Production, Planning, and Expediting Clerks

Pay and outlook

Median annual wage, May 2025

$59,650

Half earn more, half earn less

Middle half earn

$47,820 – $75,000

25th to 75th percentile

People employed, May 2025

390,160

Wage and salary jobs (OEWS)

Projected change, 2025–35

-1.3%

Shrinking (below 0%)

Openings a year (projected)

32,600

New jobs plus replacing people who leave

Typical education to enter

High school diploma or equivalent

BLS

• All figures are for the United States as a whole. Pay varies a lot by state and city.
• Wages are for everyone working in the occupation in May 2025, at every career stage. They are not starting salaries or figures for new graduates.
• Growth and openings are BLS projections for 2025–35. They are estimates, not promises. Openings include jobs that open up when people retire or change occupation, not just new jobs.

What the work involves

Coordinate and expedite the flow of work and materials within or between departments of an establishment according to production schedule. Duties include reviewing and distributing production, work, and shipment schedules; conferring with department supervisors to determine progress of work and completion dates; and compiling reports on progress of work, inventory levels, costs, and production problems.

Main tasks

• Distribute production schedules or work orders to departments.
• Revise production schedules when required due to design changes, labor or material shortages, backlogs, or other interruptions, collaborating with management, marketing, sales, production, or engineering.
• Review documents, such as production schedules, work orders, or staffing tables, to determine personnel or materials requirements or material priorities.
• Arrange for delivery, assembly, or distribution of supplies or parts to expedite flow of materials and meet production schedules.
• Confer with establishment personnel, vendors, or customers to coordinate production or shipping activities and to resolve complaints or eliminate delays.
• Requisition and maintain inventories of materials or supplies necessary to meet production demands.
• Confer with department supervisors or other personnel to assess progress and discuss needed changes.
• Plan production commitments or timetables for business units, specific programs, or jobs, using sales forecasts.

Description and tasks from the O*NET® 31.0 Database.

Getting in

Typical education to enter (BLS)

High school diploma or equivalent

Training once hired: moderate-term on-the-job training

O*NET Job Zone 1–2

Little to some preparation

Usually requires a high school diploma or GED, though some occupations may not.

Fields of study that lead here

From the federal CIP–SOC crosswalk, which links 1 programme to this occupation. A link means the programme prepares people for this kind of work. It doesn't mean the programme is required, or that it's the only route.

Related careers

Related occupations from the O*NET database, in its order.

• Project Management Specialists

  $102,320 median · +6.7% projected

• First-Line Supervisors of Production and Operating Workers

  $74,450 median · +1.8% projected

• First-Line Supervisors of Office and Administrative Support Workers

  $69,500 median · +0.1% projected

• First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers

  $79,860 median · +4.1% projected

• Procurement Clerks

  $50,580 median · -8.1% projected

• Industrial Engineering Technologists and Technicians

  $66,120 median · +3.1% projected