Materials handling equipment operator vs driver/material handler

The differences between materials handling equipment operators and driver/material handlers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both a materials handling equipment operator and a driver/material handler. Additionally, a driver/material handler has an average salary of $36,219, which is higher than the $34,554 average annual salary of a materials handling equipment operator.

The top three skills for a materials handling equipment operator include pallets, pallet jack and safety regulations. The most important skills for a driver/material handler are CDL, customer orders, and inventory control.

Materials handling equipment operator vs driver/material handler overview

	Materials Handling Equipment Operator	Driver/Material Handler
Yearly salary	$34,554	$36,219
Hourly rate	$16.61	$17.41
Growth rate	7%	7%
Number of jobs	72,569	198,718
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 49%	High School Diploma, 53%
Average age	43	43
Years of experience	4	4

Materials handling equipment operator vs driver/material handler salary

Materials handling equipment operators and driver/material handlers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Materials Handling Equipment Operator	Driver/Material Handler
Average salary	$34,554	$36,219
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $43,000	Between $28,000 And $45,000
Highest paying City	-	Santa Clara, CA
Highest paying state	-	Hawaii
Best paying company	-	Merck
Best paying industry	-	Automotive

Differences between materials handling equipment operator and driver/material handler education

There are a few differences between a materials handling equipment operator and a driver/material handler in terms of educational background:

	Materials Handling Equipment Operator	Driver/Material Handler
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 49%	High School Diploma, 53%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Materials handling equipment operator vs driver/material handler demographics

Here are the differences between materials handling equipment operators' and driver/material handlers' demographics:

	Materials Handling Equipment Operator	Driver/Material Handler
Average age	43	43
Gender ratio	Male, 89.7% Female, 10.3%	Male, 89.4% Female, 10.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 15.5% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 17.1% Asian, 2.7% White, 59.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 15.7% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 17.4% Asian, 2.6% White, 59.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%
LGBT Percentage	4%	4%

Differences between materials handling equipment operator and driver/material handler duties and responsibilities

Materials handling equipment operator example responsibilities.

Operate stand-up forklift, reach truck and walkie.
Unload railcars using crane, forklift and overhead hoists.
Certify on walkie rider, stand-up forklift/ high reach forklift, and turret truck.
Perform daily pre and post maintenance inspection checks on designate material handling equipment (MHE).
Load and secure items onto pallets and ensure that the materials are in the proper place and prepare them for shipment.
Maintain accurate and timely documentation as is required by organization and OSHA.

Driver/material handler example responsibilities.

Manage temporary staff doing warehouse work and train and test them in order to receive forklift certification per OSHA.
Load and unload LTL freight from inbound and outbound trailers.
Operate forklifts in transferring loading and unloading materials in LTL.
Pick and audit hazmat and international orders.
Handle emergency hazmat situations requiring quick decision making skills.
Stack and move pallets from different lines with different products documenting quantity and quality while participating in a team environment.

Materials handling equipment operator vs driver/material handler skills

Common materials handling equipment operator skills

Pallets, 16%
Pallet Jack, 12%
Safety Regulations, 9%
End Loaders, 8%
Basic Math, 7%
Safety Procedures, 6%

Common driver/material handler skills

CDL, 21%
Customer Orders, 11%
Inventory Control, 9%
Customer Service, 9%
Safety Rules, 7%
Pallets, 6%

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Materials Handling Equipment Operator
Materials Handling Equipment Operator vs Driver/Material Handler

Updated January 8, 2025

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