Packers and Packagers, Hand
What Packers and Packagers, Hand Do
Pack or package by hand a wide variety of products and materials.
See full salary breakdown & percentiles →
Career Outlook
National employment outlook, 2024–2034.
- Related work experience
- None
- On-the-job training
- Short-term on-the-job training
- Self-employed
- 0.7%
Source: BLS Employment Projections — 2024-2034.
How Much Preparation Does This Take?
Job Zone 2 of 5Job Zone 1-2: Very Little to Some Preparation Needed
- Experience
- Some occupations may need little or no previous experience; others require several months to a year of experience.
- Education
- Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.
- Job training
- Ranges from a few days to one year of on-the-job training.
Source: O*NET Job Zones.
Key Knowledge Areas
Subject-matter areas this occupation draws on most, per O*NET.
- Production and Processingimportance 4.0/5
- Customer and Personal Serviceimportance 3.2/5
- English Languageimportance 3.0/5
- Administrativeimportance 2.8/5
- Mathematicsimportance 2.7/5
- Public Safety and Securityimportance 2.7/5
- Mechanicalimportance 2.6/5
- Computers and Electronicsimportance 2.6/5
Work Environment
What the day-to-day work setting is like, per O*NET.
- Face-to-Face Discussions with Individuals and Within Teams4.6/5
- Wear Common Protective or Safety Equipment such as Safety Shoes, Glasses, Gloves, Hearing Protection, Hard Hats, or Life Jackets4.4/5
- Importance of Being Exact or Accurate4.3/5
- Spend Time Standing4.3/5
- Contact With Others4.3/5
- Indoors, Not Environmentally Controlled4.3/5
Careers With Similar Skills
Occupations whose Transferable Skills profile most closely matches this one — a mathematical comparison, not observed data about people actually moving between these careers.
- Mail Clerks and Mail Machine Operators, Except Postal Service92% skill match
- Court Reporters and Simultaneous Captioners91% skill match
- Slaughterers and Meat Packers91% skill match
- Weighers, Measurers, Checkers, and Samplers, Recordkeeping90% skill match
- Paperhangers88% skill match
- Food Cooking Machine Operators and Tenders88% skill match
- Funeral Attendants88% skill match
- Painters, Construction and Maintenance87% skill match
Transferable Skills
Cross-functional skills this occupation draws on most, per O*NET — the kind that carry over to other careers.
- Coordinationimportance 2.6/5
- Quality Control Analysisimportance 2.3/5
- Judgment and Decision Makingimportance 2.3/5
- Time Managementimportance 2.3/5
- Social Perceptivenessimportance 2.1/5
- Service Orientationimportance 2.1/5
- Operations Monitoringimportance 2.1/5
- Complex Problem Solvingimportance 2.0/5
Software & Technologies
Tools and software used in this occupation, per O*NET.
Other Software Used
Work Style
Personal work characteristics that matter most for this occupation, per O*NET.
- Attention to Detail
- Dependability
- Cautiousness
- Integrity
- Cooperation
- Stress Tolerance
- Perseverance
Career Interests
This occupation’s RIASEC interest profile, per O*NET — how strongly it fits each of the six Holland interest types.
- RealisticHigh
- ConventionalHigh
- EnterprisingLow
- ArtisticLow
- SocialLow
- InvestigativeLow
This page includes information from the O*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.
Where This Career Is Most Concentrated
Metro areas where packers and packagers, hand make up the largest share of local employment, relative to the national average (BLS location quotient).
- 1Vineland, NJ10.59× national avg
- 2Yakima, WA5.78× national avg
- 3Wenatchee-East Wenatchee, WA5.17× national avg
- 4Merced, CA4.05× national avg
- 5Salinas, CA4.02× national avg
Possible Career Moves
A computed starting point, not observed job-change data — see the full list for why each one might fit.
- Weighers, Measurers, Checkers, and Samplers, RecordkeepingCareer Change
- Cutters and Trimmers, HandCareer Change
- PaperhangersCareer Change
- RoofersCareer Change