# Orderlies

US SOC code 31-1132. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/31-1132

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **52,440** US orderlies, with median pay of **$38,290** a year. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/title/occupational-outlook-handbook-3964/occupational-outlook-handbook-1961-edition-497574/content/fulltext/bls_1300_1961pt2) of **37,900** from 1959, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for orderlies: Autonomous mobile robots for supply transport, 2004 to 2020. No published study has isolated the employment effect of TUG robots on orderly headcount specifically.

Figures: Official statistic (latest count and pay); Researched context (earliest figure).

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 4% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=31-1132&ioType=o) (Official statistic).

### AI exposure studies

- **4.7%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv) (Official statistic)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35.

## Orderlies employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1862
- Latest US employment: 52,440 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [3]
- Latest US median pay: $38,290 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [6]
- Outlook: +4% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [17]

### All 9 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1959 | 37,900 (estimate) | $1,664 (average) (estimate) | Est., BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 1961… (employment) [1]; Est., 1199SEIU (pay) [4] |
| 1999 | 78,000 (estimate) | $17,975 (average) (estimate) | Est., GAO-01-750T [2] |
| 2019 | 46,990 | $28,980 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [3] |
| 2020 | 43,570 | $30,030 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [3] |
| 2021 | 45,160 | $29,990 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [3] |
| 2022 | 44,790 | $34,520 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [3] |
| 2023 | 48,710 | $36,830 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [3] |
| 2024 | 53,020 | $37,700 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [3] |
| 2025 | 52,440 | $38,290 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [3] |

## Sources (39)

### Employment series

1. [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 1961 Edition (Bulletin 1300) on FRASER — nursing aides, orderlies, and attendants section; 1959 AHA survey figures](https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/title/occupational-outlook-handbook-3964/occupational-outlook-handbook-1961-edition-497574/content/fulltext/bls_1300_1961pt2), Bureau of Labor Statistics / FRASER St. Louis Fed
2. [GAO-01-750T — "Nursing Workforce: Recruitment and Retention of Nurses and Nurse Aides Is a Growing Concern" (May 2001); hospital nursing aide employment 1999](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-750T/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-750T.htm), U.S. Government Accountability Office
3. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)

### Wage series

4. [1199SEIU — "A Look Back: 1199's 46 Days That Turned New York Upside Down" (1959 hospital worker wages)](https://www.1199seiu.org/nycli/a_look_back_1199_s_46_days_that_turned_new_york_upside_down-1), 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East
5. [GAO-01-750T — "Nursing Workforce: Recruitment and Retention of Nurses and Nurse Aides Is a Growing Concern" (1999 hospital nursing aide wage $8.94/hr)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-750T/html/GAOREPORTS-GAO-01-750T.htm), U.S. Government Accountability Office
6. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)

### Tool eras

7. [PBS Mercy Street — "Civil War-Era Hospitals: Behind the Lens" (hospital layout, patient transport, and ward attendant roles)](https://www.pbs.org/mercy-street/uncover-history/behind-lens/hospitals-civil-war/), PBS
8. [Wikipedia — United States Army Hospital Corps (established 1886; orderly duties, patient transport responsibilities)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army_Hospital_Corps), Wikipedia
9. [History of Patient Care Technicians — patientcaretech.org (evolution from orderly through nursing aide to PCT, mid-20th century context)](https://patientcaretech.org/2025/08/the-history-of-patient-care-technicians/), Patient Care Tech Foundation
10. [1199SEIU — "A Look Back: 1199's 46 Days That Turned New York Upside Down" (1959 hospital worker conditions including orderly tasks)](https://www.1199seiu.org/nycli/a_look_back_1199_s_46_days_that_turned_new_york_upside_down-1), 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East
11. [MIT Technology Review — "The return of pneumatic tubes" (June 2024; history of hospital pneumatic tube adoption starting 1950s)](https://www.technologyreview.com/2024/06/19/1093446/pneumatic-tubes-hospitals/), MIT Technology Review
12. [Nursing Home Reform Act of 1987 — nursinghomeabusecenter.com (OBRA 1987 CNA training requirements and differentiation of aide categories)](https://www.nursinghomeabusecenter.com/resources/nursing-home-reform-act/), Nursing Home Abuse Center
13. [Aethon — "TUG Autonomous Mobile Robot" (company history, first hospital deployment 2004, fleet size by 2018)](https://aethon.com/), Aethon Inc.
14. [The Robot Report — "Hospital Robots Make the Rounds" (Aethon TUG whitepaper, 125 hospital deployments, task scope)](https://www.therobotreport.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/RBR_RobotsInHospitals_WP-Final.pdf), The Robot Report / Aethon
15. [TeleTracking — Patient Flow Solutions (electronic transport queue management used in acute-care hospitals)](https://www.teletracking.com/), TeleTracking Technologies
16. [SUNY Upstate — "New kid on the block at Upstate: The transport robot" (June 2022; TUG deployment + human orderly roles in context)](https://www.upstate.edu/news/articles/2022/2022-06-10-robot.php), SUNY Upstate Medical University

### Forecasts and exposure studies

17. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 31-1132 Orderlies (2025: 52.8 thousand; 2035: 54.9 thousand; +4.0%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=31-1132&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
18. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 31-1132.00, human-rated β 0.047)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

19. [PBS Mercy Street — "Civil War-Era Hospitals: Behind the Lens" (hospital organization and attendant roles, 1862-1865)](https://www.pbs.org/mercy-street/uncover-history/behind-lens/hospitals-civil-war/), PBS
20. [Wikipedia — United States Army Hospital Corps (established 1886; personnel structure and training curriculum)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army_Hospital_Corps), Wikipedia
21. [UVA News — "UVA and the History of Race: Confronting Labor Discrimination" (1930s-1940s hospital orderly organizing, 72-hour week, 1944 gains)](https://news.virginia.edu/content/uva-and-history-race-confronting-labor-discrimination), University of Virginia
22. [1199SEIU — "A Look Back: 1199's 46 Days That Turned New York Upside Down" (1959 strike history: 3,500 workers, $32/week wages, 46 days, outcome)](https://www.1199seiu.org/nycli/a_look_back_1199_s_46_days_that_turned_new_york_upside_down-1), 1199SEIU United Healthcare Workers East
23. [CNA Training Help — OBRA overview (Omnibus Budget Reconciliation Act 1987: CNA certification requirements, 75 hours minimum training)](https://cnatraininghelp.com/cna-study-guide/obra/), CNA Training Help
24. [Aethon — company history; first TUG hospital deployment 2004; TUG autonomous mobile robot healthcare logistics](https://aethon.com/), Aethon Inc.

### Predecessors & successors

25. [Wikipedia — United States Army Hospital Corps (1886 formalization of the attendant role that Civil War orderlies performed informally)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Army_Hospital_Corps), Wikipedia

### Present-day analysis

- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-21
- [O\*NET 30.3 — US Department of Labor](https://www.onetcenter.org/database.html), accessed 2026-05-21

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.