# Customer Service Representatives

US SOC code 43-4051. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/43-4051

Also called: Customer service rep, CSR, Customer support specialist, Customer care representative, Call center agent.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **2,595,750** US customer service representatives, with median pay of **$44,770** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2003, the highest was **2,919,230**, in May 2019. The earliest figure here is [a Census count](https://www.census.gov/library/publications/1923/dec/vol-04-occupations.html) of **178,000** from 1920, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for customer service representatives: Generative AI chatbots, 2022 to 2024.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to decline 5.3% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=43-4051&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **70.5%** 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)
- **0.55** 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 0.55. BLS counted **2,389,580** of these jobs in May 2013 and **2,595,750** in May 2025 (+9%, a change derived by Future History).

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.

## Customer Service Representatives employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1878
- Latest US employment: 2,595,750 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [6]
- Latest US median pay: $44,770 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [11]
- Outlook: -5.3% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [37]

### 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 64409)
  - Employment, 2020: 243,205. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [7]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021: number of persons with employment income in NOC 64409 Other customer and information services representatives, 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$48,000. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [14]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021 (Table 98-10-0586): median employment income for NOC 64409 Other customer and information services representatives, Canada, reference year 2020, full-year full-time workers (the basis comparable to the US OEWS full-time median). Statistics Canada Open Licence.
- **Australia** (ANZSCO 5412)
  - Employment, 2025: 112,400. Source: ABS Labour Force Survey [8]. ABS Labour Force Survey (Detailed), table EQ08: employed persons in Customer Service Representatives (Call or Contact Centre Workers and Information Officers), national (summed across sex and state/territory), taken as the sum of the cited cells for ANZSCO 5411 + 5412 (the US occupation has no single ANZSCO equivalent), annual average of 4 quarterly estimates.
  - Median pay, 2025: A$76,024. Source: ABS Employee Earnings May 2025 [15]. Annualised (x52) from A$1,462 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. This is the cited median of the dominant constituent group (ANZSCO 5412 Information Officers) within the combined Customer Service Representatives (Call or Contact Centre Workers and Information Officers) (ANZSCO 5411 + 5412), not a blend of the constituent medians.

### All 30 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1920 | 178,000 | n/a | Decennial Census 1920 [1] |
| 1950 | 350,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Conversable Economist [2] |
| 1970 | 420,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Wikipedia [3] |
| 1990 | 1,200,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., CallCentreHelper.com [4] |
| 1999 | n/a | $26,913 | Census 2000 [9] |
| 2000 | 1,907,890 | n/a | BLS OEWS 2000 [5] |
| 2001 | n/a | $27,450 (average) | BLS OEWS 2001 [10] |
| 2003 | 1,902,850 | $26,500 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [6] |
| 2004 | 2,021,350 | $27,020 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [6] |
| 2005 | 2,067,700 | $27,490 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [6] |
| 2006 | 2,147,770 | $28,330 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [6] |
| 2007 | 2,193,430 | $29,040 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [6] |
| 2008 | 2,233,270 | $29,860 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [6] |
| 2009 | 2,195,860 | $30,290 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [6] |
| 2010 | 2,146,120 | $30,460 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [6] |
| 2011 | 2,212,820 | $30,610 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [6] |
| 2012 | 2,299,750 | $30,580 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [6] |
| 2013 | 2,389,580 | $30,870 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [6] |
| 2014 | 2,511,130 | $31,200 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [6] |
| 2015 | 2,595,990 | $31,720 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [6] |
| 2016 | 2,707,040 | $32,300 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [6] |
| 2017 | 2,767,790 | $32,890 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [6] |
| 2018 | 2,871,400 | $33,750 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [6] |
| 2019 | 2,919,230 | $34,710 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [6] |
| 2020 | 2,833,250 | $35,830 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [6] |
| 2021 | 2,787,070 | $36,920 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [6] |
| 2022 | 2,879,840 | $37,780 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [6] |
| 2023 | 2,858,710 | $39,680 | BLS OEWS May 2023 (employment) [6]; BLS OEWS May 2023 (pay) [12] |
| 2024 | 2,725,930 | $42,830 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [6] |
| 2025 | 2,595,750 | $44,770 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [6] |

## Sources (107)

### Employment series

1. [1920 U.S. Census, Volume IV: Occupations](https://www.census.gov/library/publications/1923/dec/vol-04-occupations.html), U.S. Census Bureau
2. [Conversable Economist — "Telephone Operators: The Elimination of a Job" (Aug 2024)](https://conversableeconomist.com/2024/08/19/telephone-operators-the-elimination-of-a-job/), Conversable Economist
3. [Wikipedia — Toll-free telephone number (history of InWATS / 1-800)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toll-free_telephone_number), Wikipedia
4. [CallCentreHelper.com — "The History of the Call Centre" (updated)](https://www.callcentrehelper.com/the-history-of-the-call-centre-15085.htm), Call Centre Helper
5. [BLS OES 2000 national estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oes00nat.zip), Bureau of Labor Statistics
6. 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)
7. [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
8. [ABS: Labour Force, Australia, Detailed, table EQ08 (Employed persons by Occupation unit group, ANZSCO 2013), summed over unit groups 5411 + 5412, latest release](https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment/labour-force-australia-detailed/latest-release), Australian Bureau of Statistics

### Wage series

9. [U.S. Census 2000, Earnings by Detailed Occupation (Table 2): Customer Service Representatives, year-round full-time median earnings $26,913 for 1999.](https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial/tables/2000/earnings-occupation/call2usboth.csv), CENSUS
10. [BLS Occupational Employment Statistics, 2001 (Bulletin 2559): Customer service representatives, mean annual wage $27,450 (employment ~1,875,370).](https://www.bls.gov/oes/bulletin_2001.pdf), BLS-OEWS
11. 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), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
12. [BLS OEWS May 2023 — 43-4051 median annual wage ($19.08/hr)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/2023/may/oes434051.htm), Bureau of Labor Statistics
13. [BLS OEWS May 2024, national cross-industry estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
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. [Jobs and Skills Australia: Information Officers (ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025)](https://www.jobsandskills.gov.au/data/occupation-and-industry-profiles/occupations/5412-information-officers), Jobs and Skills Australia / Australian Bureau of Statistics

### Tool eras

16. [Wikipedia — Telephone switchboard (history)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telephone_switchboard), Wikipedia
17. [New England Historical Society — Emma Nutt, first woman telephone operator](https://newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/emma-nutt-worlds-1st-woman-telephone-operator/), New England Historical Society
18. [Conversable Economist — "Telephone Operators: The Elimination of a Job" (Aug 2024)](https://conversableeconomist.com/2024/08/19/telephone-operators-the-elimination-of-a-job/), Conversable Economist
19. [Wikipedia — Switchboard operator (automation section)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switchboard_operator), Wikipedia
20. [Wikipedia — Direct Distance Dialing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_distance_dialing), Wikipedia
21. [History.com — "The Rise and Fall of Telephone Switchboard Operators"](https://www.history.com/articles/rise-fall-telephone-switchboard-operators), History.com
22. [Wikipedia — Toll-free telephone number (history of InWATS)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toll-free_telephone_number), Wikipedia
23. [Grasshopper — "The History of 800 Numbers"](https://grasshopper.com/blog/the-history-of-800-numbers), Grasshopper
24. [Wikipedia — Automatic call distributor (history)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automatic_call_distributor), Wikipedia
25. [CallCentreHelper.com — "The History of the Call Centre"](https://www.callcentrehelper.com/the-history-of-the-call-centre-15085.htm), Call Centre Helper
26. [Phonexa — "The History of Interactive Voice Response (IVR)"](https://phonexa.com/blog/the-history-of-interactive-voice-response-ivr/), Phonexa
27. [CallerReady — "History of the IVR System"](https://callerready.com/history-of-the-ivr-system-birth-of-ivr-technology/), CallerReady
28. [Salesforce — "The Complete History of CRM"](https://www.salesforce.com/crm/what-is-crm/), Salesforce
29. [Wikipedia — Salesforce](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salesforce), Wikipedia
30. [Wikipedia — Zendesk](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zendesk), Wikipedia
31. [Contrary Research — "Intercom: Business Breakdown & Founding Story"](https://research.contrary.com/company/intercom), Contrary Research
32. [Wikipedia — ChatGPT](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ChatGPT), Wikipedia
33. [Klarna press release — "Klarna AI assistant handles two-thirds of customer service chats in its first month" (Feb 27, 2024)](https://www.klarna.com/international/press/klarna-ai-assistant-handles-two-thirds-of-customer-service-chats-in-its-first-month/), Klarna
34. [CBC News — "Air Canada found liable for chatbot's bad advice on bereavement rates" (Feb 2024)](https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/air-canada-chatbot-lawsuit-1.7116416), CBC News
35. [TechCrunch — "Bret Taylor's Sierra reaches $100M ARR in under two years" (Nov 2025)](https://techcrunch.com/2025/11/21/bret-taylors-sierra-reaches-100m-arr-in-under-two-years/), TechCrunch
36. [Bloomberg — "AI Customer Support Startup Decagon Valued at $4.5 Billion" (Jan 2026)](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-28/ai-customer-support-startup-decagon-valued-at-4-5-billion), Bloomberg

### Forecasts and exposure studies

37. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 43-4051 Customer service representatives (2025: 2,666.0 thousand; 2035: 2,524.1 thousand; -5.3%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=43-4051&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
38. [Frey & Osborne (2013), "The Future of Employment: How Susceptible Are Jobs to Computerisation?", Appendix (SOC 43-4051 Customer Service Representatives: probability 0.55, rank 315 of 702)](https://oms-www.files.svdcdn.com/production/downloads/academic/The_Future_of_Employment.pdf), Oxford Martin School, University of Oxford
39. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 43-4051.00, human-rated β 0.705)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

40. [Wikipedia — Telephone (history)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telephone), Wikipedia
41. [New England Historical Society — "Emma Nutt, The World's 1st Woman Telephone Operator"](https://newenglandhistoricalsociety.com/emma-nutt-worlds-1st-woman-telephone-operator/), New England Historical Society
42. [Wikipedia — Direct distance dialing](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Direct_distance_dialing), Wikipedia
43. [Wikipedia — Toll-free telephone number](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toll-free_telephone_number), Wikipedia
44. [Wikipedia — Automatic call distributor (Rockwell Galaxy, Continental Airlines)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Automatic_call_distributor), Wikipedia
45. [Wikipedia — Salesforce](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Salesforce), Wikipedia
46. [CBC News — "Air Canada found liable for chatbot's bad advice on bereavement rates" (Feb 2024)](https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/air-canada-chatbot-lawsuit-1.7116416), CBC News / BC Civil Resolution Tribunal
47. [Klarna — "Klarna AI assistant handles two-thirds of customer service chats in its first month" (Feb 27, 2024)](https://www.klarna.com/international/press/klarna-ai-assistant-handles-two-thirds-of-customer-service-chats-in-its-first-month/), Klarna
48. [TechCrunch — "Bret Taylor's Sierra reaches $100M ARR in under two years" (Nov 2025)](https://techcrunch.com/2025/11/21/bret-taylors-sierra-reaches-100m-arr-in-under-two-years/), TechCrunch

### Predecessors & successors

49. [Wikipedia — Switchboard operator (history and decline)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Switchboard_operator), Wikipedia
50. [CallCentreHelper.com — "The History of the Call Centre"](https://www.callcentrehelper.com/the-history-of-the-call-centre-15085.htm), Call Centre Helper

### Present-day analysis

- [Klarna — AI assistant handles 2.3M conversations in first month, equivalent to 700 FTE (Feb 2024)](https://www.klarna.com/international/press/klarna-ai-assistant-handles-two-thirds-of-customer-service-chats-in-its-first-month/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Detroit News / Bloomberg — BLS: CSR employment fell 130,180 (–4.8%) in year to May 2025 (May 2026)](https://www.detroitnews.com/story/business/2026/05/16/ai-artificial-intelligence-job-losses-customer-service-sales-secretaries/90118520007/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [CNBC — Salesforce CEO confirms 4,000 layoffs "because I need less heads" with AI (Sep 2025)](https://www.cnbc.com/2025/09/02/salesforce-ceo-confirms-4000-layoffs-because-i-need-less-heads-with-ai.html), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Intercom → Fin rebrand — AI agent crosses $100M ARR, 350% YoY growth, 2M issues/week (May 2026)](https://www.cxtoday.com/contact-center/intercom-rebrands-to-fin/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Bank of America — Erica surpasses 3 billion interactions; 58M/month; 98% resolved without human escalation (Aug 2025)](https://newsroom.bankofamerica.com/content/newsroom/press-releases/2025/08/a-decade-of-ai-innovation--bofa-s-virtual-assistant-erica-surpas.html), accessed 2026-05-23
- [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook — Customer Service Representatives (43-4051.00)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/office-and-administrative-support/customer-service-representatives.htm), accessed 2026-05-23
- [O\*NET 30.3 — Customer Service Representatives (43-4051.00)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/43-4051.00), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Zendesk CX Trends 2026 — Median tier-1 deflection 41.2%; top quartile 58.7%](https://www.zendesk.com/au/blog/help-center/self-service/ticket-deflection-currency-self-service/), accessed 2026-05-23
- [McKinsey AI in Customer Service 2026 — AI resolutions $0.62 vs $7.40 for human agents](https://www.digitalapplied.com/blog/customer-service-ai-agent-statistics-2026-data), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Cresta — Omnichannel AI Agent for voice and digital channels launch (Apr 2025)](https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/cresta-launches-intelligent-omnichannel-ai-agent-delivering-seamless-customer-experience-across-voice-and-digital-channels-302476254.html), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Hume AI — EVI empathic voice interface adapts tone to detected emotional state (2025-2026)](https://www.hume.ai/empathic-voice-interface), accessed 2026-05-23
- [6 Voice AI Tools for High-Volume Customer Service 2026 — call center AI market $2.41B (2025)](https://smallest.ai/blog/ai-models-enhance-real-time-customer-support), accessed 2026-05-23
- [Salesforce Agentforce — AI agents handle 50% of Salesforce customer interactions; auto-logs case resolutions (Sep 2025)](https://odsc.medium.com/salesforce-cuts-4-000-customer-service-jobs-as-ai-agents-replace-human-staff-3362fb29ddbd), accessed 2026-05-23
- [ServiceNow Now Assist — fully automated customer service fulfillment partnership with NICE (May 2025)](https://newsroom.servicenow.com/press-releases/details/2026/ServiceNow-opens-its-full-system-of-action-to-every-AI-Agent-in-the-enterprise/default.aspx), accessed 2026-05-23

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