The 10 Most Endangered Jobs — and Viable Alternatives

Advertising Disclosure: When you buy something by clicking links on our site, we may earn a small commission, but it never affects the products or services we recommend.

Iakov Filimonov / Shutterstock.com

A handful of occupations will be teetering on the brink of extinction by 2024.

Fortunately for workers in these positions, Glassdoor reports that for every endangered job there are jobs you can transition into where employment opportunities are growing. The employer review website explains:

While they may require a bit of training, each of the alternative jobs can lead you to start a new chapter in your life.

In fact, employment overall is projected to increase by 6.5 percent from 2014 to 2024, according to the U.S. Department of Labor. That amounts to more than 9.7 million additional jobs over this period.

According to the Department of Labor’s latest data for this period, the following 10 jobs are projected to decline the most from 2014 to 2024. In parentheses are the suggested alternatives from Glassdoor:

  1. Locomotive firers: 69.9 percent decline (Truck driver, industrial maintenance)
  2. Motor vehicles electronic equipment installers and repairers: 50 percent (Wind turbine service technician, solar photovoltaic installers)
  3. Telephone operators: 42.4 percent (Customer service representative, call center representative)
  4. Postal service mail sorters, processors and processing machine operators: 33.7 percent (Lyft driver, shipping coordinator)
  5. Switchboard operators, including answering service: 32.9 percent (Call center representative, executive assistant)
  6. Photographic process workers and processing machine operators: 32.9 percent (Photographer, phlebotomist)
  7. Shoe machine operators and tenders: 30.5 percent (Shoe sales associate, designer)
  8. Manufactured building and mobile home installers: 30 percent (Solar photovoltaic installer, contractor)
  9. Foundry mold and coremakers: 27.7 percent (Cartographer, solar installer)
  10. Sewing machine operators: 27.1 percent (Home health aide, personal care aide)

For more help in finding a new job, check out:

What’s your take on disappearing jobs? Sound off below or on our Facebook page.

Get smarter with your money!

Want the best money-news and tips to help you make more and spend less? Then sign up for the free Money Talks Newsletter to receive daily updates of personal finance news and advice, delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for our free newsletter today.