# Laundry and Dry-Cleaning Workers

> Operate or tend washing or dry-cleaning machines to wash or dry-clean industrial or household articles, such as cloth garments, suede, leather, furs, blankets, draperies, linens, rugs, and carpets. Includes spotters and dyers of these articles.
- **Entity Type:** role
- **Schema Version:** role.v1
- **Soc Code:** 51-6011.00
- **Summary:** Operate or tend washing or dry-cleaning machines to wash or dry-clean industrial or household articles, such as cloth garments, suede, leather, furs, blankets, draperies, linens, rugs, and carpets. Includes spotters and dyers of these articles.

## Aliases

- Laundry Aide
- Laundry Attendant
- Laundry Housekeeper
- Laundry Worker
- Dry Cleaner
- Laundry Assistant
- Laundry Technician
- Personal Clothing Laundry Aide
- Spotter
- Assorter
- Bag Hanger
- Bag Washer

## Tasks

| Text | Type | Iwa |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Load articles into washers or dry-cleaning machines, or direct other workers to perform loading. | Core | 4.A.3.a.1.h |
| Start washers, dry cleaners, driers, or extractors, and turn valves or levers to regulate machine processes and the volume of soap, detergent, water, bleach, starch, and other additives. | Core | 4.A.3.a.1.h |
| Apply bleaching powders to spots and spray them with steam to remove stains from fabrics that do not respond to other cleaning solvents. | Supplemental | 4.A.3.a.1.h |
| Operate extractors and driers, or direct their operation. | Core | 4.A.3.a.1.h |
| Sort and count articles removed from dryers, and fold, wrap, or hang them. | Core | 4.A.1.b.2.f |
| Remove items from washers or dry-cleaning machines, or direct other workers to do so. | Core | 4.A.3.a.2.an |
| Clean machine filters, and lubricate equipment. | Core | 4.A.3.a.1.c |
| Examine and sort into lots articles to be cleaned, according to color, fabric, dirt content, and cleaning technique required. | Core | 4.A.1.b.2.j |
| Determine spotting procedures and proper solvents, based on fabric and stain types. | Supplemental | 4.A.2.b.1.j |
| Spray steam, water, or air over spots to flush out chemicals, dry material, raise naps, or brighten colors. | Supplemental | 4.A.3.a.1.h |
| Receive and mark articles for laundry or dry cleaning with identifying code numbers or names, using hand or machine markers. | Core | 4.A.1.b.1.a |
| Pre-soak, sterilize, scrub, spot-clean, and dry contaminated or stained articles, using neutralizer solutions and portable machines. | Supplemental | 4.A.3.a.1.h |

## Emerging Tasks


## Activities

| Name | Iwa |
| --- | --- |
| Mark products, workpieces, or equipment with identifying information. | 4.A.1.b.1.a |
| Operate garment treatment equipment. | 4.A.3.a.1.h |
| Apply water or solutions to fabrics or apparel. | 4.A.3.a.1.h |
| Count finished products or workpieces. | 4.A.1.b.2.f |
| Sort materials or products for processing, storing, shipping, or grading. | 4.A.2.a.2.b |
| Inspect garments for defects, damage, or stains. | 4.A.1.b.2.j |
| Direct operational or production activities. | 4.A.4.b.4.j |
| Mix substances to create chemical solutions. | 4.A.3.a.1.a |
| Clean production equipment. | 4.A.3.a.1.c |
| Lubricate production equipment. | 4.A.3.b.5.a |
| Remove products or workpieces from production equipment. | 4.A.3.a.2.an |
| Select equipment, materials, or supplies for cleaning or maintenance activities. | 4.A.2.b.1.j |
| Mount materials or workpieces onto production equipment. | 4.A.3.a.2.f |
| Compare physical characteristics of materials or products to specifications or standards. | 4.A.1.b.2.j |
| Test chemical or physical characteristics of materials or products. | 4.A.1.b.2.c |
| Smooth garments with irons, presses, or steamers. | 4.A.3.a.3.f |
| Immerse objects or workpieces in cleaning or coating solutions. | 4.A.3.a.2.m |

## Capabilities

| Name | Family | Value |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Arm-Hand Steadiness | ability | 3.25 |
| Customer and Personal Service | knowledge | 3.2 |
| Production and Processing | knowledge | 3.1 |
| Active Listening | essential_skill | 3 |
| Monitoring | essential_skill | 3 |
| Oral Comprehension | ability | 3 |
| Oral Expression | ability | 3 |
| Manual Dexterity | ability | 3 |
| Control Precision | ability | 3 |
| Near Vision | ability | 3 |
| Speech Recognition | ability | 3 |
| English Language | knowledge | 2.97 |
| Public Safety and Security | knowledge | 2.94 |
| Speaking | essential_skill | 2.88 |
| Social Perceptiveness | transferable_skill | 2.88 |
| Operations Monitoring | transferable_skill | 2.88 |
| Time Management | transferable_skill | 2.88 |
| Problem Sensitivity | ability | 2.88 |
| Information Ordering | ability | 2.88 |
| Finger Dexterity | ability | 2.88 |
| Multilimb Coordination | ability | 2.88 |
| Trunk Strength | ability | 2.88 |
| Speech Clarity | ability | 2.88 |
| Mathematics | knowledge | 2.81 |
| Reading Comprehension | essential_skill | 2.75 |
| Critical Thinking | essential_skill | 2.75 |
| Operation and Control | transferable_skill | 2.75 |
| Judgment and Decision Making | transferable_skill | 2.75 |
| Written Comprehension | ability | 2.75 |
| Deductive Reasoning | ability | 2.75 |
| Inductive Reasoning | ability | 2.75 |
| Category Flexibility | ability | 2.75 |
| Selective Attention | ability | 2.75 |
| Visual Color Discrimination | ability | 2.75 |
| Administration and Management | knowledge | 2.69 |
| Active Learning | essential_skill | 2.62 |
| Coordination | transferable_skill | 2.5 |
| Chemistry | knowledge | 2.41 |
| Instructing | transferable_skill | 2.38 |
| Service Orientation | transferable_skill | 2.38 |

## Skills

| Name | Type |
| --- | --- |
| Speech Recognition | Specialized Skill |
| Microsoft Word | Common Skill |
| Microsoft Windows | Common Skill |
| Microsoft Excel | Common Skill |
| Active Listening | Common Skill |
| English Language | Common Skill |
| Time Management | Common Skill |
| Social Perceptiveness | Common Skill |
| Information Ordering | Specialized Skill |
| Finger Dexterity | Common Skill |
| Mathematics | Common Skill |
| Reading Comprehension | Common Skill |
| Inductive Reasoning | Common Skill |
| Deductive Reasoning | Common Skill |
| Critical Thinking | Common Skill |
| Active Learning | Common Skill |
| Chemistry | Specialized Skill |
| Visualization | Specialized Skill |
| Instructing | Specialized Skill |
| Complex Problem Solving | Common Skill |
| Negotiation | Common Skill |
| Learning Strategies | Specialized Skill |
| Writing | Common Skill |
| Systems Analysis | Specialized Skill |
| Email Software | Specialized Skill |
| Depth Perception | Common Skill |
| Foreign Language | Common Skill |
| Equipment Selection | Specialized Skill |
| Equipment Maintenance | Specialized Skill |
| Psychology | Specialized Skill |
| Telecommunications | Specialized Skill |
| Physics | Specialized Skill |
| Biology | Specialized Skill |
| Geography | Specialized Skill |
| Installation | Specialized Skill |

## Tools

| Example | Category | Hot | In Demand |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Microsoft Excel | Spreadsheet software | yes | no |
| Microsoft Office software | Office suite software | yes | no |
| Microsoft Windows | Operating system software | yes | no |
| Microsoft Word | Word processing software | yes | no |
| Cents | Point of sale POS software | no | no |
| Curbside Laundries Wash and Fold POS Software | Point of sale POS software | no | no |
| Email software | Electronic mail software | no | no |
| Property management system PMS software | Data base user interface and query software | no | no |
| Sales processing software | Point of sale POS software | no | no |
| Wash-Dry-Fold POS | Point of sale POS software | no | no |
| Web browser software | Internet browser software | no | no |

## Work Context

| Name | Value |
| --- | --- |
| Spend Time Standing | 4.62 |
| Health and Safety of Other Workers | 4.26 |
| Spend Time Making Repetitive Motions | 4.13 |
| Pace Determined by Speed of Equipment | 4.12 |
| Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets | 4.09 |
| Spend Time Using Your Hands to Handle, Control, or Feel Objects, Tools, or Controls | 3.99 |
| Importance of Being Exact or Accurate | 3.93 |
| Time Pressure | 3.91 |
| Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams | 3.85 |
| Work Outcomes and Results of Other Workers | 3.74 |
| Work With or Contribute to a Work Group or Team | 3.72 |
| Spend Time Walking or Running | 3.68 |
| Indoors, Environmentally Controlled | 3.5 |
| Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results | 3.49 |
| Level of Competition | 3.43 |
| Spend Time Bending or Twisting Your Body | 3.39 |
| Degree of Automation | 3.27 |
| Contact With Others | 3.23 |
| Exposed to Disease or Infections | 3.19 |
| Determine Tasks, Priorities and Goals | 3.18 |
| Physical Proximity | 3.12 |
| Importance of Repeating Same Tasks | 3.07 |
| Exposed to Contaminants | 2.99 |
| Freedom to Make Decisions | 2.92 |
| Frequency of Decision Making | 2.83 |
| Coordinate or Lead Others in Accomplishing Work Activities | 2.82 |
| Dealing With Unpleasant, Angry, or Discourteous People | 2.57 |
| Deal With External Customers or the Public in General | 2.49 |
| Spend Time Kneeling, Crouching, Stooping, or Crawling | 2.3 |
| Wear Specialized Protective or Safety Equipment such as Breathing Apparatus, Safety Harness, Full Protection Suits, or Radiation Protection | 2.3 |
| Spend Time Keeping or Regaining Balance | 2.14 |
| Exposed to Hazardous Conditions | 2.13 |
| Conflict Situations | 2.09 |
| Telephone Conversations | 2.03 |
| Exposed to Sounds, Noise Levels that are Distracting or Uncomfortable | 2.01 |
| Exposed to Very Hot or Cold Temperatures | 1.93 |
| Consequence of Error | 1.92 |
| Exposed to Minor Burns, Cuts, Bites, or Stings | 1.89 |
| Public Speaking | 1.8 |
| Indoors, Not Environmentally Controlled | 1.69 |

## Preparation

- **Job Zone:** 2
- **Job Zone Name:** Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
- **Education:** Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
- **Experience:** Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.
- **Svp Range:** (Below 6.0)

### Education Distribution

| Label | Percentage |
| --- | --- |
| Less than a High School Diploma | 65.22 |
| High School Diploma | 34.16 |
| Post-Secondary Certificate | 0.62 |

## Person Fit

| Name | Family | Value |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Realistic | career_interest_type | 6.38 |
| Physical/Manual Labor | specific_interest_area | 5.07 |
| Conventional | career_interest_type | 4.26 |
| Dependability | work_style | 2.16 |
| Mechanics/Electronics | specific_interest_area | 2 |
| Transportation/Machine Operation | specific_interest_area | 1.77 |
| Attention to Detail | work_style | 1.71 |
| Enterprising | career_interest_type | 1.54 |
| Personal Service | specific_interest_area | 1.46 |
| Social | career_interest_type | 1.36 |
| Engineering | specific_interest_area | 1.26 |
| Accounting | specific_interest_area | 1.2 |
| Artistic | career_interest_type | 1.18 |
| Management/Administration | specific_interest_area | 1.17 |
| Cautiousness | work_style | 1.17 |
| Health Care Service | specific_interest_area | 1.16 |

## Related Roles

| Soc Code | Slug | Title | Tier |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 53-7061.00 | role-53-7061-00 | Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment | Primary-Short |
| 51-6021.00 | role-51-6021-00 | Pressers, Textile, Garment, and Related Materials | Primary-Short |
| 51-9192.00 | role-51-9192-00 | Cleaning, Washing, and Metal Pickling Equipment Operators and Tenders | Primary-Short |
| 51-6031.00 | role-51-6031-00 | Sewing Machine Operators | Primary-Short |
| 51-9123.00 | role-51-9123-00 | Painting, Coating, and Decorating Workers | Primary-Short |
| 51-6061.00 | role-51-6061-00 | Textile Bleaching and Dyeing Machine Operators and Tenders | Primary-Long |
| 53-7063.00 | role-53-7063-00 | Machine Feeders and Offbearers | Primary-Long |
| 37-2012.00 | role-37-2012-00 | Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners | Primary-Long |
| 51-9031.00 | role-51-9031-00 | Cutters and Trimmers, Hand | Primary-Long |
| 53-7064.00 | role-53-7064-00 | Packers and Packagers, Hand | Primary-Long |
| 51-9111.00 | role-51-9111-00 | Packaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders | Supplemental |
| 51-9124.00 | role-51-9124-00 | Coating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders | Supplemental |

## Career Clusters

| Cluster | Slug |
| --- | --- |
| Advanced Manufacturing | advanced-manufacturing |

## Education Level

- **Category:** No formal educational credential

## Study Programs


## Market

- **Median Wage:** 33800
- **Mean Wage:** 33990
- **Pct10Wage:** 26270
- **Pct25Wage:** 29530
- **Pct75Wage:** 36760
- **Pct90Wage:** 42370
- **Employment:** 195360
- **Area Title:** U.S.

## Industries


### Top

| Naics | Slug | Title | Level | Employment | Median Wage | Lq |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 81 | 81 | Other Services (except Public Administration) | Sector | 96930 | 33650 | 17.28 |
| 72 | 72 | Accommodation and Food Services | Sector | 41560 | 33800 | 2.3 |
| 62 | 62 | Health Care and Social Assistance | Sector | 32630 | 34070 | 1.11 |
| 56 | 56 | Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | Sector | 14260 | 33290 | 1.25 |
| 561320 | 561320 | Temporary Help Services | National industry | 5070 | 33290 | 1.51 |
| 53 | 53 | Real Estate and Rental and Leasing | Sector | 2920 | 34530 | 0.97 |
| 721120 | 721120 | Casino Hotels | National industry | 2380 | 34160 | 5.57 |
| 71 | 71 | Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation | Sector | 1270 | 35360 | 0.38 |
| 31-33 | 31-33 | Manufacturing | Sector | 550 | 38910 | 0.03 |
| 42 | 42 | Wholesale Trade | Sector | 420 | 32670 | 0.05 |
| 61 | 61 | Educational Services | Sector | 380 | 36440 | 0.02 |
| 55 | 55 | Management of Companies and Enterprises | Sector | 370 | 33320 | 0.1 |

### Concentrated

| Naics | Slug | Title | Level | Employment | Lq |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 81 | 81 | Other Services (except Public Administration) | Sector | 96930 | 17.28 |
| 721120 | 721120 | Casino Hotels | National industry | 2380 | 5.57 |
| 72 | 72 | Accommodation and Food Services | Sector | 41560 | 2.3 |
| 561320 | 561320 | Temporary Help Services | National industry | 5070 | 1.51 |
| 56 | 56 | Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services | Sector | 14260 | 1.25 |
| 62 | 62 | Health Care and Social Assistance | Sector | 32630 | 1.11 |
| 53 | 53 | Real Estate and Rental and Leasing | Sector | 2920 | 0.97 |
| 623210 | 623210 | Residential Intellectual and Developmental Disability Facilities | National industry | 310 | 0.63 |
- **Count:** 22

## Ai Signals

| Source | Label | Score | Scale | Release |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| frey_osborne | Computerization probability | 0.71 | 0-1 probability | 2013-baseline-2016-employment-snapshot |
| felten_aioe | AI occupational exposure | -1.054399 | relative exposure score | 2021-plus-generative-ai-workbooks |
| felten_image_generation_aioe | Image generation occupational exposure | -1.346116 | relative exposure score | 2021-plus-generative-ai-workbooks |
| felten_language_modeling_aioe | Language modeling occupational exposure | -0.8894878 | relative exposure score | 2021-plus-generative-ai-workbooks |

## Ai Outlook


### Index

- **Value:** 12
- **Percentile:** 8
- **Band:** Low
- **Version:** ai-exposure-index-v1

#### Components

| Percentile | Source |
| --- | --- |
| 16 | felten_aioe |
| 10 | openai_gpts_are_gpts |
| 9 | microsoft_working_with_ai |
- **Component Count:** 3

### Exposure

| Source | Label | Value | Percentile | Band | Note |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| felten_aioe | Overall AI exposure (Felten et al.) | -1.054399 | 16 | Low | How much this job's abilities overlap with what AI systems can do, across many AI capabilities. A relative research score, not a forecast of job loss. |
| eloundou_gamma | LLM task exposure, γ (OpenAI / Eloundou) | 0.07500000000000001 | 10 | Low | Share of this job's tasks where a large language model plus simple tools could cut the time to do them by at least half. γ is capped at 1.0 and many jobs reach that ceiling, so treat a top score as 'in the top group', not a precise rank. |
| microsoft_applicability | AI assistant applicability (Microsoft) | 0.04460238616493181 | 9 | Low | How applicable today's AI assistants are to this job's activities, measured from real Microsoft Copilot conversations. Applicability is not the same as replacement. |

### Frey Historical

- **Source:** frey
- **Label:** Computerization probability (Frey & Osborne, 2013)
- **Value:** 0.71
- **Percentile:** 58
- **Band:** Moderate
- **Note:** A pre-LLM (2013) estimate of how automatable this job is by computerization and robotics. Shown for historical context only — it is not part of any current AI ranking.
- **Teleworkable:** no

### Eloundou

- **Alpha:** 0.025
- **Beta:** 0.05
- **Gamma:** 0.07500000000000001

### Usage Tasks


### Bls

- **Growth Percent:** 5.4
- **Growth Percentile:** 77
- **Direction:** About average
- **Annual Openings Thousands:** 31.9
- **Annual Openings Percentile:** 85
- **Employment2024Thousands:** 202.6
- **Employment2034Thousands:** 213.5

### Sources

| Source | Version |
| --- | --- |
| bls_employment_projections | 2024-2034 |
| dingel_neiman | dingel-neiman-workathome |
| felten_aioe | felten-raj-seamans-aioe |
| frey_osborne | frey-osborne-automation |
| microsoft_working_with_ai | working-with-ai |
| openai_gpts_are_gpts | gpts-are-gpts |

## Counts

- **Tasks:** 23
- **Skills:** 35
- **Capabilities:** 120
- **Tools:** 11
- **Related Roles:** 20

## Source

- **Dataset:** gold.onet_role_starter_surface
- **Version:** 30.3
- **Generated At:** 2026-06-02T21:00:32.945303+00:00
- **Content Hash:** cb13958946183533