Cargo and freight agent essential career information:
- 2012 median pay: $39,720
- 2012, number of jobs: 78,750
- Employment growth forecast, 2010-2020: 29 percent
- Entry level education requirements: High school diploma or equivalent
Cargo and freight agents; what they do:
If moving people and products by land, air, rail and sea sounds like an interesting job, then a cargo agent career may be in the future. Cargo and freight agents coordinate and expedite incoming and outgoing shipments for airline, train, trucking and shipping transportation businesses.
More specifically, a typical day for a cargo and freight agent includes deciding particular shipping routes and methods from pick-up locations to drop-off destinations, advising clients on shipment and payment methods and organizing transportation and logistics details with freight companies.
A cargo agent career and a freight agent career include recording all products shipped, accepted and stored, negotiating and arranging shipment charges and postal rates and notifying customers of cargo arrival and delivery arrangements. A cargo agent career and a freight agent career also include organizing bills of lading and other shipping paperwork, documenting cargo weight, size, and shipment times and tracking the progress of shipments.
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Cargo and freight agents job titles:
- Freight Broker Agent
- Cargo Freight Agent
- Freight Broker
- Trucking Broker
- Freight Forwarding Agent
- Documentation Clerk
- Drop Shipment Clerk
- Intermodal Dispatcher
Cargo and Freight Agents Education, Certification and License Requirements
Typically, people interested in a freight career need a high school diploma or a GED and on-the-job training. As training progresses, cargo agents take on more complex jobs such as notifying customers of shipment times and deliveries as well as monitoring shipments en route.
Cargo and freight agents use specific shipment software programs and computer databases which require a short time of computer training.
Cargo and freight agent programs cover subjects such as:
- Laws and regulations
- History of surface transportation
- Freight brokering
- Brokering legalities
- Accounting
- Rebating and compensation
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Cargo and Freight Agents Job Outlook
Forecast: 29 percent employment growth for cargo and freight from 2010 to 2020, much faster than the average for all occupations. The growth of the economy dictates the increase in multiple areas of cargo traffic. Hence, the better the economy, the better the transportation industry – the better the cargo and freight agent job outlook.
More specifically, online shopping has spurred a boom in the shipping of products across the country. In addition, companies outsourcing logistics to third-party firms may increase the demand for cargo agents.
Cargo and Freight Agents Salary
- 2012 median annual wage: $39,720
- 2012 workers at the 75th percentile annual wage: $50,300
- 2012, workers at the 25th percentile annual wage: $30,750
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Major Employers
- Freight transportation arrangement
- Scheduled air transportation
- Courier and express delivery services
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