Industry group, 3162
Footwear Manufacturing
10,390 people work in this industry in the US, at mean pay of $45,820 a year (BLS, May 2025). What follows is how much of their working time the best AI models could finish, when, and in which jobs and tasks. Estimates.
of the paid hours. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
a year: 2.3 million hours at what they cost. Not a forecast of savings.
- 15%
- 5%
- 80%
of the paid hours are within reach now in tasks people already bring to Claude. Another 11% is within reach in tasks not yet seen there.
Across the US: 30% within reach now and 36% by the end of 2028, on the long-run pace at four in five. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
Share of the paid hours within reach, now to 2030
Change assumptionsHide assumptionsLong-run pace, four in five
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
What handing the work over would take
For the 2,730 people in jobs so far, 26% of the industry's people; the others are in the totals above and join this split as the review reaches their jobs. Shares of their working time within reach now, at the pace and reliability chosen above. Estimates. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
about 1.2 million hours a year. The material can be handed to a model and the result handed back.
about 549,669 hours a year. The model has to be connected to the system the work lives in.
about 394,649 hours a year. Short enough by length. This site leaves conversation with people, so it is not in the totals.
What their work is made of
- 24%
- 10%
- 8%
- 7%
- 51%
Each task's time split among five kinds of doing, judged one task at a time; only documents and systems can count as within reach.
What changes for the people
For the 2,730 people in jobs reviewed task by task so far, by the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five: the shares of their working time, from each job page's own map, weighted by how many people here do that job. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job. Estimates.
Conversation, in-person and hands-on work.
Desk work within reach in tasks where a mistake costs something or a licensed person signs.
Desk work within reach that is small if wrong, with lighter checks.
What most people here would learn first
How many of them have each skill among the first two things to learn on their job's page. Every state, and the US
- The hands-on craft1,640 (60%)
- Reviewing work you did not do yourself1,370 (50%)
- Briefing a model and checking its drafts950 (35%)
- Judgment where errors are severe450 (16%)
- The conversations200 (7%)
- Dealing with people outside the organization120 (4%)
- Running AI inside the business systems110 (4%)
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this industry's paid hours were within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 3%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 9%. Today's estimate: 13%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
Robots and the physical work
Anthropic rates 81% of the working time of the people in this industry as physical work. For 60% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 54% in a purpose-built cell, 6% in a structured facility. 0.66 of 3.
- Not physical 19%
- No robot shown 20%
- In a purpose-built cell 54%
- In a structured facility 6%
Anthropic's rating, not this site's estimate: Claude Opus 5, searching the web, rated each physical O*NET task by the kind of setting in which a robot it could cite (deployed, sold or demonstrated) does most of the task, weighted by its own estimate of each task's share of the time (What work can robots do?, September 30, 2026, data CC BY 4.0; every job ranked). A robot shown somewhere is not a robot in your building: cost, setup and safety decide that. The share within reach on this page still counts no body work. Weighted by the people in each occupation; each job's page names the robot behind each rated task.
Where the hours are
Jobs by hours within reach now. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index. The 17 largest jobs hold 95% of the people.
| People | Pay here | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Shoe Machine Operators and Tenders | 3,260 | 6% | 420,410 | $36K |
| First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers | 370 | 48% | 367,101 | $62K |
| Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks | 190 | 53% | 209,851 | $37K |
| General and Operations Managers | 160 | 45% | 149,761 | $106K |
| Customer Service Representatives | 110 | 64% | 147,347 | $46K |
| Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers | 210 | 27% | 116,189 | $31K |
| Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products | 120 | 46% | 115,815 | $116K |
| Shoe and Leather Workers and Repairers | 2,350 | 2% | 97,760 | $38K |
| Fashion Designers | 80 | 43% | 71,720 | $61K |
| Stockers and Order Fillers | 120 | 19% | 48,173 | $37K |
| Industrial Machinery Mechanics | 180 | 13% | 47,923 | $59K |
| Maintenance and Repair Workers, General | 180 | 11% | 42,682 | $29K |
People: BLS counts for this industry, May 2025. Pay here: the median paid for the job in this industry, else its mean, else the national median. 10 smaller jobs (390 people) count in every total but are not listed. Task data covers 82% of the industry's people; the rest are in BLS "all other" groups with no task list, or in counts BLS does not publish.
The tasks with the most hours within reach by the end of 2028
Across the whole industry, on the chosen pace and reliability.
- Study work orders or shoe part tags to obtain information about workloads, specifications, and the types of materials to be used.Shoe Machine Operators and Tenders421,291 hours100% of the task within reach
- Estimate the costs of requested products or services such as custom footwear or footwear repair, and receive payment from customers.Shoe and Leather Workers and Repairers99,129 hours100% of the task within reach
- Plan and establish work schedules, assignments, and production sequences to meet production goals.First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers86,826 hours100% of the task within reach
- Plan and develop new products and production processes.First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers80,391 hours70% of the task within reach
- Read and analyze charts, work orders, production schedules, and other records and reports to determine production requirements and to evaluate current production estimates and outputs.First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers58,844 hours100% of the task within reach
- Prepare documents, such as work orders, bills of lading, or shipping orders, to route materials.Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks50,649 hours100% of the task within reach
- Determine standards, budgets, production goals, and rates, based on company policies, equipment and labor availability, and workloads.First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers43,698 hours100% of the task within reach
- Write test or inspection reports describing results, recommendations, or needed repairs.Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers37,189 hours100% of the task within reach
- Calculate labor and equipment requirements and production specifications, using standard formulas.First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers36,294 hours100% of the task within reach
- Determine shipping methods, routes, or rates for materials to be shipped.Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks35,438 hours100% of the task within reach
Scan a typical company in this industry
The industry's largest jobs, in the proportions BLS counts across the whole industry, at the pay it pays, run through the company scan. A starting point before you have a roster, or a benchmark for the one you have. Or choose the whole industry: every occupation BLS publishes for it with task data, at its nationwide headcount, the sector report ($249 for the full report, or included in Pro).
Next to this industry
Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
How it is built: BLS counts the people in each job in this industry; each job's tasks and their lengths give its share within reach at a date; the industry's share is those shares weighted by people. Value is pay times 1.43 for benefits and payroll costs. Seen in Claude use splits today's share by whether Anthropic saw people bring each task to Claude in 2025; other AI tools are not counted. How it works
Questions about this industry
- How much of the work in Footwear Manufacturing is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 13% of the paid hours in Footwear Manufacturing are within reach of AI models now and 15% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five (14% to 15% across the three paces the site shows). Within reach means a model could finish work that long at that reliability. It is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings.
- Which jobs in Footwear Manufacturing carry the most hours within reach?
- By hours within reach now (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index): Shoe Machine Operators and Tenders (3,260 people, 6% of their time, about 420,410 hours a year); First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers (370 people, 48% of their time, about 367,099 hours a year); and Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks (190 people, 53% of their time, about 209,851 hours a year).
- Which tasks in Footwear Manufacturing carry the most hours within reach by the end of 2028?
- Study work orders or shoe part tags to obtain information about workloads, specifications, and the types of materials to be used (Shoe Machine Operators and Tenders, about 421,291 hours a year); Estimate the costs of requested products or services such as custom footwear or footwear repair, and receive payment from customers (Shoe and Leather Workers and Repairers, about 99,129 hours a year); and Plan and establish work schedules, assignments, and production sequences to meet production goals (First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers, about 86,826 hours a year).
- What would people working in Footwear Manufacturing learn first?
- Among the 2,730 people in jobs reviewed task by task, the skills most often among the first two things to learn on their job's page are the hands-on craft (1,640 people); reviewing work you did not do yourself (1,370 people); and briefing a model and checking its drafts (950 people). By the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five, about 65% of their working time stays with people, 28% becomes checking a model's work and 6% can be handed over with lighter checks. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job.
- How is this estimated?
- BLS counts the people in each occupation in Footwear Manufacturing (May 2025); each occupation's share of working time within reach comes from its O*NET tasks, each with an estimated length checked against GDPval, and METR's measurements of how long a task the best AI models can finish, carried forward to the date from the latest, Claude Mythos Preview (early) in April 2026. The industry's share is those shares weighted by people. Task data covers 82% of its people, and 26% are in occupations reviewed task by task. Data checked November 10, 2026.
Embed these figures on your site
A small card with the share of working time within reach now and at the end of 2027, 2028 and 2030, the date and a link back. Free under CC BY 4.0; the card carries the credit.