Description

This unit group includes workers who handle, move, load and unload materials by hand or using a variety of material handling equipment. They are employed by transportation, storage and moving companies, and by a variety of manufacturing and processing companies and retail and wholesale warehouses.

Included Job Titles

bin filler, coal handler, conveyor console operator, forklift truck operator, freight handler (except air transport), furniture mover, lumber piler – building supplies, material handler, railway car loader, stockpiler, storage worker – material handling, truck loader, warehouseman/woman.

Job Duties

Material handlers (manual) perform some or all of the following duties:

• Load, unload and move products and materials by hand or using basic material handling equipment
• Move household appliances and furniture onto and off moving trucks or vans
• Set up rooms for events, dismantle moveable walls and partitions, and organize or set up office furniture
• Perform other material handling activities such as counting, weighing, sorting, packing and unpacking.

Material handlers (equipment operators) perform some or all of the following duties:

• Operate winches and other loading devices to load and unload materials onto and off trucks, railway cars and loading docks of warehouses and industrial establishments
• Operate industrial trucks, tractors, loaders and other equipment to transport materials to and from transportation vehicles and loading docks and to store and retrieve materials in warehouses
• Connect hoses or pipes and operate equipment to load and unload liquid petroleum, chemical or other products into or from tank cars, tank trucks or storage tanks
• Operate equipment to dump materials such as coal, ore and grain into or to remove materials from railway cars, trucks or other vehicles
• Operate conveyors and equipment to transfer grain or other materials from transportation vehicles to elevators, bins or other storage areas
• May perform other activities, such as opening containers and crates, filling warehouse orders, assisting in taking inventory and weighing and checking materials.

Related Occupations

Included Cities in this region

Victoria, Campbell River, Colwood, Courtenay, Duncan, Nanaimo, Parksville, Port Alberni, Comox, Ladysmith, Lake Cowichan, Port McNeill, Qualicum Beach, Sidney, View Royal, Cumberland, Sooke

Service Canada Offices

View a list of Service Canada offices in this area.