Transportation and Material Moving Occupations in California, May 2024
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2024 state estimates. BLS sorts every occupation into one of 22 major groups; this is the Transportation and Material Moving Occupations group in California. These are estimates of jobs and wages, not job openings.
The group’s own figures in California
| Measure | Value |
|---|---|
| Occupation group code | 53-0000 |
| Employment | 1,516,560 |
| Jobs per 1,000 | 83.983 |
| Location quotient | 0.95 |
| Mean annual wage | $51,800 |
| Median annual wage | $45,300 |
| Mean hourly wage | $24.9 |
| Median hourly wage | $21.78 |
| 10th percentile annual wage | $35,370 |
| 25th percentile annual wage | $37,670 |
| 75th percentile annual wage | $57,390 |
| 90th percentile annual wage | $72,360 |
Detailed occupations in this group in California
Every detailed occupation BLS publishes for this group in California, sorted by employment. Rows where BLS publishes no employment estimate (**) come last. Click a column heading to sort. A cell that reads “not published annually” or “not published hourly” means BLS publishes that row on the other basis only. A cell showing * or # is BLS’s own footnote symbol, explained below the table. Each row is that occupation’s own BLS record for California.
| Occupation | Employment | Median annual wage | Mean annual wage | 10th percentile annual wage | 90th percentile annual wage | Median hourly wage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand | 382,740 | $42,660 | $44,270 | $35,300 | $55,720 | $20.51 |
| Stockers and Order Fillers | 267,340 | $39,450 | $43,150 | $35,520 | $56,160 | $18.97 |
| Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers | 211,740 | $59,950 | $60,490 | $38,460 | $80,310 | $28.82 |
| Light Truck Drivers | 117,250 | $45,500 | $51,120 | $36,200 | $81,720 | $21.87 |
| Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators | 103,090 | $48,720 | $50,680 | $38,460 | $61,410 | $23.42 |
| Packers and Packagers, Hand | 85,380 | $36,550 | $39,560 | $33,620 | $53,640 | $17.57 |
| First-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers, Except Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors | 66,620 | $64,440 | $68,460 | $44,780 | $97,710 | $30.98 |
| Cleaners of Vehicles and Equipment | 48,280 | $37,300 | $40,060 | $34,030 | $48,090 | $17.93 |
| Driver/Sales Workers | 35,220 | $44,370 | $48,070 | $33,470 | $72,430 | $21.33 |
| Shuttle Drivers and Chauffeurs | 25,720 | $41,600 | $44,120 | $34,360 | $58,510 | $20 |
| Parking Attendants | 24,850 | $36,350 | $39,270 | $35,140 | $45,130 | $17.47 |
| Bus Drivers, Transit and Intercity | 23,500 | $62,430 | $65,460 | $47,570 | $89,180 | $30.02 |
| Flight Attendants | 15,760 | $77,870 | $84,060 | $49,290 | $131,660 | * |
| Bus Drivers, School | 14,580 | $58,280 | $57,520 | $46,860 | $71,900 | $28.02 |
| Refuse and Recyclable Material Collectors | 13,240 | $61,650 | $64,290 | $41,600 | $93,900 | $29.64 |
| Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers | 9,890 | # | $321,460 | $127,230 | # | * |
| Automotive and Watercraft Service Attendants | 9,470 | $39,580 | $42,240 | $36,250 | $49,860 | $19.03 |
| Material Moving Workers, All Other | 8,910 | $37,530 | $41,220 | $34,400 | $49,420 | $18.04 |
| Machine Feeders and Offbearers | 6,900 | $38,960 | $42,350 | $37,020 | $51,820 | $18.73 |
| Commercial Pilots | 5,530 | $122,100 | $168,930 | $59,790 | # | * |
| Motor Vehicle Operators, All Other | 4,210 | $41,340 | $49,110 | $35,880 | $73,850 | $19.87 |
| Passenger Attendants | 3,550 | $40,890 | $44,430 | $33,830 | $60,100 | $19.66 |
| Conveyor Operators and Tenders | 3,480 | $41,660 | $43,870 | $38,550 | $53,930 | $20.03 |
| Aircraft Service Attendants | 2,500 | $45,290 | $48,250 | $40,190 | $59,220 | $21.77 |
| Air Traffic Controllers | 2,260 | $152,010 | $152,970 | $83,570 | $221,890 | $73.08 |
| Crane and Tower Operators | 2,010 | $69,970 | $80,950 | $43,830 | $135,010 | $33.64 |
| Captains, Mates, and Pilots of Water Vessels | 1,970 | $79,560 | $96,940 | $54,030 | $158,730 | $38.25 |
| Transportation Inspectors | 1,900 | $75,590 | $85,570 | $40,350 | $136,260 | $36.34 |
| Sailors and Marine Oilers | 1,830 | $54,980 | $56,670 | $37,450 | $77,620 | $26.43 |
| Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors | 1,720 | $66,840 | $73,240 | $47,960 | $107,230 | $32.13 |
| Locomotive Engineers | 1,670 | $74,710 | $71,660 | $51,000 | $78,000 | $35.92 |
| Railroad Conductors and Yardmasters | 1,390 | $67,550 | $74,040 | $67,010 | $104,690 | $32.48 |
| Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers | 1,270 | $51,350 | $55,210 | $35,880 | $83,260 | $24.69 |
| Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers | 1,200 | $57,720 | $60,770 | $50,560 | $68,300 | $27.75 |
| Airfield Operations Specialists | 1,150 | $61,100 | $69,750 | $46,080 | $98,450 | $29.38 |
| Ambulance Drivers and Attendants, Except Emergency Medical Technicians | 850 | $36,960 | $38,790 | $33,400 | $44,990 | $17.77 |
| Subway and Streetcar Operators | 760 | $76,770 | $72,640 | $59,890 | $89,180 | $36.91 |
| Transportation Workers, All Other | 550 | $48,910 | $49,790 | $38,340 | $63,150 | $23.51 |
| Ship Engineers | 430 | $134,660 | $135,640 | $78,010 | $200,260 | $64.74 |
| Rail Transportation Workers, All Other | 320 | $54,710 | $56,210 | $40,460 | $68,630 | $26.3 |
| Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers | 280 | $65,500 | $62,490 | $56,980 | $65,530 | $31.49 |
| Wellhead Pumpers | 190 | $60,220 | $67,880 | $44,750 | $82,330 | $28.95 |
| Tank Car, Truck, and Ship Loaders | 170 | $59,510 | $62,240 | $43,410 | $90,480 | $28.61 |
| Motorboat Operators | 90 | $87,900 | $84,130 | $53,720 | $103,410 | $42.26 |
| Bridge and Lock Tenders | 70 | $57,750 | $64,950 | $47,570 | $84,620 | $27.76 |
| Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators | ** | $60,270 | $74,540 | $57,200 | $116,050 | $28.98 |
| Taxi Drivers | ** | $38,500 | $38,380 | $38,280 | $38,500 | $18.51 |
| Traffic Technicians | ** | $80,570 | $75,260 | $53,040 | $97,990 | $38.74 |
Symbols (BLS wording, workbook sheet Field Descriptions sheet): ** indicates that an employment estimate is not available · * indicates that a wage estimate is not available · # indicates a wage equal to or greater than $115.00 per hour or $239,200 per year. A wage shown as a symbol is not zero and not a blank: BLS publishes no number there.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2024 state estimates. Record: state_M2024_dl.xlsx!AREA=06&OCC_CODE=53-0000. the group row is AREA 06 / OCC_CODE 53-0000, and each table row is its own detailed record for this area, AREA 06 / OCC_CODE 53-xxxx. Reference period: May 2024. Fetched October 2026 from https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24st.zip.
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