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Postal Service Clerks
Perform any combination of tasks in a United States Postal Service (USPS) post office, such as receive letters and parcels; sell postage and revenue stamps, postal cards, and stamped envelopes; fill out and sell money orders; place mail in pigeon holes of mail rack or in bags; and examine mail for correct postage. Includes postal service clerks employed by USPS contractors.
Also Known As:
Bulk Mail Technician
Clerk
Distribution Clerk
Part Time Flexible Clerk (PTF Clerk)
Postal Clerk
Sales and Distribution Clerk
Sales and Service Associate (SSA)
Window Clerk
Wages
Annual wages for Postal Service Clerks in United States
Job Outlook
Below Average
New job opportunities are less likely in the future
United States
2034 Projected Employment
71,600
-4% Change From 2024
Explore Postal Service Mail Carriers video
Tasks you might complete in a day.
- Order retail items and other supplies for office use.
- Respond to complaints regarding mail theft, delivery problems, and lost or damaged mail, filling out forms and making appropriate referrals for investigation.
- Complete forms regarding changes of address, or theft or loss of mail, or for special services such as registered or priority mail.
- Receive letters and parcels, and place mail into bags.
- Provide assistance to the public in complying with federal regulations of Postal Service and other federal agencies.
- Obtain signatures from recipients of registered or special delivery mail.
- Register, certify, and insure letters and parcels.
- Sell and collect payment for products such as stamps, prepaid mail envelopes, and money orders.
- Put undelivered parcels away, retrieve them when customers come to claim them, and complete any related documentation.
- Respond to complaints regarding mail theft, delivery problems, and lost or damaged mail, filling out forms and making appropriate referrals for investigation.
- Keep money drawers in order, and record and balance daily transactions.
- Transport mail from one work station to another.
- Answer questions regarding mail regulations and procedures, postage rates, and post office boxes.
- Rent post office boxes to customers.
- Check mail to ensure correct postage and that packages and letters are in proper condition for mailing.
- Register, certify, and insure letters and parcels.
- Feed mail into postage canceling devices or hand stamp mail to cancel postage.
- Weigh letters and parcels, compute mailing costs based on type, weight, and destination, and affix correct postage.
- Cash money orders.
- Sort incoming and outgoing mail, according to type and destination, by hand or by operating electronic mail-sorting and scanning devices.
- Weigh letters and parcels, compute mailing costs based on type, weight, and destination, and affix correct postage.
- Sell and collect payment for products such as stamps, prepaid mail envelopes, and money orders.
- Provide customers with assistance in filing claims for mail theft, or lost or damaged mail.
Subject areas you may need to master.
- Sociology and Anthropology - Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
- Geography - Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
- Therapy and Counseling - Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
- Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
- Sales and Marketing - Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
- Food Production - Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
- Customer and Personal Service - Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
- Computers and Electronics - Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
- Administrative - Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
- Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
- Law and Government - Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
- Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
- Medicine and Dentistry - Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
- Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
- Economics and Accounting - Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
- Design - Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
- Engineering and Technology - Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
- Mathematics - Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
- Production and Processing - Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
- Public Safety and Security - Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
- Transportation - Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
- History and Archeology - Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
- Philosophy and Theology - Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
- Mechanical - Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
- Personnel and Human Resources - Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
- Physics - Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
- Chemistry - Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
- Biology - Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
- English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
- Telecommunications - Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
- Foreign Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
- Building and Construction - Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
- Administration and Management - Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
Strengths you may need in this role.
- Persuasion - Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
- Learning Strategies - Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
- Writing - Writing things for co-workers or customers.
- Speaking - Talking to others.
- Science - Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
- Critical Thinking - Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
- Operations Monitoring - Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
- Service Orientation - Looking for ways to help people.
- Operation and Control - Using equipment or systems.
- Programming - Writing computer programs.
- Complex Problem Solving - Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
- Coordination - Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
- Time Management - Managing your time and the time of other people.
- Repairing - Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
- Management of Personnel Resources - Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
- Monitoring - Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
- Troubleshooting - Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
- Equipment Selection - Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
- Quality Control Analysis - Testing how well a product or service works.
- Reading Comprehension - Reading work-related information.
- Instructing - Teaching people how to do something.
- Judgment and Decision Making - Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
- Mathematics - Using math to solve problems.
- Management of Material Resources - Managing equipment and materials.
- Active Listening - Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
- Systems Analysis - Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
- Operations Analysis - Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
- Negotiation - Bringing people together to solve differences.
- Social Perceptiveness - Understanding people's reactions.
- Systems Evaluation - Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
- Equipment Maintenance - Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
- Management of Financial Resources - Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
- Active Learning - Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
- Installation - Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
- Technology Design - Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
- Speech Clarity - Speaking clearly.
- Spatial Orientation - Knowing where things are around you.
- Control Precision - Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
- Category Flexibility - Grouping things in different ways.
- Reaction Time - Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
- Stamina - Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
- Rate Control - Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
- Far Vision - Seeing details that are far away.
- Number Facility - Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
- Selective Attention - Paying attention to something without being distracted.
- Hearing Sensitivity - Telling the difference between sounds.
- Multilimb Coordination - Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
- Gross Body Equilibrium - Keeping your balance or staying upright.
- Inductive Reasoning - Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
- Deductive Reasoning - Using rules to solve problems.
- Speed of Limb Movement - Quickly moving your arms and legs.
- Dynamic Flexibility - Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Peripheral Vision - Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
- Speed of Closure - Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
- Memorization - Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
- Time Sharing - Doing two or more things at the same time.
- Auditory Attention - Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
- Night Vision - Seeing at night or under low light.
- Speech Recognition - Recognizing spoken words.
- Near Vision - Seeing details up close.
- Originality - Creating new and original ideas.
- Depth Perception - Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
- Explosive Strength - Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
- Oral Comprehension - Listening and understanding what people say.
- Written Comprehension - Reading and understanding what is written.
- Written Expression - Communicating by writing.
- Mathematical Reasoning - Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
- Wrist-Finger Speed - Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
- Perceptual Speed - Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
- Finger Dexterity - Putting together small parts with your fingers.
- Extent Flexibility - Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
- Response Orientation - Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
- Dynamic Strength - Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
- Trunk Strength - Using your lower back and stomach.
- Information Ordering - Ordering or arranging things.
- Fluency of Ideas - Coming up with lots of ideas.
- Flexibility of Closure - Seeing hidden patterns.
- Arm-Hand Steadiness - Keeping your arm or hand steady.
- Visual Color Discrimination - Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
- Sound Localization - Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
- Static Strength - Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
- Gross Body Coordination - Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
- Visualization - Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
- Glare Sensitivity - Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
- Oral Expression - Communicating by speaking.
- Manual Dexterity - Holding or moving items with your hands.
- Problem Sensitivity - Noticing when problems happen.
Average Education Attained
Highest level of education earned by people in this career.
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Content sourced from United States Department of Labor Employment and Training Administration ("DOLETA") and the Minnesota Department of Employment & Economic Development ("DEED")