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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
Jun.
2024
Jul.
2024
Aug.
2024
Sep.
2024

Employment (in thousands)

Employment, all employees (seasonally adjusted)

1,780.6 1,782.8 (p)1,781.6 (p)1,770.6

Employment, production and nonsupervisory employees

1,556.6 1,563.0 (p)1,563.3  

Footnotes
(p) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Employment by Occupation

Data series Employment,
2023

Industrial truck and tractor operators

286,230

Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand

445,780

Shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks

72,420

Stock clerks and order fillers

451,860

Transportation, storage, and distribution managers

20,810

(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
May
2024
Jun.
2024
Jul.
2024
Aug.
2024

Average hourly earnings

$24.79 $24.78 $24.73 (p)$24.91

Average weekly hours

39.2 40.3 40.6 (p)40.9

Footnotes
(p) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings and Hours of Production and Nonsupervisory Employees

Data series Back
data
May
2024
Jun.
2024
Jul.
2024
Aug.
2024

Average hourly earnings

$24.30 $24.01 $24.03 (p)$24.43

Average weekly hours

37.7 38.7 39.7 (p)39.4

Footnotes
(p) Preliminary

(Source: Current Employment Statistics)

Earnings by Occupation

Data series Wages, 2023
Hourly Annual
Median Mean Median Mean

Industrial truck and tractor operators

22.52 23.13 46,850 48,120

Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand

19.76 20.30 41,100 42,230

Shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks

20.93 21.47 43,530 44,650

Stock clerks and order fillers

19.45 21.13 40,450 43,950

Transportation, storage, and distribution managers

46.36 50.37 96,430 104,760

(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
Jun.
2024
Jul.
2024
Aug.
2024
Sep.
2024

Producer price index

(p)151.538 (p)152.616 (p)150.688 (p)151.056

Percent change from previous month

  (p)-0.8% (p)0.7% (p)-1.3% (p)0.2%

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
2nd quarter
2023
3rd quarter
2023
4th quarter
2023
1st quarter
2024

Number of establishments

Private industry

21,938 22,128 22,348 (p)22,671

Local government

248 249 250 (p)250

State government

6 6 6 (p)6

Federal government

10 10 10 (p)10

Footnotes
(p) Preliminary

(Source: Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages)

Productivity

This section presents productivity and related data for the industry, presented as the percent change from the previous year. Measures of total factor productivity (TFP) compare growth in output to the growth in a combination of inputs that include labor, capital, energy, materials, and services. Measures of labor productivity, or output per hour, compare the growth in output to the growth in hours worked.

Data series Back
data
2019 2020 2021 2022

Total factor productivity (TFP)

1.8 0.9 -3.9 -7.8

Output

4.1 2.8 9.1 1.6

Combined inputs

2.3 1.8 13.6 10.2

Capital input

6.0 8.1 9.8 5.3

Labor input

3.9 9.7 24.7 13.0

Labor productivity, output per hour

-0.2 -6.6 -11.4 -9.8

(Source: Productivity)

 

Data extracted on: October 31, 2024