10 Dying Jobs That Are Expected To Disappear in the Next 10 Years
10 Dying Jobs That Are Expected To Disappear in the Next 10 Years
Chris Lewis, CEPFSat, June 20, 2026 at 4:05 PM UTC
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10 Dying Jobs That Are Expected To Disappear in the Next 10 Years
If you want to get ahead financially, one of the most important things you can do is make sureyour career is pointed in the right direction. That means looking honestly atwhere the labor market is heading.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) projects2024–2034 employment changes across hundreds of occupations, and the WorldEconomic Forum's Future of Jobs Report 2025 adds a global perspective on whichroles are at greatest risk from AI, automation, and digital disruption.Together, they paint a consistent picture: jobs built on routine, predictabletasks are disappearing fast.
Here are 10 occupations facing the steepest declines over the next decade.
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1. Word processors and typists
Projected decline (2024–2034): -36.1%
The BLS projects this role will fall faster than any other occupation inpercentage terms, shedding roughly 14,400 positions. As AI-assisted writingtools and voice recognition software become standard, the dedicated typing rolehas all but lost its reason to exist.
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2. Switchboard operators, including answering service
Projected decline (2024–2034): -26.3%
Automated phone systems and AI voice assistants have reduced the need for humanoperators to near-zero in most industries. The BLS projects roughly 9,600positions will disappear over the decade.
3. Data entry keyers
Projected decline (2024–2034): -25.9%
AI and automation now handle data capture and form processing faster and moreaccurately than human entry. EDsmart's 2025 analysis of AI task exposure foundbookkeeping and data-processing roles among the most vulnerable, with up to 95% oftasks already automatable using current technology.
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4. Telemarketers
Projected decline (2024–2034): -22.1%
With 96.25% of telemarketer tasks identified as automatable by AI in EDsmart's2025 analysis — the highest exposure rate of any occupation studied — thewriting has been on the wall for years. Robocalling AI and digital ad targetingare replacing the function that human telemarketers once served.
5. Order clerks
Projected decline (2024–2034): -17.2%
AI-based order management systems now process, confirm, and route orders withouthuman involvement. By 2034, the BLS projects only 74,100 positions will remainin this category.
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6. Payroll and timekeeping clerks
Projected decline (2024–2034): -16.7%
Automated payroll platforms handle calculation, compliance, and reporting withminimal human input. EDsmart's 2025 analysis found payroll and timekeepingclerks at 94% AI task exposure, meaning most of the job's core functions canalready be automated.
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7. Bank tellers
Projected decline (2024–2034): -13%
Online banking, mobile deposits, and ATM upgrades have replaced the majority oftasks tellers once performed. The WEF's Future of Jobs 2025 Report specificallynames bank tellers among the roles facing the steepest global decline, adesignation that aligns with every recent BLS projection cycle.
8. Cashiers
Projected decline (2024–2034): -10%
Cashiers represent the single largest projected job loss in absolute numbers(313,600 by 2034), driven by self-checkout expansion, app-based payments, andcashierless store technology.
9. Computer programmers
Projected decline (2024–2034): -6%
This one surprises people. While software development overall is growing, theBLS distinguishes between software developers (growing fast) and computerprogrammers — those writing code to spec from pre-defined requirements. AIcoding tools are automating the latter category while demand shifts towardhigher-order design and architecture roles.
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10. Postal service clerks and mail sorters
Projected decline (2024–2034): -5%
The WEF Future of Jobs 2025 Report identifies postal service workers among oneof the fastest-declining occupations globally. Email, digital billing, anddeclining first-class mail volume continue to shrink the base that supports thisworkforce.
What isn't going anywhere
The pattern across all projections is consistent: Jobs requiring physicaladaptability, genuine human relationships, and embodied judgment are the mostresilient.
Health care workers rank among the fastest-growing occupations in the BLS data.Tradespeople in construction, electrical, and HVAC remain resistant becausetheir work requires physical presence and situational judgment that robotscannot replicate cost-effectively. Teachers, counselors, social workers, andtherapists have roles built on human trust and contextual understanding, andaren't predicted to be going anywhere anytime soon.
Bottom line
The jobs most at risk were built around tasks that can be described, repeated,and therefore automated. AI doesn't need to be smarter than a human to eliminatea role; it just needs to be faster, cheaper, and good enough at a defined set oftasks. For workers in declining fields, the most valuable move is shiftingtoward skills that are genuinely hard to replicate: physical presence,relational intelligence, and complex judgment under uncertainty.
One practical consideration: remote work hasbecome a double-edged sword for career durability. Fully remote, task-basedroles are often the easiest for employers to automate or offshore, while hybridand in-person roles that require relationship-building and situational awarenesstend to be more resilient. When evaluating career moves, the nature of the workmatters as much as the title on the job posting.
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Source: “AOL Money”
