Protective service associate
professionals n.e.c.
Job holders in this unit group inspect goods to ensure compliance with regulations concerning payment of duty, establish that persons entering and leaving the UK have necessary authorisation for crossing national borders, monitor maritime conditions, undertake search and rescue operations, plan and coordinate services of private detective agencies and security measures for individuals, establishments or organisations, investigates activities such as fraud and other crimes, and perform other security and protective service occupations not elsewhere classified in minor group 331: Protective service occupations.
- Employees (UK)
- 36k
- Median annual pay
- £41,592
- Exposure score ?
- 1.7/10 Minimal 4.5/10 Moderate strict reading, with tools is 4.5/10 with-tools reading, strict is 1.7/10
- Wage exposure
- £255m £674m
Higher exposure than 75% of the 379 UK occupations we scored.
What this score means.
Most of this role's work is still hard for AI: physical presence, practised skill, judgement in context and direct care, the things that do not turn into text.
If you are in this role
Nothing here is under pressure today, but the frontier moves. Learn enough to direct AI at the paperwork around the job. People in hands-on roles who can do that become unusually useful inside their organisations.
A real share of the task list is within reach, especially drafting, summarising, research and analysis. People in this role who learn to direct AI well will pull ahead of those who do not.
If you are in this role
Treat AI like a capable junior you manage. Where you would hand a task to a junior with a clear brief, AI can do it now. Spend the time you get back on judgement and relationships.
Where the work usually starts.
This role's strict reading is low because its top tasks are judgement, not drafting. The three highest-stakes tasks below are still usually where the work starts. Switch to With tools to see what AI plus the right context can take on.
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Patrol assigned areas by car, boat, airplane, horse, or on foot to enforce game, fish, or boating laws or to manage wildlife programs, lakes, or land.
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Compile and present evidence for court actions.
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Investigate hunting accidents or reports of fish or game law violations.
These are the most important tasks AI can already handle when paired with the right tools and context. The first wins usually come from building workflows around them. That is the difference between a model that could do the job and one that actually does it inside your business.
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Compile and present evidence for court actions.
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Issue warnings or citations and file reports as necessary.
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Address schools, civic groups, sporting clubs, or the media to disseminate information concerning wildlife conservation and regulations.
Every role has three or four places like these. Finding them takes an hour. Turning them into a workflow your team actually uses takes a few days.
Every task in the role.
Every O*NET task for this occupation, split by what AI can do unaided and what still needs a person. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central each task is.
Tasks via O*NET "Fish and Game Wardens" (33-3031.00).
What AI can already do
2 of 24 tasks, unaided
Issue warnings or citations and file reports as necessary.
Address schools, civic groups, sporting clubs, or the media to disseminate information concerning wildlife conservation and regulations.
What still needs a person
22 of 24 tasks
Patrol assigned areas by car, boat, airplane, horse, or on foot to enforce game, fish, or boating laws or to manage wildlife programs, lakes, or land.
Compile and present evidence for court actions.
Investigate hunting accidents or reports of fish or game law violations.
Protect and preserve native wildlife, plants, or ecosystems.
Serve warrants and make arrests.
Provide assistance to other local law enforcement agencies as required.
Promote or provide hunter or trapper safety training.
Participate in search-and-rescue operations.
Arrange for disposition of fish or game illegally taken or possessed.
Seize equipment used in fish and game law violations.
Recommend revisions in hunting and trapping regulations or in animal management programs so that wildlife balances or habitats can be maintained.
Inspect commercial operations relating to fish or wildlife, recreation, or protected areas.
Survey areas and compile figures of bag counts of hunters to determine the effectiveness of control measures.
Collect and report information on populations or conditions of fish and wildlife in their habitats, availability of game food or cover, or suspected pollution.
Design or implement control measures to prevent or counteract damage caused by wildlife or people.
Provide advice or information to park or reserve visitors.
Investigate crop, property, or habitat damage or destruction or instances of water pollution to determine causes and to advise property owners of preventive measures.
Issue licenses, permits, or other documentation.
Document the extent of crop, property, or habitat damage and make financial loss estimates or compensation recommendations.
Supervise the activities of seasonal workers.
Perform facilities maintenance work, such as constructing or repairing structures or controlling weeds or pests.
Participate in firefighting efforts.
Tasks via O*NET "Fish and Game Wardens" (33-3031.00).
What AI can already do
11 of 24 tasks, with tools
Compile and present evidence for court actions.
Issue warnings or citations and file reports as necessary.
Address schools, civic groups, sporting clubs, or the media to disseminate information concerning wildlife conservation and regulations.
Recommend revisions in hunting and trapping regulations or in animal management programs so that wildlife balances or habitats can be maintained.
Survey areas and compile figures of bag counts of hunters to determine the effectiveness of control measures.
Collect and report information on populations or conditions of fish and wildlife in their habitats, availability of game food or cover, or suspected pollution.
Design or implement control measures to prevent or counteract damage caused by wildlife or people.
Provide advice or information to park or reserve visitors.
Investigate crop, property, or habitat damage or destruction or instances of water pollution to determine causes and to advise property owners of preventive measures.
Issue licenses, permits, or other documentation.
Document the extent of crop, property, or habitat damage and make financial loss estimates or compensation recommendations.
What still needs a person
13 of 24 tasks
Patrol assigned areas by car, boat, airplane, horse, or on foot to enforce game, fish, or boating laws or to manage wildlife programs, lakes, or land.
Investigate hunting accidents or reports of fish or game law violations.
Protect and preserve native wildlife, plants, or ecosystems.
Serve warrants and make arrests.
Provide assistance to other local law enforcement agencies as required.
Promote or provide hunter or trapper safety training.
Participate in search-and-rescue operations.
Arrange for disposition of fish or game illegally taken or possessed.
Seize equipment used in fish and game law violations.
Inspect commercial operations relating to fish or wildlife, recreation, or protected areas.
Supervise the activities of seasonal workers.
Perform facilities maintenance work, such as constructing or repairing structures or controlling weeds or pests.
Participate in firefighting efforts.
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Related occupations.
Other roles in Associate professional occupations, and roles close by exposure.
What it means for your sector.
This role's score comes from Eloundou et al's 2023 task labels, weighted by O*NET importance within each O*NET-SOC code, then bridged to UK SOC 2020 through ISCO-08 (the ONS coding index) and US SOC 2010 (the BLS crosswalk). Employment and median pay come from ONS ASHE Table 14.7a, 2025 provisional, which covers employees only.
Back to the mapMethodologySources (PDF)Built 29 April 2026
Pictures
- "Census pantograph and 1930s keypunches" by U.S. Census Bureau employees, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- "Shepard Barclay, St. Louis lawyer, in his office" by Missouri Historical Society via DPLA, no known copyright restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons
- "Accountant's Office LCCN2016824374" by National Photo Company Collection, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
- "Employment service in Oulu in the spring 1931" by Finnish Heritage Agency (Museovirasto), CC BY 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons