How To Become An Assembler/Material Handler: What It Is and Career Path

What is an assembler/material handler and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an assembler/material handler. For example, did you know that they make an average of $15.99 an hour? That's $33,254 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 6% and produce 358,300 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreAssembler/Material HandlerUS Average

Salary

2.6

Avg. Salary $33,254

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

6.4

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

9.3

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.06%

Asian 5.21%

Black or African American 14.06%

Hispanic or Latino 18.81%

Unknown 5.14%

White 55.71%

Gender

female 28.55%

male 71.45%

Age - 39

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39

Stress level

6.4

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

4.7

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

4.4

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an assembler/material handler

Explore assembler/material handler education requirements

Most common assembler/material handler degrees

High School Diploma

54.4 %

Diploma

15.9 %

Associate

14.8 %

Start to develop specific assembler/material handler skills

Skills	Percentages
Line Assembly	18.16%
Safety Procedures	14.04%
Electric Pallet Jack	11.79%
Safety Rules	5.71%
RF	4.60%

Complete relevant assembler/material handler training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New assembler/material handlers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an assembler/material handler based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real assembler/material handler resumes.

Research assembler/material handler duties and responsibilities

Utilize a manufacturing cloud ERP system to accomplish tasks.
Distribute production materials to designate locations on assembly lines observing the first-in-first-out (FIFO) inventory control practice.
Handle the receiving/ shipping function and movement of inventory, including inventory documentation of GMP materials.
Bag groceries for on base families and help load them into cars.

Prepare your assembler/material handler resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your assembler/material handler resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on an assembler/material handler resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable assembler/material handler resume templates

Build a professional assembler/material handler resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your assembler/material handler resume.