Office Clerks, General
Also called: Administration Clerk, Administrative Clerk (Admin Clerk), Administrative Support Specialist, Administrative Technician (Admin Tech), Agent-Licensing Clerk, Animal Hospital Clerk, Animal Shelter Clerk, Attendance Clerk
Perform duties too varied and diverse to be classified in any specific office clerical occupation, requiring knowledge of office systems and procedures.
What office clerks, general do
Typical tasks
- Operate office machines, such as photocopiers and scanners, facsimile machines, voice mail systems, and personal computers.
- Answer telephones, direct calls, and take messages.
- Communicate with customers, employees, and other individuals to answer questions, disseminate or explain information, take orders, and address complaints.
- Maintain and update filing, inventory, mailing, and database systems, either manually or using a computer.
- Compile, copy, sort, and file records of office activities, business transactions, and other activities.
- Review files, records, and other documents to obtain information to respond to requests.
- Open, sort, and route incoming mail, answer correspondence, and prepare outgoing mail.
- Compute, record, and proofread data and other information, such as records or reports.
- Complete work schedules, manage calendars, and arrange appointments.
- Type, format, proofread, and edit correspondence and other documents, from notes or dictating machines, using computers or typewriters.
- Inventory and order materials, supplies, and services.
- Deliver messages and run errands.
Typical path into the job (BLS)
Office Clerks, General salary
The median annual wage for office clerks, general is $45,010 (BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025–35, national). The lowest 10 percent earn less than $30,310 and the highest 10 percent earn more than $64,680. The mean annual wage is $46,420.
The mean hourly wage of $22.00 is 3.0× the federal minimum wage of $7.25. State minimums are higher in most large states. Minimum wage by state →
How does your pay compare with people your age?
Your numbers are not sent or stored. The comparison uses this occupation's BLS wage percentiles, adjusted for age with BLS median weekly earnings by age group (Q3 2026).
Pay by percentile
Annual wage percentiles from the BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). Percentiles are a good proxy for pay by experience.
Projected pay for Office Clerks, General (3, 5 and 10 years)est.
Today $45,010 → in 3 years $47,100 → in 5 years $48,500 → in 10 years $52,300 (10-year range $45,000–$60,700). The model assumes pay growth of +1.5% per year.
What drives the annual growth rate
Projected pay = current pay × (1 + annual growth)^years. The annual growth rate starts from a base wage-growth rate and adds or subtracts labor demand (BLS projected employment growth), wage momentum and AI replacement risk for each occupation. Projections are not guarantees. How it is calculated →
Outlook score for Office Clerks, General
Each component is a percentile rank among all occupations in the same country (0–100). Weights: labor demand 25, wage momentum / openings 15, pay level 15, AI resistance 25, aging workforce 10 (Japan only), entry barrier 10.
Will AI replace Office Clerks, General? AI replacement risk
How AI is changing this job
A written analysis for this occupation is being prepared.
AI replacement risk compares the parts of a job that are easy to hand to AI or software (processing information, documentation, repetitive computer work) with the parts that are hard to automate (physical work, working closely with people, judgment in unpredictable settings), using O*NET work activities, work context, skills and knowledge. The result is a relative position among all occupations in the country, scaled to 0–100%. Methodology →
Labor demand for Office Clerks, General
Employment projections are from the BLS Employment Projections program (2025–35). Annual openings include both new jobs and replacement of workers who leave the occupation.
The same job in Japan
| Office Clerks, General United States | 一般事務 Japan | 営業事務 Japan | 総務事務 Japan | 学校事務 Japan | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Median / average pay | $45,010 | ¥5.41M ≈ $34,429 | ¥5.25M ≈ $33,395 | ¥5.25M ≈ $33,400 | ¥5.29M ≈ $33,620 |
| Pay in 10 years (est.) | $52,300 | ¥5.94M | ¥5.88M | ¥5.84M | ¥6.31M |
| Outlook score | 24 | 38 | 34 | 40 | 41 |
| AI replacement risk | 83% Very high | 87% Very high | 82% Very high | 83% Very high | 59% Moderate |
| Workers | 2.5M | — | — | — | — |
Matched by occupation (SOC code). Yen converted at 157.25 JPY/USD for reference; Japanese figures are averages, U.S. figures are medians, and the surveys define occupations differently.
Skills, education and requirements for Office Clerks, General
Key skills
O*NET skill level ratings (0–7).
Key knowledge areas
What the work involves
Important abilities
Education of workers
Training before entry
Related work experience
Job Zone 2 — some preparation needed (O*NET)
Difficulty of entry: ★★☆☆☆ Fairly easy (from education, training, experience and Job Zone)
How to become office clerks, general
A step-by-step guide for this occupation is being prepared. The education, training and experience data above show the typical path.
Career path and how to earn more as office clerks, general
Career-path guidance is being prepared. Pay by percentile is shown in the Pay section.