Furniture Removalist

A furniture removalist packs, loads, transports, and unloads household or commercial furniture and goods between locations using removal vehicles and manual handling techniques. The role involves assessing load requirements, securing cargo safely, and delivering items to client specifications while adhering to safe work practices and vehicle regulations.

Pack furniture and household items using appropriate materials such as blankets, cardboard boxes, bubble wrap, and foam to prevent damage during transport. Load packed items and furniture into removal vehicles, arranging cargo to maximise space and maintain vehicle weight distribution within legal limits. Operate removal vehicles including trucks and vans, navigating routes to client destinations whilst complying with Australian Road Rules and fatigue management regulations. Unload and position furniture and items at destination properties, assembling basic furniture components where required. Conduct pre-move inspections of items and properties, documenting existing damage to protect against liability claims. Calculate and assess moving costs based on volume, weight, distance, and labour requirements for pricing quotations. Secure loads using straps, ropes, and tie-down points to prevent cargo shifting during transport and comply with Load Restraint Guide requirements. Operate lifting equipment such as dollies, hand trucks, and furniture sliders to move heavy or awkward items safely.

The standard entry pathway requires a Certificate II or III (ABS skill level 4). Specific qualification requirements vary by employer and state. Some employers may accept equivalent experience. Check yourcareer.gov.au for available courses and dewr.gov.au/skills-reform/free-tafe for subsidised training options.

Your back and knees will take a beating. Furniture removalists deal with repetitive heavy lifting, awkward angles, and long days on your feet. Back injuries are common and can end your career in this role. Pay tops out pretty quickly too: there's not much room to earn significantly more unless you own the business.

Regional areas have less work and longer gaps between jobs. Practically speaking, you need to be in or near a capital city to get steady work. Remote work isn't an option.

Published for ANZSCO unit group 7331, the wider group this job sits in, not for this job on its own.

This is the median for full-time employees who are not managers and are paid at the adult rate, before tax and salary sacrifice. It is a guide to what the work pays, not a wage rate.

Source: ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025, customised report.

• Active Listeningcore
• Adaptability and Flexibilitycore
• Adhere to transportation work schedulecore
• Attention to Detailcore
• Complaint Handlingcore
• Customer Needs Assessmentcore
• Delivery Schedulingcore
• Dispatch Documentationcore
• Policy and Procedure Adherencecore
• Problem Solvingcore
• Risk Identificationcore
• Team Collaborationcore
• Time Management and Prioritisationcore
• Verbal Communicationcore
• Basic Arithmetic and Numerical Accuracy
• Cultural Awareness and Sensitivity
• Freight Coordination
• Incident Reporting
• Inventory Tracking
• Multitasking
• Workload Self-Management

• ABS OSCA 2024, occupation definition and task statements
• ABS Survey of Employee Earnings and Hours, May 2025, customised report.
• ABS, 2021 Census of Population and Housing based on usual place of residence (Custom Report). OSCA Experimental Estimates.

Role data is drawn from official Australian Government sources, and each figure names where it comes from. Where a role is not in the ABS classification, the page shows no government figures for it. Data may not reflect every local variation.

Where our numbers come from.

What Furniture Removalist workers move into, from ten years of tax records.

Last updated: 30 October 2026