Stephen Moore's ATM-AI argument and what it means for Valley bank jobs
In a Bakersfield column, Stephen Moore says ATMs didn't erase teller work. Central Valley banks show how automation changes duties and branch counts.
Stephen Moore's ATM-AI argument and what it means for Valley bank jobs
Key Takeaways
- Stephen Moore argued in Bakersfield.com that ATMs didn't erase teller jobs and AI could echo that.
- Valley Strong Credit Union employs about 600 people and runs roughly 30 branches in and around Kern County.
- Porterville-based Bank of the Sierra operates about 35 branches across the South Valley and Central Coast.
- U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics projects teller employment to fall 13% from 2024 to 2034.
About 600 people work at Valley Strong Credit Union in Bakersfield, spread across roughly 30 branches from Kern into neighboring counties. So when columnist Stephen Moore wrote Wednesday that automated teller machines didn't wipe out bank teller jobs and that AI may follow a similar arc, the question lands here first: what does that mean for front-counter work in Kern and Fresno.
A familiar story in bank tech.
What Moore argues
Moore's point is simple: ATMs automated a task, not the occupation. Banks adjusted staffing, opened more branches, and tellers shifted into customer service and product roles. He says AI could do the same for white-collar work, trimming repetitive chores while raising demand for people who solve problems and sell.
What that looks like here
Local institutions already reflect that mix of machines and people. Valley Strong keeps branches busy while pushing mobile deposits and bill pay. Bank of the Sierra, headquartered in Porterville, still runs about three dozen locations even as more routine transactions go through kiosks and apps. Fresno First Bank remains a single-branch headquarters that serves most clients remotely, a model that treats the branch like a hub rather than the default stop.
These choices matter for entry-level hiring and training. More self-service can mean fewer windows open at noon, but the people behind them spend more time on fraud holds, new accounts, small-business questions, and the kind of problem that can't be solved by a screen. The paper deposit slips by the window are still there.
What the data says about teller jobs
History backs parts of Moore's analogy. As ATMs spread, total teller employment held roughly steady for decades because branches multiplied, even as tellers per branch fell. The more recent trend is less forgiving. Mobile banking now does what the ATM couldn't, it takes the whole visit away. Federal projections call for a 13% drop in teller jobs from 2024 to 2034, which lines up with what workers in Fresno and Bakersfield branches describe anecdotally, fewer openings, broader duties.
For the Valley, that means fewer traditional teller slots over time, then more value on sales, compliance, digital support and cash-handling experience that travels to armored services and back-office roles. It also means the region's lenders have choices. Keep a larger physical footprint, like Porterville's Bank of the Sierra, and you spread the customer load. Go light on branches, like Fresno First, and you hire differently.
Why readers here should care
Banks and credit unions are steady employers in Kern, Tulare, and Fresno counties. If Moore is right that AI trims tasks more than jobs, the shift shows up in what those jobs ask for, not whether they exist at all. If he's wrong, it shows up in the posting counts. Either way, the stakes are local.
The sound you hear at a Bakersfield branch gives the summary better than a chart, the quiet clatter of an ATM spitting twenties beside a teller window.
Central Valley AI is produced by the CVAI Newsdesk team and developed by Kaweah Tech, a regional firm that builds, deploys, and integrates AI solutions for businesses across California's Central Valley.