First-Line Supervisors of Helpers, Laborers, and Material Movers, Hand - 53-1021.00

Directly supervise and coordinate the activities of helpers, laborers, or material movers.

Sample of reported job titles: Floor Supervisor, Front Line Supervisor, Maintenance Supervisor, Parts Manager, Receiving Lead, Receiving Manager, Receiving Supervisor, Shipping Manager, Shipping Supervisor, Terminal Operations Manager

Tasks

• Maintain a safe working environment by monitoring safety procedures and equipment.
• Review work throughout the work process and at completion to ensure that it has been performed properly.
• Inform designated employees or departments of items loaded or problems encountered.
• Examine freight to determine loading sequences.
• Collaborate with workers and managers to solve work-related problems.
• Check specifications of materials loaded or unloaded against information contained in work orders.
• Plan work schedules and assign duties to maintain adequate staff for effective performance of activities and response to fluctuating workloads.
• Transmit and explain work orders to laborers.
• Prepare and maintain work records and reports of information such as employee time and wages, daily receipts, or inspection results.
• Inspect equipment for wear and for conformance to specifications.
• Estimate material, time, and staffing requirements for a given project, based on work orders, job specifications, and experience.
• Conduct staff meetings to relay general information or to address specific topics, such as safety.
• Evaluate employee performance and prepare performance appraisals.
• Assess training needs of staff and arrange for or provide appropriate instruction.
• Resolve personnel problems, complaints, or formal grievances when possible, or refer them to higher-level supervisors for resolution.
• Recommend or initiate personnel actions, such as promotions, transfers, or disciplinary measures.
• Participate in the hiring process by reviewing credentials, conducting interviews, or making hiring decisions or recommendations.
• Inspect job sites to determine the extent of maintenance or repairs needed.
• Perform the same work duties as those supervised or perform more difficult or skilled tasks or assist in their performance.
• Inventory supplies and requisition or purchase additional items, as necessary.
• Counsel employees in work-related activities, personal growth, or career development.
• Schedule times of shipment and modes of transportation for materials.
• Quote prices to customers.
• Provide assistance in balancing books, tracking, monitoring, or projecting a unit's budget needs and in developing unit policies and procedures.

Technology Skills

• Calendar and scheduling software - Employee scheduling software
• Data base user interface and query software - Microsoft Access ; Oracle software
• Electronic mail software - Microsoft Outlook
• Enterprise resource planning ERP software - Sage ERP Accpac; SAP
• Inventory management software - Inventory control software; Warehouse management system WMS
• Office suite software - Corel WordPerfect; Corel WordPerfect Office; Microsoft Office
• Presentation software - Microsoft PowerPoint
• Spreadsheet software - Microsoft Excel
• Time accounting software - Time and attendance software
• Word processing software - Microsoft Word

Tools Used

• Bar code reader equipment - Barcode scanners
• Box sealing tape dispensers - Tape guns
• Claw hammer - Claw hammers
• Desktop computers
• Dollies
• Forklifts - Lift trucks
• Glue guns
• Hand trucks or accessories - Handtrucks
• Hoists - Power hoists
• Jacks - Hydraulic jacks
• Lifting hooks - Hoisting hooks
• Pallet trucks - Pallet jacks
• Personal computers
• Planes - Hand planes
• Power saws
• Saws - Hand saws
• Scaffolding
• Slings - Material-hoisting slings
• Track cranes - Overhead cranes
• Utility knives
• Winches - Hydraulic winches
• Wrapping machinery - Banding machines

Knowledge

• Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
• Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
• Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
• Clerical - Knowledge of administrative and clerical procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and other office procedures and terminology.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.

Skills

• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Coordination - Adjusting actions in relation to others' actions.
• Critical Thinking - Using logic and reasoning to identify the strengths and weaknesses of alternative solutions, conclusions or approaches to problems.
• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Management of Personnel Resources - Motivating, developing, and directing people as they work, identifying the best people for the job.
• Complex Problem Solving - Identifying complex problems and reviewing related information to develop and evaluate options and implement solutions.
• Monitoring - Monitoring/Assessing performance of yourself, other individuals, or organizations to make improvements or take corrective action.
• Time Management - Managing one's own time and the time of others.
• Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.
• Judgment and Decision Making - Considering the relative costs and benefits of potential actions to choose the most appropriate one.
• Negotiation - Bringing others together and trying to reconcile differences.
• Persuasion - Persuading others to change their minds or behavior.
• Social Perceptiveness - Being aware of others' reactions and understanding why they react as they do.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Learning Strategies - Selecting and using training/instructional methods and procedures appropriate for the situation when learning or teaching new things.
• Systems Evaluation - Identifying measures or indicators of system performance and the actions needed to improve or correct performance, relative to the goals of the system.
• Writing - Communicating effectively in writing as appropriate for the needs of the audience.

Abilities

• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Deductive Reasoning - The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Problem Sensitivity - The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• Speech Recognition - The ability to identify and understand the speech of another person.
• Inductive Reasoning - The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Written Comprehension - The ability to read and understand information and ideas presented in writing.
• Information Ordering - The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
• Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).
• Category Flexibility - The ability to generate or use different sets of rules for combining or grouping things in different ways.
• Far Vision - The ability to see details at a distance.
• Fluency of Ideas - The ability to come up with a number of ideas about a topic (the number of ideas is important, not their quality, correctness, or creativity).
• Selective Attention - The ability to concentrate on a task over a period of time without being distracted.
• Time Sharing - The ability to shift back and forth between two or more activities or sources of information (such as speech, sounds, touch, or other sources).
• Written Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in writing so others will understand.

Interests

• Interest code: ERC
  • Enterprising - Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.
  • Realistic - Realistic occupations frequently involve work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They often deal with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery. Many of the occupations require working outside, and do not involve a lot of paperwork or working closely with others.
  • Conventional - Conventional occupations frequently involve following set procedures and routines. These occupations can include working with data and details more than with ideas. Usually there is a clear line of authority to follow.

Work Context

• Face-to-Face Discussions - 97% responded “Every day.”
• Telephone - 95% responded “Every day.”
• Contact With Others - 92% responded “Constant contact with others.”
• Work With Work Group or Team - 94% responded “Extremely important.”
• Electronic Mail - 95% responded “Every day.”
• Responsibility for Outcomes and Results - 77% responded “Very high responsibility.”
• Responsible for Others' Health and Safety - 76% responded “Very high responsibility.”
• Time Pressure - 81% responded “Every day.”
• Frequency of Decision Making - 85% responded “Every day.”
• Freedom to Make Decisions - 72% responded “A lot of freedom.”
• Importance of Being Exact or Accurate - 70% responded “Extremely important.”
• Impact of Decisions on Co-workers or Company Results - 26% responded “Important results.”
• Structured versus Unstructured Work - 65% responded “A lot of freedom.”
• Duration of Typical Work Week - 75% responded “More than 40 hours.”
• Exposed to Contaminants - 72% responded “Every day.”
• Importance of Repeating Same Tasks - 55% responded “Extremely important.”
• Coordinate or Lead Others - 50% responded “Extremely important.”
• Indoors, Not Environmentally Controlled - 63% responded “Every day.”
• Sounds, Noise Levels Are Distracting or Uncomfortable - 44% responded “Every day.”
• Deal With Unpleasant or Angry People - 36% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
• Very Hot or Cold Temperatures - 55% responded “Every day.”
• Letters and Memos - 37% responded “Every day.”
• Deal With External Customers - 45% responded “Extremely important.”
• Frequency of Conflict Situations - 36% responded “Once a week or more but not every day.”
• Physical Proximity - 51% responded “Slightly close (e.g., shared office).”
• Exposed to Hazardous Equipment - 23% responded “Never.”
• Indoors, Environmentally Controlled - 60% responded “Every day.”
• Level of Competition - 33% responded “Highly competitive.”
• Public Speaking - 31% responded “Every day.”
• Spend Time Walking and Running - 36% responded “Less than half the time.”
• Spend Time Standing - 34% responded “More than half the time.”
• Consequence of Error - 27% responded “Extremely serious.”
• Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets - 37% responded “Every day.”
• Spend Time Sitting - 50% responded “About half the time.”

Education

Percentage of Respondents	Education Level Required
62%	High school diploma or equivalent
15%	Bachelor's degree
12%	Some college, no degree

Work Styles

• Dependability - Job requires being reliable, responsible, and dependable, and fulfilling obligations.
• Integrity - Job requires being honest and ethical.
• Leadership - Job requires a willingness to lead, take charge, and offer opinions and direction.
• Attention to Detail - Job requires being careful about detail and thorough in completing work tasks.
• Cooperation - Job requires being pleasant with others on the job and displaying a good-natured, cooperative attitude.
• Independence - Job requires developing one's own ways of doing things, guiding oneself with little or no supervision, and depending on oneself to get things done.
• Initiative - Job requires a willingness to take on responsibilities and challenges.
• Achievement/Effort - Job requires establishing and maintaining personally challenging achievement goals and exerting effort toward mastering tasks.
• Stress Tolerance - Job requires accepting criticism and dealing calmly and effectively with high stress situations.
• Concern for Others - Job requires being sensitive to others' needs and feelings and being understanding and helpful on the job.
• Self Control - Job requires maintaining composure, keeping emotions in check, controlling anger, and avoiding aggressive behavior, even in very difficult situations.
• Adaptability/Flexibility - Job requires being open to change (positive or negative) and to considerable variety in the workplace.
• Innovation - Job requires creativity and alternative thinking to develop new ideas for and answers to work-related problems.
• Persistence - Job requires persistence in the face of obstacles.
• Analytical Thinking - Job requires analyzing information and using logic to address work-related issues and problems.
• Social Orientation - Job requires preferring to work with others rather than alone, and being personally connected with others on the job.

Work Values

• Independence - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions. Corresponding needs are Creativity, Responsibility and Autonomy.
• Support - Occupations that satisfy this work value offer supportive management that stands behind employees. Corresponding needs are Company Policies, Supervision: Human Relations and Supervision: Technical.
• Relationships - Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to provide service to others and work with co-workers in a friendly non-competitive environment. Corresponding needs are Co-workers, Moral Values and Social Service.

Wages & Trends

• Median wages (2017)
  • $25.82 hourly, $53,700 annual
• Employment (2016)
  • 184,000 employees
• Projected growth (2016-2026)
  • Average (5% to 9%)
• Projected job openings (2016-2026)
  • 21,000