Transportation and Material Moving · Holland code RC

Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators

Operate industrial trucks or tractors equipped to move materials around a warehouse, storage yard, factory, construction site, or similar location.

Also called: Fork Truck Driver, Forklift Driver, Forklift Operator, Spotter Driver, Checker Loader, Fork Lift Technician, Lift Truck Operator, Shag Truck Driver.

O*NET 53-7051.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $46,420; Middle half earn $40,030 to $54,770. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED); 73% 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.

Move levers or controls that operate lifting devices, such as forklifts, lift beams with swivel-hooks, hoists, or elevating platforms, to load, unload, transport, or stack material.
Move controls to drive gasoline- or electric-powered trucks, cars, or tractors and transport materials between loading, processing, and storage areas.
Manually or mechanically load or unload materials from pallets, skids, platforms, cars, lifting devices, or other transport vehicles.
Position lifting devices under, over, or around loaded pallets, skids, or boxes and secure material or products for transport to designated areas.
Inspect product load for accuracy and safely move it around the warehouse or facility to ensure timely and complete delivery.
Weigh materials or products and record weight or other production data on tags or labels.
Perform routine maintenance on vehicles or auxiliary equipment, such as cleaning, lubricating, recharging batteries, fueling, or replacing liquefied-gas tank.
Operate or tend automatic stacking, loading, packaging, or cutting machines.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

Reading Comprehension2.9 / 5
Active Listening2.9 / 5
Speaking2.8 / 5
Critical Thinking2.8 / 5
Monitoring2.8 / 5
Writing2.5 / 5

Knowledge areas

Mathematics3.0 / 5
English Language2.8 / 5
Production and Processing2.8 / 5
Transportation2.8 / 5
Customer and Personal Service2.5 / 5
Administration and Management2.5 / 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.

Realistic100
Investigative13
Artistic0
Social2
Enterprising4
Conventional45

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)

cargo vehicle driver · DE Lastkraftwagenfahrer/Lastkraftwagenfahrerin · FR conducteur de poids lourd/conductrice de poids lourd
moving truck driver · DE Umzugsfahrer/Umzugsfahrerin · FR déménageur conducteur de poids lourd/déménageuse conductrice de poids lourd
forklift operator · DE Gabelstaplerfahrer/Gabelstaplerfahrerin · FR cariste
rail intermodal equipment operator · DE Bediener intermodaler Einrichtungen im Schienenverkehr/Bedienerin intermodaler Einrichtungen im Schienenverkehr · FR opérateur ferroviaire de transport intermodal/opératrice ferroviaire de transport intermodal

Closest UK occupation groups (SOC 2020)

Elementary storage occupations n.e.c. (9259)12,000 employed
Delivery operatives (9253)21,800 employed
Heavy and large goods vehicle drivers (8211)273,400 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 “Plant and machine operators and assemblers”. 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, Plant and machine operators and assemblers, by country
Country	Median pay
Belgium	€39,630
Netherlands	€37,567
Austria	€37,304
Sweden	€36,005
Germany	€34,433
Ireland	€32,617
France	€28,550
Italy	€28,330
Spain	€24,409
Portugal	€11,309
Poland	€10,259

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 lower third of the 774 occupations scored, with an exposure score of -1.40. 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 (53-7051).

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.

Take the career interests test