing, Grinding, and Polishing Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders
• Retail Salespersons
• Helpers--Production Workers
• Motion Picture Projectionists
• Maintenance and Repair Workers, General
• 51-4034.00
• 51-9023.00

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

• O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
• “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

@misc{singulariki-clean-work-areas,
  title  = {Clean work areas.},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/detailed-activities/clean-work-areas}
}