Cargo and Freight Agents
SOC 43-5011 · 2024-2034
Expedite and route movement of incoming and outgoing cargo and freight shipments in airline, train, and trucking terminals and shipping docks. Take orders from customers and arrange pickup of freight and cargo for delivery to loading platform. Prepare and examine bills of lading to determine shipping charges and tariffs.
How the U.S. Department of Labor describes this work. Published in English only.
What California expects of this job
- Typical pay in California
- $59,055per year
- Projected openings
- 16,830
- Projected change
- +14.9%
- Usually needs
- High school diploma or equivalent
Bright Outlook — a U.S. Department of Labor designation
Rapid Growth
The Department's own designation, made from its national projections. It is not this project's assessment and it is not California's: every other figure on this page comes from California's projection, which can point the other way and for some occupations does.
Skills this work uses most
O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupation database, rates how important each of these is to this work, and they are listed in that order, most important first. The ratings themselves are not shown, because the data carries the number without the scale it was measured on. The names are as published, in English.
- Speaking
- Active Listening
- Critical Thinking
- Reading Comprehension
- Negotiation
- Time Management
Pay by region
| Region | Typical pay in California | Projected openings |
|---|---|---|
| San Francisco-San Mateo-Redwood City MD (San Francisco and San Mateo Counties) | $64,308 | 940 |
| Oakland-Fremont-Berkeley MD (Alameda and Contra Costa Counties) | $61,326 | 760 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Glendale MD (Los Angeles County) | $58,729 | 9,210 |
| Anaheim-Santa Ana-Irvine MD (Orange County) | $57,886 | 830 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara MSA (San Benito and Santa Clara Counties) | $56,879 | 220 |
| Stockton-Lodi MSA (San Joaquin County) | $55,582 | 290 |
| Sacramento-Roseville-Folsom MSA (El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento, and Yolo Counties) | $54,152 | 300 |
| San Diego-Chula Vista-Carlsbad MSA (San Diego County) | $51,475 | 980 |
| Fresno MSA (Fresno and Madera Counties) | $50,239 | 130 |
| Riverside-San Bernardino-Ontario MSA (Riverside and San Bernardino Counties) | $49,024 | 1,990 |
| Oxnard-Thousand Oaks-Ventura MSA (Ventura County) | $48,748 | 80 |
| El Centro MSA (Imperial County) | $41,086 | 90 |
What the pay actually ranges across
- The lowest-paid tenth earn under
- $39,339
- A quarter earn under
- $48,389
- Half earn under
- $59,055
- Three quarters earn under
- $75,475
- The highest-paid tenth earn over
- $85,025
A median is one point. These are the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics' 2026 figures for California, and they say how far apart the people doing this job actually are. Read them as the spread across everyone already in the work — not as a starting wage and not as a promise about where anyone lands.
Similar work
O*NET, the U.S. Department of Labor's occupation database, names these as occupations involving work similar to this one — its own reading of the job, not a grouping by code. They keep O*NET's order, and only those California publishes a projection for are shown.
| Occupation | Typical pay in California | Projected openings | Projected change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks | $47,621 | 75,500 | -5.2% |
| Compliance Officers | $98,607 | 43,870 | +7% |
| Postal Service Clerks | $65,156 | 5,010 | -6.3% |
| Aircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors | $61,855 | 1,730 | +13.3% |
| Postal Service Mail Carriers | $63,559 | 19,360 | -6.8% |
| Light Truck Drivers | $47,814 | 157,370 | +17.9% |