Hand Laborers and Material Movers

Hand laborers and material movers manually move freight, stock, or other materials. Some of these workers feed or remove material to or from machines, clean vehicles, pick up unwanted household goods, and pack materials for moving.

Duties

Hand laborers and material movers typically do the following:

• Manually move material from one place to another
• Pack or wrap products by hand
• Keep a record of the material they move
• Signal machine operators to help move material
• Clean cars, equipment, and workplaces

In warehouses and in wholesale and retail operations, hand laborers and material movers work closely with material moving machine operators and material recording clerks. Some workers are employed in manufacturing industries, loading material onto conveyor belts or other machines.

The following are examples of types of hand laborers and material movers: 

Cleaners of vehicles and equipment wash automobiles and other vehicles, as well as storage tanks, pipelines, and related machinery. They use cleaning products, vacuums, hoses, and brushes. Most of these workers clean cars at a carwash, an automobile dealership, or a rental agency. Some clean industrial equipment at manufacturing firms. Some—for example, those who work at a carwash, also known as carwash attendants—interact with customers.

Hand laborers and freight, stock, and material movers move materials to and from storage and production areas, loading docks, delivery trucks, ships, and containers. Although their specific duties may vary, most of these movers, often called pickers, work in warehouses. Some workers retrieve products from storage and move them to loading areas. Other workers load and unload cargo from a truck. When moving a package, pickers keep track of the package number, sometimes with a hand-held scanner, to ensure proper delivery. Sometimes they open containers and sort the material.

Hand packers and packagers package a variety of materials by hand. They may label cartons, inspect items for defects, and keep records of items packed. Some of these workers pack materials for shipment and move them to a loading dock. Hand packers in grocery stores, also known as grocery baggers, bag groceries for customers at checkout.

Machine feeders and offbearers process materials by feeding them into equipment or by removing them from equipment. The equipment is generally operated by other workers, such as material moving machine operators. Machine feeders and offbearers help the operator if the machine becomes jammed or needs minor repairs. Machine feeders also track the amount of material they process during a shift.

Refuse and recyclable material collectors gather garbage and recyclables from homes and businesses to transport to a dump, landfill, or recycling center. Many collectors lift garbage cans by hand and empty them into their truck. Some collectors drive the garbage or recycling truck along a scheduled route and may use a hydraulic lift to empty the contents of a dumpster into the truck.

Hand laborers and material movers held about 4.2 million jobs in 2018. Employment in the detailed occupations that make up hand laborers and material movers was distributed as follows:

Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand	2,953,800
Packers and packagers, hand	673,400
Cleaners of vehicles and equipment	408,500
Refuse and recyclable material collectors	133,000
Machine feeders and offbearers	66,200

The largest employers of hand laborers and material movers were as follows:

Transportation and warehousing	23%
Administrative and support and waste management and remediation services	22
Manufacturing	13
Wholesale trade	13

Hand laborers and material movers lift and carry heavy objects, and their work is usually repetitive and physically demanding. They bend, kneel, crouch, or crawl in awkward positions.

Injuries and Illnesses

Hand laborers and freight, stock, and material movers and refuse and recyclable material collectors have some of the highest rates of injuries and illnesses of all occupations. Moving heavy objects around warehouses or onto trucks, or bending while cleaning a vehicle, may lead to sprains, strains, or overexertion.

Work Schedules

Most hand laborers and freight, stock, and material movers work full time.

Shifts longer than 8 hours are common, and sometimes overtime is available. Because materials are shipped around the clock, some workers, especially those in warehousing, work overnight shifts.

There are usually no formal educational requirements for anyone to become a hand laborer or material mover. Employers typically require only that applicants be physically able to perform the work.

Education

There are no formal educational requirements for anyone to become a hand laborer or material mover.

Training

Most positions for hand laborers and material movers require less than 1 month of on-the-job training. Some workers need only a few days of training, and most training is done by a supervisor or a more experienced worker who decides when trainees are ready to work on their own.

Workers learn safety rules as part of their training. Many of these rules are standardized through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Licenses, Certifications, and Registrations

Refuse and recyclable material collectors who drive trucks that exceed a certain capacity—such as vehicles with the combined weight of the vehicle, passengers, and cargo exceeding 26,000 pounds—must have a commercial driver’s license (CDL). Obtaining a CDL requires passing written, skill, and vision tests.

Important Qualities

Customer-service skills. Hand laborers and material movers who work with the public, such as grocery baggers or carwash attendants, must be pleasant and courteous to customers.

Hand–eye coordination. Most hand laborers and material movers use their arms and hands to manipulate objects or move objects into specific positions.

Listening skills. Hand laborers and material movers follow instructions that a supervisor gives them.

Physical stamina. Hand laborers and material movers need the endurance to perform strenuous tasks, such as moving or cleaning objects, throughout the day.

Physical strength. Some hand laborers and material movers must be able to lift and carry heavy objects.

The median annual wage for hand laborers and material movers was $27,270 in May 2018.

The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $20,000, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $44,670.

Median annual wages for hand laborers and material movers in May 2018 were as follows:

Refuse and recyclable material collectors	$37,260
Machine feeders and offbearers	29,560
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand	28,260
Packers and packagers, hand	24,580
Cleaners of vehicles and equipment	24,530

In May 2018, the median annual wages for hand laborers and material movers in the top industries in which they worked were as follows:

Wholesale trade	$29,570
Manufacturing	29,390
Transportation and warehousing	29,220
Administrative and support and waste management and remediation services	25,080

Some hand laborers and material movers, such as grocery baggers or carwash attendants, may receive tips.

Most hand laborers and freight, stock, and material movers work full time.

Shifts longer than 8 hours are common, and sometimes overtime is available. Because materials are shipped around the clock, some workers, especially those in warehousing, work overnight shifts.

Overall employment of hand laborers and material movers is projected to grow 4 percent from 2018 to 2028, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Projected employment changes will vary by occupation.

Employment of hand laborers and freight, stock, and material movers—about two-thirds of all the workers in this profile—is projected to grow 5 percent from 2018 to 2028, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Although some warehouses are installing equipment such as high-speed conveyors and sorting systems to increase efficiency, these workers will still be needed to move materials in nearly all sectors of the economy.

Employment of hand packers and packagers is projected to decline 3 percent from 2018 to 2028. Grocery stores, which employ many hand packers and packagers, may employ fewer baggers as a growing number of stores have self-checkouts where customers or existing cashiers bag groceries themselves. Automation is becoming more viable in warehouses and, if it expands, will reduce the need for workers there.

Employment of refuse and recyclable material collectors is projected to grow 8 percent from 2018 to 2028, faster than the average for all occupations. Trash collection activity should be expected to increase as the population grows, and collectors will be needed to remove trash.

Employment of cleaners of vehicles and equipment is projected to grow 6 percent from 2018 to 2028, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Demand for automotive repair and maintenance services, as well as a growing automobile dealers industry, is expected to contribute to employment growth of cleaners of vehicles and equipment.

Employment of machine feeders and offbearers is projected to show little or no change from 2018 to 2028. Many of these workers are employed in manufacturing industries, in which functions are being automated, so employment is expected to remain unchanged.

Job Prospects

Job prospects for hand laborers and material movers are expected to be good. The need to replace workers who leave these occupations should create a large number of job openings.

Employment projections data for hand laborers and material movers, 2018-28

Occupational Title	SOC Code	Employment, 2018	Projected Employment, 2028	Change, 2018-28		Employment by Industry
				Percent	Numeric
SOURCE: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections program
Hand laborers and material movers	—	4,234,900	4,391,200	4	156,200	—
Cleaners of vehicles and equipment	53-7061	408,500	433,000	6	24,600	Get data
Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand	53-7062	2,953,800	3,097,900	5	144,000	Get data
Machine feeders and offbearers	53-7063	66,200	66,300	0	100	Get data
Packers and packagers, hand	53-7064	673,400	650,000	-3	-23,400	Get data
Refuse and recyclable material collectors	53-7081	133,000	143,900	8	10,900	Get data

This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of hand laborers and material movers.

	Occupation	Job Duties	Entry-Level Education	Median Annual Pay, May 2018
	Construction Laborers and Helpers	Construction laborers and helpers perform many tasks that require physical labor on construction sites.	See How to Become One	$34,810
	Delivery Truck Drivers and Driver/Sales Workers	Delivery truck drivers and driver/sales workers pick up, transport, and drop off packages and small shipments within a local region or urban area.	High school diploma or equivalent	$30,500
	Heavy and Tractor-trailer Truck Drivers	Heavy and tractor-trailer truck drivers transport goods from one location to another.	Postsecondary nondegree award	$43,680
	Material Moving Machine Operators	Material moving machine operators use machinery to transport various objects.	See How to Become One	$35,850
	Material Recording Clerks	Material recording clerks track product information in order to keep businesses and supply chains on schedule.	High school diploma or equivalent	$28,860
	Water Transportation Workers	Water transportation workers operate and maintain vessels that take cargo and people over water.	See How to Become One	$54,400

For more information about hand laborers and material movers, visit

MHI

Warehousing Education and Research Council

O*NET

Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment

Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand

Machine Feeders and Offbearers

Packers and Packagers, Hand

Refuse and Recyclable Material Collectors