# Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks

US SOC code 43-5071. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/43-5071

Also called: Shipping clerk, Receiving clerk, Inventory clerk, Warehouse clerk, Stock clerk.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **816,870** US shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks, with median pay of **$45,260** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2021, the highest was **857,630**, in May 2024, close to the May 2025 count. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transportation_Communications_International_Union) of **33,000** from 1899, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks: RFID tagging and bulk reading, 2004 to 2020. RFID automation, combined with WMS directed workflows, began reducing the headcount of dedicated shipping and receiving clerks relative to warehouse throughput from approximately 2005 onward.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to decline 7.6% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=43-5071&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **35.7%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend.

## Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1750
- Latest US employment: 816,870 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [5]
- Latest US median pay: $45,260 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [15]
- Outlook: -7.6% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [36]

### In other countries

The latest figure each country's statistics agency publishes for this job. Each uses its own occupation definition, survey basis and currency, so the numbers are not directly comparable with each other or with the US figures.

- **Canada** (NOC 14400)
  - Employment, 2020: 119,965. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [8]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021: number of persons with employment income in NOC 14400 Shippers and receivers, Canada, reference year 2020. A recipients basis (anyone with employment income during the year), slightly broader than a point-in-time employed count. Statistics Canada Open Licence.
  - Median pay, 2020: C$44,400. Source: Statistics Canada Census 2021 [19]. Statistics Canada Census of Population 2021 (Table 98-10-0586): median employment income for NOC 14400 Shippers and receivers, Canada, reference year 2020, full-year full-time workers (the basis comparable to the US OEWS full-time median). Statistics Canada Open Licence.
- **United Kingdom** (UK SOC 4133)
  - Employment, 2025: 69,000. Source: ONS ASHE 2025 [9]. ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Table 14): employee jobs in SOC 4133 Stock control clerks and assistants, United Kingdom, 2025 (ASHE "number of jobs", thousands x1000; excludes self-employment). Open Government Licence v3.0.
  - Median pay, 2025: £28,851. Source: ONS ASHE 2025 [20]. ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (Table 14.7a): median gross annual pay for all employee jobs in SOC 4133 Stock control clerks and assistants, United Kingdom, 2025. Open Government Licence v3.0.
- **Australia** (ANZSCO 5911)
  - Employment, 2025: 121,000. Source: ABS Labour Force Survey [10]. ABS Labour Force Survey (Detailed), table EQ08: employed persons in ANZSCO 5911 Purchasing and Supply Logistics Clerks, national (summed across sex and state/territory), annual average of 4 quarterly estimates.
  - Median pay, 2025: A$80,756. Source: ABS Employee Earnings May 2025 [21]. Annualised (x52) from A$1,553 median weekly earnings. ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025: median pay for full-time non-managerial employees paid at the adult rate, before tax. Surfaced via the Jobs and Skills Australia occupation profile.

### All 30 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1899 | 33,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., Wikipedia [1] |
| 1940 | 280,000 | n/a | Decennial Census 1940 [2] |
| 1948 | n/a | $2,600 (estimate) | Est., Estimated ~$2,600 median annual wage… [11] |
| 1970 | 560,000 (estimate) | $7,200 (estimate) | Est., US Census Bureau (employment) [3]; Est., US Census Bureau (pay) [12] |
| 1986 | n/a | $15,400 | BLS CPS 1986 [13] |
| 1999 | n/a | $24,753 | Census 2000 [14] |
| 2000 | 890,000 (estimate) | n/a | Est., O\*NET 43-5071.00 [4] |
| 2003 | 767,470 | $23,660 | BLS OEWS May 2003 [5] |
| 2004 | 747,270 | $24,400 | BLS OEWS May 2004 [5] |
| 2005 | 759,910 | $25,180 | BLS OEWS May 2005 [5] |
| 2006 | 763,350 | $26,070 | BLS OEWS May 2006 [5] |
| 2007 | 755,790 | $26,990 | BLS OEWS May 2007 [5] |
| 2008 | 760,950 | $27,660 | BLS OEWS May 2008 [5] |
| 2009 | 715,130 | $28,250 | BLS OEWS May 2009 [5] |
| 2010 | 687,850 | $28,370 | BLS OEWS May 2010 [5] |
| 2011 | 687,940 | $28,790 | BLS OEWS May 2011 [5] |
| 2012 | 690,780 | $29,010 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [5] |
| 2013 | 677,450 | $29,320 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [5] |
| 2014 | 661,530 | $29,930 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [5] |
| 2015 | 674,820 | $30,450 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [5] |
| 2016 | 676,990 | $31,180 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [5] |
| 2017 | 671,780 | $31,810 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [5] |
| 2018 | 655,590 | $33,030 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [5] |
| 2019 | 704,910 | $34,190 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [5] |
| 2020 | 727,640 | $35,260 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [5] |
| 2021 | 795,360 | $36,890 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [5] |
| 2022 | 848,240 | $37,760 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [5] |
| 2023 | 844,120 | $39,780 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [5] |
| 2024 | 857,630 | $43,190 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [5] |
| 2025 | 816,870 | $45,260 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [5] |

## Sources (116)

### Employment series

1. [Transportation Communications International Union (Wikipedia) — Brotherhood of Railway Clerks founding 1899, Sedalia MO](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transportation_Communications_International_Union), Wikipedia
2. [US Census 1940 — IPUMS occupation code 226 "Shipping and receiving clerks" in the 1940 occupation classification](https://usa.ipums.org/usa/volii/occ1940.shtml), IPUMS / University of Minnesota
3. [US Census Bureau — Comparative Occupation Statistics for the United States, 1870-1940 (context for postwar extrapolation)](https://www.census.gov/library/publications/1943/demo/edwards-01.html), US Census Bureau
4. [O\*NET 43-5071.00 — Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks (occupation summary and background)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/43-5071.00), O\*NET / BLS
5. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
6. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2006, Table 97-563-XCB2006069 (Wage and salary statistics by occupation, NOC-S 2006), income reference year 2005](https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/tbt/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&PID=96285), Statistics Canada
7. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2016, Table 98-400-X2016356 (Occupation by employment income statistics, NOC 2016), income reference year 2015](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/catalogue/98-400-X2016356), Statistics Canada
8. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada
9. ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 4133, United Kingdom. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0., Office for National Statistics. Editions: [2002](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2002/2002-table-14.zip), [2006](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2006consistentw_007methodology/2006-table-14.zip), [2010](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2010revised/2010-revised-table-14.zip), [2011](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2011revisedbasedonsoc2010/2011-revised-table-14.zip), [2015](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2015/table142015revised.zip), [2020](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2020revised/table142020revised.zip), [2022](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2022revised/ashetable142022revised.zip), [2025](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2025provisional/ashetable142025provisional.zip)
10. [ABS: Labour Force, Australia, Detailed, table EQ08 (Employed persons by Occupation unit group, ANZSCO 2013), latest release](https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment/labour-force-australia-detailed/latest-release), Australian Bureau of Statistics

### Wage series

11. [Estimated ~$2,600 median annual wage for shipping and receiving clerks, ~1948, derived from BLS hourly-earnings data for wholesale grocery warehouse workers (BLS Bulletin No. 953, Hourly Earnings in 10 Industries, Sept 1947-Sept 1948) and the general clerical wage range of the period](https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/files/docs/publications/bls/bls_0953_1949.pdf), Derived estimate (basis: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Bulletin No. 953, via FRASER)
12. [US Census Bureau — Historical Income Tables: 1970 median household income context for clerical worker wage interpolation](https://www.census.gov/data/tables/time-series/demo/income-poverty/historical-income-households.html), US Census Bureau
13. [BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 1988-89: median annual earnings of full-time traffic, shipping, and receiving clerks were about $15,400 in 1986; the middle 50 percent earned between $11,500 and $20,700 a year.](https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/title/occupational-outlook-handbook-3964/occupational-outlook-handbook-1988-89-edition-583131), BLS-CPS
14. [U.S. Census 2000, Earnings by Detailed Occupation (Table 2): Shipping, Receiving, and Traffic Clerks (the 43-5071 precursor), year-round full-time median earnings $24,753 for 1999.](https://www2.census.gov/programs-surveys/decennial/tables/2000/earnings-occupation/call2usboth.csv), CENSUS
15. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2003](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm03nat.zip), [2004](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm04nat.zip), [2005](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm05nat.zip), [2006](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm06nat.zip), [2007](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm07nat.zip), [2008](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm08nat.zip), [2009](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm09nat.zip), [2010](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm10nat.zip), [2011](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm11nat.zip), [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
16. [BLS OEWS May 2024, national cross-industry estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
17. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2006, Table 97-563-XCB2006069 (Wage and salary statistics by occupation, NOC-S 2006), income reference year 2005](https://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2006/dp-pd/tbt/Rp-eng.cfm?LANG=E&PID=96285), Statistics Canada
18. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2016, Table 98-400-X2016356 (Occupation by employment income statistics, NOC 2016), income reference year 2015](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/en/catalogue/98-400-X2016356), Statistics Canada
19. [Statistics Canada, Census of Population 2021, Table 98-10-0586 (Employment income statistics by occupation unit group, NOC 2021), income reference year 2020](https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=9810058601), Statistics Canada
20. ONS: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14.7a (Annual pay - Gross), 4-digit SOC 4133, United Kingdom. Office for National Statistics, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, Table 14. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0., Office for National Statistics. Editions: [2002](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2002/2002-table-14.zip), [2006](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2006consistentw_007methodology/2006-table-14.zip), [2010](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2010revised/2010-revised-table-14.zip), [2011](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2011revisedbasedonsoc2010/2011-revised-table-14.zip), [2015](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2015/table142015revised.zip), [2020](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2020revised/table142020revised.zip), [2022](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2022revised/ashetable142022revised.zip), [2025](https://www.ons.gov.uk/file?uri=/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/earningsandworkinghours/datasets/occupation4digitsoc2010ashetable14/2025provisional/ashetable142025provisional.zip)
21. [Jobs and Skills Australia: Purchasing and Supply Logistics Clerks (ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025)](https://www.jobsandskills.gov.au/data/occupation-and-industry-profiles/occupations/5911-purchasing-and-supply-logistics-clerks), Jobs and Skills Australia / Australian Bureau of Statistics

### Tool eras

22. [Wikipedia — Bill of lading (history: 13th-century Mediterranean origins, standardization in 16th-18th centuries)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_of_lading), Wikipedia
23. [CargoX — "Bill of lading: meaning, types, example, and purpose" (etymology from Old English "hladan" and medieval origins)](https://cargox.io/content-hub/bill-of-lading-meaning-types-example-and-purpose/), CargoX
24. [Transportation Communications International Union (Wikipedia) — Brotherhood history: founded 1899, freight handler expansion 1908](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transportation_Communications_International_Union), Wikipedia
25. [Lojistic — "Freight Trade and Shipping History: The Transcontinental Railroad" (freight volume growth post-1869)](https://www.lojistic.com/blog/freight-and-shipping-the-history-of-the-transcontinental-railroad), Lojistic
26. [Newcastle Systems — "The History of Warehousing" (forklift adoption 1940s, pallet racking, early WMS)](https://www.newcastlesys.com/blog/the-history-of-warehousing), Newcastle Systems
27. [Sears, Roebuck and Company Complex (Wikipedia) — 1906 Chicago catalog plant, 20,000 employees, rail shipping within the day](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sears,_Roebuck_and_Company_Complex), Wikipedia
28. [IBM — "The UPC" (history of the Universal Product Code, commercial adoption timeline)](https://www.ibm.com/history/upc), IBM
29. [Manhattan Associates — "Our Story and Timeline" (founded 1990, client-server WMS replacing legacy mainframes)](https://www.manh.com/about-us/our-story-and-timeline), Manhattan Associates
30. [Hopstack — "Evolution of Warehousing Systems: History and Timelines" (WMS history 1975-2000s)](https://www.hopstack.io/blog/evolution-warehousing-systems-history-timelines), Hopstack
31. [PeakTech — "History of RFID Technology: Background, Timeline, and Future" (MIT Auto-ID Center, Walmart 2004 mandate, EPC standard)](https://www.peaktech.com/blog/history-of-rfid/), PeakTech
32. [Zebra Technologies — Automate 2025: 58% of warehouse leaders plan RFID deployment by 2028](https://www.zebra.com/us/en/about-zebra/newsroom/press-releases/2025/zebra-technologies-showcases-new-intelligent-automation-solutions-at-automate-2025.html), Zebra Technologies
33. [Oracle Fusion Cloud — Inventory Tasking Agent and Inventory Aging Advisor Agent (26A release, April 2026)](https://docs.oracle.com/en/cloud/saas/readiness/scm/26a/inv26a/26A-inventory-wn-f41415.htm), Oracle
34. [WEF Future of Jobs Report 2025 — material recording clerks among most displaced clerical roles by 2030](https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/), World Economic Forum
35. [Locus Robotics — Locus Array fully autonomous fulfillment launch (April 2026), 6B+ robot-assisted picks](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260410524554/en/Locus-Robotics-Launches-Locus-Array-a-New-Class-of-Physical-AI-Robotics-for-Fully-Autonomous-Fulfillment), Locus Robotics / BusinessWire

### Forecasts and exposure studies

36. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 43-5071 Shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks (2025: 827.7 thousand; 2035: 765.0 thousand; -7.6%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=43-5071&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
37. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 43-5071.00, human-rated β 0.357)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

38. [Wikipedia — Bill of lading (13th-century origins, legal function as receipt/contract/title document)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_of_lading), Wikipedia
39. [Transportation Communications International Union (Wikipedia) — founding 1899, Sedalia MO, freight handler expansion 1908](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transportation_Communications_International_Union), Wikipedia
40. [Sears, Roebuck and Company Complex (Wikipedia) — 1906 Chicago catalog plant, 20,000 employees, rail shipping same day](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sears,_Roebuck_and_Company_Complex), Wikipedia
41. [Newcastle Systems — "The History of Warehousing" (J.C. Penney first WMS 1975)](https://www.newcastlesys.com/blog/the-history-of-warehousing), Newcastle Systems
42. [PeakTech — "History of RFID Technology" (Walmart 2004 mandate, MIT Auto-ID Center, EPC standard)](https://www.peaktech.com/blog/history-of-rfid/), PeakTech
43. [Knowledge at Wharton — "How Amazon Fulfillment Centers Influence Local Economic Growth" (fulfillment network growth, 30% county warehousing employment increase within two years of opening)](https://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/podcast/this-week-in-business/examining-how-amazon-fulfillment-centers-influence-local-economic-growth/), Wharton School / University of Pennsylvania

### Predecessors & successors

44. [Wikipedia — Bill of lading (13th-century origins, counting house clerk role in verifying cargo manifests)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_of_lading), Wikipedia
45. [Transportation Communications International Union (Wikipedia) — Brotherhood of Railway Clerks, 1899, Sedalia Missouri](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Transportation_Communications_International_Union), Wikipedia

### Present-day analysis

- [BLS OOH — Material Recording Clerks (2024-34 projections, -6%, RFID/robot cause)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/office-and-administrative-support/material-recording-clerks.htm), accessed 2026-06-03
- [O\*NET 30.3 — Shipping, Receiving, and Inventory Clerks (43-5071.00)](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/43-5071.00), accessed 2026-06-03
- [Oracle Fusion Cloud — Inventory Tasking Agent and Aging Advisor Agent (26A release)](https://docs.oracle.com/en/cloud/saas/readiness/scm/26a/inv26a/26A-inventory-wn-f41415.htm), accessed 2026-06-03
- [Cloud Wars — Oracle expands Fusion Cloud with 29 prebuilt AI agents for SCM](https://cloudwars.com/ai/oracle-expands-fusion-cloud-with-29-prebuilt-ai-agents-for-scm-and-cx/), accessed 2026-06-03
- [SAP Community — EWM 2025 FPS00: AI document processing for bills of lading + Advanced Shipping and Receiving](https://community.sap.com/t5/supply-chain-management-blog-posts-by-sap/sap-extended-warehouse-management-for-sap-s-4hana-cloud-private-edition/ba-p/14238170), accessed 2026-06-03
- [Blue Yonder — Warehouse Ops Agent: explainable insights, pre-shift reviews, 23M+ tasks optimized in 2025](https://info.blueyonder.com/warehouse-management/what-is-blue-yonder-warehouse-management), accessed 2026-06-03
- [Zebra Technologies — MC3390xR RFID reader, FXR90, Symmetry Fulfillment AMR: 58% of warehouses plan RFID by 2028](https://www.zebra.com/us/en/about-zebra/newsroom/press-releases/2025/zebra-technologies-showcases-new-intelligent-automation-solutions-at-automate-2025.html), accessed 2026-06-03
- [Locus Robotics — Locus Array fully autonomous fulfillment launch (April 2026), 6B+ robot-assisted picks](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20260410524554/en/Locus-Robotics-Launches-Locus-Array-a-New-Class-of-Physical-AI-Robotics-for-Fully-Autonomous-Fulfillment), accessed 2026-06-03
- [WEF Future of Jobs Report 2025 — logistics roles net +5M by 2030; clerical roles among most displaced](https://www.weforum.org/publications/the-future-of-jobs-report-2025/), accessed 2026-06-03
- [Scope Recruiting — Supply Chain AI Skills 2026: workers with AI skills earn 25-30% more](https://www.scoperecruiting.com/blog/supply-chain-skills-ai), accessed 2026-06-03
- [BLS OOH — Logisticians: 17% projected growth 2024-2034, $80,880 median wage](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/logisticians.htm), accessed 2026-06-03
- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science)](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-06-03
- [Blue Yonder — Network Appointment Scheduling automates carrier slot booking at docks](https://info.blueyonder.com/transportation-management/what-is-blue-yonder-network-appointment-scheduling), accessed 2026-06-03
- [Zebra/RFID Journal — 58% of warehouse leaders plan to deploy RFID by 2028](https://www.rfidjournal.com/news/study-warehouse-operators-prefer-to-work-with-technology/223235/), accessed 2026-06-03

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.