Recycling or Waste Collector

A recycling or waste collector operates collection vehicles and manually handles waste and recyclable materials at residential, commercial, and industrial sites across Australian suburbs and regions. They sort, compact, and transport waste streams according to local council contracts and environmental regulations, ensuring materials are directed to appropriate processing or disposal facilities. The role requires safe handling of potentially hazardous materials, operation of compactor mechanisms, and adherence to occupational health and safety standards.

Operate collection vehicles including trucks fitted with compactor or hydraulic lift mechanisms to transport waste and recyclables. Manually load waste bins, crates, and bags into collection vehicles using safe lifting techniques and body mechanics. Sort recyclable materials such as paper, cardboard, glass, metal, and plastics to meet material specifications for processing facilities. Compact waste using on-board compactor equipment to maximise vehicle payload and reduce trip frequency. Identify and segregate contaminated or hazardous items including sharps, asbestos, and chemical containers to prevent facility damage and injury. Follow collection routes and schedules determined by council contracts and waste management providers. Communicate with householders and business operators regarding bin placement, contamination issues, and service disruptions. Maintain collection vehicles by emptying spill trays, reporting mechanical faults, and ensuring equipment is roadworthy.

The standard entry pathway requires a Certificate I or compulsory secondary education (ABS skill level 5). 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 body takes a hammering. This is heavy manual work in all weather, doing repetitive lifts thousands of times a week. Back, knee, and shoulder injuries are common and hard to recover from mid-career. Pay is modest, there's little progression, and automation of collection trucks may change the work over time. Early morning starts are non-negotiable.

Regional centres have work too, but fewer opportunities. Most positions are with major waste companies like Cleanaway and Suez, based near metro areas and landfills. Remote work doesn't apply.

Published for ANZSCO unit group 8996, 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.

• Adaptability and Flexibilitycore
• Attention to Detailcore
• Delivery Schedulingcore
• Driver and Courier Liaisoncore
• Incident Reportingcore
• Policy and Procedure Adherencecore
• Regulatory and Legislative Awarenesscore
• Risk Identificationcore
• Team Collaborationcore
• Time Management and Prioritisationcore
• Verbal Communicationcore
• Workload Self-Managementcore
• Active Listening
• Basic Arithmetic and Numerical Accuracy
• Continuous Learning and Upskilling
• Customer Complaint Resolution
• Dispatch Documentation
• Inventory Tracking
• Problem Solving

• 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 Recycling or Waste Collector workers move into, from ten years of tax records.

Last updated: 30 October 2026