Stock handler vs driver/material handler

The differences between stock handlers and driver/material handlers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, a stock handler has an average salary of $38,051, which is higher than the $36,219 average annual salary of a driver/material handler.

The top three skills for a stock handler include pallet jack, computer system and safety guidelines. The most important skills for a driver/material handler are CDL, customer orders, and inventory control.

Stock handler vs driver/material handler overview

	Stock Handler	Driver/Material Handler
Yearly salary	$38,051	$36,219
Hourly rate	$18.29	$17.41
Growth rate	1%	7%
Number of jobs	107,486	198,718
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 49%	High School Diploma, 53%
Average age	38	43
Years of experience	-	4

Stock handler vs driver/material handler salary

Stock handlers and driver/material handlers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Stock Handler	Driver/Material Handler
Average salary	$38,051	$36,219
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $47,000	Between $28,000 And $45,000
Highest paying City	Anchorage, AK	Santa Clara, CA
Highest paying state	Rhode Island	Hawaii
Best paying company	PSEG	Merck
Best paying industry	Manufacturing	Automotive

Differences between stock handler and driver/material handler education

There are a few differences between a stock handler and a driver/material handler in terms of educational background:

	Stock Handler	Driver/Material Handler
Most common degree	High School Diploma, 49%	High School Diploma, 53%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	-	-

Stock handler vs driver/material handler demographics

Here are the differences between stock handlers' and driver/material handlers' demographics:

	Stock Handler	Driver/Material Handler
Average age	38	43
Gender ratio	Male, 79.4% Female, 20.6%	Male, 89.4% Female, 10.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 17.6% Asian, 6.5% White, 59.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0%	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	6%	4%

Differences between stock handler and driver/material handler duties and responsibilities

Stock handler example responsibilities.

Manage the work area for all OSHA compliance and facility safety during schedule shift.
Distribute production materials to designate locations on assembly lines observing the first-in-first-out (FIFO) inventory control practice.
Work as fast as possible to meet ROSS optimal time.

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.

Stock handler vs driver/material handler skills

Common stock handler skills

Pallet Jack, 21%
Computer System, 15%
Safety Guidelines, 10%
Math, 9%
Pallets, 6%
Safety Rules, 5%

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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Office and Administrative Industry
Stock Handler
Stock Handler vs Driver/Material Handler

Updated January 8, 2025

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