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Boston Career Explorer

Transportation and Material Moving

Stockers and Order Fillers

Receive, store, and issue merchandise, materials, equipment, and other items from stockroom, warehouse, or storage yard to fill shelves, racks, tables, or customers' orders. May operate power equipment to fill orders. May mark prices on merchandise and set up sales displays.

Also called: Checker Stocker, Inventory Technician (Inventory Tech), Label Maker, Marking Clerk, Order Filler, Order Picker

Compare with my current job (Motor Vehicle Operators, All Other)
Median pay in Greater Boston
$37,700
$18.13/hr
Jobs in Greater Boston
35,770
Massachusetts 2024–2034
+13.7%
8,750 openings a year
Typical U.S. entry requirement
No formal educational credential
plus Short-term on-the-job training

Greater Boston: Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH metro area, May 2025. Growth and openings: Massachusetts statewide projection.

Pay range in Greater Boston

Yearly pay in Greater Boston by percentile
10th25thMedian75th90th
$32,960$35,920$37,700$44,990$49,220

10% of workers earn less than the first figure and 10% earn more than the last.

What you’d do

  • Take inventory or examine merchandise to identify items to be reordered or replenished.
  • Answer customers' questions about merchandise and advise customers on merchandise selection.
  • Receive and count stock items, and record data manually or on computer.
  • Receive, unload, open, unpack, or issue sales floor merchandise.
  • Stock shelves, racks, cases, bins, and tables with new or transferred merchandise.
  • Pack and unpack items to be stocked on shelves in stockrooms, warehouses, or storage yards.

AI and this job

AI exposure: how much of this job’s work AI tools can do or help with, based on national research. It is not a forecast of job loss.

Lower exposure31 of 100

The index averages three national research measures, each shown as a percentile of all jobs:

  • AIOE 23
  • Language-model AIOE 33
  • GPTs-are-GPTs 37

Observed AI use today: Little or none (Anthropic Economic Index)

AI exposure for this job is on the lower side, and AI tools are not much used in it today. Software may help with inventory counts, reorder lists, and stock records. Unloading and stocking shelves and helping customers in person still need people.

Likely to change

  • Inventory counts and reorder lists
  • Recording stock data on computer

Still relies on people

  • Unloading and stocking shelves and racks
  • Answering customers' questions in person

Written with AI from the data on this page. Check with a career coach before making a decision.

Next steps from here

Related jobs that build on what you already do.

  • Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators

    Receiving and moving stock carries over. Operating forklifts pays more and has strong expected growth with short training.

    Pay difference
    +$10,100 median
    AI exposure
    Lower
    MA growth
    +21.7%
    To get started
    No formal educational credential

  • Laborers and Freight, Stock, and Material Movers, Hand

    Handling and moving merchandise carries over. This job moves freight and stock, with higher pay and expected growth.

    Pay difference
    +$7,900 median
    AI exposure
    Lower
    MA growth
    +7.3%
    To get started
    No formal educational credential

  • Driver/Sales Workers

    Helping customers and handling goods carry over. This job adds driving deliveries and telling customers about products, with higher pay.

    Pay difference
    +$9,640 median
    AI exposure
    Lower
    MA growth
    +7.2%
    To get started
    High school diploma or equivalent

Training near Boston

College and school programs in the Boston metro area that lead to this job, with 2023-24 completions (IPEDS).

No college programs near Boston map to this job. Many people enter through on-the-job training or apprenticeship.

Talk to a career coach at the Office of Workforce Development about apprenticeships and City partner programs.

Related occupations

Talk to a career coach

A coach at the Office of Workforce Development can help you plan your next step, and connect you with training, apprenticeships and City partner programs that are not listed here.

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