Nature of the Work

When new employees begin work at most large organizations, they are greeted and briefed by personnel clerks. These clerks may explain the company's various employee benefits and pay rates, review rules and regulations, administer an oath of office, and see that the new employees report to their duty station.

Personnel clerks maintain the personnel records of the organization's employees. These records include information such as name, address, job title, earnings, benefits such as health and life insurance, and tax withholding. On a daily basis, they record and answer questions about employees' absences and supervisory reports on job performance. When an employee receives a promotion or switches health insurance plans, the personnel clerk updates the appropriate form. A personnel clerk may also prepare a report for a manager elsewhere in the organization. Compiling a list of employees eligible for an award is one example.

Some personnel clerks in smaller organizations perform reception as well as other clerical duties. They answer telephone or letter inquiries from the public, send out announcements of job openings or job examinations, and issue application forms. When credit bureaus and finance companies request confirmation of a person's employment, the personnel clerk provides authorized information from the employee's personnel records. Payroll departments and insurance companies may also be contacted to verify changes to records.

Some personnel clerks are also involved in hiring. As part of their job, they may screen job applicants to obtain information such as education and work experience; administer aptitude, personality, and interest tests; explain the organization's employment policies and refer qualified applicants to the employing official; and request references from present or past employers. Personnel clerks inform job applicants, by telephone or letter, of their acceptance or rejection for employment.

Other personnel clerks are known as assignment clerks. Their role is to notify a firm's existing employees of position vacancies and to identify and assign qualified applicants. They keep track of vacancies throughout the organization and complete and distribute vacancy advertisement forms. The clerks review applications in response to the advertisement and verify the information using personnel records. After the selection is made, they notify all the applicants of their acceptance or rejection.

Personnel clerks ensure that employees' records are complete and current.

In some job settings, personnel clerks have more specific job titles. In temporary help agencies, for example, referral clerks handle calls from businesses or other organizations requesting temporary workers. After recording information regarding the job requirements, they locate registered workers who meet the requirements and are available for the scheduled work shift. The clerks then inform the selected workers of the available job. Some referral clerks specialize in referring specific types of workers, such as nurses.

Identification clerks are responsible for security matters at defense installations. They compile and record personal data about vendors, contractors, and civilian and military personnel and their dependents. Their job duties include interviewing applicants, corresponding with law enforcement authorities, and preparing badges, passes, and identification cards.

Employment

Personnel clerks held about 128,000 jobs in 1992. Although these workers are found in most industries, 1 of every 4 works for a government agency. Colleges and universities, hospitals, department stores, and banks also employ large numbers of personnel clerks.

Job Outlook

Replacement needs will account for most job openings for personnel clerks through the year 2005. Jobs will open up as clerks advance within the personnel department, take a job unrelated to personnel administration, or leave the labor force.

Employment of personnel clerks is expected to grow about as fast as the average for all occupations through the year 2005. Contributing to the demand for personnel clerks is the increased workload associated with a growing work force and changing personnel practices brought about by changes in tax and immigration laws, the growing popularity of flexible benefit plans, and the growth of legislatively mandated benefits.

Despite increased workloads, automation of personnel departments will increase the productivity of personnel clerks and moderate their employment growth. The growing use of computers and electronic data interchange (EDI) in personnel or human resource departments means that a lot of data entry work done by personnel clerks can be eliminated as employees themselves enter the data and send it to the personnel office. This is most feasible in large organizations with multiple personnel offices. In addition, as professionals in personnel offices increasingly use computers and other automated office equipment, there could be less work for personnel clerks.

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