How To Become A Dock Loader: What It Is and Career Path

What is a dock loader and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being a dock loader. For example, did you know that they make an average of $16.17 an hour? That's $33,639 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 6% and produce 358,300 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreDock LoaderUS Average

Salary

2.6

Avg. Salary $33,639

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

8.1

Growth rate 6%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

10.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 1.55%

Asian 4.12%

Black or African American 11.03%

Hispanic or Latino 16.73%

Unknown 3.80%

White 62.77%

Gender

female 6.24%

male 93.76%

Age - 41

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 - 41

Stress level

8.1

Stress level is high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

8.2

Complexity level is challenging

7 - challenging

Work life balance

3.3

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a dock loader

Explore dock loader education requirements

Most common dock loader degrees

High School Diploma

55.7 %

Associate

14.8 %

Diploma

14.8 %

Start to develop specific dock loader skills

Skills	Percentages
Pallet Jack	29.05%
Pallets	23.65%
Basic Math	9.85%
Cycle Counts	6.88%
Safety Standards	5.83%

Complete relevant dock loader training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 6-12 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New dock loaders 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 a dock loader based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real dock loader resumes.

Research dock loader duties and responsibilities

Receive and organize shipments and place pallets in designate warehouse areas.
Load orders into trailers for shipment; coordinate cross-dock operations and load consolidations.
Mow lawn, run errands, advise customers, and assist in loading and unloading the boats.

Prepare your dock loader resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your dock loader 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 a dock loader resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable dock loader resume templates

Build a professional dock loader 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 dock loader resume.