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Pipelayers
Construction and Extraction · SOC 47-2151
0.0% AI Exposure — Low
$49,000
Median Annual Salary
Bright ↗
O*NET Outlook
5,500
Proj. Annual Openings
33,050
Employment (OEWS 2025)
-1.5%/yr
Empl. growth (2019–2025)
100/100
AI Resiliency Score
AI exposure from the Anthropic Economic Index (2025); salary from BLS; skills from O*NET. See /sources.
Decision card
Career Evidence Passport
SOC 47-2151 evidence across exposure, wages, projections, postings, certified LCAs, skills, and transitions.
Proxy / seed data labeledDescriptive-only
- SOC exposure
- 0.0%
- Low · Anthropic AEI
- Automation friction
- 57/100
- Moderate friction; broad SOC seed ORS job-requirements coverage.
- Wages
- $49,000
- No H-1B offered-wage row for this SOC.
- Projected openings
- 5,500
- BLS EP 2024–2034; employment change -4.1%.
- Observed/proxy demand
- —
- FY— certified LCAs; 7,272 postings in 2025.
Skill evidence
Operation and ControlActive ListeningOperations MonitoringCritical ThinkingCoordination
Transition context
- H-1B values are certified Labor Condition Applications, not visa approvals.
- Job postings are seed-static / seed-derived; treat as provider-ready proxy coverage until observed provider data is wired in.
- Transition matches are directional skill-overlap context, not placement guarantees.
- This release is a FutureGrid broad-SOC seed derived from public BLS ORS requirement concepts and categories, not direct occupation-level ORS survey estimates. It describes job requirements, not worker ability, AI capability, or displacement probability. Automation friction is a FutureGrid derived score and should be read alongside exposure, demand, wage, and projection signals.
AI Exposure Analysis
AI Exposure0.0%
AI Resiliency100/100
Exposure BandLow
Sector Avg. Exposure1.2%
Across AI measures
Multiple exposure lenses for this occupation.
12.7%
Consensus
Actual adoption · Anthropic0%
AI capability · OpenAI3.6%
AI ability · AIOE34.4%
Automation baseline (2013) · Frey & Osborne62%
Top Skills
1.Operation and Control
2.Active Listening
3.Operations Monitoring
4.Critical Thinking
5.Coordination
H-1B Visa Sponsorship Demand
View full H-1B trends →No H-1B certified LCA filings recorded for this occupation in FY2016–FY2025.
O*NET occupation profile
What this work involves
Lay pipe for storm or sanitation sewers, drains, and water mains. Perform any combination of the following tasks: grade trenches or culverts, position pipe, or seal joints.
Common titles: Pipelayer, Tailman
Representative Tasks
- •Grade or level trench bases, using tamping machines or hand tools.
- •Dig trenches to desired or required depths, by hand or using trenching tools.
- •Cut pipes to required lengths.
- •Install or use instruments such as lasers, grade rods, or transit levels.
- •Cover pipes with earth or other materials.
Detailed Work Activities
- •Compact materials to create level bases.
- •Cut metal components for installation.
- •Dig holes or trenches.
- •Position hand tools.
- •Install plumbing or piping.
Tools & Technologies
Microsoft Excel · hotMicrosoft Office software · hot
Employment Projections & AI Exposure
15
Occupations Shown
1.2%
Avg AI Exposure
12
Bright Outlook
Horizontal bar chart showing occupations with the highest projected annual openings. Each bar length represents annual projected openings. Color uses a gradient from violet (lower) to cyan (higher). Summary statistics are shown above the chart.
Employment & Wage Trend
BLS OEWS, 2019–2025
Multi-year BLS OEWS history for SOC 47-2151: 2019 — employment: 36,270, median wage: $38,820; 2020 — employment: 33,950, median wage: $40,480; 2021 — employment: 33,330, median wage: $45,980; 2022 — employment: 36,070, median wage: $45,990; 2023 — employment: 34,840, median wage: $47,330; 2025 — employment: 33,050, median wage: $49,000.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). See /sources.
Sector Comparison
| Metric | This Career | Sector Average |
|---|---|---|
| AI Exposure | 0.0% | 1.2% |
| Outlook | Bright ↗ | 70% Bright |
| Median Salary | $49,000 | N/A |
| AI Resiliency | 100/100 | N/A |