Lower AI-exposure UK jobs that don’t usually need a degree

The 25 least AI-exposed occupations in our index whose ONS SOC 2010 skill level is 1, 2 or 3. ONS defines skill level 4 as the level normally requiring a degree or equivalent, so levels 1 to 3 are a proxy for jobs that do not usually need one. Individual employers may still ask for qualifications, licences or apprenticeships.

#	Occupation	AI exposure	Index rank	SOC skill level	Median FT pay (2020)	Employee jobs
1	Roofers, roof tilers and slaters	1/100 (Very low)	#293 of 293	Level 3	£26,989	14,000
2	Elementary construction occupations	1/100 (Very low)	#292 of 293	Level 1	£24,189	66,000
3	Vehicle valeters and cleaners	2/100 (Very low)	#291 of 293	Level 1	£19,976	12,000
4	Cleaners and domestics	2/100 (Very low)	#290 of 293	Level 1	£17,899	508,000
5	Floorers and wall tilers	2/100 (Very low)	#289 of 293	Level 3	£27,376	10,000
6	Launderers, dry cleaners and pressers	3/100 (Very low)	#288 of 293	Level 1	£17,396	16,000
7	Painters and decorators	4/100 (Very low)	#287 of 293	Level 3	£25,617	21,000
8	Fork-lift truck drivers	4/100 (Very low)	#286 of 293	Level 2	£25,741	24,000
9	Packers, bottlers, canners and fillers	4/100 (Very low)	#285 of 293	Level 1	£20,257	94,000
10	Gardeners and landscape gardeners	4/100 (Very low)	#284 of 293	Level 3	£21,468	42,000
11	Road construction operatives	5/100 (Very low)	#283 of 293	Level 2	£30,535	19,000
12	Elementary process plant occupations n.e.c.	5/100 (Very low)	#282 of 293	Level 1	£22,385	88,000
13	Tyre, exhaust and windscreen fitters	5/100 (Very low)	#281 of 293	Level 2	£22,278	15,000
14	Industrial cleaning process occupations	6/100 (Very low)	#280 of 293	Level 1	£20,406	14,000
15	Street cleaners	6/100 (Very low)	#279 of 293	Level 1	£20,244	6,000
16	Vehicle paint technicians	6/100 (Very low)	#278 of 293	Level 3	£29,827	7,000
17	Butchers	7/100 (Very low)	#277 of 293	Level 3	£22,697	30,000
18	Farm workers	7/100 (Very low)	#276 of 293	Level 1	£22,924	43,000
19	Process operatives n.e.c.	7/100 (Very low)	#275 of 293	Level 2	£27,800	6,000
20	Textile process operatives	8/100 (Very low)	#274 of 293	Level 2	£23,719	10,000
21	Scaffolders, stagers and riggers	8/100 (Very low)	#273 of 293	Level 2	£34,176	14,000
22	Large goods vehicle drivers	8/100 (Very low)	#272 of 293	Level 2	£30,820	200,000
23	Sewing machinists	9/100 (Very low)	#271 of 293	Level 2	£18,967	17,000
24	Fishing and other elementary agriculture occupations n.e.c.	9/100 (Very low)	#270 of 293	Level 1	£21,249	20,000
25	Bar staff	10/100 (Very low)	#269 of 293	Level 1	£18,144	107,000

How this ranking was made

Filtered to SOC 2010 skill levels 1–3 (ONS, SOC 2010 Volume 1: skill level 4 “normally requires a degree or equivalent period of work experience”), then sorted by DfE (2023) AIOE score, lowest first. Skill level is a proxy, not an entry requirement.

Index rank: 1 = most exposed of the 293 occupations. Exposure measures how much a job's abilities overlap with current AI applications; it is not a forecast of job losses. Sources: Department for Education (2023), The impact of AI on UK jobs and training; ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2020, Table 14. Full methodology · Compare jobs

More rankings: The 25 UK jobs least exposed to AI · The 25 UK jobs most exposed to AI · The best-paid UK jobs with below-average AI exposure