# Telecommunications Line Installers and Repairers

> Install and repair telecommunications cable, including fiber optics.

- **SOC code:** 49-9052.00
- **Canonical URL:** https://singulariki.com/roles/role-49-9052-00
- **Also known as:** Combination Technician, Installation and Repair Technician (I and R Technician), Lineman, Service Technician, Cable Splicer, Cable Technician, Cable Television Technician (Cable TV Tech), Field Service Technician
- **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):
- Set up service for customers, installing, connecting, testing, or adjusting equipment.
- Explain cable service to subscribers after installation, and collect any installation fees due.
- Travel to customers' premises to install, maintain, or repair audio and visual electronic reception equipment or accessories.
- Measure signal strength at utility poles, using electronic test equipment.
- Inspect or test lines or cables, recording and analyzing test results, to assess transmission characteristics and locate faults or malfunctions.
- Splice cables, using hand tools, epoxy, or mechanical equipment.
- Access specific areas to string lines, or install terminal boxes, auxiliary equipment, or appliances, using bucket trucks, climbing poles or ladders, or entering tunnels, trenches, or crawl spaces.
- Place insulation over conductors, or seal splices with moisture-proof covering.
- String cables between structures and lines from poles, towers, or trenches, and pull lines to proper tension.
- Clean or maintain tools or test equipment.
- Compute impedance of wires from poles to houses to determine additional resistance needed for reducing signals to desired levels.
- Install equipment such as amplifiers or repeaters to maintain the strength of communications transmissions.

**Emerging tasks** (O*NET):
- Set up service for customers, installing, connecting, testing, or adjusting equipment, such as digital subscriber line modems.

## Skills, tools, capabilities

**Knowledge, skills & abilities** (O*NET, highest importance first):
- Telecommunications _(knowledge)_
- Customer and Personal Service _(knowledge)_
- English Language _(knowledge)_
- Oral Comprehension _(ability)_
- Oral Expression _(ability)_
- Near Vision _(ability)_
- Public Safety and Security _(knowledge)_
- Problem Sensitivity _(ability)_
- Arm-Hand Steadiness _(ability)_
- Extent Flexibility _(ability)_
- Computers and Electronics _(knowledge)_
- Manual Dexterity _(ability)_

**Skills in demand:**
- Telecommunications _(Specialized Skill)_
- English Language _(Common Skill)_
- Information Ordering _(Specialized Skill)_
- Deductive Reasoning _(Common Skill)_
- Critical Thinking _(Common Skill)_
- Complex Problem Solving _(Common Skill)_
- Visualization _(Specialized Skill)_
- Microsoft Word _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Outlook _(Common Skill)_
- Microsoft Excel _(Common Skill)_
- Inductive Reasoning _(Common Skill)_
- Finger Dexterity _(Common Skill)_

**Tools & technology:**
- Autodesk AutoCAD _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Excel _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Office software _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Outlook _(hot technology)_
- Microsoft Word _(hot technology)_
- Slack _(hot technology)_
- Cisco IOS
- Email software
- Mapcom systems M4
- Ping tools
- Voice over internet protocol VoIP system software
- Web browser software

## AI exposure & outlook

- **AI task-overlap index:** 24th percentile (Low) across all occupations — composite of current-era exposure studies (ai-exposure-index-v1).
- **Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.):** 15th percentile (Low) — source: felten_aioe.
- **LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou):** 6th percentile (Low) — source: eloundou_gamma.
- **AI assistant applicability (Microsoft):** 57th percentile (Moderate) — source: microsoft_applicability.
- **Frey–Osborne (2013, historical computerization estimate):** 47th percentile — kept separate from current-era studies.
- **Remote-capable (Dingel–Neiman):** no — task structure, not who actually works remote.
- **Projected employment (BLS 2024–34):** -3.1% growth (Declining); 8.9k annual openings; 99.9k → 96.8k jobs.
- **Pay & employment (BLS OEWS, May 2024):** median $70,500; 98,360 employed.

## 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-49-9052-00_