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Conveyor Operators and Tenders

	Median Wage (USD, 2025)	Projected Job Openings (2025-2035)	Projected Growth (2025-2035)
National Statistics	$42420	2600	-3.4%
State Statistics	-	-	-
City Statistics	-	-	-

Statistics

National

State

City

State

City

$42420

Median Wage (USD, 2025)

2600

Projected Job Openings (2025-2035)

-3.4%

Projected Growth (2025-2035)

Control or tend conveyors or conveyor systems that move materials or products to and from stockpiles, processing stations, departments, or vehicles. May control speed and routing of materials or products.

Experience Requirements Overview

Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience. For example, landscaping and groundskeeping workers might require very little training or previous experience, while agricultural equipment operators can benefit from on-the job training.
Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.

Education, Training and Experience

Required Level of Education: Less than a High School Diploma

Related Work Experience: N.A.

On-Site or In-Plant Training: Over 3 months, up to and including 6 months

On-the-Job Training: Over 3 months, up to and including 6 months

Detailed Work Activities

Position material handling equipment.
Measure product or material dimensions.
Weigh materials to ensure compliance with specifications.
Control pumps or pumping equipment.
Operate conveyors or other industrial material moving equipment.
Record operational or production data.
Report vehicle or equipment malfunctions.
Clean facilities or work areas.
Clean machinery or equipment.
Maintain material moving equipment in good working condition.
Monitor equipment gauges or displays to ensure proper operation.
Inspect material-moving equipment to detect problems.
Operate industrial equipment.
Review work orders or schedules to determine operations or procedures.
Communicate with others to coordinate material handling or movement.
Remove debris or damaged materials.
Test materials, solutions, or samples.
Collect samples for analysis or testing.
Load materials into equipment for processing.
Operate cranes, hoists, or other moving or lifting equipment.
Mark materials or objects for identification.
Move materials, equipment, or supplies.
Install parts, assemblies, or attachments in transportation or material handling equipment.
Connect hoses to equipment or machinery.
Measure distances or dimensions.
Measure dimensions of completed products or workpieces to verify conformance to specifications.
Cut materials according to specifications or needs.
Operate cutting equipment.
Operate packing or other material processing equipment.
Connect cables or electrical lines.
Secure cargo.
Monitor operational quality or safety.

Work Values

Achievement

Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment. Corresponding needs are Ability Utilization and Achievement.

Working Conditions

Recognition

Relationships

Support

Independence

Tasks

Stop equipment or machinery and clear jams, using poles, bars, and hand tools, or remove damaged materials from conveyors.
Load, unload, or adjust materials or products on conveyors by hand, by using lifts, hoists, and scoops, or by opening gates, chutes, or hoppers.
Observe conveyor operations and monitor lights, dials, and gauges to maintain specified operating levels and to detect equipment malfunctions.
Observe packages moving along conveyors to identify packages, detect defective packaging, and perform quality control.
Position deflector bars, gates, chutes, or spouts to divert flow of materials from one conveyor onto another conveyor.
Clean, sterilize, and maintain equipment, machinery, and work stations, using hand tools, shovels, brooms, chemicals, hoses, and lubricants.
Record production data such as weights, types, quantities, and storage locations of materials, as well as equipment performance problems and downtime.
Inform supervisors of equipment malfunctions that need to be addressed.
Manipulate controls, levers, and valves to start pumps, auxiliary equipment, or conveyors, and to adjust equipment positions, speeds, timing, and material flows.
Distribute materials, supplies, and equipment to work stations, using lifts and trucks.
Press console buttons to deflect packages to predetermined accumulators or reject lines.
Thread strapping through strapping tools and secure battens with strapping to form protective pallets around extrusions.
Operate elevator systems in conjunction with conveyor systems.
Weigh or measure materials and products, using scales or other measuring instruments, or read scales on conveyors that continually weigh products, to verify specified tonnages and prevent overloads.
Read production and delivery schedules, and confer with supervisors, to determine sorting and transfer procedures, arrangement of packages on pallets, and destinations of loaded pallets.
Operate consoles to control automatic palletizing equipment.
Contact workers in work stations or other departments to request movement of materials, products, or machinery, or to notify them of incoming shipments and their estimated delivery times.
Affix identifying information to materials or products, using hand tools.
Collect samples of materials or products, checking them to ensure conformance to specifications or sending them to laboratories for analysis.
Move, assemble, and connect hoses or nozzles to material hoppers, storage tanks, conveyor sections or chutes, and pumps.
Repair or replace equipment components or parts such as blades, rolls, and pumps.
Measure dimensions of bundles, using rulers, and cut battens to required sizes, using power saws.
Join sections of conveyor frames at temporary working areas, and connect power units.

Work Styles

Innovation

A tendency to be inventive, to be imaginative, and to adopt new perspectives on ways to accomplish work.

Achievement Orientation

Intellectual Curiosity

Tolerance for Ambiguity

Initiative

Adaptability

Self-Confidence

Perseverance

Leadership Orientation

Humility

Sincerity

Empathy

Cooperation

Optimism

Social Orientation

Cautiousness

Attention to Detail

Dependability

Integrity

Stress Tolerance

Self-Control

Data Source: This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. This page includes Employment Projections program, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics program, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

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