Do you want to learn more about the Costco forklift driver’s job? At Costco, the forklift driver position is a physically challenging job that moves merchandise from one location to another and is considered to be a stable job for many people.
Therefore, if you’d like to learn more about this job, keep reading this article to learn more about what this position entails!
What is a Costco Forklift Driver In [currentyear]?
As a Costco forklift driver, you can expect to be hired as a full-time employee with a stable, high-paying job, where you’ll begin earning $19.93/hr in [currentyear]. Your primary responsibility will be to drive a standing forklift to haul merchandise. Drivers must pass a mandatory certification course to operate industrial machinery and drive around customers properly.
For more detailed information about the forklift driver job at Costco and what it involves, keep reading!
What are the Duties For Forklift Drivers at Costco?
Most know that forklift drivers are responsible for operating warehouse forklifts to transport bulk items around in the store.
In addition, forklift drivers also have other responsibilities, including loading and unloading shipments, ensuring proper safety, and helping with relocating items in the store.
Since these vehicles are dangerous forms of industrial transportation, drivers must be able to use them to transport Costco’s products safely and efficiently from place to place.
Therefore, there should be little risk of damage to people or products.
Some other duties you may have as a Costco forklift driver are the following:
- Safely unloading incoming merchandise and bundling in assigned locations
- Relocation of supply to pallets and crates in preparation for storage and shipment
- Identifying and reporting damages, scarcities, and quality issues of merchandise to management
- Transportation of raw ingredients to workstations before production
- Regular inspection of equipment to determine safety concerns and need for repairs
- Regularly documenting inventory and activity logs
- Follow compliance with Costco corporate codes and legal guidelines
What Requirements Does Costco Have For Forklift Drivers?
Since the forklift driving position requires highly physically demanding and manual work, Costco requires a forklift driver to lift to 65 pounds and operate heavy equipment with accuracy and efficiency.
Additionally, Costco forklift drivers must have good communication skills and work in a team atmosphere.
Other requirements are that candidates be at least 18 years of age and have a high school diploma or GED.
What Type of Training Do Forklift Drivers Need at Costco?
At Costco, forklift drivers will be operating a standup forklift to transfer merchandise.
Due to stability imbalance concerns, issues that occur when another staff is lifted, and poorly charged batteries, these forklifts ultimately pose risks.
During this mandatory certification course, drivers will learn many topics applicable to their new position, such as the following:
- Battery and forklift maintenance
- Reduction of risk for tipping over
- How to drive and park the forklift
- Working when customers are in the store
- How to drive with a load
- How to load and unload merchandise
As you may imagine, excellent driving is a prerequisite, specifically industrial driving records.
Therefore, an additional area of concern would-be workers who had a history of past accidents with driving forklifts or other industrial machines (this information will need to be disclosed during the application process).
What Is The Average Salary For A Costco Forklift Driver?
According to 15 workers recently asked by Indeed, the average hourly salary for a Costco forklift driver is .93, which is over 30% more than the national average for forklift drivers in the industry.
Also, let’s see what benefits you can expect to receive, which are listed below:
- Medical, vision, and dental insurance
- Paid time off
- Paid jury duty
- Parental leave
- Flexible work schedules
- 401k plan
- Annual performance bonuses
- Life insurance
How Many Hours a Week Does a Costco Forklift Driver Work?
At Costco, forklift drivers are full-time employees, so you can expect to work 32 hours per week at the minimum. This includes possible scheduling on weekends, Saturdays, and holidays.
How Do I Apply For the Forklift Position at Costco?
For the convenience of applicants, Costco allows the public to apply for an opening right from the comfort of their homes, which can be done by following these simple steps:
1. Open the Costco forklift driver job description
Start the job search by opening the Costco forklift driver job description webpage. Review the information to see the duties and responsibilities you can perform each day.
2. Select a store location to apply to
At the bottom of the screen, a link reads, To Apply: Choose A Location. When the applicant clicks on Choose A Location, it prompts them to pick a Costco store and gives the applicant a list of stores within 50 miles with forklift driver openings.
Next, select a store location and click on it.
3. Fill out the applicant portal information
If the applicant has previously applied to any job at Costco, they’re familiar with this term.
Costco uses the applicant portal to communicate application information between applicants and HR/ management quickly.
Previous applicants will use the same information to sign in, and new applicants will need to create a new account with their contact information and email address.
4. Complete and submit the application
Once the applicant portal has been set up this one time, they can move on to the Costco application.
Regardless, feel free to skip over sending a resume, but be sure to include information about past work history and education.
If you have any certifications that are still active for forklifts, upload that also!
Once the application process is complete, you just have to wait for management to review your information and decide if they would like to offer you an in-person job interview.
Is the Forklift Driver Job at Costco a Good Job?
According to past workers interviewed, the job had more positive traits than negative. Workers praised the flexibility of scheduling, high wage, and dynamic nature of the work.
To find out more, you can also see our posts on whether or not Costco drug tests, Costco dress code, and if Costco hires part-time.
Conclusion
As a forklift driver, you must safely transport heavy merchandise items. Workers are trained on basic operation procedures for industrial forklifts, learn how to troubleshoot issues, and are taught how to maneuver them throughout stores safely.
