Will correctional officers be replaced by AI?
Updated
Correctional officers score 26 of 100 for AI exposure. 72% of their task time still needs a person. AI can do 12% today and speed up another 16%.
- 12% AI can do it
- 16% AI helps
- 72% Needs a person
Low exposure
Lower than 69% of the 923 occupations we scored.
Task by task
We graded 27 tasks, listed here from most to least exposed. AI can do 3 of them today, speeds up 5 and leaves 19 to people.
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Maintain records of prisoners' identification and charges. Recording IDs and charges is structured data entry AI handles well. | 80% AI can do it |
| Record information, such as prisoner identification, charges, and incidents of inmate disturbance, keeping daily logs of prisoner activities. Routine logs and incident records are digital documentation AI can draft. | 65% AI can do it |
| Arrange daily schedules for prisoners, including library visits, work assignments, family visits, and counseling appointments. Schedule generation is software friendly; staff reviews and approves. | 65% AI can do it |
| Use nondisciplinary tools and equipment, such as a computer. General computer tasks where AI assistants speed up routine work. | 55% AI helps |
| Provide to supervisors oral and written reports of the quality and quantity of work performed by inmates, inmate disturbances and rule violations, and unusual occurrences. AI can draft written reports from notes; oral reports stay human. | 55% AI helps |
| Process or book convicted individuals into prison. Paperwork can be AI assisted; physical intake stays manual. | 50% AI helps |
| Investigate crimes that have occurred within an institution, or assist police in their investigations of crimes and inmates. AI can review records and video; interviews stay human led. | 35% AI helps |
| Assign duties to inmates, providing instructions as needed. Scheduling software helps; instructions still given in person. | 30% AI helps |
| Inspect mail for the presence of contraband. Physical handling of mail to find hidden contraband. | 20% Needs a person |
| Participate in required job training. Attending required training is mostly in-person participation. | 20% Needs a person |
Show the other 17 tasks
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Counsel inmates and respond to legitimate questions, concerns, and requests. Live counseling needs human empathy and direct face to face contact. | 18% Needs a person |
| Monitor conduct of prisoners in housing unit, or during work or recreational activities, according to established policies, regulations, and procedures, to prevent escape or violence. Live observation; cameras assist but officers must watch directly. | 15% Needs a person |
| Conduct fire, safety, and sanitation inspections. Physical walkthroughs need on-site presence and hands-on judgment. | 15% Needs a person |
| Supervise and coordinate work of other correctional service officers. Leading and supervising staff needs live judgment and accountability. | 15% Needs a person |
| Inspect conditions of locks, window bars, grills, doors, and gates at correctional facilities to ensure security and help prevent escapes. Physical inspection of locks, bars, and doors on site. | 12% Needs a person |
| Guard facility entrances to screen visitors. Screening visitors at entrances requires physical presence and checks. | 10% Needs a person |
| Settle disputes between inmates. Live conflict resolution needs human judgment and physical presence. | 10% Needs a person |
| Issue clothing, tools, and other authorized items to inmates. Physically handing out clothing and tools; only tracking is digital. | 10% Needs a person |
| Take fingerprints of arrestees, prisoners, or the general public. Physical fingerprint capture requires hands-on work with each person. | 10% Needs a person |
| Sponsor inmate recreational activities, such as newspapers and self-help groups. Hosting recreational groups and activities is hands-on and in person. | 10% Needs a person |
| Conduct head counts to ensure that each prisoner is present. Requires physically observing each prisoner in person. | 8% Needs a person |
| Search prisoners and vehicles and conduct shakedowns of cells for valuables and contraband, such as weapons or drugs. Physical searches of people, vehicles, and cells. | 5% Needs a person |
| Serve meals, distribute commissary items, and dispense prescribed medication to prisoners. Physical meal service, item handout, and medication dispensing. | 5% Needs a person |
| Drive passenger vehicles and trucks used to transport inmates to other institutions, courtrooms, hospitals, and work sites. Driving vehicles requires physical operation and live road judgment. | 5% Needs a person |
| Use weapons, handcuffs, and physical force to maintain discipline and order among prisoners. Physical force and restraint require hands-on action in person. | 3% Needs a person |
| Take prisoners into custody and escort to locations within and outside of facility, such as visiting room, courtroom, or airport. Physically taking custody and escorting people through facilities. | 3% Needs a person |
| Search for and recapture escapees. Physical field pursuit and recapture of escapees. | 3% Needs a person |
How correctional officers compare
All occupations (923)
Protective service (26)
Pay and outlook in the US
- Median pay
- $58,940 a year, May 2025
- People employed
- 380,500 in the US, May 2025
- Projected change in jobs
- -7.4% from 2024 to 2034
Skills to build
- Keep prisoner logs and incident records in Microsoft Word and Excel
- Run physical custody, escort, and search duties in person
- Hold a valid state correctional officer certification and firearms qualification
- Write incident reports for supervisors that hold up under review
- Operate 3M Electronic Monitoring systems to check inmate movement
Safer roles nearby
2 related occupations with lower scores.
Questions about correctional officers and AI
Will AI replace correctional officers?
Partly. About 2 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly maintaining prisoner ID and charge records and keeping daily activity logs. Physical custody, supervision, searches, and restraint stay with officers because they need a person in the room.
Which tasks AI is taking over for correctional officers?
Record keeping is the most exposed work, with an exposure score of 80 for maintaining prisoner identification and charge records. AI handles structured data entry well. Daily activity logs, with a score of 65, and prisoner schedules, also 65, are routine digital documents that AI can draft or generate for staff to approve.
Which tasks stay human for correctional officers?
Physical custody work stays human, with exposure scores of 3 to 5. Officers escort prisoners, search cells and vehicles, recapture escapees, serve meals, and use force. These tasks make up most of the job's weight, at 72 percent, because they require a person acting in person on site.
How can correctional officers stay valuable as AI takes over paperwork?
Spend the time AI frees on the in-person duties that carry the job. Get certified in firearms and restraint techniques, learn the electronic monitoring systems, and write clear oral and written reports to supervisors. Review AI-drafted logs in Microsoft Word and Excel before you sign them off.
Related jobs
Next steps for correctional officers
Check which roles in your team AI can take on
We map your team's tasks, show what AI can do today and build the automations that pay back first.
Related topics
- Jobs AI can't replaceCement masons score lowest, at 8.
- Jobs most at risk from AIProofreaders score highest, at 76.
- High-paying jobs with low AI exposureRadiologists earn a median $420,860 and score 46.
- Entry-level jobs with low AI exposureCement masons need little prior training and score 8.
- Jobs AI speeds up the mostFor natural sciences managers, AI speeds up 96% of task time.
- AI and jobs in Malta15 iGaming roles graded task by task.
- Skills that keep work humanThe skills to build in the jobs AI changes least.
- Jobs A to ZEvery job we publish, by first letter.
- AI exposure by industryAverage scores for 22 occupation groups.
- Write a CV screening software can readHow applicant tracking systems read a CV, and what to change.
- AI for businessesThe tasks to automate first in each team and industry.
- How we score AI exposureThe grading, the weights and every source.