# Janitors and Building Cleaners

US SOC code 37-2011. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/37-2011

Also called: Janitor, Custodian, Custodial worker, Building cleaner, Commercial cleaner.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **2,209,760** US janitors and building cleaners, with median pay of **$36,840** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2003, the May 2025 count is the highest. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://usa.ipums.org/usa/volii/9050occup.shtml) of **350,000** from 1900, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for janitors and building cleaners: Commercial autonomous floor scrubber, 2018 to 2020. Autonomous floor scrubbers primarily handle large-area flat-floor cleaning: airport terminals, big-box retail floors, warehouse aisles.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 2.2% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=37-2011&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **2.8%** 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)
- **0.66** estimated probability that the whole occupation could be computerised, over an unspecified number of years. Not a forecast of job losses. [Frey and Osborne, 2013](https://oms-www.files.svdcdn.com/production/downloads/academic/The_Future_of_Employment.pdf)

### Since the 2013 prediction

In 2013, Frey and Osborne put this job's probability of computerisation at 0.66. BLS counted **2,101,810** of these jobs in May 2013 and **2,209,760** in May 2025. The count moved sharply in one step, May 2020 to May 2021, when BLS changed how it estimates these counts, so no change is derived here.

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend. In May 2021 BLS changed how it estimates these counts (a model-based method using three years of survey data) and moved fully to the 2018 occupation codes, so part of a change across 2021 can come from the method rather than the work.

## Janitors and Building Cleaners employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1830
- Latest US employment: 2,209,760 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [5]
- Latest US median pay: $36,840 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [13]
- Outlook: +2.2% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [30]

### In other countries

The latest figure each country's statistics agency publishes for this job. Each uses its own occupation definition, survey basis and currency, so the numbers are not directly comparable with each other or with the US figures.

- **Canada** (NOC 65312)
  - Employment, 2020: 108,925. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [6]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021: number of persons with employment income in NOC 65312 Janitors, caretakers and heavy-duty cleaners, Canada, reference year 2020. A recipients basis (anyone with employment income during the year), slightly broader than a point-in-time employed count. Statistics Canada Open Licence.
  - Median pay, 2020: C$44,000. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [14]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021 (Table 98-10-0586): median employment income for NOC 65312 Janitors, caretakers and heavy-duty cleaners, Canada, reference year 2020, full-year full-time workers (the basis comparable to the US OEWS full-time median). Statistics Canada Open Licence.
- **United Kingdom** (UK SOC 9223)
  - Employment, 2025: 411,000. Source: ONS ASHE 2025 [9]. ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Table 14): employee jobs in SOC 9223 Cleaners and domestics, United Kingdom, 2025 (ASHE "number of jobs", thousands x1000; excludes self-employment). Open Government Licence v3.0.
  - Median pay, 2025: £11,852. Source: ONS ASHE 2025 [17]. ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Table 14.7a): median gross annual pay for all employee jobs in SOC 9223 Cleaners and domestics, United Kingdom, 2025. Open Government Licence v3.0.
- **Australia** (ANZSCO 8112)
  - Employment, 2025: 153,000. Source: ABS Labour Force Survey [10]. ABS Labour Force Survey (Detailed), table EQ08: employed persons in ANZSCO 8112 Commercial Cleaners, national (summed across sex and state/territory), annual average of 4 quarterly estimates.
  - Median pay, 2025: A$65,208. Source: ABS Employee Earnings May 2025 [18]. Annualised (x52) from A$1,254 median weekly earnings. ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025: median pay for full-time non-managerial employees paid at the adult rate, before tax. Surfaced via the Jobs and Skills Australia occupation profile.

### All 29 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1900 | 350,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., IPUMS USA [1] |
| 1921 | 500,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Service Employees International Union [2] |
| 1950 | 900,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., IPUMS USA [1] |
| 1985 | 2,000,000 (estimate) | $12,000 (estimate) | Est., Justice for Janitors [3] |
| 2000 | n/a | $20,000 (estimate) | Est., BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook [12] |
| 2002 | 2,200,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook [4] |
| 2003 | 2,064,350 | $18,410 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [5] |
| 2004 | 2,103,490 | $18,790 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [5] |
| 2005 | 2,107,360 | $19,390 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [5] |
| 2006 | 2,124,860 | $19,930 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [5] |
| 2007 | 2,112,870 | $20,800 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [5] |
| 2008 | 2,145,320 | $21,450 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [5] |
| 2009 | 2,090,400 | $21,970 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [5] |
| 2010 | 2,058,610 | $22,210 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [5] |
| 2011 | 2,068,460 | $22,370 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [5] |
| 2012 | 2,097,380 | $22,320 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [5] |
| 2013 | 2,101,810 | $22,590 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [5] |
| 2014 | 2,137,730 | $22,840 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [5] |
| 2015 | 2,146,880 | $23,440 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [5] |
| 2016 | 2,161,740 | $24,190 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [5] |
| 2017 | 2,164,040 | $24,990 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [5] |
| 2018 | 2,156,270 | $26,110 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [5] |
| 2019 | 2,145,450 | $27,430 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [5] |
| 2020 | 1,990,510 | $29,080 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [5] |
| 2021 | 2,036,680 | $29,760 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [5] |
| 2022 | 2,148,350 | $31,990 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [5] |
| 2023 | 2,172,500 | $35,020 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [5] |
| 2024 | 2,199,900 | $35,930 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [5] |
| 2025 | 2,209,760 | $36,840 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [5] |

## Sources (107)

### Employment series

1. [IPUMS USA — 1900 Occupation Codes, OCC0050: janitors and sextons (7700), charwomen and cleaners (7530)](https://usa.ipums.org/usa/volii/9050occup.shtml), IPUMS / University of Minnesota
2. [Service Employees International Union — "About SEIU" (BSEIU founding 1921, original members janitors, elevator operators, window washers)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Service_Employees_International_Union), Wikipedia / SEIU
3. [Justice for Janitors — Wikipedia (campaign launched 1985, SEIU under John J. Sweeney)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justice_for_Janitors), Wikipedia
4. [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook — Janitors and Building Cleaners (current page; historical employment context)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/building-and-grounds-cleaning/janitors-and-building-cleaners.htm), Bureau of Labor Statistics
5. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [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)
6. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada
7. ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 9233, United Kingdom. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0., Office for National Statistics. Editions: [2002](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2002/2002-table-14.zip), [2006](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2006consistentw_007methodology/2006-table-14.zip), [2010](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2010revised/2010-revised-table-14.zip), [2011](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2011revisedbasedonsoc2010/2011-revised-table-14.zip), [2015](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2015/table142015revised.zip), [2020](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2020revised/table142020revised.zip)
8. [ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 9223, United Kingdom, 2022. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2022revised/ashetable142022revised.zip), Office for National Statistics
9. [ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 9223, United Kingdom, 2025. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2025provisional/ashetable142025provisional.zip), Office for National Statistics
10. [ABS: Labour Force, Australia, Detailed, table EQ08 (Employed persons by Occupation unit group, ANZSCO 2013), latest release](https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment/labour-force-australia-detailed/latest-release), Australian Bureau of Statistics

### Wage series

11. [Justice for Janitors — Wikipedia (1985 wages context; Houston janitors $5.25/hr vs $20 in NYC as of 2006, suggesting wide 1985 range); inflation adjustment via BLS CPI-U calculator](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justice_for_Janitors), Wikipedia / BLS
12. [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook — Janitors and Building Cleaners (historical wage context); BLS OEWS 2000 era estimates](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/building-and-grounds-cleaning/janitors-and-building-cleaners.htm), Bureau of Labor Statistics
13. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [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)
14. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada
15. ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 9233, United Kingdom. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0., Office for National Statistics. Editions: [2002](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2002/2002-table-14.zip), [2006](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2006consistentw_007methodology/2006-table-14.zip), [2010](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2010revised/2010-revised-table-14.zip), [2011](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2011revisedbasedonsoc2010/2011-revised-table-14.zip), [2015](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2015/table142015revised.zip), [2020](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2020revised/table142020revised.zip)
16. [ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 9223, United Kingdom, 2022. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2022revised/ashetable142022revised.zip), Office for National Statistics
17. [ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 9223, United Kingdom, 2025. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2025provisional/ashetable142025provisional.zip), Office for National Statistics
18. [Jobs and Skills Australia: Commercial Cleaners (ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025)](https://www.jobsandskills.gov.au/data/occupation-and-industry-profiles/occupations/8112-commercial-cleaners), Jobs and Skills Australia / Australian Bureau of Statistics

### Tool eras

19. [IPUMS USA — 1900 Occupation Codes (janitors and sextons, charwomen and cleaners — establishing the category in the industrial era)](https://usa.ipums.org/usa/volii/9050occup.shtml), IPUMS / University of Minnesota
20. [Smithsonian Magazine — "The Invention of the Vacuum Cleaner, From Broom to Roomba" (Spangler 1907, Hoover 1908)](https://www.smithsonianmag.com/sponsored/invention-vacuum-cleaner-broom-roomba-180962691/), Smithsonian Magazine
21. [ISSA (Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association) — "History of the Cleaning Industry" (commercial equipment and chemicals development)](https://www.issa.com/issa/about-issa), ISSA — Worldwide Cleaning Industry Association
22. [OSHA — "OSH Act of 1970" (hazard communication, chemical handling, PPE requirements)](https://www.osha.gov/laws-regs/oshact/completeoshact), Occupational Safety and Health Administration
23. [Justice for Janitors — Wikipedia (contractor outsourcing as structural driver of wage depression; campaign began 1985)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justice_for_Janitors), Wikipedia
24. [EPA — "Green Cleaning, Sanitizing, and Disinfecting: A Curriculum for Early Care and Education" (microfiber and green chemical context)](https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/2013-11/documents/green_cleaning_manual.pdf), US Environmental Protection Agency
25. [Electrolux Trilobite — Wikipedia (BBC Tomorrow's World demo May 1996, commercial launch 2001, first autonomous vacuum)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Electrolux_Trilobite), Wikipedia
26. [iRobot — Wikipedia (Roomba launched September 2002, 1 million units sold by 2004)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IRobot), Wikipedia
27. [Tennant Company — Wikipedia (2018 autonomous scrubber launch with Brain Corp AI, 6,000 units deployed by 2023)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennant_Company), Wikipedia
28. [Avidbots — About page (founded 2014, hundreds of Neo autonomous scrubbers deployed across airports, warehouses, malls)](https://avidbots.com/company/about/), Avidbots
29. [BLS National Employment Matrix — 37-2011 Janitors and Building Cleaners (2024-2034: +2.0%, 2,447.7K → 2,495.5K)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=37-2011&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics

### Forecasts and exposure studies

30. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 37-2011 Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners (2025: 2,432.6 thousand; 2035: 2,486.2 thousand; +2.2%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=37-2011&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
31. [Frey & Osborne (2013), "The Future of Employment: How Susceptible Are Jobs to Computerisation?", Appendix (SOC 37-2011 Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners: probability 0.66, rank 367 of 702)](https://oms-www.files.svdcdn.com/production/downloads/academic/The_Future_of_Employment.pdf), Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford
32. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 37-2011.00, human-rated β 0.028)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

33. [Boston Landmarks Commission — Quincy School (1848 building as school architecture precedent)](https://www.boston.gov/departments/landmarks-commission), City of Boston Landmarks Commission
34. [Smithsonian Magazine — "The Invention of the Vacuum Cleaner, From Broom to Roomba" (Spangler 1907, Hoover 1908)](https://www.smithsonianmag.com/sponsored/invention-vacuum-cleaner-broom-roomba-180962691/), Smithsonian Magazine
35. [Service Employees International Union — Wikipedia (BSEIU founding April 23, 1921; original membership janitors, elevator operators, window washers)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Service_Employees_International_Union), Wikipedia / SEIU
36. [Justice for Janitors — Wikipedia (campaign launched 1985, SEIU strategy targeting building owners not contractors)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justice_for_Janitors), Wikipedia
37. [iRobot — Wikipedia (Roomba launched September 2002, 1 million units by 2004, 30 million total home robots by 2020)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IRobot), Wikipedia
38. [Tennant Company — Wikipedia (2018 autonomous scrubber launch with Brain Corp AI Operating System; 6,000+ units deployed by 2023)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tennant_Company), Wikipedia

### Predecessors & successors

39. [IPUMS USA — 1900 Occupation Codes (charwomen and cleaners OCC 7530, transitioning from domestic service to commercial cleaning)](https://usa.ipums.org/usa/volii/9050occup.shtml), IPUMS / University of Minnesota
40. [Service Employees International Union — Wikipedia (founding membership: janitors, elevator operators, window washers in Chicago commercial buildings)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Service_Employees_International_Union), Wikipedia / SEIU
41. [Justice for Janitors — Wikipedia (workforce demographics: immigrant workers, organizing campaigns in LA, Houston, Miami, Boston)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Justice_for_Janitors), Wikipedia

### Present-day analysis

- [O\*NET 30.3 — Janitors and Cleaners, Except Maids and Housekeeping Cleaners (37-2011.00): 21 tasks, work activities, knowledge, wages, employment](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/37-2011.00), accessed 2026-05-30
- [BLS National Employment Matrix — 37-2011 Janitors and Building Cleaners (2024-2034): 2,447.7K baseline, 2,495.5K projected, +2.0%](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=37-2011&ioType=o), accessed 2026-05-30
- [Tennant Company Sells 10,000th Robotic Scrubber — June 2025 milestone announcement](https://investors.tennantco.com/news/news-details/2025/Tennant-Company-Sells-10000th-Robotic-Scrubber-Underscoring-Global-Demand-for-Cleaning-Automation/default.aspx), accessed 2026-05-30
- [Brain Corp — BrainOS Clean 2.0 with SelfPath AI: 40,000+ robots deployed globally, +22% coverage, +55% autonomy improvement (April 2026)](https://www.roboticstomorrow.com/news/2026/04/07/brain-corp-launches-brainos-clean-20-with-selfpath-ai-advancing-adaptive-autonomy-for-tennant-company-floor-cleaning-robots/26371/), accessed 2026-05-30
- [Eloundou et al. (2023) — "GPTs are GPTs: An Early Look at the Labor Market Impact Potential of Large Language Models" (Science 2024): physical cleaning tasks score very low on LLM exposure](https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.adj0998), accessed 2026-05-30
- [Goldman Sachs — "The Jobs AI Is Likely to Boost—and Those It May Disrupt": physical service roles among least LLM-exposed; automation of physical labor requires robotics](https://www.goldmansachs.com/insights/articles/the-jobs-ai-is-likely-to-boost-and-those-it-may-disrupt), accessed 2026-05-30
- [CleanLink — "2026 Cleaning Labor Outlook": hiring difficulty, 42% turnover, upskilling into robot supervision as career path; specialized environments driving demand for trained professionals](https://www.cleanlink.com/news/article/2026-Cleaning-Labor-Outlook--32415), accessed 2026-05-30
- [ISSA cleaning industry statistics (2024/2025): 80% of cleaning companies report hiring difficulty; labor costs 65-75% of contract value; wages up 10%+ in 2025](https://wifitalents.com/issa-cleaning-industry-statistics/), accessed 2026-05-30
- [Avidbots — Neo autonomous scrubber: 1,000+ robots in 12+ countries; floor cleaning reduces up to 80% of labor hours on that specific task; 5 of top-10 Skytrax airports use Neo](https://avidbots.com/), accessed 2026-05-30
- [Occuspace — Smart Office Cleaning with Occupancy Sensors: occupancy sensor data replaces fixed cleaning schedules with on-demand triggers in commercial buildings](https://www.occuspace.com/blog/smart-office-cleaning-with-occupancy-sensors-data-insights), accessed 2026-05-30
- [OpenWorks — Top 7 Commercial Cleaning Trends 2025: AI sensors monitor restroom usage and plan cleaning schedules based on real-time occupancy patterns](https://www.openworksweb.com/blog/the-top-7-facility-management-and-commercial-cleaning-trends-for-2025/), accessed 2026-05-30
- [CleanLink — Understanding Robotic Floor Care Equipment: "robots work best in long, straight paths and big square rooms"; stripping/finishing complex floor care remains human](https://www.cleanlink.com/sm/article/Understanding-Robotic-Floor-Care-Equipment--32555), accessed 2026-05-30

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