Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators
Also called: Fork Truck Driver, Forklift Driver, Forklift Operator, Spotter DriverOperate industrial trucks or tractors equipped to move materials around a warehouse, storage yard, factory, construction site, or similar location.
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What the data says: AI couldn't halve the time on any of its 9 tasks, and jobs are projected to grow 1.5% by 2035. How to think about this →
About this projection
BLS builds AI into its projections where the research supports it: “BLS generally applies adjustments based on this research conservatively, where there is convincing evidence for a change.”
It also notes a limit: “BLS projection methods are not designed to capture extremely rapid technological change.”
On its AI exposure groups, BLS says exposure “does not imply job loss.”
Recent conditions
- In 2024, 6.3% of people in this work were unemployed, against 3.8% across all occupations Census ACS 2024
- From Sep 2025 to Aug 2026, 9.0 hires for every 10 job openings in transportation, warehousing, and utilities, which employs about 46% of people in this work, against 7.3 across all industries BLS JOLTS
One box per opening, filled for each hire; hires beyond the openings are added in a lighter shade. Higher can mean openings get filled, or that people leave often; lower, that jobs go unfilled, or hiring is slow.9.0 this industry7.3 all industries
Median pay by state BLS OEWS May 2025, state estimates
Tap a state for its figures.
Median pay in every state
| State | Median | Middle half earn | Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $44,880 | $37,320 to $51,000 | 15,360 |
| Alaska | $54,190 | $40,800 to $65,880 | 410 |
| Arizona | $48,110 | $44,130 to $54,550 | 12,340 |
| Arkansas | $43,780 | $37,200 to $49,780 | 10,850 |
| California | $47,770 | $43,210 to $58,360 | 89,620 |
| Colorado | $50,570 | $45,970 to $60,530 | 8,570 |
| Connecticut | $47,190 | $44,160 to $57,530 | 3,780 |
| Delaware | $60,350 | $44,030 to $60,350 | 5,230 |
| District of Columbia | $83,720 | $70,710 to $83,720 | not published |
| Florida | $48,370 | $40,260 to $58,090 | 38,400 |
| Georgia | $43,210 | $37,990 to $48,040 | 50,260 |
| Guam | $34,870 | $27,450 to $50,720 | 60 |
| Hawaii | $53,640 | $44,430 to $66,350 | 880 |
| Idaho | $46,600 | $42,250 to $54,400 | 2,560 |
| Illinois | $47,720 | $42,850 to $57,550 | 29,450 |
| Indiana | $45,650 | $40,500 to $51,330 | 23,090 |
| Iowa | $47,590 | $43,460 to $52,950 | 7,770 |
| Kansas | $47,430 | $43,650 to $50,380 | 7,700 |
| Kentucky | $46,630 | $38,820 to $59,470 | 11,270 |
| Louisiana | $48,950 | $40,880 to $57,490 | 7,680 |
| Maine | $47,730 | $44,480 to $61,280 | 2,900 |
| Maryland | $45,630 | $42,670 to $51,390 | 13,740 |
| Massachusetts | $46,850 | $44,270 to $49,470 | 8,390 |
| Michigan | $45,220 | $39,320 to $54,110 | 23,470 |
| Minnesota | $49,740 | $44,550 to $59,690 | 7,110 |
| Mississippi | $43,420 | $37,030 to $46,770 | 9,640 |
| Missouri | $45,190 | $39,230 to $55,860 | 11,470 |
| Montana | $48,060 | $41,700 to $56,600 | 910 |
| Nebraska | $46,730 | $40,520 to $50,350 | 5,020 |
| Nevada | $45,230 | $39,900 to $56,100 | 7,300 |
| New Hampshire | $54,460 | $46,050 to $61,660 | 1,450 |
| New Jersey | $46,100 | $39,600 to $56,480 | 21,790 |
| New Mexico | $62,150 | $39,840 to $62,150 | 2,620 |
| New York | $49,030 | $44,000 to $59,700 | 18,420 |
| North Carolina | $43,420 | $38,080 to $47,510 | 26,830 |
| North Dakota | $49,260 | $45,040 to $56,310 | 930 |
| Ohio | $46,450 | $42,530 to $58,840 | 42,360 |
| Oklahoma | $44,700 | $37,750 to $50,900 | 7,850 |
| Oregon | $50,760 | $47,040 to $58,920 | 8,560 |
| Pennsylvania | $47,730 | $43,090 to $57,650 | 42,110 |
| Puerto Rico | $36,090 | $26,750 to $65,420 | 3,450 |
| Rhode Island | $45,010 | $39,350 to $54,620 | 780 |
| South Carolina | $43,680 | $38,440 to $47,590 | 14,210 |
| South Dakota | $47,410 | $43,320 to $54,770 | 1,940 |
| Tennessee | $42,100 | $37,740 to $47,660 | 20,070 |
| Texas | $45,450 | $37,720 to $49,590 | 88,780 |
| Utah | $49,040 | $44,340 to $57,860 | 6,830 |
| Vermont | $47,380 | $43,780 to $55,080 | 950 |
| Virgin Islands | $35,230 | $31,030 to $43,420 | 60 |
| Virginia | $46,920 | $42,470 to $54,420 | 19,320 |
| Washington | $49,910 | $46,460 to $56,760 | 18,750 |
| West Virginia | $41,670 | $36,210 to $48,040 | 1,400 |
| Wisconsin | $47,720 | $44,130 to $58,270 | 12,150 |
| Wyoming | $59,820 | $46,020 to $64,590 | 790 |
Nationally: $46,420. Shades run from the lowest state median to the highest; a territory below that range takes the lightest. How to read this
How AI touches the work
What AI could speed up, task by task, and where people already use it.
AI could halve the time on none of its 9 tasks
| AI rating | Its main tasks | Share of Claude conversations May 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Not much | Manually or mechanically load or unload materials from pallets, skids, platforms, cars, lifting devices, or other transport vehicles. | Not published |
| Not much | Inspect product load for accuracy and safely move it around the warehouse or facility to ensure timely and complete delivery. | Not published |
| Not much | Move levers or controls that operate lifting devices, such as forklifts, lift beams with swivel-hooks, hoists, or elevating platforms, to load, unload, transport, or stack material. | Not published |
| Not much | Position lifting devices under, over, or around loaded pallets, skids, or boxes and secure material or products for transport to designated areas. | Not published |
| Not much | Move controls to drive gasoline- or electric-powered trucks, cars, or tractors and transport materials between loading, processing, and storage areas. | Not published |
| Not much | Weigh materials or products and record weight or other production data on tags or labels. | Not published |
See all 9 tasks
| Not much | Perform routine maintenance on vehicles or auxiliary equipment, such as cleaning, lubricating, recharging batteries, fueling, or replacing liquefied-gas tank. | Not published |
| Not much | Operate or tend automatic stacking, loading, packaging, or cutting machines. | Not published |
| Not much | Turn valves and open chutes to dump, spray, or release materials from dump cars or storage bins into hoppers. | Not published |
Ordered by how important O*NET's respondents rate each task (1 to 5) times the share who say it is part of their job. The ordering is ours. 0 of the 9 have a published share of Claude conversations; “not published” means too few conversations for Anthropic to publish a figure.
Where people already use AI
The tasks above say what AI could speed up. This shows what people are using it for. Its 9 tasks fall under 11 work activities that many occupations share, and Microsoft counted how often each one came up in 200,000 conversations with its Copilot assistant in 2024.
| Work activity | This occupation's tasks under it | People asked AI for help in 10,000 conversations |
AI did it for them in 10,000 conversations |
|---|---|---|---|
| Operate transportation equipment or vehicles | |||
| Load products, materials, or equipment for transportation or further processing | |||
| Measure physical characteristics of materials, products, or equipment | |||
| Position tools or equipment | |||
| Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas | |||
| Mark materials or objects for identification | |||
| Inspect facilities or equipment | |||
| Maintain vehicles in working condition |
Show all 11 activities
| Move materials, equipment, or supplies | |||
| Operate industrial processing or production equipment | |||
| Operate lifting or moving equipment |
How to read this
Work activities come from O*NET, which links every task to the broader activities it involves. Microsoft's figures are for the activity across everyone who used Copilot, not for industrial truck and tractor operators specifically. Copilot is a general chat assistant; dedicated coding tools are not included, so programming help is under-counted here. Activities are listed by how many of this occupation's tasks fall under them.
The task ratings say whether AI could halve the time a task takes: on its own (“AI alone”), or with software built on it (“AI + software”). They were made by people in 2023 (Eloundou et al.). Claude's share is the task's share of all Claude.ai conversations in May 2026; Anthropic doesn't publish a task with too few conversations. None of these add up to the BLS exposure group, which combines five research measures.
More in the Guide: task ratings · task order · work activities · Copilot figures · Claude
High exposure doesn't mean fewer jobs
BLS projects most occupations in its two most exposed groups to grow: 141 of 206 rated Very high and 165 of 206 rated High. Each dot is one of the 831 occupations BLS rates.
Career moves into and out of this occupation
From moves between occupations found in online resumes, 2002–2016. Career changes only: a first job after school isn't a move.
Where people moved next
of 113,707 moves out
- 1 Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand Low +1.8% 11%
- 2 Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers Moderate +3.8% 6%
- 3 Production Workers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 5%
- 4 Managers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 4%
- 5 Stockers and Order Fillers Moderate +8.9% 3%
Where people moved in from
of 90,597 moves in
- 1 Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand Low +1.8% 15%
- 2 Production Workers, All Other (2010 group) an older group BLS has since split; no exposure group today 6%
- 3 Stockers and Order Fillers Moderate +8.9% 5%
- 4 Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers Moderate +3.8% 3%
- 5 Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks High -7.6% 3%
Resumes over-represent younger, white-collar job-seekers and moves into management. Schubert, Stansbury and Taska (resume data).
Education and training for the occupation
O*NET survey of workers in this occupation
- 4% some college
- 96% not published
O*NET marks 96% of the answers as too uncertain to publish, so the parts shown don't add up to 100%.
O*NET 31.0 survey of workers in this occupation · 16 people answered.
Census survey (American Community Survey)
- 19% less than high school
- 52% high school
- 19% some college
- 5% associate's
- 3% bachelor's
- 1% master's
Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation · 5,758 people surveyed.
Why the two can differ
O*NET asks about 20 people in each occupation, which makes its shares uncertain, but it reports the exact occupation and counts certificates. The Census survey reaches thousands, but it groups some occupations together and counts degrees only. More in the Guide
Median pay by highest degree full-time, year-round · Census ACS 2024, all workers in this occupation
1 program: Forklift Operation/Operator.
Jobs that require a credential BLS Occupational Requirements Survey 2023
86.7% this occupation
45.3% all occupations
| By kind | This occupation | All occupations |
|---|---|---|
| a license | 1.0% | 19.1% |
| an educational certificate | <0.5% | 2.8% |
| a certification | not published |
Share of jobs whose employer requires it. BLS doesn't say which credential. How to read this
Look up certifications, training and licenses U.S. Department of Labor
- Certification Finder ↗ certifications CareerOneStop lists for this occupation
- Training Finder ↗ schools and programs, nationwide; narrow the place there
- License Finder ↗ licenses by state
- Apprenticeships: DOL's list of apprenticeable occupations doesn't include this one.
These open in a new tab and send only the occupation's public code. More in the Guide
BLS AI exposure categories (Aug 2026) · BLS Employment Projections 2025–35 · O*NET 31.0 · Task ratings: Eloundou et al., Science (2024) · Microsoft "Working with AI" v1.1 · Anthropic Economic Index (2026-06-26) · Schubert, Stansbury and Taska · NCES CIP–SOC · Census ACS 2024 · BLS JOLTS
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