Skills it runs on
The capabilities O*NET rates most important for this occupation — the human ground the work is built on.
See all skills →Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers
Occupation · SOC 53-7072.00
Tend, control, or operate power-driven, stationary, or portable pumps and manifold systems to transfer gases, oil, other liquids, slurries, or powdered materials to and from various vessels and processes.
Also called: Outside Operator · Pipeline Operator · Pumper · Tank Farm Operator · Boom Pump Operator · Chemical Pumper · Day Light Relief Operator · Pipeline Dispatch Operator · Pump Operator · Pump Station Operator · Acid Loader · Acid Pump Operator
Job family: Transportation and Material Moving Occupations
Take this to your AI
A source-stamped Markdown brief of this occupation — paste it into an agent, or fetch
/roles/role-53-7072-00/context.md directly.
AI work map
A fast read on where AI already shows up in this occupation, where it stays a copilot, where humans remain in the loop, and what the labor market is doing. Built from observed Claude.ai conversations mapped to O*NET tasks and from published research — measures of usage and exposure, not advice or predictions that the job is going away.
Market signal
Independent published positions, read together — not a forecast.
- About average employment outlook (+2.6% by 2034)
- 1,500 openings/yr
- Moderate AI exposure
- Median pay $60,020/yr
- Work is mostly on-site (not teleworkable)
- 2013 flagged this for computerization (78th); today's AI task-overlap is comparatively low (34th)
34th-percentile task overlap — yet about 1,500 openings a year (+2.6% projected, BLS) . What exposure means →
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.
| Measure | Rank vs all occupations | Percentile | Score |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.) Low | 24th | -0.8 | |
| LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou) Moderate | 34th | 0.3 | |
| AI assistant applicability (Microsoft) Moderate | 50th | 0.1 |
OpenAI's exposure study scores tasks three ways: with a language model alone (α 0.2), with simple added tooling (β 0.2), and including AI-powered software (γ 0.3). 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.
Mixed signals. Today's AI/LLM studies show relatively low exposure for this job, but the older (2013) Frey–Osborne work rated it higher for computerization and robotics. Different eras, different technologies — the AI measures above reflect the current state.
Historical automation estimate (2013)
A pre-LLM (2013) estimate of how automatable this job is by computerization and robotics. Shown for historical context only — it is not part of any current AI ranking.
Frey–Osborne probability 0.9 · 78th percentile among occupations · High
Job outlook
Independent U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics employment projection for 2024–2034 — a labor-market forecast, not an AI-impact forecast.
| Outlook | About average · +2.6% by 2034 |
| Projected annual openings | 1,500 |
| Employment 2024 → 2034 | 13,100 → 13,500 |
“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 2 occupations below. Exposure here means how much of the work's tasks today's AI can attempt — task overlap, not automation, adoption, or jobs lost.
Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers sits at the 51st percentile of 427
occupations on the global GenAI task-exposure gradient
— exposure eased from 2023 to 2025. Each dot is one occupation; the
ringed one is this work. Exposure is task overlap, not automation or jobs lost.
28% mean task exposure (2025)
51st percentile of 427 placed occupations
−3 pts shift 2023 → 2025
| International occupation (ISCO-08) | Task exposure (2025) | Most tasks fall in |
|---|---|---|
| Petroleum and Natural Gas Refining Plant Operators · 3134 | 29% | Not exposed |
| Incinerator and Water Treatment Plant Operators · 3132 | 27% | Not exposed |
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 14 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, ordered by importance. Each links to its own page with AI-exposure and observed-use detail.
- Monitor gauges and flowmeters and inspect equipment to ensure that tank levels, temperatures, chemical amounts, and pressures are at specified levels, reporting abnormalities as necessary. Core · importance 4.5
- Plan movement of products through lines to processing, storage, and shipping units, using knowledge of interconnections and capacities of pipelines, valve manifolds, pumps, and tankage. Core · importance 4.4
- Record operating data such as products and quantities pumped, stocks used, gauging results, and operating times. Core · importance 4.4
- Communicate with other workers, using signals, radios, or telephones, to start and stop flows of materials or substances. Core · importance 4.3
- Turn valves and start pumps to start or regulate flows of substances such as gases, liquids, slurries, or powdered materials. Core · importance 4.3
- Connect hoses and pipelines to pumps and vessels prior to material transfer, using hand tools. Core · importance 4.2
- Tend vessels that store substances such as gases, liquids, slurries, or powdered materials, checking levels of substances by using calibrated rods or by reading mercury gauges and tank charts. Core · importance 4.2
- Clean, lubricate, and repair pumps and vessels, using hand tools and equipment. Core · importance 4.2
- Read operating schedules or instructions or receive verbal orders to determine amounts to be pumped. Core · importance 4.0
- Tend auxiliary equipment such as water treatment and refrigeration units, and heat exchangers. Supplemental · importance 4.0
- Add chemicals and solutions to tanks to ensure that specifications are met. Supplemental · importance 4.0
- Collect and deliver sample solutions for laboratory analysis. Supplemental · importance 4.0
- Pump two or more materials into one tank to blend mixtures. Supplemental · importance 3.9
- Test materials and solutions, using testing equipment. Core · importance 3.8
Work activities
- Monitor equipment gauges or displays to ensure proper operation.
- Report vehicle or equipment malfunctions.
- Record operational or production data.
- Communicate with others to coordinate material handling or movement.
- Monitor cargo area conditions.
- Measure the level or depth of water or other liquids.
- Control pumps or pumping equipment.
- Plan work operations.
- Review work orders or schedules to determine operations or procedures.
- Receive information or instructions for performing work assignments.
- Clean machinery or equipment.
- Maintain material moving equipment in good working condition.
- Move materials, equipment, or supplies.
- Collect samples for analysis or testing.
- Connect hoses to equipment or machinery.
- Monitor equipment operation to ensure proper functioning.
- Load materials into equipment for processing.
- Test materials, solutions, or samples.
Knowledge, skills & abilities
O*NET importance rating, from 1 (not important) to 5 (extremely important).
Transferable skills
| Operations Monitoring | 3.9 | |
| Operation and Control | 3.5 | |
| Troubleshooting | 3.0 | |
| Judgment and Decision Making | 3.0 | |
| Time Management | 3.0 |
Abilities
| Near Vision | 3.9 | |
| Oral Comprehension | 3.8 | |
| Problem Sensitivity | 3.8 | |
| Perceptual Speed | 3.8 | |
| Oral Expression | 3.6 | |
| Control Precision | 3.4 | |
| Written Expression | 3.3 | |
| Information Ordering | 3.3 | |
| Written Comprehension | 3.1 | |
| Deductive Reasoning | 3.1 | |
| Flexibility of Closure | 3.1 | |
| Selective Attention | 3.1 | |
| Arm-Hand Steadiness | 3.1 | |
| Manual Dexterity | 3.1 | |
| Multilimb Coordination | 3.1 | |
| Far Vision | 3.1 | |
| Inductive Reasoning | 3.0 | |
| Category Flexibility | 3.0 | |
| Visualization | 3.0 | |
| Finger Dexterity | 3.0 | |
| Rate Control | 3.0 | |
| Reaction Time | 3.0 | |
| Static Strength | 3.0 | |
| Trunk Strength | 3.0 | |
| Extent Flexibility | 3.0 | |
| Visual Color Discrimination | 3.0 |
Essential skills
| Monitoring | 3.5 | |
| Reading Comprehension | 3.1 | |
| Active Listening | 3.1 | |
| Speaking | 3.1 | |
| Critical Thinking | 3.1 |
Knowledge
| Production and Processing | 3.4 | |
| Mechanical | 3.3 | |
| English Language | 3.3 | |
| Mathematics | 3.0 |
Skills in demand
Skills employers ask for in job postings for this occupation (Lightcast), with whether each is a common or specialized skill.
Tools & technology
| Example | Category | |
|---|---|---|
| Microsoft Excel | Spreadsheet software | Hot technology In demand |
| Microsoft Office software | Office suite software | Hot technology In demand |
| Microsoft Outlook | Electronic mail software | Hot technology In demand |
| Microsoft Word | Word processing software | Hot technology |
| Computerized maintenance management system CMMS | Facilities management software | |
| Operational databases | Data base user interface and query software | |
| Supervisory control and data acquisition SCADA software | Industrial control software |
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
- High school diploma or equivalent · 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.
Education of current workers
Share of people in this occupation at each level of education.
| Some College Courses | 8.5% | |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 8.4% | |
| Associate's Degree (or other 2-year degree) | 4.6% |
Interests & work styles
The interests and personal qualities O*NET associates with people who do this work.
Career interests (Holland / RIASEC)
| Realistic | 6.7 | |
| Conventional | 4.5 | |
| Investigative | 2.3 | |
| Enterprising | 1.5 | |
| Social | 1.3 |
Interest areas
| Mechanics/Electronics | 4.0 | |
| Physical/Manual Labor | 3.2 | |
| Engineering | 3.1 | |
| Transportation/Machine Operation | 2.4 | |
| Mathematics/Statistics | 2.1 | |
| Physical Science | 1.4 | |
| Management/Administration | 1.4 |
Work styles
| Dependability | 3.0 | |
| Cautiousness | 2.6 | |
| Attention to Detail | 2.4 | |
| Stress Tolerance | 1.3 |
Wages & employment
U.S. · annual wages (BLS OEWS)
| 10th percentile | $37,850 |
| 25th percentile | $47,270 |
| Median (50th) | $60,020 |
| 75th percentile | $75,160 |
| 90th percentile | $89,660 |
| People employed | 12,600 |
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.
| Industry | Workers | National median pay |
|---|---|---|
| Construction · Sector | 3,300 | $59,570 |
| Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction · Sector | 2,610 | $60,270 |
| Transportation and Warehousing · Sector | 2,520 | $77,180 |
| Poured Concrete Foundation and Structure Contractors · National industry | 1,900 | $60,360 |
| Wholesale Trade · Sector | 1,370 | $48,910 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services · Sector | 870 | $48,240 |
| Real Estate and Rental and Leasing · Sector | 500 | $53,440 |
| Manufacturing · Sector | 490 | $62,250 |
| Retail Trade · Sector | 190 | $47,500 |
| Utilities · Sector | 130 | $61,770 |
| Plumbing, Heating, and Air-Conditioning Contractors · National industry | 110 | $50,550 |
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).
| Industry | Concentration | Workers |
|---|---|---|
| Poured Concrete Foundation and Structure Contractors · National industry | 89.87× | 1,900 |
| Mining, Quarrying, and Oil and Gas Extraction · Sector | 55.69× | 2,610 |
| Construction · Sector | 4.97× | 3,300 |
| Transportation and Warehousing · Sector | 4.17× | 2,520 |
| Wholesale Trade · Sector | 2.78× | 1,370 |
| Utilities · Sector | 2.75× | 130 |
| Real Estate and Rental and Leasing · Sector | 2.58× | 500 |
| Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services · Sector | 1.18× | 870 |
Related occupations
Part of the Supply Chain & Transportation career cluster.
- Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators · 53-7071.00 Compare →
- Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers · 51-8093.00 Compare →
- Wellhead Pumpers · 53-7073.00 Compare →
- Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders · 51-9012.00 Compare →
- Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators · 51-8021.00 Compare →
- Water and Wastewater Treatment Plant and System Operators · 51-8031.00 Compare →
- Tank Car, Truck, and Ship Loaders · 53-7121.00 Compare →
- Chemical Plant and System Operators · 51-8091.00 Compare →
- Chemical Equipment Operators and Tenders · 51-9011.00 Compare →
- Power Plant Operators · 51-8013.00 Compare →
- Gas Plant Operators · 51-8092.00 Compare →
- Control and Valve Installers and Repairers, Except Mechanical Door · 49-9012.00 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 Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers — not advice or a forecast. Each is a real cross-link you can follow into the evidence.
Skills that travel
Capabilities this work builds that are used across many other occupations.
Adjacent roles
Occupations O*NET rates as related — the nearby moves on the map.
- Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators Compare →
- Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers Compare →
- Wellhead Pumpers Compare →
- Separating, Filtering, Clarifying, Precipitating, and Still Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders Compare →
- Stationary Engineers and Boiler Operators Compare →
Paths in
How people typically prepare for this work.
- High school diploma or equivalent · typical entry level
- Job zone 2 — Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed · preparation tier
Zoom out
On the global GenAI exposure gradient this work sits around the 51st percentile of 427 international occupations.
Write a report on thisheadline · factoids · citation
Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers show 34th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 1,500 annual U.S. openings
- Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers rank in the 34th percentile (Moderate band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated.Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE
- The occupation is projected to see about 1,500 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
- BLS projects employment to be about average (+2.6%) from 2024 to 2034.BLS Employment Projections 2024–34
- Median annual pay is $60,020, across about 12,600 U.S. workers.BLS OEWS (May 2024)
Copy the whole kit
Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers show 34th-percentile AI task overlap — and about 1,500 annual U.S. openings • Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers rank in the 34th percentile (Moderate band) for AI task overlap across U.S. occupations — a measure of how much of the work today's AI can attempt, not how much is automated. (Eloundou et al. (GPTs are GPTs) + Felten AIOE) • The occupation is projected to see about 1,500 U.S. job openings per year (2024–34), counting growth and replacement — a labor-demand projection made independently of AI. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34) • BLS projects employment to be about average (+2.6%) from 2024 to 2034. (BLS Employment Projections 2024–34) • Median annual pay is $60,020, across about 12,600 U.S. workers. (BLS OEWS (May 2024)) Source: Singulariki — "Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers". https://singulariki.com/roles/role-53-7072-00 Note: AI task overlap measures what today's AI can attempt, not automation, job loss, or a forecast.
AssetsShare imageMethodology & sourcesPress & newsroomThe newsroom
Every line is built only from figures this page already shows and cites. AI task overlap means what today's AI can attempt — not automation, job loss, or a forecast.
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
- 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.
Cite this page
Plain
Singulariki. "Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; 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. https://singulariki.com/roles/role-53-7072-00
APA
Singulariki. (2026). Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/roles/role-53-7072-00
BibTeX
@misc{singulariki-role-53-7072-00,
title = {Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers},
author = {{Singulariki}},
year = {2026},
note = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; 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-53-7072-00}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.