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Warehousing and Storage: NAICS 493

About the Warehousing and Storage subsector

The warehousing and storage subsector is part of the transportation and warehousing sector.

Industries in the Warehousing and Storage subsector are primarily engaged in operating warehousing and storage facilities for general merchandise, refrigerated goods, and other warehouse products. These establishments provide facilities to store goods. They do not sell the goods they handle. These establishments take responsibility for storing the goods and keeping them secure. They may also provide a range of services, often referred to as logistics services, related to the distribution of goods. Logistics services can include labeling, breaking bulk, inventory control and management, light assembly, order entry and fulfillment, packaging, pick and pack, price marking and ticketing, and transportation arrangement. However, establishments in this industry group always provide warehousing or storage services in addition to any logistic services. Furthermore, the warehousing or storage of goods must be more than incidental to the performance of services, such as price marking.

North American Industry Classification System

The warehousing and storage subsector consists of a single industry group, Warehousing and Storage: NAICS 4931.

Workforce Statistics

This section provides information relating to employment in warehousing and storage. These data are obtained from employer or establishment surveys. The following tables present an overview of the industry including the number of jobs, data for occupations common to the industry, and projections of occupational employment change.

Employment

Data series Back
data
Nov.
2023
Dec.
2023
Jan.
2024
Feb.
2024

Employment (in thousands)

Employment, all employees (seasonally adjusted)

1,772.3 1,766.9 (p)1,765.5 (p)1,758.7

Employment, production and nonsupervisory employees

1,624.7 1,616.8 (p)1,578.9  

Footnotes
(p) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Employment by Occupation

Data series Employment,
2022

Industrial truck and tractor operators

313,770

Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand

427,000

Shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks

79,960

Stock clerks and order fillers

419,710

Transportation, storage, and distribution managers

19,690

(Source: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics)

Projections

For projected (future) employment estimates, see the National Employment Matrix, which includes employment estimates by industry and occupation for warehousing and storage.

(Source: Office of Occupational Statistics and Employment Projections)

Earnings and Hours

This section presents data on employee earnings and weekly hours. The latest industry averages of hourly earnings and weekly hours are shown. In addition, recent hourly and annual earnings are shown for occupations commonly found in warehousing and storage.

Earnings and Hours of All Employees

Data series Back
data
Oct.
2023
Nov.
2023
Dec.
2023
Jan.
2024

Average hourly earnings

$24.05 $24.06 $24.38 (p)$24.66

Average weekly hours

40.9 42.2 42.0 (p)39.5

Footnotes
(p) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings and Hours of Production and Nonsupervisory Employees

Data series Back
data
Oct.
2023
Nov.
2023
Dec.
2023
Jan.
2024

Average hourly earnings

$23.06 $23.58 $23.33 (p)$23.38

Average weekly hours

39.5 41.1 40.4 (p)37.6

Footnotes
(p) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings by Occupation

Data series Wages, 2022
Hourly Annual
Median Mean Median Mean

Industrial truck and tractor operators

21.61 21.68 44,940 45,090

Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand

18.92 19.55 39,340 40,660

Shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks

18.53 19.77 38,540 41,130

Stock clerks and order fillers

19.01 20.29 39,550 42,190

Transportation, storage, and distribution managers

44.98 49.03 93,550 101,980

(Source: Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics)

Work-related Fatalities, Injuries, and Illnesses

This section presents data for the industry on the number of workplace fatalities and the rates of workplace injuries and illnesses per 100 full-time workers in warehousing and storage. An injury or illness is considered to be work-related if an event or exposure in the work environment either caused or contributed to the resulting condition or significantly aggravated a pre-existing condition.

Data series 2019 2020 2021 2022

Fatalities

Number of fatalities

24 21 46 50

Blank cells indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

Data series 2022

Rate of injury and illness cases per 100 full-time workers

Total recordable cases

5.5

Cases involving days away from work, job restriction, or transfer

4.7

Cases involving days away from work

2.2

Cases involving days of job transfer or restriction

2.5

Blank cells indicate no data reported or data that do not meet publication criteria.

(Source: Injuries, Illnesses, and Fatalities)

Prices

This section provides industry-specific pricing information. The producer price index measures the percentage change in prices that domestic producers receive for goods and services. The prices included in the producer price index are from the first commercial transaction.

Data series Back
data
Nov.
2023
Dec.
2023
Jan.
2024
Feb.
2024

Producer price index

(p)144.214 (p)144.112 (p)144.981 (p)148.774

Percent change from previous month

  (p)-0.5% (p)-0.1% (p)0.6% (p)2.6%

Footnotes
(p) Preliminary

(Source: Producer Price Indexes)

Workplace Trends

This section presents data on the number of establishments in warehousing and storage.

Establishments

Data series Back
data
4th quarter
2022
1st quarter
2023
2nd quarter
2023
3rd quarter
2023

Number of establishments

Private industry

21,604 (p)21,777 (p)21,975 (p)22,124

Local government

248 (p)248 (p)248 (p)249

State government

6 (p)6 (p)6 (p)6

Federal government

10 (p)10 (p)10 (p)10

Footnotes
(p) Preliminary

(Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages)

 

Data extracted on: March 15, 2024