As of June 2026, Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters has an AI-exposure score of 51/100 (Elevated exposure) on the AI-Safe Careers index, blending O*NET tasks, the Anthropic Economic Index, the Penn/OpenAI study, and BLS data. This is an estimate of task exposure, not a prediction of job loss.
AI Exposure Score for
Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters
51/100
Elevated exposure
LowModerateElevatedHighVery High
More exposed than 35% of the roles we track. Median pay ~US$61,390. About 500 projected openings a year (BLS 2024–34 — growth plus replacement).
Pay & demand figures are US medians (BLS, in USD) — your local figures will differ. Your exposure score applies broadly.
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How you compare to similar Construction roles
Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters (you)
51
Service Unit Operators, Oil and Gas
51
Elevator and Escalator Installers and Repairers
50
Weatherization Installers and Technicians
50
Sheet Metal Workers
50
First-Line Supervisors of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers
53
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Your tasks, by AI exposure
Automatable
- Set up and operate short-wave radio or field telephone equipment to transmit and receive blast information.
- Compile and keep gun and explosives records in compliance with local and federal laws.
Augmentable
- Examine blast areas to determine amounts and kinds of explosive charges needed and to ensure that safety laws are observed.
- Move and store inventories of explosives, loaded perforating guns, and other materials, according to established safety procedures.
- Repair and service blasting, shooting, and automotive equipment, and electrical wiring and instruments, using hand tools.
- Verify detonation of charges by observing control panels, or by listening for the sounds of blasts.
- Place explosive charges in holes or other spots; then detonate explosives to demolish structures or to loosen, remove, or displace earth, rock, or other materials.
- Light fuses, drop detonating devices into wells or boreholes, or activate firing devices with plungers, dials, or buttons, in order to set off single or multiple blasts.
- Tie specified lengths of delaying fuses into patterns in order to time sequences of explosions.
- Assemble and position equipment, explosives, and blasting caps in holes at specified depths, or load perforating guns or torpedoes with explosives.
- Lay primacord between rows of charged blast holes, and tie cord into main lines to form blast patterns.
- Connect electrical wire to primers, and cover charges or fill blast holes with clay, drill chips, sand, or other material.
- Drive trucks to transport explosives and blasting equipment to blasting sites.
- Measure depths of drilled blast holes, using weighted tape measures.
- Insert, pack, and pour explosives, such as dynamite, ammonium nitrate, black powder, or slurries into blast holes; then shovel drill cuttings, admit water into boreholes, and tamp material to compact charges.
- Place safety cones around blast areas to alert other workers of danger zones, and signal workers as necessary to ensure that they clear blast sites prior to explosions.
- Insert waterproof sealers, bullets, and/or powder charges into guns, and screw gun ports back into place.
- Maintain inventory levels, ordering new supplies as necessary.
Durable
- Mark patterns, locations, and depths of charge holes for drilling, and issue drilling instructions.
- Cut specified lengths of primacord and attach primers to cord ends.
Safer adjacent roles
YOUR ROLE TODAY
Explosives Workers, Ordnance Handling Experts, and Blasters 51→
Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas
37
80% skills overlap · Low exposure · ~US$60,190
Helpers--Extraction Workers
43
72% skills overlap · Moderate exposure · ~US$47,730
Rotary Drill Operators, Oil and Gas
48
64% skills overlap · Moderate exposure · ~US$67,890
Continuous Mining Machine Operators
34
56% skills overlap · Low exposure · ~US$61,810
Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining
41
48% skills overlap · Moderate exposure · ~US$57,430
Pile Driver Operators
43
40% skills overlap · Moderate exposure · ~US$73,300
Roof Bolters, Mining
37
40% skills overlap · Low exposure · ~US$78,540
Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators
41
40% skills overlap · Moderate exposure · ~US$59,850
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Important: This is an estimate of AI exposure, not a prediction that your job will disappear. It is designed to help you understand how your role may change and improve your career resilience.