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Glossary

Wage preservation

The estimated share of a worker's current wage level retained in a transition target, where 100 means the target role's median wage roughly matches the current one.

What this means in practice

Wage preservation turns transition advice into arithmetic: a pathway with a preservation score of 90 suggests the target role's typical wage is about 90% of the current role's. Scores above 100 indicate an upgrade — the target pays more than the origin.

The score protects against a common trap in career advice: recommending safe moves that quietly cut pay. A Receptionist moving into office coordination preserves most of their wage, while some adjacent service roles would preserve far less — a difference the number makes visible before a worker commits to retraining.

In the data

See this term in the occupation data

These published occupation pages show wage preservation in action — with task-level exposure, automation and augmentation scores, wage context, and transition pathways.

SOC 43-4171

Receptionists

Call routing, appointment scheduling, and routine visitor instructions are being absorbed by AI phone agents and booking software. In-person greeting, sensitive exceptions, and office coordination remain human-centered.

Exposure
72
Automation
52%
Augment
36%
SOC 43-3071

Tellers

Routine transactions left for apps and ATMs years ago, and AI assistants now absorb the service questions that justified remaining branch staff. Banks are converting teller lines into advisory roles, so the realistic path is upward into banker, lending, or operations tracks rather than defending the window.

Exposure
72
Automation
58%
Augment
30%
SOC 43-9061

Office Clerks, General

Filing, document typing, record compilation, and message routing form a broad task bundle that office software and AI assistants now handle well. Coordination across departments and exception handling remain the durable value.

Exposure
78
Automation
58%
Augment
32%