Helpers--Extraction Workers
Help extraction craft workers, such as earth drillers, blasters and explosives workers, derrick operators, and mining machine operators, by performing duties requiring less skill. Duties include supplying equipment or cleaning work area.
6,700 people do this job in the US. $47,730 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 0%
- 0%
- 100%
Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 0%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 0%. Today's estimate: 0%.
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.
The tasks
Sorted by . 14 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Observe and monitor equipment operation during the extraction process to detect any problems.Done daily by most who do it. | 14% | 50 min25 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Dig trenches.Done daily by most who do it. | 12% | 3.3 h50 min to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Clean up work areas and remove debris after extraction activities are complete.Done daily by most who do it. | 10% | 50 min25 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Unload materials, devices, and machine parts, using hand tools.Done daily by most who do it. | 10% | 38 min13 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Repair and maintain automotive and drilling equipment, using hand tools.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 9% | 1.7 h50 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Clean and prepare sites for excavation or boring.Done daily by most who do it. | 8% | 1.7 h38 min to 4.2 h | Stays with people | |
| Organize materials to prepare for use.Done daily by most who do it. | 6% | 38 min13 min to 1.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Provide assistance to extraction craft workers, such as earth drillers and derrick operators.Done daily by most who do it. | 6% | 50 min25 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Load materials into well holes or into equipment, using hand tools.Done daily by most who do it. | 6% | 38 min13 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Drive moving equipment to transport materials and parts to excavation sites.Done daily by most who do it. | 5% | 38 min17 min to 1.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Dismantle extracting and boring equipment used for excavation, using hand tools.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 5% | 1.7 h50 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Set up and adjust equipment used to excavate geological materials.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
- Helpers--Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Workers2% now, 2% by 2028
- Helpers--Production Workers3% now, 3% by 2028
- Rotary Drill Operators, Oil and Gas5% now, 5% by 2028
- Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas11% now, 14% by 2028
- Helpers--Carpenters0% now, 0% by 2028
- Helpers--Pipelayers, Plumbers, Pipefitters, and Steamfitters0% now, 0% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).