Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers

AI & job outlook

What today's research says about this occupation's exposure to AI, how AI is actually being used in it, and where employment is headed. These are positions within published studies — measures of exposure and usage, not predictions that this job will disappear.

Exposure to current AI

Each study uses its own scale, so the raw scores are not comparable across rows — the percentile (this job's rank among all U.S. occupations with data) is the comparable figure, and sizes the bars.

OpenAI's exposure study scores tasks three ways: with a language model alone (α 0.1), with simple added tooling (β 0.1), and including AI-powered software (γ 0.1). Higher means more of the job's tasks could be done at least twice as fast — not that they will be automated away.

This job mostly cannot be done remotely (Dingel–Neiman) — its hands-on tasks sit outside what software-based AI reaches.

How AI is actually used in this job

Among measured AI assistant conversations mapped to this occupation (Anthropic Economic Index, 2026-01-15), these task types came up most. These are shares of observed AI conversations — not shares of the job, of worker time, or of what could be automated.

Job outlook

Independent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics employment projection for 2024–2034 — a labor-market forecast, not an AI-impact forecast.

“Annual openings” counts new jobs plus replacements for workers who leave the occupation, so it can be large even when growth is modest.

Where this work sits on the global GenAI gradient

The ILO's 2025 global study scores generative-AI exposure on the international ISCO-08 occupation system, not US SOC. Bridged through the published (and approximate, many-to-many) IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 crosswalk, this US occupation corresponds to the international occupation below. Exposure here means how much of the work's tasks today's AI can attempt — task overlap, not automation, adoption, or jobs lost.

Read the whole six-band gradient on the GenAI exposure gradient page. The crosswalk is approximate: a US occupation can map to several international ones, and the ILO scores describe the international occupation, not this exact US role.

Tasks

All 15 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, ordered by importance. Each links to its own page with AI-exposure and observed-use detail.

• Patrol or monitor recreational areas, such as trails, slopes, or swimming areas, on foot, in vehicles, or from towers. Core · importance 4.8
• Rescue distressed persons, using rescue techniques and equipment. Core · importance 4.8
• Contact emergency medical personnel in case of serious injury. Core · importance 4.7
• Examine injured persons and administer first aid or cardiopulmonary resuscitation, if necessary, using training and medical supplies and equipment. Core · importance 4.7
• Warn recreational participants of inclement weather, unsafe areas, or illegal conduct. Core · importance 4.3
• Maintain quality of pool water by testing chemical levels. Core · importance 4.3
• Complete and maintain records of weather and beach conditions, emergency medical treatments performed, and other relevant incident information. Core · importance 4.3
• Observe activities in assigned areas, using binoculars, to detect hazards, disturbances, or safety infractions. Supplemental · importance 4.2
• Operate underwater recovery units. Supplemental · importance 4.1
• Instruct participants in skiing, swimming, or other recreational activities and provide safety precaution information. Core · importance 4.1
• Inspect recreational equipment, such as rope tows, T-bars, J-bars, or chair lifts, for safety hazards and damage or wear. Core · importance 4.0
• Provide assistance with staff selection, training, and supervision. Supplemental · importance 3.7
• Provide assistance in the safe use of equipment, such as ski lifts. Supplemental · importance 3.6
• Inspect recreational facilities for cleanliness. Core · importance 3.6
• Participate in recreational demonstrations to entertain resort guests. Supplemental · importance 2.4

Work activities

• Inspect facilities for cleanliness.
• Rescue people from hazardous situations.
• Request emergency personnel.
• Patrol natural areas to ensure safety or enforce regulations.
• Administer first aid.
• Provide safety training.
• Warn individuals about rule violations or safety concerns.
• Record information about environmental conditions.
• Maintain operational records.
• Inspect equipment to ensure safety or proper functioning.
• Train employees in proper work procedures.
• Observe individuals' activities to gather information or compile evidence.
• Monitor environmental conditions to detect hazards.
• Assist customers to ensure comfort or safety.
• Operate ships or other watercraft.
• Participate in athletic events.

Knowledge, skills & abilities

O*NET importance rating, from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important).

Knowledge

Abilities

Essential skills

Transferable skills

Skills in demand

Skills employers ask for in job postings for this occupation (Lightcast), with whether each is a common or specialized skill.

• English Language Common Skill
• Social Perceptiveness Common Skill
• Speech Recognition Specialized Skill
• Learning Strategies Specialized Skill
• Deductive Reasoning Common Skill
• Active Listening Common Skill
• Microsoft Word Common Skill
• Microsoft PowerPoint Common Skill
• Microsoft Outlook Common Skill
• Microsoft Excel Common Skill
• Information Ordering Specialized Skill
• Inductive Reasoning Common Skill
• Critical Thinking Common Skill
• Complex Problem Solving Common Skill
• Psychology Specialized Skill
• Reading Comprehension Common Skill
• Instructing Specialized Skill
• Active Learning Common Skill
• Writing Common Skill
• Chemistry Specialized Skill
• Time Management Common Skill
• Depth Perception Common Skill
• Foreign Language Common Skill
• Telecommunications Specialized Skill
• Biology Specialized Skill
• Mathematics Common Skill
• Visualization Specialized Skill
• Negotiation Common Skill
• Microsoft Publisher Specialized Skill
• Finger Dexterity Common Skill
• Systems Analysis Specialized Skill
• Physics Specialized Skill
• Geography Specialized Skill
• Equipment Selection Specialized Skill
• Equipment Maintenance Specialized Skill
• Presentation Software Specialized Skill
• Installation Specialized Skill

Tools & technology

Work context

How characteristic each condition is of the job, on O*NET's 1–5 context scale (higher = more present in day-to-day work). Each condition links to how it varies across all occupations.

How to get in

Job zone

Zone 2 — Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed

Education

Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.

Typical entry-level education

No formal educational credential · BLS, the typical path — not a requirement

Related experience

Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.

Preparation level

SVP (Below 6.0) — total schooling plus on-the-job experience.

What to study: Natural Resources and Conservation . Fields of study crosswalked to this occupation (NCES CIP–SOC), not a requirement.

Education of current workers

Share of people in this occupation at each level of education.

Interests & work styles

The interests and personal qualities O*NET associates with people who do this work.

Career interests (Holland / RIASEC)

Work styles

Interest areas

Wages & employment

U.S. · annual wages (BLS OEWS)

Industries that employ this occupation

Where these workers are employed, by number of jobs (national, BLS OEWS). Pay shown is the occupation's national median, not industry-specific.

Where this work is most concentrated

Industries where this occupation is far more common than in the economy as a whole. The location quotient is how many times more concentrated it is here (a value of 5 means five times its economy-wide share).

Related occupations

Part of the Public Service & Safety career cluster.

• Firefighters · 33-2011.00 Compare →
• Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians · 53-3011.00 Compare →
• Emergency Medical Technicians · 29-2042.00 Compare →
• Recreation Workers · 39-9032.00 Compare →
• Security Guards · 33-9032.00 Compare →
• Occupational Health and Safety Technicians · 19-5012.00 Compare →
• Forest Fire Inspectors and Prevention Specialists · 33-2022.00 Compare →
• First-Line Supervisors of Firefighting and Prevention Workers · 33-1021.00 Compare →
• Occupational Health and Safety Specialists · 19-5011.00 Compare →
• Paramedics · 29-2043.00 Compare →
• First-Line Supervisors of Personal Service Workers · 39-1022.00 Compare →
• First-Line Supervisors of Entertainment and Recreation Workers, Except Gambling Services · 39-1014.00 Compare →

Side-by-side comparisons place two occupations’ pay, preparation, skills, and AI exposure on the same page — same data, same scale, no forecast.

What you can do with this

Options the data surfaces for Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers — not advice or a forecast. Each is a real cross-link you can follow into the evidence.

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
• BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27) Anthropic
• Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai Microsoft Research
• “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic
• AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans academic
• ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025 International Labour Organization
• IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022 Institute for Structural Research (IBS)
• Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation academic
• Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome academic

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

@misc{singulariki-role-33-9092-00,
  title  = {Lifeguards, Ski Patrol, and Other Recreational Protective Service Workers},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/roles/role-33-9092-00}
}