Transportation and Material Moving Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Occupation-level safety SOC 53-3033

Light Truck Drivers

Occupation-specific BLS fatality and injury rates set the reading order for Light Truck Drivers, then wages beside peers such as Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers, Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers, First-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers, Except Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors, Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Light Truck Drivers: Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers ($232K) , Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers ($62K) , First-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers, Except Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors ($63K) , Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators ($77K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Light Truck Drivers publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 53-3033 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Obey traffic laws and follow established traffic and transportation procedures
  2. 2. Report any mechanical problems encountered with vehicles
  3. 3. Verify the contents of inventory loads against shipping papers
  4. 4. Inspect and maintain vehicle supplies and equipment, such as gas, oil, water, tires, lights, or brakes, to ensure that vehicles are in pr…
  5. 5. Read maps and follow written or verbal geographic directions
  6. 6. Turn in receipts and money received from deliveries
  7. 7. Load and unload trucks, vans, or automobiles
  8. 8. Present bills and receipts and collect payments for goods delivered or loaded
  9. 9. Maintain records, such as vehicle logs, records of cargo, or billing statements, in accordance with regulations
  10. 10. Drive vehicles with capacities under three tons to transport materials to and from specified destinations, such as railroad stations, pla…
  11. 11. Use and maintain the tools or equipment found on commercial vehicles, such as weighing or measuring devices
  12. 12. Report delays, accidents, or other traffic and transportation situations to bases or other vehicles, using telephones or mobile two-way r…

Light Truck Drivers: O*NET ranks Reading Comprehension first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 53-3033 - lead skill Reading Comprehension at 3.1 ; lead knowledge English Language. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Reading Comprehension 3.1
  2. 2. Active Listening 3.1
  3. 3. Speaking 3.1
  4. 4. Monitoring 3.1
  5. 5. Operation and Control 3.1
  6. 6. Critical Thinking 3.0
  7. 7. Time Management 3.0
  8. 8. Writing 2.8

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. English Language 3.8
  2. 2. Transportation 3.4
  3. 3. Customer and Personal Service 3.4
  4. 4. Public Safety and Security 2.9
  5. 5. Administrative 2.6
  6. 6. Mechanical 2.5
Occupation safety grade
B
Safe
Transparent derived index from BLS CFOI/SOII, not an official BLS rating · formula
National median still $44,860/yr
$45K
National median
↑ +7%
Growth 2024-2034
120,200
Annual openings
983,300
Estimated US jobs
Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers
Highest-pay peer · $232K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education High school diploma or equivalent

Top Paying States for Light Truck Drivers

1. North Dakota $47,950
2. Oregon $47,150
3. Colorado $48,410
4. Illinois $47,380
5. District of Columbia $49,330
6. Minnesota $48,880
7. Washington $49,070
8. Maryland $48,150
9. Massachusetts $48,110
10. Alaska $57,190

Other Transportation and Material Moving Occupations titles

  1. 1. First-Line Supervisors of Transportation and Material Moving Workers, Except Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors $62,890
  2. 2. Gas Compressor and Gas Pumping Station Operators $77,320
  3. 3. Railroad Brake, Signal, and Switch Operators and Locomotive Firers $68,840
  4. 4. Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers $232,140
  5. 5. Wellhead Pumpers $69,960
  6. 6. Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers $61,770

Light Truck Drivers carries an occupation-specific WageDex safety grade of B from BLS CFOI/SOII rates. The national OEWS median is $44,860 inside Transportation and Material Moving Occupations (SOC 53-3033).

Employment Projections expect +7% change between 2024 and 2034 (faster than average vs baseline 3.1%). About 120,200 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements.

Highest published state median in this ranking: North Dakota at $47,950. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers at $232,140. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Light Truck Drivers pay-rank #34 in Transportation and Material Moving Occupations

Light Truck Drivers sits at pay-rank #34 of 50 detailed Transportation and Material Moving Occupations, the middle third of the major-group median table. ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.

Other mid-table titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

SOC 53-3033 · national median $44,860 · middle third of Transportation and Material Moving Occupations (#34/50). Open the full OEWS map or a named state before treating the card median as a local ask.

Light Truck Drivers salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 53-3033

North Dakota · top state for Light Truck Drivers

$48K published median

Oregon · #2 state pay

$47K · behind North Dakota

Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers

Highest-pay peer vs Light Truck Drivers · $232K

Pump Operators, Except Wellhead Pumpers

Lower-pay peer beside Light Truck Drivers · $62K

Compare Light Truck Drivers

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Light Truck Drivers with another occupation →

Safety and risk next reads

Safest Occupations

Roles with the strongest published safety grades

Light Truck Drivers full wage map

State and metro pay after the safety lead

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Light Truck Drivers mid-table among Transportation and Material Moving Occupations? ▼
Yes: pay-rank #34 of 50 detailed Transportation and Material Moving Occupations, the middle third. Mid-table neighbors: Transportation Workers, All Other ($46K), Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators ($46K), Motorboat Operators ($48K), Bus Drivers, School ($48K). ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.
What do light truck drivers do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Light Truck Drivers. Leading ones include: Obey traffic laws and follow established traffic and transportation procedures; Report any mechanical problems encountered with vehicles; Verify the contents of inventory loads against shipping papers; Inspect and maintain vehicle supplies and equipment, such as gas, oil, water, tires, lights, or brakes, to ensure that vehicles are in pr…. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for light truck drivers? ▼
For SOC 53-3033, O*NET importance scores lead with Reading Comprehension (3.1), Active Listening (3.1), Speaking (3.1), Monitoring (3.1). Knowledge areas emphasize English Language, Transportation, Customer and Personal Service. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
What is the OEWS national median for Light Truck Drivers? ▼
May 2025 OEWS reports $44,860 as the national median for Light Truck Drivers. The published 10th-90th range is $30,800 to $80,310. Beside Airline Pilots, Copilots, and Flight Engineers ($232,140), this is the occupation-level national figure, not a local offer.
What employment change does BLS publish for Light Truck Drivers? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Light Truck Drivers is +7%. Projected annual openings: about 120,200. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: faster than average.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Light Truck Drivers? ▼
BLS assigns High school diploma or equivalent as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Light Truck Drivers. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Light Truck Drivers? ▼
North Dakota ($47,950), Oregon ($47,150), Colorado ($48,410) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Light Truck Drivers card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 53-3033. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Light Truck Drivers. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics