1. I
t’s probably too soon to say the economy has fully recovered from
the recession of the previous decade, but based on the findings
from the MH&L 2015 Salary Survey, the “haves” significantly
outnumber the “have-nots.” Fully two-thirds (66%) of all respon-
dents saw their salary increase in 2014, and 69% anticipate getting a
raise in 2015. All told, the average salary for material handling and
logistics professionals is now up to $86,085 (a very modest 2% bump
from the previous MH&L survey, conducted in 2013).
Job satisfaction, too, is on the upswing, as 71% of respondents
say they are satisfied or very satisfied with their current jobs (up
6% from the previous salary), and 74% say they are satisfied or very
satisfied with material handling and logistics as a career path (an
increase of 4% from 2013). These numbers reflect the highest level of
satisfaction since the previous decade.
1 8 | MATERIAL HANDLING & LOGISTICS | M A R C H 2 0 1 5 | w w w. m h l n e w s . c o m
Working Hard for
the MoneyMH&L’s exclusive 2015 Salary Survey
reveals that job satisfaction for material
handling and logistics professionals is
climbing faster than the average salary.
By Dave Blanchard
Cover Feature | Salary Survey

2. 2 0 | MATERIAL HANDLING & LOGISTICS | M A R C H 2 0 1 5 | w w w. m h l n e w s . c o m
And yet, the material handling and logistics profes-
sion still seems to be a best-kept secret. When asked
what is the biggest challenge facing the industry to-
day, a preponderance of respondents say it’s attracting
and retaining talent. What’s more, 56% say they’ve
struggled in the past year to fill positions due to a lack
of skilled candidates. This is a problem that’s not going
away anytime soon, and needs to be addressed on any
number of levels, particularly since two-thirds (66%)
of all material handling and logistics professionals are
in their 50s or older, and training the next generation of
managers will be of vital importance.
One thing the salary survey data lets us do is cre-
ate a profile of what the typical material handling and
logistics professional looks like, based on which re-
sponses to any given question appear most frequently.
This “typical” professional, then, is a white male in his
50s living in the Midwest, with 26-30 years of experi-
ence in the industry, and working for a manufacturer of
material handling equipment. This archetypal person
is in a corporate/senior executive role, has a four-year
college degree, has been with his current company for
6-10 years, and did not earn a bonus last year. And as
stated earlier, he makes $86,085 per year.
Chances are good that at least a handful of readers
come pretty close to fitting that exact description, but
every individual has their own story to tell, so in addi-
tion to the charts on the following pages that summa-
rize the survey findings, this article will also give voice
(anonymously, of course) to many of your peers who
took the time to tell us about the challenges they face
in their daily work lives, as well as their ideas about
what’s wrong… and what’s right… with the state of
the industry, the economy, the government and any-
thing else that’s on their mind.
“Because of the world we live in today, especially
over the last 20 years, those in the material handling/
distribution field are being asked to do more, in less
time, while being measured against impossible-to-
maintain metrics and achieve these ever-shrinking
yearly budgets.”—warehouse/logistics manager at a
wholesaler/distributor with more than 40 years of expe-
rience, living in the South Central and earning $60,000
“Repressive government regulations will continue
to have a deleterious effect upon business and indus-
try, whether it is shippers, clients, or carriers.”—sup-
ply chain manager with a food & beverage company
with 26-30 years of experience, living in the North
Central and earning $86,000
Cover Feature | Salary Survey
Average Salary by Geographic Region
Region (% of response) Salary
■ New England (CT, MA, ME, NH, RI, VT) (4%) $72,735
■ Middle Atlantic (NJ, NY, PA) (13%) $86,793
■ South Atlantic (DC, DE, FL, GA,
MD, NC, SC, VA, WV) (15%) $86,102
■ North Central (IA, IL, IN, KS, MI,
MN, MO, ND, NE, OH, SD, WI) (38%) $82,263
■ South Central (AL, AR, KY, LA,
MS, OK, TN, TX) (12%) $95,603
■ Mountain (AZ, CO, ID, MT,
NM, NV, UT, WY) (5%) $93,609
■ Pacific (AK, CA, HI, OR, WA) (9%) $92,773
Other North America (4%) $74,528
Average Salary by Staff Size
Number of employees you manage (% of response) Salary
0-10 (63%) $82,867
11-25 (21%) $89,204
26-50 (8%) $90,480
51-100 (3%) $100,269
More than 100 (5%) $99,293

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Average Salary by Industry
Industry sector (% of response) Salary
Aerospace & Defense (5%) $88,540
Automotive/Transportation Vehicles
& Equipment (5%) $74,309
Chemicals (3%) $97,558
Computer & Electronic Products (3%) $82,363
Construction/Building Equipment (5%) $90,000
Consulting/Education (3%) $97,773
Consumer Goods/Durables (5%) $81,435
Electrical Equipment (3%) $87,462
Energy/Utilities (2%) $103,250
Food, Beverage & Tobacco (6%) $94,704
Industrial Products/Machinery (7%) $76,948
Material Handling Equipment (13%) $84,696
Metals/Metal Products (4%) $94,914
Paper/Printing/Publishing (3%) $87,007
Pharmaceuticals/Healthcare (3%) $105,740
Plastics & Rubber Products (3%) $77,053
Retail Trade (3%) $110,393
Third-Party Logistics Provider (3%) $83,714
Transportation/Warehousing (8%) $77,615
Wholesaler/Distributor (11%) $80,710
Other (e.g., Furniture & Fixtures,
Glass Products) (2%) $79,600
For information, go to www.mhlnews.hotims.com/56382-115
Average Salary by Job Responsibility
Position (% of response) Salary
Consultant (3%) $99,857
Corporate/Executive/Senior
Management (16%) $125,504
Distribution/Warehouse/Logistics
Manager (15%) $78,018
Engineering Manager (10%) $92,436
Inventory/Materials Manager (4%) $76,374
Maintenance Manager (6%) $75,231
Operations Manager (11%) $82,205
Plant/Manufacturing Manager (6%) $70,806
Purchasing/Procurement/Sourcing
Manager (4%) $79,410
Sales/Business Development Manager (9%) $68,541
Supply Chain Manager/Director (5%) $92,031
Transportation/Fleet/Traffic Manager (7%) $64,911
Other (Design, Quality, Safety, etc.) (4%) $63,955

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“Supply chain/logistics is a very hot job right
now with a greater emphasis being placed on it
by companies, which is great to see. We need to
ensure that the new entrants to the job force have
a good foundation of business principles as well.
This makes them very well rounded and able
to see the entire picture of a company’s opera-
tions.”—senior executive at a wholesaler/distribu-
tor with 16-20 years of experience, living in the
North Central and earning $146,000
“The industry does not value experience any-
more like they used to. All they look at is the
salary being lower for younger engineers, who
will not stay in place for more than five years.
They then lose all the experience/knowledge and
wonder why things start going bad. I have seen it
much more since 2005!”—senior manufacturing
process engineer with a consumer goods company
with 26-30 years of experience, living in the South
Central and earning $91,000
Cover Feature | Salary Survey
For information, go to www.mhlnews.hotims.com/56382-115
Average Salary by Education Level
Highest level attained (% of response) Salary
$88,619High School (11%)
Some College (26%)
2-yr Degree (10%)
4-yr Bachelor’s Degree
(29%)
Some Graduate
Study (6%)
Master’s Degree
or Higher (17%)
$65,543
$79,430
$71,361
$89,218
$97,776
$109,081

5. “The job market is wide open for smart people who
will work hard at what needs to be done. America’s
dream is not dead if we take the time and money to
train our people for the skills needed to compete in a
global marketplace. We need more drug-free trades-
people. We have plenty of people applying that need
to work but no one has been taught to do anything.
Whatever happened to voc-tech in high school?”—
operations manager at a material handling equipment
manufacturer with 36-40 years of experience, living in
the South Central and earning $114,500
From Sea to Shining Sea
Geographically speaking, when it comes to supply
chain salaries, it sometimes seems that where you do
something is just as important as what you do. The
largest percentage of material handling and logistics
jobs in the U.S.—38%—are in the North Central re-
gion of the country (primarily the Midwest), so the
average salary ($82,263) is quite a bit lower than in
other regions, such as the Pacific ($92,773) and the
South Central ($95,603). The lowest salaried region,
though, is New England ($72,735), which is also by far
the smallest area, with only 4% of the total number of
supply chain jobs (see map, p. 20).
For those of us living in cold-weather states, it’s kind
of disheartening that the warm-weather states also pay
better, too, for supply chain talent.
“With Arizona being a right-to-work state, salaries
are always going to be low.”—inventory/materials
manager with a healthcare products manufacturer with
11-15 years of experience, living in the Mountain re-
gion and earning $58,000
“My main concern is that New Hampshire is con-
sidering a proposal to double the minimum wage
increase. This will certainly hurt New Hampshire’s
businesses and may force some to relocate to a differ-
ent state.”—plant manager with a paper/printing com-
pany with 26-30 years of experience, living in New
England and earning $67,500
It’s Still a Man’s World
Facebook recently made headlines when the social
media giant revealed it offers 58 different gender op-
tions to its users. Here at MH&L, we continue to offer
just two options on the survey, and while the results
are still unfortunately skewed in one direction, there
is at least some small sign that the gender gap—while
huge—is shrinking a little bit. In our previous (2013)
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Average Salary by Race
Ethnic background Salary
Asian or Pacific Islander (3%) $80,584
Black/African-American (2%) $74,778
Hispanic/Latino (3%) $90,933
Native American or Alaska Native (1%) $78,125
White/Caucasian (87%) $86,618
Other/Prefer not to say (4%) $81,562
Average Salary by Company Size
Annual corporate revenues (% of response) Salary
Less than $50 million (41%) $78,600
$51 million-$100 million (13%) $77,928
$101-$500 million (17%) $88,866
$501 million-$1 billion (8%) $90,394
$1 billion-$20 billion (16%) $106,788
More than $20 billion (5%) $96,816
Average Salary by Experience
Years in material handling and logistics (% of response) Salary
0-2 (5%) $68,653
3-5 (6%) $73,993
6-10 (8%) $82,206
11-15 (12%) $75,120
16-20 (15%) $90,277
21-25 (15%) $81,292
26-30 (17%) $91,363
31-35 (10%) $93,818
36-40 (7%) $99,483
41+ (5%) $96,482
Average Salary by Gender
Gender (% of response) Salary
$88,619
$70,800
Male (86%)
Female (14%)

6. survey, men held 89% of all material handling and lo-
gistics jobs, with an average salary of $87,053. With
just 11% of all jobs, women were averaging $62,987,
or 28% less than their male counterparts.
In 2015, the disparity is slightly less. Men still have
the lion’s share of the jobs in the industry, with 86%
representation, and an average salary of $88,619.
Women, though, have closed the gap by 3 percent-
age points, to now representing 14% of all jobs, at an
average salary of $70,800. Men are still making, on
average, 20% more than women, which however you
choose to look at the numbers, is an embarrassment to
the industry, particularly an industry that is constantly
trying to attract and retain talent.
As MH&L’s senior editor Adrienne Selko noted in
a recent commentary, women are an untapped source
of supply chain talent, and many of the selling points
companies are using to attract young people to the
industry are important factors to women as well. Em-
phasizing the high-tech aspects of the profession, and
offering a clearly-defined career path, competitive sal-
aries and the opportunity to create green supply chains
are all things companies should be doing to recruit
more women into the profession.
“I have to do a lot of ‘secretarial’ things in my job
as regional manager, which I feel is because I am
female. I feel for all the things I do that do not relate
to my title as regional manager I am underpaid.”—
female sales manager with a plastics/rubber products
manufacturer with 16-20 years of experience, living in
the Mountain region and earning $94,000
“My personal opinion is that in this industry a
white male would have a greater salary than a minor-
ity woman.”—female plant manager with a consumer
goods/durables manufacturer with 16-20 years of expe-
rience, living in the Pacific region and earning $52,000
“Women in business are not as valued as men and
it’s reflected in their salaries.”—purchasing manager
with a plastics/rubber products manufacturer with 31-
35 years of experience, living in the North Central and
earning $33,000
Working for a Living
The largest percentage of respondents (13%) work
for manufacturers of material handling equipment,
earning an average salary of $84,696. That salary is
pretty close to the average for all material handling
and logistics professionals, sandwiched in between
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Cover Feature | Salary Survey
Average Salary by Age
Age (% of response) Salary
21-29 (2%) $49,471
30-39 (9%) $70,307
40-49 (26%) $84,035
50-59 (37%) $88,363
60-69 (24%) $92,242
70+ (2%) $100,000
Average Salary by Seniority
Years with current company (% of response) Salary
0-2 (11%) $77,046
3-5 (11%) $79,646
6-10 (19%) $83,580
11-15 (17%) $92,740
16-20 (13%) $87,932
21-25 (8%) $81,416
26-30 (9%) $82,539
30+ (12%) 98,931
Do you anticipate getting a raise to your
base salary in 2014? (% of response)
No 31%
Yes, between 1-3% 47%
Yes, between 3-5% 17%
Yes, more than 5% 5%
Will you be looking for a new job in 2015?
Yes, seeking a new job at another company 16%
Yes, seeking a new job within same company 2%
Maybe, if the right opportunity comes along 41%
No 41%
How would you characterize your
company’s growth potential for 2015?
Dynamic 22%
Moderate 55%
Flat 17%
Shrinking 6%

7. the other major verticals that make up the respondent
base of the industry. The lowest-paying industries, on
average, are automotive ($74,309), industrial prod-
ucts/machinery ($76,948), plastics & rubber products
($77,053) and transportation/warehousing ($77,615).
The highest-paying industries, on the other hand,
include energy/utilities ($103,250), pharmaceuticals/
healthcare ($105,740) and retail trade ($110,393). All
three of these verticals, however, represent a fairly
small percentage of the total, so if you’re thinking of
shifting industries for a bigger paycheck, be aware that
the number of openings is likely to be small.
In the category of “tell me something I didn’t al-
ready know,” corporate/senior management is the best-
paying job title, with an annual salary of $125,504.
When it comes to income, it’s good to
be the Big Boss. Consultants are also
doing well ($99,857), as are supply
chain managers/directors ($92,031).
Those with a role in transportation/
fleet/traffic management, however,
have the lowest average salary
among material handling and lo-
gistics executives, at $64,911.
So what matters most to you
about your job? We asked that
question, and respondents told us
that it comes down to two key
things: job stability (25% of re-
sponses) and base salary (19%).
Not coincidentally, 55% of the
respondents say their company ei-
ther reduced staff or made no changes to staff size in
2014, indicating that the wait-and-see attitude preva-
lent during the recession hasn’t completely gone
away. Also, 59% say they’ll at least entertain the pos-
sibility of changing jobs in 2015, so as the economy
continues to recover, so too will thoughts of seeking
greener pastures.
“Difficult to find electro-mechanical technicians
these days. Hard to compete with the big compa-
nies who can offer internships, higher wages and
greater opportunities.”—senior executive at a ma-
terial handling equipment manufacturer with 26-30
years of experience, living in the South Atlantic and
earning $150,000
“With the gutting of U.S. manufacturing, the
conveyor business has shifted to very competitive
warehousing type conveyors from the more lucra-
tive equipment needed for factories. Our government
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Cover Feature | Salary Survey
How satisfied are you with
your current job? (% of response)
Satisfied 44%
Very satisfied 27%
Neither satisfied
nor unsatisfied 18%
Unsatisfied 9%
Very unsatisfied 2%
What matters most to you
about your job? (% of response)
Job Stability 25%
Base Salary 19%
Career Advancement Opportunities 12%
Recognition of Your Importance to Company 12%
Flexible Schedule 10%
Company’s Recognition of the Importance of
Material Handling and Logistics 8%
Benefits 8%
Relationships with Co-Workers 3%
Vacation Time 2%
Continuing Education/Training 1%
Other (e.g., Client Retention, Company Culture,
Job Satisfaction, Sustainability) 1%
How satisfied are you with material
handling and logistics as a career path?
(% of response)
Very satisfied 35%
Satisfied 39%
Neither satisfied nor unsatisfied 25%
Unsatisfied 1%
Very unsatisfied 1%

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must start adding the cost of our government regu-
lations and corporate tax rates to the goods coming
in from outside our borders to stop 30 years of trade
deficits of $500 to $800 billion per year. That wealth
is bypassing working-class America totally now.”—
business development manager at a material handling
equipment manufacturer with 31-35 years of experi-
ence, living in the South Central and earning $57,000
“The defense industry suffers during these times of
international unrest.”—engineering manager with a
metal products manufacturer with 6-10 years of expe-
rience, living in the South Central and earning $90,000
“Hoping the economy turns around for the oil &
gas industries.”—supply chain manager with an oilfield
services company with more than 40 years of experi-
ence, living in the South Central and earning $120,000
While material handling and logistics professionals,
on the whole, are quite satisfied with their current jobs,
an offer of more money at a better company—however
you want to define “better”—is a powerful lure. Re-
cruiting top talent is absolutely crucial to guaranteeing
the success of the supply chain profession, but retain-
ing top talent is equally important to guaranteeing the
success of your company.
Cover Feature | Salary Survey
The Method to Our Madness
The MH&L 2015 Salary Survey was conducted
online via e-mailed invitations to a select group of
subscribers. The survey took place in January 2015,
with nearly 500 responses (491). Respondents were
not compensated, but were offered the chance to win
an American Express gift card. All responses were
anonymous.
The Rest of the Story
Go online to www.mhlnews.com/salarysurvey to
find even more salary figures and charts from the
MH&L 2015 Salary Survey, including a slideshow
gallery of tables detailing responses to questions
not featured in the print magazine.You can also read
hundreds of open-ended comments from respondents
about the biggest challenges confronting supply chain
managers, as well as their observations about the
industry and their role within it.You can also access
salary survey results from previous years, as well as
related articles and commentary focused on workforce
issues within the industry.
How has your company’s staffing
changed over the past year?
Added staff 45%
No change 32%
Reduced staff 23%
Change in Base Salary
Over Previous Year (% of response)
Increased more than 5% 9%
Increased 3-5% 19%
Increased 1-3% 38%
No change 30%
Decreased 1-3% 1%
Decreased 3-5% 1%
Decreased more than 5% 1%
What is your annual bonus?
(% of response)
Less than $1,000 13%
$1,000-$5,000 23%
$5,001-$10,000 15%
$10,001-$25,000 12%
More than $25,000 10%
None 27%
Has your location struggled to fill a
position in the past year due to a
lack of skilled candidates?
Yes 56%
No 44%