# Telephone Operators

> Provide information by accessing alphabetical, geographical, or other directories. Assist customers with special billing requests, such as charges to a third party and credits or refunds for incorrectly dialed numbers or bad connections. May handle emergency calls and assist children or people with physical disabilities to make telephone calls.

- **SOC code:** 43-2021.00
- **Canonical URL:** https://singulariki.com/roles/role-43-2021-00
- **Also known as:** 411 Directory Assistance Operator (411 Directory Assistance Op), Directory Assistance Operator (Directory Assistance Op), Phone Operator (Telephone Operator), TELECOM Op (Telecommunications Operator), Information Specialist, Live Source Operator (Live Source Op), Long Distance Operator (LD Operator), PBX Operator (Post Box Exchange Operator)
- **Frame:** "AI exposure" means task overlap (how codifiable the work is), not jobs lost or a forecast. Every figure below is traced to a named public dataset.

## What this work is

**Core tasks** (O*NET):
- Observe signal lights on switchboards, and dial or press buttons to make connections.
- Operate paging systems or other systems of bells or buzzers to notify recipients of incoming calls.
- Operate telephone switchboards and systems to advance and complete connections, including those for local, long distance, pay telephone, mobile, person-to-person, and emergency calls.
- Listen to customer requests, referring to alphabetical or geographical directories to answer questions and provide telephone information.
- Monitor automated systems for placing collect calls and intervene for a callers needing assistance.
- Suggest and check alternate spellings, locations, or listing formats to customers lacking details or complete information.
- Update directory information.
- Perform clerical duties such as typing, proofreading, and sorting mail.
- Offer special assistance to persons such as those who are unable to dial or who are in emergency situations.
- Interrupt busy lines if an emergency warrants.
- Provide assistance for customers with special billing requests.
- Provide relay service for users who are deaf or hard of hearing.

## Skills, tools, capabilities

**Knowledge, skills & abilities** (O*NET, highest importance first):
- Customer and Personal Service _(knowledge)_
- Oral Expression _(ability)_
- Active Listening _(essential_skill)_
- Speaking _(essential_skill)_
- Oral Comprehension _(ability)_
- Speech Recognition _(ability)_
- Speech Clarity _(ability)_
- Telecommunications _(knowledge)_
- Administrative _(knowledge)_
- Service Orientation _(transferable_skill)_
- English Language _(knowledge)_
- Social Perceptiveness _(transferable_skill)_

**Skills in demand:**
- Speech Recognition _(Specialized Skill)_
- Active Listening _(Common Skill)_
- Telecommunications _(Specialized Skill)_
- English Language _(Common Skill)_
- Social Perceptiveness _(Common Skill)_
- Reading Comprehension _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Word _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Windows _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft PowerPoint _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Outlook _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Excel _(Common Skill)_
- Critical Thinking _(Common Skill)_

**Tools & technology:**
- Microsoft Office software _(hot technology, in demand)_
- Microsoft Excel _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Outlook _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft PowerPoint _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Windows _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Word _(hot technology)_
- Computer aided dispatch software
- Handheld computer device software
- Video conference software

## AI exposure & outlook

- **AI task-overlap index:** 92nd percentile (High) across all occupations — composite of current-era exposure studies (ai-exposure-index-v1).
- **Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.):** 76th percentile (High) — source: felten_aioe.
- **LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou):** 85th percentile (High) — source: eloundou_gamma.
- **AI assistant applicability (Microsoft):** 96th percentile (High) — source: microsoft_applicability.
- **Frey–Osborne (2013, historical computerization estimate):** 94th percentile — kept separate from current-era studies.
- **Remote-capable (Dingel–Neiman):** no — task structure, not who actually works remote.
- **Projected employment (BLS 2024–34):** -27.5% growth (Declining); 0.3k annual openings; 4k → 2.9k jobs.
- **Pay & employment (BLS OEWS, May 2024):** median $39,130; 3,950 employed.

## How people actually use AI here

Anthropic Economic Index — measured AI conversations mapped to this occupation's tasks:

- **Automation vs augmentation:** 32% automation, 56% augmentation (usage-weighted).
- **Autonomy median:** 3.0 (higher = AI acts more independently).
- **Dominant collaboration mode:** task iteration.

**Tasks most handed to AI here:**
- Perform clerical duties such as typing, proofreading, and sorting mail. _(0.8% of measured AI use; task iteration)_

**Example prompts (honest phrasings of the tasks above — starting points, not endorsed instructions):**
- Help me perform clerical duties such as typing, proofreading, and sorting mail.

## Sources

- **O*NET** (30.3) — U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development. https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html
- **BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)** (May 2024) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. https://www.bls.gov/oes/
- **BLS Employment Projections** (2024–2034) — U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. https://www.bls.gov/emp/
- **Anthropic Economic Index** (v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27)) — Anthropic. https://www.anthropic.com/economic-index
- **Microsoft “Working with AI”** (working-with-ai) — Microsoft Research. https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/research/
- **“GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.)** (arXiv 2303.10130) — OpenAI / academic. https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130
- **AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE)** (Felten, Raj & Seamans) — academic. https://github.com/AIOE-Data/AIOE
- **Frey & Osborne (2013)** (frey-osborne-automation) — academic. https://www.oxfordmartin.ox.ac.uk/publications/the-future-of-employment/
- **Dingel & Neiman (2020)** (dingel-neiman-workathome) — academic. https://github.com/jdingel/DingelNeiman-workathome

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_Generated from Singulariki's joined dataset; data snapshot 2026-06-02T21:00:32.945303+00:00. https://singulariki.com/roles/role-43-2021-00_