Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators build operation and control, operations monitoring and troubleshooting skills that carry over to other work. Below are 25 careers ranked by how closely their skills match, with pay from BLS May 2025. The closest match is Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators (87%).
Updated October 2026 · Data: O*NET 31.0 and BLS OEWS May 2025 · How we match careers
Sorted by skill match.
| # | Career | Skill match | Median pay | Pay change | Extra education |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators | 87% | $59,850 | +29% | None |
| 2 | Pile Driver Operators | 85% | $73,300 | +58% | None |
| 3 | Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining | 83% | $74,500 | +60% | None |
| 4 | Heavy and Tractor-Trailer Truck Drivers | 82% | $58,640 | +26% | None |
| 5 | Excavating and Loading Machine and Dragline Operators, Surface Mining | 81% | $57,430 | +24% | None |
| 6 | Riggers | 79% | $62,640 | +35% | None |
| 7 | Pourers and Casters, Metal | 79% | $51,810 | +12% | None |
| 8 | Rail-Track Laying and Maintenance Equipment Operators | 78% | $70,070 | +51% | None |
| 9 | Extruding and Forming Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Synthetic and Glass Fibers | 78% | $46,350 | 0% | None |
| 10 | Continuous Mining Machine Operators | 78% | $61,810 | +33% | None |
Compared with Industrial Truck and Tractor Operators, median $46,420. Skill match is our estimate (0–99) from O*NET 31.0 skills, knowledge, work activities and interests, adjusted for preparation and big pay drops. Pay: BLS OEWS May 2025, national median.
How important each skill is in work as industrial truck and tractor operators (O*NET importance, scale 1–5).
The gaps that show up most often across your top 10 matches.
Free and low-cost training: use the CareerOneStop training finder below.
A concrete first step, the skills to add, and the hard parts of each job, from O*NET 31.0 education, training and work context data.
87% skill match · $59,850 · +29% pay
Quality Control Analysis · Repairing · Complex Problem Solving
85% skill match · $73,300 · +58% pay
Quality Control Analysis · Operations Monitoring · Repairing
83% skill match · $74,500 · +60% pay
Equipment Selection · Repairing · Complex Problem Solving
If you want to stay close to what you do now, these roles are the nearest.
The closest matches are Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operators (87% skill match, median $59,850), Pile Driver Operators (85% skill match, median $73,300) and Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining (83% skill match, median $74,500), based on O*NET 31.0 data and BLS May 2025 pay.
Among the 25 matches, 18 pay more than industrial truck and tractor operators at the median. The biggest increases: Petroleum Pump System Operators, Refinery Operators, and Gaugers (+108%, $96,710), Locomotive Engineers (+75%, $81,410) and Loading and Moving Machine Operators, Underground Mining (+60%, $74,500).
25 of the 25 matches usually need no more education than you have now, based on O*NET Job Zones.
We compare the importance of skills, knowledge, work activities and interests in O*NET 31.0 for your job and every other career, then adjust for extra preparation and big pay drops. The full method is on our Methodology page.