Transportation and Material Moving · Holland code RC

Tank Car, Truck, and Ship Loaders

Load and unload chemicals and bulk solids, such as coal, sand, and grain, into or from tank cars, trucks, or ships, using material moving equipment. May perform a variety of other tasks relating to shipment of products. May gauge or sample shipping tanks and test them for leaks.

Also called: Loader, Loader Operator, Tankerman, Truck Loader, Load Out Person, Loading Operator, Oil Movements Operator, PVC Loader (Polyvinyl Chloride Loader).

O*NET 53-7121.00

At a glance

US median annual pay: $58,870; Middle half earn $46,300 to $70,060. BLS OEWS, May 2025.
Most common education: High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED); 81% 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.

Seal outlet valves on tank cars, barges, and trucks.
Verify tank car, barge, or truck load numbers to ensure car placement accuracy based on written or verbal instructions.
Connect ground cables to carry off static electricity when unloading tanker cars.
Start pumps and adjust valves or cables to regulate the flow of products to vessels, using knowledge of loading procedures.
Check conditions and weights of vessels to ensure cleanliness and compliance with loading procedures.
Observe positions of cars passing loading spouts, and swing spouts into the correct positions at the appropriate times.
Monitor product movement to and from storage tanks, coordinating activities with other workers to ensure constant product flow.
Copy and attach load specifications to loaded tanks.

Skills and knowledge it leans on

Skills

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

Knowledge areas

Transportation3.5 / 5
Production and Processing3.3 / 5
English Language3.3 / 5
Public Safety and Security3.1 / 5
Mechanical2.9 / 5
Education and Training2.5 / 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.

Realistic99
Investigative16
Artistic0
Social0
Enterprising5
Conventional63

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)

chemical processing plant controller · DE Steuerer von chemischen Verfahrensanlagen/Steuerin von chemischen Verfahrensanlagen · FR pilote d’installations de transformation chimique
air separation plant operator · DE Steuerer von Lufttrennungsanlagen/Steuerin von Lufttrennungsanlagen · FR conducteur/conductrice d’installation de séparation de l’air
petroleum pump system operator · DE Steuerer Ölpumpsysteme/Steuerin Ölpumpsysteme · FR conducteur de systèmes de pompage de pétrole/conductrice de systèmes de pompage de pétrole
pipeline pump operator · DE Pipelinebediener/Pipelinebedienerin · FR opérateur d’installations de pompage et de pipelines/opératrice d’installations de pompage et de pipelines
nitrator operator · DE Sprengstoffarbeiter/Sprengstoffarbeiterin · FR opérateur en fabrication de poudres et explosifs/opératrice en fabrication de poudres et explosifs
nitroglycerin separator operator · DE Fachkraft in der Nitroglycerinherstellung (Schwerkraftabscheidung) · FR opérateur de production de nitroglycérine/opératrice de production de nitroglycérine

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 -1.39. 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 (53-7121).

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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