Picker Packer: Job Profile and Role

Have you ever wondered who is responsible for ensuring that you receive your online orders in perfect shape and in record time? Well, we can tell you, the person behind this is a picker packer. This job is now among the most important ones for every company dealing with selling and shipping goods.

Being a picker packer requires strong organisational and numerical skills as well as the ability to work in a team. If you think that you have these skills, the job as a picker packer might be the perfect fit for you. In this blog, you will find out all you need to know about this job. You will get information on your annual salaries, your employers, and the qualifications needed to become a picker/packer. You will also get tips for thriving as a picker/packer and insights into a typical working day

Short Summary

• As a picker packer, you are responsible for picking orders off of a shelf and packing them ready for shipment and delivery.
• As a picker packer, you need strong organisational skills to stay on top of all orders and to ensure a safe working environment for you and your colleagues.
• As a picker packer, you are charged with controlling the quality of the products you are asked to pick and pack and report and document potential flaws.

Job description

As a picker packer, you perform a multitude of daily and regular tasks, starting with picking and packing orders and getting them ready for shipment and delivery. As a picker packer, you need to ensure that said orders leave your warehouse in perfect condition and arrive at their designated destination. Quality controls are therefore an important part of your job and stretch to documenting, filing, and reporting potential order issues and flaws. Moreover, as a picker/packer, you are responsible for ensuring a safe and organised working environment for you and your colleagues.

Responsibilities

• Stocking/Unstocking Shelves
• Processing/Loading Orders
• Labelling/Boxing Products
• Inventory Management
• Processing Shipments
• Moving/Sorting Goods
• Picking and Packing
• Team Collaboration
• Quality Control
• Organisation

Different types of Picker Packers

• Cold Storage Picker Packer
• E-Commerce Picker Packer
• Specialised Picker Packer
• Warehouse Picker Packer
• Retail Picker Packer

Salary

As a picker/packer in the UK, your annual salary usually starts at ￡17,000. With work experience and several years of work in this job, you can earn up to ￡26,000. What you earn each year is furthermore influenced by your employer and the location of your employing company. Also, note that your picker packer position affects your salary as well. If you work as a warehouse picker/packer, you can earn a bit more. Here, your annual salary ranges from ￡21,000 to ￡27,000. 

Further Salary-Influencing Factors

Your picker/packer salary can be influenced further by the following factors: bonuses, health and pension benefits, and a competitive salary. Keep in mind that this might not be offered by every warehouse company you apply with. Therefore, you should always check their respective policies on benefits, bonuses, and insurance.

Working hours

As a picker packer, you will work between 35 and 40 hours a week. Typically, you will work shifts that can be as long as 12 hours but generally tend to range from 6 to 8 hours. Your working hours might not always take place during the day, so you should be prepared to work in the evenings or even during the night. Also, keep in mind that weekend work and sometimes holiday work will be a part of your job as a picker packer. We recommend that you check the following with your future employer: shift patterns, breaks, and policies on working hours. This is important to maintain a healthy work schedule for yourself.

Employers

As a picker packer, you can be employed by any company that offers shipment and delivery of their respective goods. Therefore, you can find employment with supermarket chains, retail stores, e-commerce businesses, pharmaceutical companies, and so-called third-party logistics providers (3PLs).

Since your employment options are vast, we recommend that you check the following when applying for a job: make sure that your future employer’s moral values and visions match your own to avoid potential conflicts.

Qualifications

To become a picker packer in the UK, you can complete an apprenticeship which typically requires GCSEs at grades 9 to 4 (A* to C) to qualify for entering an apprenticeship. Your GCSEs should include English and maths. You should also check with the institution offering the apprenticeship if the equivalent A-Levels qualify you for entering your education. 

Besides, you should have proficiency in using warehouse software and (digital) tools, such as warehouse management systems (WMS), shipping software, inventory tracking software, ERP systems, barcode scanners, Microsoft Office and Excel.

Skills

Every job is a lot easier if you have the necessary skill set. This applies to the job of a picker/packer as well. Naturally, you should always check with your employer which competencies are valued the most. Nevertheless, we are certain that the three skills we will look at in this section will be among those you, as a picker-packer, should have or develop.

Organisational Skills

Strong organisational skills are a must if you want to succeed as a picker packer. They help you to stay on top of the inventory, to ensure that every order is being shipped to the correct location and that all goods are arranged and stored in an orderly, safe, and easily accessible way.

Numerical Skills

As a picker packer, you should also have strong numerical skills. These enable you to keep track of the goods quantities in your warehouse. Your numerical skills should include a knowledge of data-reading and data analysis, arithmetic, mathematical problem-solving, and a basic knowledge of statistics.

Flexibility

Being flexible will benefit you as a picker packer. Your job is not one of the jobs that runs to fixed timetables or guidelines. This means that you need to be flexible and adaptable enough to meet disruptions and changes head-on. Flexibility might further be needed when it comes to covering a shift for a colleague who is off sick or jumping in at short notice, for example, during the holiday peak season when orders multiply and need to be shipped out in greater numbers.

Career Path

After you have completed your intermediate apprenticeship, you usually start your picker packer career as a trainee picker packer. In this job, you learn the ropes of the profession and you can advance to the more senior role of a picker/packer after about 12 months. Depending on your overall performance, you can also progress to the position of warehouse supervisor or warehouse manager.

Educational Background

As a picker packer, you do not need to earn an academic degree. However, completing an apprenticeship may be required by your future employer(s). Appropriate apprenticeships can be the following: a warehouse operative intermediate apprenticeship or an express delivery sortation hub operative intermediate apprenticeship. Also, note that you can become a picker packer as a so-called career jumper, regardless of your previous educational background. In this case, you can apply directly with a company and discuss the skills and qualifications needed to work as a picker/packer.

Entry Level

Your entry-level position as a trainee picker packer sets you up for your future career. In this position, you learn all about picking and packing, inventory management, and organising goods and the warehouse. Usually, a mentor/more senior picker packer will take you under his or her wings and guide you through your first months as a picker/packer.

Continuous Learning

If you want to progress in your job as a picker packer, you should look into ways to improve your personal and professional skills. As a picker packer, you can look into obtaining further qualifications, for example, a health and safety certification, a manual handling certification, or a forklift operator certification. It can also be an interesting option for you to look into cross-training where you work with other warehouse departments and learn about different logistics operations. 

If you want to advance to the position of warehouse manager, we recommend that you complete further training. Viable options are a higher national diploma in logistics, supply chain management, and transport management or a (foundation) degree in one of the mentioned areas.

A Day in the Life of a Picker Packer

Picking, packing, organising, and labelling – these are all tasks that you will perform daily as a picker packer. In this section, we will take a closer look at these and a few other tasks that shape your working day as a picker/packer.

Quality Checks

Checking the quality of the goods in your warehouse is another task you perform daily as a picker/packer. Ideally, this process happens before you send out an order since you need to be sure there are no damages or other flaws that can result in complaints and returns in the future. If you find any flaws or issues with an order, you need to document and file these things. You should also prepare a report that is handed over to your superiors at the warehouse.

Reviewing/Labelling Orders

Before you can pack an order and send it on its way, you need to review what needs to go out that day. Usually, this involves checking either printed order lists or a digital system where the day’s orders are listed. After you have checked which orders need shipping, you continue with printing the labels and sticking them to the respective orders. These labels not only include the recipient’s address but also other attachments, for example, invoices and the contact information of the company the order has been placed with.

Shift Hand-Over

As a picker packer, you work shifts, meaning that there is a certain amount of prep work to be done before you finish for the day. Towards the end of your shift, you need to ensure that your workstation is shipshape and that all the necessary equipment and tools are where they should be. This way, you ensure that your colleague can take over from you without any hitches and disruptions. Ultimately, your hand-over decides on a smooth, ongoing workflow and efficient picking and packing for the rest of the day.

Tips for Thriving as a Picker Packer

Striving to thrive in your chosen profession is something we highly recommend. Even though being a picker packer might be the perfect fit for you at the time you work in this profession, you may think about advancing in the future. To make this career bridge easier to cross, we have assembled three tips that help you thrive as a picker packer:

• Customer focus
• Physical fitness
• Time management

Customer Focus

When checking the quality of the orders that are to be shipped, you should always keep the recipient or customer in mind. Try to slip into his or her shoes and figure out how you would like to receive your order. We are certain this involves safe and sustainable packaging, a flawless product, and swift delivery. By placing your focus on your customers, you will thrive as a picker packer. This attention to detail will not go unnoticed – neither by your superiors nor by the people receiving the orders.

Physical Fitness

As a picker packer, you should always spend time on your physical fitness. By this, we do not mean that you need to spend hours at a gym each day. But it makes sense to do regular workouts since your job involves quite a bit of (heavy) lifting. Staying fit not only makes this part of your job easier. An appropriate workout also prevents back pain and tense shoulders. Ultimately, your physical fitness will help you thrive as a picker packer since you are less likely to be off sick with any of the aforementioned ailments.

Time Management

Lastly, you should work on your time-management skills if you want to thrive as a picker packer. Before you start your working day, you should set out a to-do list that gives an overview of the most important tasks of your day. Here, you should also prioritise and define which jobs are the most pressing ones. Your time management ensures that your workflows are smooth and efficient. It also helps you to get through your working day with less stress.

Frequently Asked Questions