Limited hand use can restrict the types of jobs you can take on, as many of them require repetitive hand movements. However, this doesn’t necessarily mean your options are limited. With a little bit of persistence and creativity, you can find a wide array of jobs that would suit anyone with limited hand use.
The best jobs with limited hand use (carpal tunnel friendly) include social work, counseling, psychology, consulting, interpreting, and singing. These mainly require verbal communication, allowing you to carry out the requirements of the job with little to no physical effort.
If you or someone you know has CTS, here’s a list of job titles that barely require any hand or wrist movements. Read on and find out why these jobs can be a perfect fit!
Workplace Challenges for People With Limited Hand Use
People with limited hand use can expose themselves to safety challenges due to a lack of dexterity. They may also experience extreme pain or discomfort when using their hands for prolonged periods.
Certain job types, specifically those that require the repetitive use of hands, have been associated with carpal tunnel syndrome. These include operating vibrating hand machinery, playing handheld instruments, hairstyling, and sewing.
However, even occupations that aren’t directly associated with getting CTS can be harmful and troublesome to those who already suffer regularly from the condition. Typing, for instance, isn’t necessarily positively associated with CTS, primarily if you only type for half of your work week. However, once you have CTS, it can be highly uncomfortable to continuously type for more than 2 to 3 hours a day.
1. Social Worker
- Average Salary: $74,584 per year.
- Workload: 92% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 2,011 social worker jobs are available on
Social work mainly involves communicating with stakeholders rather than data entry and record-keeping. You’ll be dealing with vulnerable populations at work. The skill set required is more inclined to those that help build rapport with clients, give accurate assessments, and devise suitable treatment plans and post-treatment evaluations.
Since these steps do not require hand use, taking on social work can be a good option for people with carpal tunnel syndrome.
Requirements
At the minimum, you need to have a bachelor’s degree relevant to social work given by an accredited institution. However, higher education will undoubtedly help you in your job search. If you have a knack for communicating, that’s all the more reason why this job may be a great fit.
2. Consultant
- Salary: $40 per hour.
- Workload: 93% of positions are full-time.
- High Demand: 29,163 consultant jobs are available on
Consulting is a lucrative career choice for those with expertise in a specific subject area. Management consultants, for instance, give advice and coaching to executives and supervisors on improving staff management, which makes them a vital addition to any organization.
Requirements
Good consultants must have excellent attention to detail, be persuasive, and, most importantly, have excellent critical thinking skills. As you may have noticed, all these skills do not necessarily require hand movements, making this profession a good choice for those with CTS.
Since the range of problems clients may have varies greatly, consultants have no one-size-fits-all qualification. For business consulting, however, a bachelor’s degree is the minimum for you to stand out.
3. Customer Service Representative
- Salary: $18 per hour.
- Workload: 92% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 2,038 customer service representative jobs are available on
Customer service representatives are frontline employees who act as business representatives when talking with clients regarding their concerns. Working in customer services entails making clients happy with their relationship with your company’s brand.
This means that you must be able to interact naturally with your customers, find solutions to their problems, and help defuse any negative emotions they may have. Notice that these attributes do not require using your hands, so this can be a fulfilling career choice for those with CTS who want to hone their communication skills.
Requirements
In addition to on-site training, entry-level customer service representative positions typically only require a high school diploma or an associate degree. On the other hand, managerial posts in this field require a degree in business or hospitality.
4. Counselor
- Salary: $23 per hour.
- Workload: 92% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 1,919 counselor jobs are available on
Counselors mainly use interpersonal and communication skills to carry out their tasks effectively. Not being able to use your hands over prolonged periods is irrelevant to doing well at work. You’ll be all set as long as you’ve got the soft skills or the determination to work on them. This makes counseling jobs an attractive option to those with CTS.
If you’re looking for a counseling job, the first step would be to check the minimum requirements you need to fulfill in order to offer counseling in your area. This may take some time to plan and prepare.
Requirements
Depending on where you plan to work, minimum counseling requirements vary from getting a counseling diploma to passing a licensure examination or getting a post-graduate degree in addition to clinical experience. While not all of these requirements are a must, they usually allow you to aim for a higher starting salary.
5. Interpreter
- Salary: $26 per hour.
- Workload: 87% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 139 interpreter jobs are available on
If you have a mastery of another language and want a job with limited hand use, then a career as an interpreter may be a good fit. The main job of an interpreter is to derive the meaning from spoken words in one language and express it in another, which requires a deep understanding of at least two languages and the cultures of the people who use them.
In contrast to automatic translation services, which directly translate words from one language to another, clients expect interpreters to preserve the meaning of those words.
Requirements
You do not need a bachelor’s degree to be an interpreter. What clients look for is some experience in interpreting. Training and exam certifications can be an excellent way for you to improve your resume when applying for interpreter jobs. Previous work experience will also help you find better-paying clients and employers.
Most employers also expect that you are okay with traveling at a moment’s notice and working out of hours since, in addition to your client, you’re also expected to interact with people from other time zones.
6. Receptionist
- Salary: $17 per hour.
- Workload: 67% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 1,529 receptionist jobs are available on
It takes good management and communication skills to be a receptionist. This makes this position an ideal option if you’re a natural manager and communicator. As a receptionist, you will need to greet guests, process inquiries, and hand over requests to the personnel or teams in charge.
Since communication is mainly verbal, you’ll do great on the job, even with CTS. You’ll be good to go if you do well even in high-pressure situations and are effective in relaying messages across. There’s barely a need for you to use your hands over prolonged periods.
Requirements
In addition to being a good listener and communicator, you’ll also need at least a high school diploma for most receptionist jobs. Basic computer skills are also a plus, but by basic, I’m talking about basic clicking and typing when admitting visitors or checking out. Nothing too complicated.
Companies may require relevant experience or a bachelor’s degree in business or similar fields for some more complicated receptionist jobs. This added requirement, though, only means you’ll likely be paid more.
7. Sales Representative
- Average Salary: $53,000 per year.
- Workload: 91% of positions are full-time.
- Medium Demand: 8,031 sales representative jobs are available on
Sales is another customer-facing job that does not require extensive use of hands. A career in sales offers lucrative remuneration in the form of commissions and invaluable connections.
Sales representatives strive to sell the company’s products and services to current and prospective clients. Striving in sales means doing everything to provide an excellent shopping experience for customers with the end goal of making them buy an item and come back for more.
For instance, good in-store salespersons greet customers as they go inside the store, assist them in finding items, and confidently answer any customer question regarding different products.
Requirements
Working in sales requires a pleasing and welcoming personality and extensive knowledge of the product or service you’re selling.
You do not need a college degree to be accepted and succeed in sales. What matters most is that you’re willing to learn on the job and quickly adapt your selling style based on specific situations and customer behaviors.
8. Tour Guide
- Salary: $25 per hour.
- Workload: 100% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 23 tour guide jobs are available on
Becoming a tour guide is another job option that does not require repetitive use of hands. On the other hand, you’ll be hugely capitalizing on your communication skills when doing the job. You’ll frequently be on the go but will mainly use your voice and knowledge of the tour location.
Requirements
The qualifications can also greatly vary depending on the type of guided tours you’ll be working on. For instance, some companies may require a bachelor’s degree in history or any relevant field if you’ll be heading a historical tour.
However, many other tour guide jobs only need a high school diploma, so there’s no need to worry so much if you haven’t graduated from university. You’ll just have to look into which ones do not require highly specialized expertise that is only attainable with formal education.
Some tourist locations also require tour guides to obtain a work permit or license. In some instances, it will be necessary to participate in training to get the permit. The training will likely include essential travel information and safety protocols to ensure your group stays safe and makes the most out of the trip.
9. Psychologist
- Salary: $55 per hour.
- Workload: 72% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 3,845 psychologist jobs are available on
If you’re good at applying theories on how the human mind works to practical use, you might want to take on psychology as a career. Good psychologists must be efficient communicators, problem solvers, and patient listeners. These three main qualities have nothing to do with the repetitive use of hands, which only means you can ace it even with CTS.
Requirements
The usual minimum requirement for psychologists is a bachelor’s degree in psychology. However, a degree in social work, anthropology, or anything similar can be an excellent place to start.
It’s also important to note that psychology jobs usually require a master’s degree in a related field. Getting a doctorate would push you even higher up on the list.
10. Voice-Over Artist
- Salary: $32 per hour.
- Workload: 100% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 42 voice jobs are available on
Becoming a voice-over artist is an ideal job prospect for people looking for jobs that require limited hand use. Unlike in singing, where you may need to hold the microphone for extended periods, a voice-over artist is almost always behind the camera. This means using a microphone stand while working wouldn’t be a problem.
Requirements
Similar to singing, there’s no need for fancy degrees or qualifications to be a voice-over artist. The most important requirement is your ability to bring life to a character or story by reading through a script.
Since multiple types of audio outputs are needed, it’d be a plus if you have prior relevant experience. For instance, there are differences between being a recording artist for mall or building announcements and being a dubber for anime and other types of TV shows. If you’re flexible with different types of roles, it’ll be easier to land jobs.
11. Event Host
- Salary: $18 per hour.
- Workload: 100% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 13 event host jobs are available on
If you’re good at organizing and are confident with your communications skills, you can consider a career in event hosting. The main job of event hosts is to welcome and assist guests in various events ranging from wedding banquets and birthday parties to professional conferences and other business gatherings.
As you may have noticed, if you’ve attended hosted events, event hosts don’t really use their hands that much. Instead, they rely only on their pleasing personality and ability to perform with grace under pressure to ensure that guests are happy and relaxed.
Requirements
Apart from people-facing duties, event hosts are also expected to manage staff on the sidelines and quickly resolve issues that arise in preparation for and during the event.
Although it is an asset, a college degree is not a requirement to be an event host. What clients want during an interview is that you exude a positive and welcoming personality. The clients must also see that you have a solid managerial demeanor towards the staff and can anticipate problems and prepare contingencies.
12. Singer
- Average Salary: depends on notoriety.
- Workload: 82% of positions are full-time.
- Low Demand: 2,981 singer jobs are available on
If you have an impressive singing voice, it’d also be possible to look for jobs that do not require holding the microphone all the time. Since your primary capital is your singing voice, carpal tunnel syndrome wouldn’t likely present itself as a problem, especially if you invest in a good quality mic stand.
Requirements
In addition to your talent, being a singer requires good interpersonal skills to connect with your audience. Some employers may also consider the ability to play musical instruments as an added qualification. Additionally, being amenable to constantly changing work schedules and working a bit early or extra late may be required.