A wheelbarrow is a second class lever. In a second class lever, the load is situated between the effort or force and the fulcrum. The mechanical advantage is always greater than 1.0, meaning that the effort force is always less than the effort that would be necessary to move the load if the lever was not used. In the case of a wheelbarrow, the load is the weight of the contents being carried, the effort is the force applied to the handles, and the fulcrum is the point where the wheelbarrow is joined to the axle of the wheel.