← All 785 jobsFile 51-6041
Shoe and Leather Workers and Repairers
Mostly untouched
AI barely touches this work so far. The BLS expects 6.5% fewer of these jobs by 2035.
- Rank
- Joint #685 of 785 jobs, by how much of the work AI does
- US jobs, 2025 to 2035
- -6.5% All jobs: +3.5%
- Median US pay
- $37,800 a year, 2025
- People doing it
- 10,300 in the US, with about 1,000 openings a year
The work, 19 activities
The job description, marked up.
Every activity in this job, the biggest first. Tap a line for the evidence.
- deleAI does this
- +AIAI helps
- stetStill yours
Still yours: Sew garments or materials20%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Cut materials11%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Assemble products or work aids11%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Create decorative objects or parts of objects10%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 559 conversations, and it got them there 51% of the time.
Still yours: Position workpieces or materials on equipment6%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Position materials or components for assembly6%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Prepare industrial materials for processing or use4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Inspect characteristics or conditions of materials or products4%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,462 conversations, and it got them there 90% of the time.
Still yours: Clean workpieces, finished products, or other objects3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Smooth surfaces of objects or equipment3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Determine values or prices of goods or services3%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 224 conversations, and it got them there 86% of the time. In this job the work is hands-on, so AI can only assist.
Still yours: Drill holes in earth or materials3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Evaluate production inputs or outputs3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Design materials or devices2%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 820 conversations, and it got them there 57% of the time.
Still yours: Position tools or equipment2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Select materials or equipment for operations or projects2%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 222 conversations, and it got them there 93% of the time. In this job the work is hands-on, so AI can only assist.
Still yours: Fabricate medical devices2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Read documents or materials to inform work processes2%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 51 conversations, and it got them there 88% of the time. In this job the work is hands-on, so AI can only assist.
Still yours: Take physical measurements of patients or clients2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
2025 to 2035
Ten years from now.
For every 100 of these jobs in 2025, the BLS projects 94 in 2035. Across all US jobs, about 104.
Even shrinking, it should still see about 1,000 openings a year as people retire or move on.
Nearby
Where your skills travel.
The jobs closest to this one. None of them is much less exposed.
- Shares 53% of the workSewers, Hand0% AI does, against 0% here-12% by 2035 · $36,480 · No formal credential
- Shares 48% of the workUpholsterers9% AI does, against 0% here-2.3% by 2035 · $46,340 · High school diploma
- Shares 46% of the workTailors, Dressmakers, and Custom Sewers3% AI does, against 0% here-8.8% by 2035 · $41,640 · No formal credential
The wire
On the wire.
Nothing filed about this job yet. The latest from the Work front:
How to read this file.
deleAI does this. In US Bing Copilot conversations from January to September 2024, AI itself performed the activity, completed it and made a real difference often enough to count.
+AIAI helps. People brought the activity to AI as their own goal, and it usually got them there.
stetStill yours. It barely shows up in AI use, AI rarely finishes it, or in this job it needs hands.
Shares are weighted by how much each activity matters in the job, using O*NET. Microsoft’s own AI applicability score for this job is 0.05, higher than 11% of jobs.
Doing an activity is not doing a job. The researchers behind this data warn against reading it as job loss, and so do we. It is US data; the shape of the work travels.
Sources: Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025) · O*NET OnLine, 51-6041 · BLS Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
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