Office and Administrative Support · Holland code CER

Cargo and Freight Agents

Expedite and route movement of incoming and outgoing cargo and freight shipments in airline, train, and trucking terminals and shipping docks. Take orders from customers and arrange pickup of freight and cargo for delivery to loading platform. Prepare and examine bills of lading to determine shipping charges and tariffs.

Also called: Air Export Specialist, Drop Shipment Clerk, Logistics Coordinator, Logistics Service Representative, Freight Broker, Intermodal Dispatcher, International Coordinator, Load Planner.

O*NET 43-5011.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $52,260; Middle half earn $45,710 to $63,390. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: Bachelor's Degree; 31% of workers surveyed by O*NET report this level.
Preparation needed: Job Zone 2 of 5; Some preparation. Zone 1 is little or none; zone 5 is graduate-level.

What the work involves

The tasks workers in this occupation rate as most important, from the O*NET survey.

Negotiate and arrange transport of goods with shipping or freight companies.
Determine method of shipment and prepare bills of lading, invoices, and other shipping documents.
Track delivery progress of shipments.
Prepare manifests showing numbers of airplane passengers and baggage, mail, and freight weights, transmitting data to destinations.
Advise clients on transportation and payment methods.
Arrange insurance coverage for goods.
Estimate freight or postal rates and record shipment costs and weights.
Install straps, braces, and padding to loads to prevent shifting or damage during shipment.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Speaking3.6 / 5
Active Listening3.5 / 5
Reading Comprehension3.3 / 5
Critical Thinking3.3 / 5
Writing3.0 / 5
Monitoring3.0 / 5

Knowledge areas

Transportation4.6 / 5
Geography4.5 / 5
Public Safety and Security4.0 / 5
English Language3.9 / 5
Administration and Management3.9 / 5
Education and Training3.5 / 5

Importance ratings on O*NET’s 1 to 5 scale. Higher means the occupation depends on it more.

Who tends to enjoy it

How strongly this occupation draws on each of the six Holland interest types, which is the same profile the career interests test compares you against.

Realistic36
Investigative9
Artistic0
Social19
Enterprising64
Conventional89

The same work abroad

Other countries classify jobs differently, so these are the closest matches through the international ISCO-08 standard, not exact equivalents.

European occupation titles (ESCO)

forwarding manager · DE Speditionskaufmann/Speditionskauffrau · FR chef de service affrètement
aircraft cargo operations coordinator · DE Luftfrachtkoordinator/Luftfrachtkoordinatorin · FR chef avion
freight transport dispatcher · DE Frachtdisponent/Frachtdisponentin · FR dispatcheur transport de marchandises/dispatcheuse transport de marchandises

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Importers and exporters (3542)6,500 employed
Transport and distribution clerks and assistants (4134)69,500 employed
Other drivers and transport operatives n.e.c. (8239)22,600 employed

Employment is the UK Annual Population Survey for April 2025 to March 2026, all workers in the group, which can be broader than this one occupation.

Pay across Europe, for the whole group

Median annual earnings of all employees in “Clerical support workers”. This is the broad ISCO group this occupation falls in, not the occupation itself, so treat it as context for the wage level, not as a salary for this job.

Median annual earnings, Clerical support workers, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€40,035
Austria	€38,296
Germany	€37,844
Netherlands	€35,854
Sweden	€33,483
Ireland	€32,144
Italy	€29,311
France	€25,943
Spain	€22,026
Portugal	€12,602
Poland	€10,250

Eurostat Structure of Earnings Survey, businesses with ten or more employees outside public administration, in euro and not adjusted for the cost of living. Reference years differ between sources: the US, Japan and Europe figures on this page come from different survey years, so compare them as rough levels, not to the euro or yen.

Exposure to AI

This occupation sits in the higher third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of +1.41. The scores are standardized across those occupations, so 0 is the average and a score of 1 is about one standard deviation above it.

Our note on reading it: the dataset links AI applications to the abilities that occupations require, so the score reflects overlap between the two. It is a comparison between occupations, not a forecast about jobs. It does not say whether exposure means tasks are replaced or workers get more done with the tools, and it says little about one employer or one role.

Source: Felten, E., Raj, M., & Seamans, R. (2021). Occupational, industry, and geographic exposure to artificial intelligence: A novel dataset and its potential uses. Strategic Management Journal, 42(12), 2195-2217. Matched to this page by 6-digit SOC code (43-5011).

Is it a fit for you?

Interest is one input, alongside ability, pay and what is hiring near you. The career interests test takes about thirteen minutes and ranks occupations by how closely their profile matches yours.

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