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Hoist and Winch Operators
Transportation and Material Moving · SOC 53-7041
0.0% AI Exposure — Low
$56,450
Median Annual Salary
Average
O*NET Outlook
400
Proj. Annual Openings
2,600
Employment (OEWS 2025)
-9.7%/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 53-7041 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
- 53/100
- Moderate friction; broad SOC seed ORS job-requirements coverage.
- Wages
- $56,450
- No H-1B offered-wage row for this SOC.
- Projected openings
- 400
- BLS EP 2024–2034; employment change -1.1%.
- Observed/proxy demand
- —
- FY— certified LCAs; 429 postings in 2025.
Skill evidence
Critical ThinkingMonitoringOperations MonitoringTime ManagementActive Listening
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. Exposure0.2%
Across AI measures
Multiple exposure lenses for this occupation.
13.4%
Consensus
Actual adoption · Anthropic0%
AI capability · OpenAI0%
AI ability · AIOE40.3%
Automation baseline (2013) · Frey & Osborne65%
Top Skills
1.Critical Thinking
2.Monitoring
3.Operations Monitoring
4.Time Management
5.Active Listening
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
Operate or tend hoists or winches to lift and pull loads using power-operated cable equipment.
Common titles: Hoist Operator, Hoistman, Material Handler, Service Operator, Winch Derrick Operator
Representative Tasks
- •Move levers, pedals, and throttles to stop, start, and regulate speeds of hoist or winch drums in response to hand, bell, buzzer, telephone, loud-speaker, or whistle signals, or by observing dial indicators or cable marks.
- •Start engines of hoists or winches and use levers and pedals to wind or unwind cable on drums.
- •Observe equipment gauges and indicators and hand signals of other workers to verify load positions or depths.
- •Operate compressed air, diesel, electric, gasoline, or steam-driven hoists or winches to control movement of cableways, cages, derricks, draglines, loaders, railcars, or skips.
- •Move or reposition hoists, winches, loads and materials, manually or using equipment and machines such as trucks, cars, and hand trucks.
Detailed Work Activities
- •Operate cranes, hoists, or other moving or lifting equipment.
- •Monitor equipment gauges or displays to ensure proper operation.
- •Maintain material moving equipment in good working condition.
- •Move materials, equipment, or supplies.
- •Position material handling equipment.
Tools & Technologies
Microsoft Excel · hotMicrosoft Word · hot
Employment Projections & AI Exposure
15
Occupations Shown
0.8%
Avg AI Exposure
6
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 53-7041: 2019 — employment: 4,800, median wage: $59,720; 2020 — employment: 4,460, median wage: $62,610; 2021 — employment: 2,610, median wage: $52,300; 2022 — employment: 2,440, median wage: $58,950; 2023 — employment: 2,230, median wage: $55,950; 2025 — employment: 2,600, median wage: $56,450.
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% | 0.2% |
| Outlook | Average | 20% Bright |
| Median Salary | $56,450 | N/A |
| AI Resiliency | 100/100 | N/A |