Mail clerks and messengers move and distribute information, documents, and small packages for businesses, institutions, and government agencies. Mail clerks handle the internal mail for most large organizations. Internal mail goes back and forth among people, offices, or departments within a firm or institution. It ranges from memos to key personnel to bulletins on job issues to all employees. Mail clerks sort internal mail and deliver it to their fellow employees, often using carts to carry the mail.

Mail clerks also handle external mail, serving as a link between the U.S. Postal Service and individual offices and workers. They sort incoming mail and deliver mail within large office buildings. They also prepare outgoing mail-which may range from advertising flyers, to customers' orders, to legal documents-for delivery to the post office. To facilitate delivery of outgoing mail, mail clerks often determine if the mail is to be sent registered, certified, special delivery, or first, second, third, or fourth class, and may group mailings by ZIP code. When necessary, they contact delivery services to send important letters or parcels. In larger organizations, or organizations with a large volume of outgoing mail, mail clerks operate machines

that collate, fold, and insert material to be mailed into envelopes. They also operate machines that affix postage. In addition, mail clerks increasingly use computers to keep records of incoming and outgoing items.

Messengers, also called couriers, pick up and deliver letters, important business documents, or packages, which need to be sent or received in a hurry from within a local area. By sending an item by messenger, the sender ensures that it reaches its destination the same day or even within the hour. Messengers also deliver items, which the sender is unwilling to entrust to other means of delivery, such as important legal or financial documents. Some messengers pick up and deliver important packages, such as medical samples to be tested.

Messengers receive their instructions either by reporting to their office in person, by telephone, or by two-way radio. They then pick up the item and carry it to its destination. After a delivery, they check with their office and receive instructions about the next delivery. Consequently, most messengers spend much of their time outdoors or in their vehicle. Messengers usually maintain records of deliveries and often obtain signatures from the persons receiving the items.

Most messengers deliver items within a limited geographic area, such as a city or metropolitan area. Items, which need to go longer distances, usually are sent by mail or by an overnight delivery service. Some messengers carry items only for their employer, which typically might be a law firm, bank, or financial institution. Other messengers may act as part of an organization's internal mail system and mainly carry items between an organization's buildings or entirely within one building. Many messengers work for messenger or courier services; for a fee they pick up items from anyone and deliver them to specified destinations within a local area.

Messengers reach their destination by several methods. Many drive vans or cars or ride motorcycles. A few travel by foot, especially in urban areas or when making deliveries nearby. In congested urban areas, messengers often use bicycles to make deliveries. Bicycle messengers usually are employed by messenger or courier services. Although fax machines and computerized electronic mail can deliver information faster than messengers, an electronic copy cannot substitute for the original document for many types of business transactions.

feet, which can be tiring and physically demanding. They are sometimes required to lift heavy objects or operate a motor vehicle to make deliveries and pick-ups.

Messengers work in a less structured environment than mail clerks because they spend most of their time alone making deliveries and usually are not closely supervised. Although many messengers work full time during regular business hours, some messengers work nights and weekends.

Messengers, who deliver by bicycle, must be physically fit and are exposed to all weather conditions as well as the many hazards connected with heavy traffic. The pressure of making as many deliveries as possible to increase earnings can be stressful and may lead to unsafe driving or bicycling practices.

Employment

Mail clerks and messengers together held about 247,000 jobs in 1998; about 120,000 were messengers and about 128,000 were mail clerks.

About 14 percent of messengers worked for law firms, another 13 percent worked for hospitals and medical and dental laboratories, and 13 percent for local and long distance trucking establishments. Financial institutions, such as commercial banks, saving institutions, and credit unions, employed 7 percent. The rest were employed in a variety of other industries. Technically, many messengers are self-employed independent contractors because they provide their vehicles and, to a certain extent, set their own schedules, but in many respects they are like employees because they usually work for one company. Almost 1 of every 3 worked part time.

In 1998, about 12 percent of all mail clerks worked in Federal, State, and local governments, and both the insurance industry and personnel supply services industry employed 27 percent. Others were employed in a wide range of industries.

Training, Other Qualifications, and Advancement

There are no formal qualifications or training required to be a mail clerk or messenger, although some employers prefer high school graduates. This is a first job for many.

Mail clerks must be careful and dependable workers. They must be able to do routine work and work well with their hands. They are usually trained on the job. If they operate computers and mail-handling machinery to help prepare mailings, training may be provided by another employee or by a representative of the machinery manufacturer. Mail clerks are sometimes required to have a driver's license if they make deliveries to other buildings.

Messengers who work as independent contractors for a messenger or delivery service may be required to have a valid driver's license, a registered and inspected vehicle, a good driving record, and insurance coverage. Many messengers who are employees, rather than independent contractors, are also required to provide and maintain their own vehicle. A good knowledge of the geographic area in which they travel, as well as a good sense of direction, are also important.

Some mail clerks, depending on the size of the operation, advance to positions as clerical staff supervisors or office managers. Other mail clerks transfer to related jobs with the U.S. Postal Service, if they pass the competitive entrance examination. (The statement on postal clerks and mail carriers appears elsewhere in the Handbook.) Messengers, especially those who work for messenger or courier services, have limited advancement opportunities.

Job Outlook

Favorable employment opportunities are expected for mail clerks and messengers due to the need to replace the large number of workers who leave the occupation each year. Mail clerk and messenger jobs are attractive to many persons seeking their first job or a short-term source of income because the limited formal education and training requirements allow easy entry. This is especially true for messengers, many of whom work in this occupation a relatively short time.

Employment of mail clerks and messengers is expected to grow more slowly than average through 2008 despite an increasing volume

of internal mail, parcels, business documents, promotional materials, and other written information that must be handled and delivered as the economy expands. Businesses' growing reliance on direct mail advertising and promotional materials to prospective customers will result in increasing amounts of mail to be handled. However, increasing automation of mail handling will enable mail clerks to handle a growing volume of mail.

Employment of messengers will continue to be adversely impacted by the more widespread use of electronic information-handling technology. For example, fax machines that allow copies of documents to be immediately sent across town or around the world have become standard office equipment. The transmission of information using electronic mail has also become commonplace and will continue to reduce the demand for messengers as more computers are networked or gain access to the Internet. However, messengers will still be needed to transport materials that cannot be sent electronically-such as legal documents, blueprints and other over-sized materials, large multipage documents, and securities. Also, messengers will still be required by medical and dental laboratories to pick up and deliver medical samples, specimens, and other materials.

Messengers are compensated by salary, commission, or a combination of both. The commission usually is based on the fee charged to the customer and is usually considerably higher for those who strictly work by commission than for those messengers whose earnings are based on a combination of salary and commission. Other factors like the number of deliveries made and the distance traveled may also be taken into consideration when determining earnings. The more deliveries they make and the faster they travel, the more they earn. Some messengers work as independent contractors and therefore seldom receive paid vacations, sick leave, health insurance, or other typical benefits from the messenger or delivery company. They must provide their own transportation and must pay fuel and maintenance costs. Messengers working for employers other than messenger and courier services usually are paid by the hour and receive the benefits offered to all employees.

Related Occupations

Messengers and mail clerks sort and deliver letters, parcels, and other items. They also keep accurate records of their work. Others who do

similar work are postal clerks and mail carriers; route drivers; traffic, shipping, and receiving clerks; and parcel post clerks.

Sources of Additional Information

Information about job opportunities may be obtained from local employers and local offices of the State employment service. Persons. interested in mail clerk and messenger jobs may also contact messenger and courier services, mail order firms, banks, printing and publishing firms, utility companies, retail stores, or other large firms.

For information on training and certification programs in mail systems management, contact:

Mail Systems Management Association, J.A.F. Building, P.O. Box 2155, New York, NY 10116-2155. Internet: http://www.msma.com

Material Recording, Scheduling, Dispatching, and Distributing Occupations

Significant Points

Slower than average job growth is expected as additional automation increases worker productivity.

• Many of these occupations are entry level and do not require more than a high school diploma.

Nature of the Work

Workers in this group are responsible for a variety of communications, recordkeeping, and scheduling operations. Typically, they coordinate, expedite, and track orders for personnel, materials, and equipment.

Dispatchers receive requests for service and initiate action to provide that service. Duties vary, depending on the needs of the employer. Police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers, also called public safety dispatchers, handle calls from people reporting crimes, fires, and medical emergencies. Truck, bus, and train dispatchers schedule and coordinate the movement of these vehicles to ensure they arrive on schedule. Taxicab dispatchers relay requests for cabs to individual drivers, tow truck dispatchers take calls for emergency road service, and utility company dispatchers handle calls related to utility and telephone service.

Shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks track all incoming and outgoing shipments of goods transferred between businesses, suppliers, and customers. These clerks may be required to lift cartons of various sizes. Shipping clerks assemble, address, stamp, and ship merchandise or materials. Receiving clerks unpack, verify, and record incoming merchandise. In a small company, one clerk may perform all of these tasks. Traffic clerks record destination, weight, and charge of all incoming and outgoing shipments.

Stock clerks receive, unpack, and store materials and equipment, and maintain and distribute inventories. Inventories may be merchandise in wholesale and retail establishments, or equipment, supplies, or materials in other kinds of organizations. In small firms, stock clerks may perform all of the above tasks, as well as those usually handled by shipping and receiving clerks. In large establishments, they may be responsible only for one task.

(This introductory statement is followed by statements that provide more detail on dispatchers; shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks; and stock clerks.)

Other administrative support occupations in this group include production, planning, and expediting clerks—who coordinate and expedite the flow of work and material according to production schedules; procurement clerks-who draw up purchase orders to obtain merchandise or material; weighers, measurers, checkers, and samplers-who weigh, measure, and check materials; and utility meter readers-who read electric, gas, water, or steam meters and record the quantity used.

Working Conditions

Working conditions vary considerably by occupation and employment setting. Meter readers, for example, spend a good portion of their workday traveling around communities and neighborhoods taking readings, either directly or with remote reading equipment. The work of dispatchers can be very hectic when many calls come in at the same time. The job of public safety dispatcher is particularly stressful, because slow or improper response to a call can result in serious injury or further harm. Also, callers who are anxious or afraid may become excited and be unable to provide needed information; some may become abusive. Despite provocations, dispatchers must remain calm, objective, and in control of the situation.

Dispatchers sit for long periods, using telephones, computers, and two-way radios. Much of their time is spent at video display terminals, viewing monitors and observing traffic patterns. As a result of working for long stretches with computers and other electronic equipment, dispatchers can experience significant eyestrain and back discomfort. Generally, dispatchers work a 40-hour week; however, rotating shifts and compressed work schedules are common. Alternative work schedules are necessary to accommodate evening, weekend, and holiday work, as well as 24-hours-per-day, seven-days-per-week operations.

Shipping, receiving, traffic, and stock clerks work in a wide variety of businesses, institutions, and industries. Some work in warehouses, stock rooms, or in shipping and receiving rooms that may not be temperature controlled. Others may spend time in cold storage rooms or outside on loading platforms, where they are exposed to the weather. Most jobs involve frequent standing, bending, walking, and stretching. Some lifting and carrying of smaller items may also be involved. Although automation, robotics, and pneumatic devices have lessened the physical demands in this occupation, their use remains somewhat limited. Work still can be strenuous, even though mechanical material handling equipment is employed to move heavy items. The typical workweek is Monday through Friday; however, evening and weekend hours are standard for some jobs, such as stock clerks who work in retail trade, and may be required in others when large shipments are involved or when inventory is taken.

skills are essential. Typing, filing, recordkeeping, and other clerical skills are also important.

State or local government civil service regulations usually govern police, fire, emergency medical, and ambulance dispatching jobs. Candidates for these positions may have to pass written, oral, and performance tests. Also, they may be asked to attend training classes and attain the proper certification in order to qualify for advancement.

Trainees usually develop the necessary skills on the job. This informal training lasts from several days to a few months, depending on the complexity of the job. Dispatchers usually require the most extensive training. Working with an experienced dispatcher, they monitor calls and learn how to operate a variety of communications equipment, including telephones, radios, and wireless appliances. As trainees gain confidence, they begin to handle calls themselves. Many public safety dispatchers also participate in structured training programs sponsored by their employer. Some employers offer a course designed by the Association of Public Safety Communications Officials. This course covers topics such as interpersonal communications; overview of the police, fire, and rescue functions; modern public safety telecommunications systems; basic radio broadcasting; local, State, and national crime information computer systems; and telephone complaint/report processing procedures. Other employers develop in-house programs based on their own needs. Emergency medical dispatchers often receive special training or have special skills. Increasingly, public safety dispatchers receive training in stress and crisis management, as well as family counseling. Employers are recognizing the toll this work has on daily living and the potential impact stress has on the job, on the work environment, and in the home.

Communications skills and the ability to work under pressure are important personal qualities for dispatchers. Residency in the city or county of employment frequently is required for public safety dispatchers. Dispatchers in transportation industries must be able to deal with sudden influxes of shipments and disruptions of shipping schedules caused by bad weather, road construction, or accidents.

Although there are no mandatory licensing or certification requirements, some States require that public safety dispatchers possess a certificate to work on a State network, such as the Police Information Network. The Association of Public Safety Communications Officials, the National Academy of Emergency Medical Dispatch, and the International Municipal Signal Association all offer certification programs. Many dispatchers participate in these programs in order to improve their prospects for career advancement.

Stock clerks and shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks usually learn the job by doing routine tasks under close supervision. They learn how to count and mark stock, and then start keeping records and taking inventory. Strength, stamina, good eyesight, and an ability to work at repetitive tasks, sometimes under pressure, are important characteristics. Stock clerks, whose sole responsibility is to bring merchandise to the sales floor, stock shelves and racks, need little or no training. Shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks and stock clerks who handle jewelry, liquor, or drugs may be bonded.

Shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks start out by checking items to be shipped and then attaching labels and making sure the addresses are correct. Training in the use of automated equipment is usually done informally, on the job. As these occupations become more automated, however, workers in these jobs may need longer training in order to master the use of the equipment.

Advancement opportunities for material recording, scheduling, dispatching, and distributing workers vary with the place of employment. Dispatchers who work for private firms, which are usually small, will find few opportunities for advancement. Public safety dispatchers, on the other hand, may become a shift or divisional supervisor or chief of communications, or move to higher paying administrative jobs. Some go on to become police officers or firefighters. In large firms, stock clerks can advance to invoice clerk, stock control clerk, or procurement clerk. Shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks are premoted to head clerk and those with a broad understanding of shipping

and receiving may enter a related field such as industrial traffic management. With additional training, some stock clerks and shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks advance to jobs as warehouse manager or purchasing agent.

Job Outlook

Overall employment of material recording, scheduling, dispatching, and distributing workers is expected to grow more slowly than the average for all occupations through 2008. However, projected employment growth varies by detailed occupation. Employment of stock clerks, for example, will be affected by increased automation. New technologies will enable clerks to handle more stock, thus holding down employment growth. The effect of automation also will tend to restrict potential employment growth among shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks. Automation in warehouses and stockrooms plus other productivity improvements will enable these clerks to handle materials more efficiently and more accurately than before. Overall employment of dispatchers, on the other hand, is projected to grow about as fast as the average for all occupations. While employment of public safety dispatchers is expected to grow more slowly than average as governments endeavor to combine dispatching services across governmental units and across governmental jurisdictions, average growth is expected among dispatchers not involved in public safety.

Because employment in material recording, scheduling, dispatching, and distributing occupations is substantial, workers who leave the labor force or transfer to other occupations are expected to create many job openings each year.

The work of dispatchers varies greatly depending on the industry. Dispatchers keep records, logs, and schedules of the calls they receive, transportation vehicles they monitor and control, and actions they take. They maintain information on each call and then prepare a detailed report on all activities occurring during the shift. Many dispatchers employ computer-aided dispatch systems to accomplish these tasks.

Regardless of where they work, all dispatchers are assigned a specific territory and have responsibility for all communications within this area. Many work in teams, especially in large communications centers or companies. One person usually handles all dispatching calls to the response units or company's drivers, while the other members of the team usually receive the incoming calls and deal with the public.

Police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers, also called public safety dispatchers, monitor the location of emergency services personnel from any one or all of the jurisdiction's emergency services departments. They dispatch the appropriate type and number of units in response to calls for assistance. Dispatchers, or call takers, often are the first people the public contacts when they call for emergency assistance. If certified for emergency medical services, the dispatcher may provide medical instruction to those on the scene until the medical staff arrives.

Usually, dispatchers constitute the communications workforce on a shift. A dispatcher is responsible for communication within an assignment area, while the call takers receive calls and transfer information to the dispatchers. During the course of the shift, personnel will rotate such that the assignment responsibility of the dispatcher will be shared with those in the call taker role.

Police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers work in a variety of settings; they may work in a police station, a fire station, a hospital, or à centralized city communications center. In many cities, the police department serves as the communications center. In these situations, all 911 emergency calls go to the police department, where a dispatcher handles the police calls and screens the others before transferring them to the appropriate service.

When handling calls, dispatchers carefully question each caller to determine the type, seriousness, and location of the emergency. This information is posted either electronically by computer or, with decreasing frequency, by hand, and communicated immediately to uniformed or supervisory personnel. They quickly decide on the priority of the incident, the kind and number of units needed, and the location of the closest and most suitable ones available. Typically, there is a team of call takers who answer calls and relay the information to the dispatchers. Responsibility then shifts to the dispatchers who send response units to the scene and monitor the activity of the public safety personnel answering the dispatch.

When appropriate, dispatchers stay in close contact with other service providers-for example, a police dispatcher would monitor the response of the fire department when there is a major fire. In a medical emergency, dispatchers not only keep in close touch with the dispatched units, but also with the caller. They may give extensive pre-arrival first aid instructions while the caller is waiting for the ambulance. They continuously give updates on the patient's condition to the ambulance personnel, and often serve as a link between the medical staff in a hospital and the emergency medical technicians in the ambulance. (A separate statement on emergency medical technicians and paramedics appears elsewhere in the Handbook.)

Other dispatchers coordinate deliveries, service calls, and related activities for a variety of firms. Truck dispatchers, who work for local and long distance trucking companies, coordinate the movement of trucks and freight between cities. They direct the pickup and delivery activities of drivers. They receive customers' requests for pickup and delivery of freight; consolidate freight orders into truckloads for specific destinations; assign drivers and trucks; and draw up routes and pickup and delivery schedules. Bus dispatchers make sure local and long distance buses stay on schedule. They handle all problems that may disrupt service and dispatch other buses, or arrange for repairs to restore service and schedules. Train dispatchers ensure the timely and efficient movement of trains according to train orders and schedules. They must be aware of track switch positions, track maintenance areas, and the location of other trains running on the track. Taxicab dispatchers, or starters, dispatch taxis in response to requests for service and keep logs on all road service calls. Tow truck dispatchers take calls for emergency road service. They relay the problem to a nearby service station or a tow truck service and see to it that the emergency road service is completed. Gas and water service dispatchers monitor gas lines and water mains and send out service trucks and crews to take care of emergencies.

Employment

Dispatchers held 248,000 jobs in 1998. About one-third were police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers, almost all of whom worked for State and local governments-primarily for local police and fire departments. Most of the remaining dispatchers worked for local and long distance trucking companies and bus lines; telephone, electric, and gas utility companies; wholesale and retail establishments; railroads; and companies providing business services.

Although dispatching jobs are found throughout the country, most dispatchers work in urban areas where large communications centers and businesses are located.

Job Outlook

Overall employment of dispatchers is expected to grow about as fast as the average for all occupations through 2008. In addition to job growth, job openings will result from the need to replace those who transfer to other occupations or leave the labor force.

Employment of police, fire, and ambulance dispatchers is expected to grow more slowly than the average for all occupations. Intense competition for available resources among governmental units should limit the ability of many growing communities to keep pace with rapidly growing emergency services needs. To balance the increased demand for emergency services, many districts are seeking to consolidate their communications centers into a shared, areawide facility, thus further restricting opportunities in this industry. Individuals with computer skills and experience will have a greater opportunity for employment as public safety dispatchers.

Population growth and economic expansion are expected to lead to average employment growth for dispatchers not involved in public safety. Although the overall increase will be about average, not all specialties will be affected in the same way. For example, employment of taxicab, train, and truck dispatchers is sensitive to economic conditions. When economic activity falls, demand for transportation services declines. They may experience layoffs or a shortened workweek, and jobseekers may have some difficulty finding entry-level jobs. Employment of tow truck dispatchers, on the other hand, is seldom affected by general economic conditions because of the emergency nature of their business.

Related Occupations

Other occupations that involve directing and controlling the movement of vehicles, freight, and personnel, as well as information and message distribution, are airline dispatchers, air traffic controllers, radio and television transmitter operators, telephone operators, customer service representatives, and transportation agents.