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Almost every site around Walsall that takes a delivery needs a counterbalance driver, which is what makes it the most useful ticket to hold locally. WSUK places counterbalance drivers into loading, container and yard work near Walsall on weekly PAYE pay.
Counterbalance FLT jobs around Walsall cover loading and unloading trailers, devanning containers, block stacking and moving stock around a yard. Sites near Walsall want a current accredited counterbalance certificate (RTITB, ITSSAR, AITT or NPORS), normally refreshed within the last three years. WSUK places counterbalance drivers around Walsall at £13.00—£15.00 an hour, paid weekly through PAYE, with no fee to you.
Walsall is one of the Black Country's densest industrial towns, wrapped around the M6 from Junction 7 to Junction 10 with the M5 and M6 Toll close at hand. Aldridge and Darlaston carry large concentrations of warehousing, distribution and manufacturing, while the Bescot rail freight terminal adds intermodal capacity that pulls in national logistics operators. Bentley Mill, Walsall Waterfront and the Anglian estates layer in further 3PL, trade and production units. With a heritage in metals and engineering now sitting alongside modern distribution and e-commerce fulfilment, and neighbours in Wolverhampton, Cannock and Birmingham, Walsall offers exceptional connectivity and a broad industrial mix. That combination keeps forklift drivers and warehouse operatives in constant demand right across WS1 to WS10.
A distribution and manufacturing base this varied throws up constant, uneven staffing needs, from a metals plant covering absence to a 3PL ramping for a contract. WSUK meets them with temporary pickers, packers, loaders, goods-in and goods-out operatives and counterbalance, reach and PPT forklift drivers, supplied at the pace each operation needs. We vet and right-to-work check every worker, run PAYE payroll and handle working-time compliance, so flexing your workforce stays simple and lawful. As volumes rise and fall, we scale crews up and down, giving Walsall employers dependable cover without the cost of carrying spare permanent headcount through quiet periods.
Counterbalance work is the movement of goods in and out of the building rather than up into the racking. It is more varied than reach work and more of it is outdoors.
Driving into trailers and curtainsiders to load and unload, building and breaking down pallets on the bay, and working to a vehicle departure time.
Unloading shipping containers, often hand-balled onto pallets at the door and then moved by truck. Physical, and busiest at import-heavy sites and the ports.
Moving stock around a yard, block stacking where there is no racking, and feeding production or waste lines. Outdoor work in all weather, so sites provide the kit.
From Aldridge to Darlaston and the Bescot rail terminal, Walsall employers rely on WSUK for temporary warehouse and forklift cover. We know the M6 Junctions 7 to 10 corridor, the Black Country's dense industrial mix and the WS1 to WS10 estates, so we place vetted operatives and FLT drivers fast, whether you need one reach driver for cover or a full crew for a distribution peak.
A current accredited counterbalance certificate, refreshed within the last three years for most sites, plus a familiarisation on their own trucks and traffic routes. Beyond that, counterbalance roles are the easiest forklift work to get into with modest hours behind you, which makes it the sensible first ticket if you are moving up from operative work. A lot of counterbalance shifts also include some manual handling, and we will tell you when that is the case.
Indicative PAYE rates as a guide — actual pay varies by shift, experience and site, with premiums for nights, weekends and bank holidays. Every rate we advertise is at or above the National Living Wage.
| Role | Indicative pay |
|---|---|
| Counterbalance FLT Driver (days) | £13.00–£14.50 / hr |
| Counterbalance FLT Driver (nights) | £13.75–£15.00 / hr |
| Container Devanning & FLT | £13.00–£14.75 / hr |
| Counterbalance & Reach (dual) | £14.00–£16.00 / hr |
| Warehouse Team Leader | £14.50–£18.00 / hr |
Counterbalance suits operatives taking their first step up, and experienced drivers who would rather be on the loading bay and in the yard than in a narrow aisle all shift.
Counterbalance is the ticket most often used as a lever to pay someone the operative rate for forklift work. We book and pay it properly.
From application to your first shift, with the checks and the payroll handled for you.
Tell us your licence, tickets and which shifts you can actually work.
A named consultant calls within 2 working hours to talk through what fits.
Right-to-work, references and the site induction handled before you start.
Start on shift, then paid weekly through PAYE with holiday accrued.
It depends how close you are to a port or an import-heavy distribution site. Devanning work concentrates around the container terminals and the big import sheds, and where there is a lot of it near Walsall the shifts tend to involve more hand-balling alongside the driving. We will tell you the split before you accept.
Both exist near Walsall. Loading bay work is mostly under cover, while yard moves, block stacking and external loading are outdoors in all weather. Sites issue the appropriate kit, and we will tell you which kind of shift a role actually is.
A forklift that carries the load on forks out front, balanced by a counterweight at the rear, with no outrigger legs. That design is what lets it drive directly into trailers and containers, which is why it is the truck used for loading, unloading and yard work.
For most people, yes. It is the most widely asked-for ticket because nearly every site loads or unloads vehicles, and it is the easiest forklift work to get into without a long history of hours. Reach and VNA pay more but sites are stricter about demonstrable experience.
Usually £13.00—£14.50 an hour on days and £13.75—£15.00 on nights. Drivers who also hold reach and can be used on both typically sit at £14.00—£16.00.
WSUK serves employers across the Golden Triangle. Explore our other locations.
Tell us your ticket and last refresher date. We will match you to counterbalance work around Walsall and reply within 2 working hours.