Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers vs Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand
Side-by-side · O*NET · BLS · AI-exposure research · Anthropic Economic Index
A factual, source-backed comparison of Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers and Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand on the dimensions both occupations carry. Every figure is a position within an independent published dataset — not a verdict on which job is better, safer, or more “future-proof.”
At a glance
| Dimension | Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers | Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand |
|---|---|---|
| Median pay | $57,440 | $38,940 |
| Employment | 2,070,480 | 2,982,530 |
| Employment outlook (2024–34) · BLS projection | About average (+4.0%) | About average (+1.5%) |
| Annual openings · BLS projection | 237,600 | 384,300 |
| Typical education · O*NET | Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not. | Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not. |
| AI exposure · published exposure studies | Moderate · 45th pct | Low · 12th pct |
| Global GenAI gradient · ILO ISCO-08 · via crosswalk | 45th pct · 25% of tasks | 6th pct · 12% of tasks |
| Observed AI use · Anthropic Economic Index | Automation-leaning (40.5%) | — |
| Mostly remote-capable · Dingel–Neiman | No | No |
Pay and employment are BLS OEWS estimates; outlook and openings are BLS 2024–2034 projections; AI exposure and observed-use figures come from separate research and reflect exposure and usage, not predictions that either job will disappear. Compare like with like.
Skills
Shared: Far Vision, Transportation, Control Precision, Multilimb Coordination, Rate Control, Public Safety and Security, Reaction Time, Customer and Personal Service, Problem Sensitivity, English Language, Near Vision, Depth Perception, Selective Attention, Monitoring, Oral Comprehension, Deductive Reasoning, Reading Comprehension, Speaking, Written Comprehension, Oral Expression, Information Ordering, Category Flexibility, Visualization, Arm-Hand Steadiness, Manual Dexterity, Static Strength.
Specific to Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers
- Spatial Orientation
- Response Orientation
- Operations Monitoring
- Operation and Control
- Law and Government
- Critical Thinking
- Troubleshooting
- Time Management
Specific to Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand
- Trunk Strength
- Administration and Management
- Stamina
- Extent Flexibility
- Production and Processing
- Mathematics
- Coordination
- Dynamic Strength
Knowledge, skills & abilities O*NET rates as important for each occupation. “Shared” are common to both; the columns list what is distinctive to each (top by the order O*NET surfaces).
Tools & technology
Shared: Spreadsheet software , Office suite software , Electronic mail software , Operating system software , Word processing software , Enterprise resource planning ERP software , Inventory management software , Data base user interface and query software , Materials requirements planning logistics and supply chain software .
Specific to Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers
Specific to Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand
Full profiles
This page is a summary. See the complete source-backed profile for Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers or Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand — tasks, the full skill graph, tools, work context, preparation, wages by percentile, industries, AI exposure and the AI work map.
More comparisons
Related occupations you can place side by side on the same sourced scale.
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers vs Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers vs Light Truck Drivers
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers vs Tank Car, Truck, and Ship Loaders
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers vs Bus and Truck Mechanics and Diesel Engine Specialists
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers vs Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers vs Refuse and Recyclable Material Collectors
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers vs Taxi Drivers
- Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers vs Rail Yard Engineers, Dinkey Operators, and Hostlers
Sources for this page
Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.
- O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
- BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
- Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27) Anthropic
- Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai Microsoft Research
- “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic
- AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans academic
- ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025 International Labour Organization
- IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022 Institute for Structural Research (IBS)
- Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation academic
- Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome academic
Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.
Cite this page
Singulariki. "Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers vs Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand." Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Built from O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026. https://singulariki.com/compare/heavy-and-tractor-trailer-truck-drivers-vs-laborers-and-freight-stock-and-material-movers-hand
Singulariki. (2026). Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers vs Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand. Singulariki: a source-backed encyclopedia of work. Retrieved June 7, 2026, from https://singulariki.com/compare/heavy-and-tractor-trailer-truck-drivers-vs-laborers-and-freight-stock-and-material-movers-hand
@misc{singulariki-heavy-and-tractor-trailer-truck-drivers-vs-laborers-and-freight-stock-and-material-movers-hand,
title = {Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers vs Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand},
author = {{Singulariki}},
year = {2026},
note = {O*NET 30.3; BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) May 2024; BLS Employment Projections 2024–2034; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); Microsoft “Working with AI” working-with-ai; “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130; AI Occupational Exposure (AIOE) Felten, Raj & Seamans; ILO / Gmyrek et al. GenAI exposure gradient 2025; IBS O*NET-SOC ↔ ISCO-08 occupation crosswalk 2022; Frey & Osborne (2013) frey-osborne-automation; Dingel & Neiman (2020) dingel-neiman-workathome. Accessed June 7, 2026},
url = {https://singulariki.com/compare/heavy-and-tractor-trailer-truck-drivers-vs-laborers-and-freight-stock-and-material-movers-hand}
} Citations name the underlying public dataset releases — they reflect what this page is built from, not just the URL.