5 WA Business Icons, Careers That Have Vanished In the Last 25 Years–Right Before Our Eyes

There is now a generation that likely has not seen one or more of these former American business icons or careers.

  Five Occupations or Practices That are All But Vanishing

We've seen the lists, the top ten jobs vanishing in the next 20-50 years, and the same from the past. But, right in front of our eyes, many have withered and are all but gone during our recent lifetimes.

  In no particular Order, Here's a Look at Jobs, Practices, That Were Here 'Yesterday'

Even 15-20 years ago (not long in the march of history) teens looking for a first job or adults looking to boost cash flow, could easily get a job as a paperboy.   Papers such as the Tri-City Herald, Yakima Herald Republic, and Walla Walla Union Bulletin would advertise for carrier route jobs.   However, with subscriptions dwindling and papers only publishing 2-3 days a week, the need for carriers has plummeted.  The Herald only publishes a newsprint edition on Wed and Sunday,  Yakima, Wed, Fri and Sun, and WW Tues, Thurs. and Sun.  TC Herald physical paper Sunday subscriptions dropped from over 44K in the mid 2000's to under 18K by 2020.

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Full-Service Gas Stations.  Between 1981 and 1983, we saw the old-fashioned gas station repair shop begin to steadily vanish.  States passed laws allowing self-serve, and the explosion of convenience stores with fuel pumps have relegated this once common icon and job opportunity to the history books. Some estimates say 80 percent or more of them are gone, nationally. Most had vanished by 2000.

 Human Telemarketers (Phone)  Most of us don't mind this fast disappearing trend. While the number of spam calls on our phones have risen, they are largely automated, controlled by bots and computers with auto dial.  The old practice of a live human coldcalling thousands of numbers trying to sell everything from insurance to carpet has dropped a lot over the last 20 years.   The last known figures show telemarketing jobs have dropped between 22 and 25 percent over the last decade, and soon will be obsolete.

Homes With Landlines 

How many remember checking the answering machine when we got home? 25 years ago, 97 percent of American homes still had a landline, now in 2026 that number is just below 27 percent.  Now, they will never completely go away. Many senior citizens, and those with health conditions often opt for a cell and a landline, to increase the ability to contact in case of emergency. But telecom experts say that 27 percent could drop to below 15 in the next 5-10 years. Cellphones do it all now.

  Cashiers in Fast-Food Restaurants

When you visit your favorite fast-food restaurant, especially the drive-through, you still order via a human worker. However, the advancements in self-order kiosks inside has exploded over the last 20 years.

Tracking exact workforce numbers is hard, business experts say some facilities have 100 percent turnover in one year. But while overall fast food jobs have risen, the cashier positions have dropped anywhere from 27 to 89 percent--depending on the franchise.

The leading franchises, from Wendy's to Burger King and especially McDonalds, have installed at least 450,000 self-order kiosks worldwide, and more are coming. McDonalds has over 20,000 and at one point last year was adding them to about 1,000 restaurants per quarter.   With rapid advancements in self-cooking technology the downsizing of the cashier will continue.  50 percent of fast-food chains plan to implement some sort of robot tech to replace workers, even cooks.

White Castle and Chipotle already use robots,  Castle for flipping fries, and Chipotle for chips and prep. The fast-food industry could see massive job changes overall in the next 20 years, not just  for cashiers.