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Will AI Replace Farmworkers and Laborers? (2026)

The Bureau of Labor Statistics places farmworkers and laborers in its low AI exposure category, among the occupations least exposed to current AI. BLS projects employment to fall by 2.4% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 72,500 openings a year.

Short answer

Very unlikely. BLS rates farmworkers and laborers among the occupations least exposed to AI, and most of the work is the kind current AI tools cannot do.

BLS AI exposure
LowBLS EP supplemental table
AI-resilience score
63/100Higher than 90% of jobs · NueCareer
Projected change
-2.4%BLS EP 2025–2035; all jobs 3.5%
Openings a year
72,500BLS EP 2025–2035

The federal measure

How exposed farmworkers and laborers are to AI

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes a relative AI exposure category for each occupation it projects, built from five public measures of where AI could be, or already is, used to assist with or complete the work. Farmworkers and Laborers land in the low category: among the occupations least exposed to current AI.

Where this job sits on the BLS scale

786 occupations in the NueCareer bank, in BLS's four relative categories; width shows how many fall in each

  1. Low · this job203 occupations · 26%
  2. Moderate194 occupations · 25%
  3. High190 occupations · 24%
  4. Very high199 occupations · 25%

Source: BLS Employment Projections, AI exposure categories supplemental table.

  1. Exposure is relative. The categories rank occupations against each other; they are not a probability that a job is automated.
  2. BLS says exposure does not imply job loss, productivity gains, automation probability or wage effects. A highly exposed job can still grow if AI makes the people in it more productive.
  3. The classification reflects AI capabilities as the underlying studies measured them. Read the BLS method and limitations.

Inside the work

What AI can and cannot do in this job

O*NET rates how important each work activity is to an occupation and how often each working condition comes up. The ratings below are the ones that move the job's NueCareer AI-resilience score the most: the ones that pull it up, and the ones that pull it down. Only ratings clearly above the midpoint count.

What holds up

Physical, hands-on and person-to-person work

  • Face-to-face discussions4.6/5
    O*NET work context, frequency or level
  • Performing general physical activities4.0/5
    O*NET work activity, importance
  • Working outdoors in all weather4.5/5
    O*NET work context, frequency or level
  • Handling and moving objects3.9/5
    O*NET work activity, importance

What AI reaches first

Routine, repeatable and screen-based work

  • Repetitive motions4.0/5
    O*NET work context, frequency or level
  • Getting information3.8/5
    O*NET work activity, importance
  • Communicating with supervisors, peers, or subordinates3.7/5
    O*NET work activity, importance

The tasks O*NET lists for farmworkers and laborers

  • Operate tractors, tractor-drawn machinery, and self-propelled machinery to plow, harrow and fertilize soil, or to plant, cultivate, spray and harvest crops.
  • Repair and maintain farm vehicles, implements, and mechanical equipment.
  • Harvest plants, and transplant or pot and label them.
  • Identify plants, pests, and weeds to determine the selection and application of pesticides and fertilizers.
  • Direct and monitor the work of casual and seasonal help during planting and harvesting.
  • Participate in the inspection, grading, sorting, storage, and post-harvest treatment of crops.

O*NET 31.0 Database task statements, most important first.

The jobs

Will there still be jobs?

Exposure says where AI meets the work. The BLS projection says what the labor market is expected to do over 2025–2035. BLS projects -2.4% change in employment over the decade, against 3.5% across all occupations, and about 72,500 openings a year once retirements and career changes are counted. About 265,500 people work in the job today, at a median of $35,660 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Full farmworker and laborer, crop, nursery, and greenhouse profile: pay by state, entry route and skills

Options

Related careers that are also low-exposure

Careers O*NET lists as related to the work, or in the same field at similar pay, that BLS places in a low exposure category.

  1. Tree Trimmer and Pruner

    Building and Grounds Cleaning and Maintenance

    Median pay
    $50,960median a year
    Growth
    +4.2%
    Openings / yr
    7,900
    Education
    High school
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    71/100
    resilience

    Using sophisticated climbing and rigging techniques, cut away dead or excess branches from trees or shrubs to maintain right-of-way for roads, sidewalks, or utilities, or to improve appearance, health, and value of tree.

  2. Agricultural Equipment Operator

    Farming, Fishing, and Forestry

    Median pay
    $41,730median a year
    Growth
    +8.6%
    Openings / yr
    10,100
    Education
    No formal credential
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    70/100
    resilience

    Drive and control equipment to support agricultural activities such as tilling soil; planting, cultivating, and harvesting crops; feeding and herding livestock; or removing animal waste.

  3. Faller

    Farming, Fishing, and Forestry

    Median pay
    $52,100median a year
    Growth
    −9.9%
    Openings / yr
    500
    Education
    High school
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    66/100
    resilience

    Use axes or chainsaws to fell trees using knowledge of tree characteristics and cutting techniques to control direction of fall and minimize tree damage.

  4. Logging Equipment Operator

    Farming, Fishing, and Forestry

    Median pay
    $49,740median a year
    Growth
    −3.8%
    Openings / yr
    3,700
    Education
    High school
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    65/100
    resilience

    Drive logging tractor or wheeled vehicle equipped with one or more accessories, such as bulldozer blade, frontal shear, grapple, logging arch, cable winches, hoisting rack, or crane boom, to fell tree; to skid, load,…

Questions

Will AI Replace Farmworkers and Laborers? FAQ

Will AI replace farmworkers and laborers?

Very unlikely. BLS rates farmworkers and laborers among the occupations least exposed to AI, and most of the work is the kind current AI tools cannot do. BLS defines exposure as AI being able to assist with or complete some of the work, and says it does not imply job loss, productivity gains or wage effects. BLS projects employment to fall by 2.4% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 72,500 openings a year.

How exposed are farmworkers and laborers to AI?

BLS sorts 786 occupations into four relative categories: low, moderate, high and very high. Farmworkers and Laborers are in the low category, alongside 202 other occupations. The categories combine five public measures of where AI could be or already is used, and they compare occupations with each other rather than giving an absolute risk.

What parts of a farmworker and laborer, crop, nursery, and greenhouse's job can AI do?

In O*NET's description of the work, the parts that overlap most with what AI handles well are repetitive motions, getting information and communicating with supervisors, peers, or subordinates. The parts that hold up best are face-to-face discussions, performing general physical activities and working outdoors in all weather. These come from O*NET ratings of how important each activity is to the job, read through NueCareer's AI-resilience method.

Is being a farmworker and laborer, crop, nursery, and greenhouse a safe career from AI?

On NueCareer's AI-resilience score, built from O*NET work activities, farmworkers and laborers score 63 out of 100, higher than 90% of the occupations we score. The job pays a median of $35,660 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). No job is fully safe from technological change, but the federal exposure category and the projected openings are the two numbers worth weighing.

What careers similar to farmworkers and laborers are less exposed to AI?

Tree Trimmer and Pruner (low exposure, $50,960 median), Agricultural Equipment Operator (low exposure, $41,730 median), Faller (low exposure, $52,100 median), Logging Equipment Operator (low exposure, $49,740 median). Each is also in the low category, and most are listed by O*NET as related to the work.

The AI exposure category is the Bureau of Labor Statistics'. The AI-resilience score and the activity breakdown are NueCareer's analysis of O*NET 31.0 Database data (method), not a federal figure. More: jobs most exposed to AI, jobs least exposed to AI, or check any job.