Artificial intelligence and outsourcing are rapidly reshaping the workforce, forcing employers and employees alike to ask a pressing question about the future of work: Which jobs are safe, and which are at risk? 

While some roles remain difficult to automate due to regulation, trust or sheer physical complexity, others — what Andrew Gadomski, a managing director at Aspen Analytics and expert in the use of AI in employment and workplace planning, classifies as “knowledge work” — are significantly more vulnerable to automation and less resistant to AI.

The safe jobs: Built on trust, regulation and physicality

Some roles remain highly insulated from AI and automation simply because they can’t be fully replicated by machines, or because society won’t yet allow it. As Marc Cenedella, the founder of Ladders, Inc., a digital job board connecting job seekers with employers, puts it: the jobs least likely to be automated are the ones “that require judgment or taste.” Roles that require empathy, judgement and physical skills will remain resistant to AI.

Physical trades

Take public service and emergency response, for instance. As Gadomski explains, “I always tell my daughter, you can always be a Coast Guard rescue swimmer, you can always be a firefighter.” These jobs require dexterity, quick decision-making and physical exertion — areas where robotics still face barriers of cost, trust and reliability. 

Cenedella agrees, observing the “things like fixing your sink, making the right type of omelet or building a bus shelter” will do well as we transition to more AI and robotics in the workforce. We need humans doing this work; the technology does not yet exist for them to be automated.

That doesn’t mean they won’t use AI in the workplace to make their jobs easier, it just means that there is still an inherently human aspect to the job that AI cannot replace. For example, “a firefighter might have a vision-enabled helmet that helps them understand body heat versus flame heat, or structural integrity while on a response,” Gadomski explains. In other words, “AI will augment, not replace” such roles.

Healthcare and social services

Jobs “that require people to impart knowledge, encouragement and wisdom are not yet able to be replaced by AI,” says Cenedella. Therapists, doctors, coaches and teachers must show empathy and connect with their patients and students, and AI just can’t do that.

Surgeons are also relatively protected because of regulatory and financial factors. “Insurance companies may feel more comfortable providing payments for nurse practitioners and physicians but may not feel as appropriate on doing robotics or certain types of surgery enabled by AI,” Gadomski notes. Trust and liability concerns keep humans in the operating room and keep the robots out. 

Law

Law is another prime example. While paralegals and legal assistants may see automation cut into their work, attorneys are safe. “In order for you to walk into a courtroom and have a defendant, you need to be an attorney. You need to pass the bar and be licensed,” Gadomski says. Regulation ensures that human advocates remain central to justice.

The at-risk jobs: Knowledge work without physical anchors

On the flip side, jobs that involve routine knowledge work — work that is highly repetitive and does not require specialized knowledge — are at high risk. Gadomski explains it bluntly: “If something can get done instantaneously or continuously, and it doesn’t involve physical exertion, those jobs are really under scrutiny.”

This includes transcription, scheduling and other repetitive tasks. For instance, AI captioning or avatars can reduce the need for live note-takers and sign language interpreters, thus trimming head count where efficiency outweighs traditional roles.

Recruiting also illustrates this shift. As Gadomski puts it, “Recruiting is not going to go away because of AI. Recruiting goes away because the demand goes down.” With fewer job openings for critical roles — since workers stay longer and AI augments their output — there is simply less need for recruiters to find workers to fill non-critical roles.

The gray areas: Jobs that will evolve

Some roles won’t vanish but will instead transform. “Workers who focus their careers on solving real-world problems (versus a specific function/role) aren’t competing against AI — they’re partnering with it,” says Georgi Enthoven, who holds an MBA from Harvard University, is a USA TODAY best-selling author and host of the podcast “Work That’s Worth It.” 

Radiology technicians, for example, are needed for patient interaction during MRI scans. “I’m sorry, that’s not going to get done by a robot,” Gadomski says. But AI may reduce the overall number of technicians required because technology will streamline diagnostics and improve processes. They will use AI to make it easier for physicians to diagnose and make decisions. 

Similarly, truck driving and cargo handling are safe only until autonomous fleets prove safer than human drivers. “When that starts to really happen, those jobs become an endangered work species,” Gadomski warns. Like electric vehicles, adoption will accelerate once costs and risks favor technology.

What this means for the future workforce

In short, AI isn’t replacing all workers, but it is redrawing the map of who is essential in the workforce. Jobs that require empathy, accountability and physical human presence will remain protected. For workers, the safest career bets are in areas requiring human trust, regulation and dexterity, like law, medicine, public safety and skilled trades. Meanwhile, repetitive knowledge tasks without such anchors are already slipping away.

For employers, the challenge is strategic planning: “You need to start categorizing several years from now, how you’re investing in a workforce,” Gadomski advises. Companies need to decide which roles need a human presence, and which can ultimately be replaced by technology. Now is the time to make that decision, because technology will only continue to advance further.

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