Position Summary
The Lead Hand - Shipping, Receiving, Packaging & Assembly is a hands-on floor leadership role responsible for supervising daily tasks, directing workflow, and actively supporting shipping, receiving, packaging, staging, material handling, and assembly activities.
The Lead Hand ensures work is completed safely, accurately, and efficiently while maintaining quality standards, supporting team members, and keeping the Production Manager or Operations Manager informed of floor-level issues. This is a working lead position focused on task execution and team supervision, not an office or administrative role.
Primary Purpose of the Role
· Supervise daily floor activities in assembly, packaging, staging, shipping, and receiving areas.
· Keep team members focused on assigned priorities, safe work practices, quality expectations, and productive workflow.
· Actively participate in hands-on work to support deadlines and remove floor-level obstacles.
· Identify and escalate material, quality, safety, equipment, staffing, or workload concerns to management.
Key Responsibilities
Floor Supervision & Team Direction
· Direct and support employees assigned to assembly, packaging, staging, shipping, and receiving tasks.
· Help organize daily work priorities based on direction from the Production Manager or Operations Manager.
· Assign task-level work to team members and monitor progress throughout the shift.
· Balance labour between packaging, assembly, receiving, staging, and material handling needs to keep work moving.
· Provide hands-on coaching on safe work methods, product handling, packaging standards, assembly steps, and housekeeping expectations.
· Lead by example through safe work habits, strong attendance, steady pace, and attention to quality.
· Maintain a respectful, productive, and team-oriented work environment on the floor.
Receiving, Shipping & Material Handling
· Check incoming items for visible damage, incorrect materials, obvious shortages, or other concerns.
· Separate and identify damaged, incorrect, incomplete, or questionable materials for management review.
· Move materials safely using carts, pallet jacks, forklifts, or other approved equipment where authorized.
· Help keep receiving, storage, staging, and production areas organized so materials are accessible and work can flow efficiently.
Packaging, Kitting & Assembly
· Support light assembly, component preparation, hardware sorting, kitting, labeling, and product organization as required.
· Prepare parts, hardware, accessories, and components for production or customer order completion.
· Package finished goods, parts, racks, components, and customer orders using approved packaging methods.
· Check that packaged goods are secure, complete, protected, labelled where required, and ready for final shipment processing.
· Check assembled or packaged items for visual quality, correct quantity, completeness, and readiness for the next step.
· Assist team members with assembly or packaging tasks when additional support is needed to meet daily priorities.
Quality, Safety & Housekeeping
· Ensure team members follow company safety procedures, including PPE, safe lifting, equipment use, material handling, and housekeeping standards.
· Check work areas regularly for safety hazards, blocked aisles, poor stacking, damaged materials, or unsafe handling practices.
· Promote quality by checking for visible defects, missing components, improper packaging, damaged product, or incorrect materials.
· Correct floor-level issues where possible and escalate concerns that require management support.
· Maintain clean, organized, and safe shipping, receiving, packaging, assembly, and staging areas throughout the shift.
Daily Task Expectations
· Review daily floor priorities with management and communicate task expectations to the team.
· Assign and monitor hands-on work in shipping, receiving, packaging, staging, and assembly areas.
· Package, stage, move, receive, sort, kit, and assemble materials or products as needed.
· Check work quality, product condition, packaging completeness, and safe material placement throughout the day.
· Assist team members directly when workloads, deadlines, or physical tasks require support.
· Keep work areas clean, organized, safe, and ready for the next task or shift.
· Report delays, shortages, damaged goods, equipment concerns, quality issues, or safety concerns promptly to management.
Supervisory Scope
The Lead Hand provides task-level supervision and floor direction. The role supports day-to-day execution but does not replace management-level authority. Formal hiring, discipline, performance reviews, payroll, purchasing, customer communication, carrier negotiation, ERP/MRP administration, and office-based reporting remain the responsibility of management or designated administrative staff.
Qualifications
· Previous experience in shipping, receiving, packaging, assembly, warehouse, or manufacturing work preferred.
· Previous lead hand, working lead, senior team member, or supervisory experience is an asset.
· Ability to organize daily tasks and guide employees in a hands-on production environment.
· Ability to understand work instructions, product requirements, labels, and basic production direction.
· Strong attention to detail and commitment to product quality and safety.
· Good communication, teamwork, reliability, and problem-solving skills.
· Forklift, pallet jack, or material handling experience is an asset.
Physical Requirements
· Ability to lift and move materials or packages up to 50 lbs.
· Ability to stand, walk, bend, reach, push, pull, and perform physical tasks throughout the shift.
· Ability to work in a manufacturing, production, warehouse, and shipping environment.
· Ability to safely use basic tools, carts, pallet jacks, packaging supplies, and other approved material-handling equipment.
Key Competencies
- Hands-on leadership
- Task supervision
- Safety-focused
- Quality-minded
- Reliable and accountable
- Organized work habits
- Clear communication
- Problem-solving
- Team-oriented
- Attention to detail
Performance Expectations
Success in this role will be measured by:
· Daily tasks are assigned, supervised, and completed safely and efficiently.
· Assembly, packaging, staging, shipping, and receiving work is completed accurately and on time.
· Team members receive clear floor direction and hands-on support.
· Products and materials are handled carefully to reduce damage and rework.
· Work areas remain clean, organized, and safe.
· Quality, safety, equipment, material, and workload concerns are escalated quickly.
Pay: $27.00-$30.00 per hour
Benefits:
- Dental care
- Extended health care
- On-site parking
Work Location: In person
