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Rail Car Repairers
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair · SOC 49-3043
0.0% AI Exposure — Low
$67,530
Median Annual Salary
Average
O*NET Outlook
2,600
Proj. Annual Openings
21,350
Employment (OEWS 2025)
-3.2%/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 49-3043 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
- $67,530
- No H-1B offered-wage row for this SOC.
- Projected openings
- 2,600
- BLS EP 2024–2034; employment change +2.8%.
- Observed/proxy demand
- —
- FY— certified LCAs; 2,976 postings in 2025.
Skill evidence
TroubleshootingRepairingEquipment MaintenanceCritical ThinkingOperations Monitoring
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. Exposure1.6%
Across AI measures
Multiple exposure lenses for this occupation.
12.9%
Consensus
Actual adoption · Anthropic0%
AI capability · OpenAI9.7%
AI ability · AIOE29.1%
Automation baseline (2013) · Frey & Osborne88%
Top Skills
1.Troubleshooting
2.Repairing
3.Equipment Maintenance
4.Critical Thinking
5.Operations Monitoring
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
Diagnose, adjust, repair, or overhaul railroad rolling stock, mine cars, or mass transit rail cars.
Common titles: Freight Maintenance Specialist, Locomotive Repairman, Rail Car Maintenance Mechanic, Rail Car Mechanic, Rail Car Repairer, Rail Car Repairman
Representative Tasks
- •Record conditions of cars, and repair and maintenance work performed or to be performed.
- •Inspect components such as bearings, seals, gaskets, wheels, and coupler assemblies to determine if repairs are needed.
- •Repair or replace defective or worn parts such as bearings, pistons, and gears, using hand tools, torque wrenches, power tools, and welding equipment.
- •Inspect the interior and exterior of rail cars coming into rail yards to identify defects and to determine the extent of wear and damage.
- •Remove locomotives, car mechanical units, or other components, using pneumatic hoists and jacks, pinch bars, hand tools, and cutting torches.
Detailed Work Activities
- •Inspect mechanical components of vehicles to identify problems.
- •Maintain repair or maintenance records.
- •Repair worn, damaged, or defective mechanical parts.
- •Replace worn, damaged, or defective mechanical parts.
- •Inspect vehicles to determine overall condition.
Tools & Technologies
Microsoft Excel · hotMicrosoft Outlook · hotMicrosoft PowerPoint · hotMozilla Firefox · hotMicrosoft Internet ExplorerRailTech Software Systems Mars for the 21st Century
Employment Projections & AI Exposure
15
Occupations Shown
1.9%
Avg AI Exposure
4
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 49-3043: 2019 — employment: 25,930, median wage: $56,390; 2020 — employment: 22,310, median wage: $57,710; 2021 — employment: 22,800, median wage: $60,250; 2022 — employment: 19,830, median wage: $62,510; 2023 — employment: 19,480, median wage: $65,030; 2025 — employment: 21,350, median wage: $67,530.
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% | 1.6% |
| Outlook | Average | 24% Bright |
| Median Salary | $67,530 | N/A |
| AI Resiliency | 100/100 | N/A |