Occupation Profile for File Clerks
File correspondence, cards, invoices, receipts, and other records in alphabetical or numerical order or according to the filing system used. Locate and remove material from file when requested.
Signficant Points
- About 1 out of 4 file clerks work part time.
- A high school diploma or its equivalent is the most common educational requirement.
- Employment is expected to decline through the year 2016.
Overview
| $22,090.00 | Median Annual Wage | 6,000 | Average Job Openings Per Year |
| 5.5 | Average Unemployment Percentage | 36.4 | Percentage That Completed High School |
| 234,000 | Employment Numbers in 2006 | 43.3 | Percentage That Had Some College |
| 137,000 | Employment Numbers in 2016 (est.) | 20.3 | Percentage That Went Beyond College Degree |
Sample Job Titles
Training
- These occupations usually involve using communication and organizational skills to coordinate, supervise, manage, or train others to accomplish goals. Examples include funeral directors, electricians, forest and conservation technicians, legal secretaries, interviewers, and insurance sales agents.
- Most occupations in this zone require training in vocational schools, related on-the-job experience, or an associate's degree. Some may require a bachelor's degree.
- Previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is required for these occupations. For example, an electrician must have completed three or four years of apprenticeship or several years of vocational training, and often must have passed a licensing exam, in order to perform the job.
- Employees in these occupations usually need one or two years of training involving both on-the-job experience and informal training with experienced workers.
File clerks must be alert, accurate, and able to work with others. Most train on the job.
Education and training. Most employers prefer applicants with a high school diploma or a GED or a mix of education and related experience. Most new employees are trained on the job under close supervision of more experienced employees.
Other qualifications. File clerks must be able to work with others since part of the job is helping fellow workers. Clerks must be alert, accurate, and attentive while performing repetitive tasks. Willingness to do routine and detailed work is also important. Proficiency with desktop computer software is becoming increasingly important as more files are being stored electronically.
Advancement. File clerks can advance to more senior clerical office positions such as receptionist or bookkeeping clerk.
Nature of Work
The amount of information generated by organizations continues to grow rapidly. File clerks classify, store, retrieve, and update this information. In many small offices, they often have additional responsibilities, such as entering data, performing word processing, sorting mail, and operating copying or fax machines.
File clerks, also called record, information, or record center clerks, examine incoming material and code it numerically, alphabetically, or by subject matter. Paper forms, letters, receipts, or reports are stored in files while necessary information may be entered, often electronically, into other storage devices. Some clerks operate mechanized files that rotate to bring the needed records to them; others convert documents to film that is then stored on microfilm or microfiche. A growing number of file clerks use imaging systems that scan paper files or film and store the material on computers.
In order for records to be useful, they must be up to date and accurate and readily available. File clerks ensure that new information is added to files in a timely manner and discard outdated materials or transfer them to inactive storage. Clerks also check files at regular intervals to make sure that all items are correctly sequenced and placed. When records cannot be found, file clerks attempt to locate them. As an organization’s needs for information change, file clerks implement changes to the filing system.
When records are requested, file clerks locate them and give them to the person requesting them. A record may be a sheet of paper stored in a file cabinet or an image on microform. In the former case, the clerk retrieves the document manually. In the latter case, the clerk retrieves the microform and displays it on a microform reader. If necessary, file clerks make copies of records and distribute them. In addition, they keep track of materials removed from the files to ensure that borrowed files are returned.
Increasingly, file clerks use computerized filing and retrieval systems that have a variety of storage devices, such as a mainframe computer, CD-ROM, or DVD-ROM. To retrieve a document in these systems, the clerk enters the document’s identification code, obtains the location of the document, and gets the document. Accessing files in a computer database is much quicker than locating and physically retrieving paper files. Still, even when files are stored electronically, backup paper or electronic copies usually are also kept.
Work environment. File clerks usually work in areas that are clean, well lit, and relatively quiet. The work is not overly strenuous but may involve a lot of standing, walking, reaching, pulling, and bending, depending on the method used to retrieve files. Prolonged exposure to computer screens may lead to eyestrain for the many file clerks who work with computers.
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