Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technicians

AUTOMATION RISK
CALCULATED
78%
risk level
POLLING
54%
Based on 155 votes
LABOR DEMAND *
GROWTH
6.6%
by year 2032
WAGES
$57,380
or $27.58 per hour
Volume
333,600
as of 2022

Employment data isn't available specifically for this occupation from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, so we are using the data from Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians.

SUMMARY
JOB SCORE
4.6/10

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Automation risk

78% (High Risk)

High Risk (61-80%): Jobs in this category face a significant threat from automation, as many of their tasks can be easily automated using current or near-future technologies.

More information on what this score is, and how it is calculated is available here.

Some quite important qualities of the job are difficult to automate:

  • Finger Dexterity

  • Manual Dexterity

  • Assisting and Caring for Others

  • Social Perceptiveness

User poll

54% chance of full automation within the next two decades

Our visitors have voted they are unsure if this occupation will be automated. However, the automation risk level we have generated suggests a much higher chance of automation: 78% chance of automation.

What do you think the risk of automation is?

What is the likelihood that Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technicians will be replaced by robots or artificial intelligence within the next 20 years?






Sentiment

The following graph(s) are included wherever there is a substantial amount of votes to render meaningful data. These visual representations display user poll results over time, providing a significant indication of sentiment trends.

Sentiment over time (yearly)

Growth

Fast growth relative to other professions

The number of 'Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians' job openings is expected to rise 6.6% by 2032

Total employment, and estimated job openings

* Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics for the period between 2021 and 2031
Updated projections are due 09-2023.

Wages

Moderately paid relative to other professions

In 2022, the median annual wage for 'Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians' was $57,380, or $27 per hour

'Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians' were paid 23.9% higher than the national median wage, which stood at $46,310

Wages over time

* Data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics

Volume

Significantly greater range of job opportunities compared to other professions

As of 2022 there were 333,600 people employed as 'Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians' within the United States.

This represents around 0.23% of the employed workforce across the country

Put another way, around 1 in 443 people are employed as 'Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians'.

Job description

Perform routine medical laboratory tests for the diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of disease. May work under the supervision of a medical technologist.

SOC Code: 29-2012.00

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Comments

tk (Highly likely) says
the only obstacle to full automation today is money
Jun 23, 2023 at 04:20 AM
Not really (Low) says
I doubt it. The idea of being replaced by robots has been circulating for years. However, this hasn't been the case because the field is often misunderstood in terms of what clinical lab technicians do, and the knowledge it takes to understand the results.

Automation can assist in processing a large number of specimens, but when it comes to ensuring the accuracy of the results and the laboratory data, and making sense of it based on the clinical presentation of symptoms and diagnosis, that's a whole different story.
Nov 11, 2022 at 07:03 PM
RAHMANKIND says
I am here ,with a confusion whether to become a radiographer or lab technician.
Now it's clear lab techs can be replaced easily because of "less or no patient contact".
I'll better go with radiography
Feb 15, 2021 at 07:12 AM
Name (Low) says
I can see this being highly roboticized, but a few humans will always have to be around for some things in this job.
Nov 29, 2020 at 07:17 PM

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