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- 85
- Stock Clerks
-
- (D.O.T. 219.367-018, .387-026 and -030; 221.587-018 and -022;
- 222.167-010, .367-014, -026, -038, -042, -050, and -062, .387-018,
- -026, -030, -034, -042, -058, and -062, .487 -010 and -014, .587-022
- and -054, .684-010, .687-038 and -046; 229.367-010 and -014,
- .587-014; 249.367-058; 299.367- 014, .677-014; 339.687-010;
- 381.687-010; and 969.367-010)
-
- Nature of the Work
-
- Stock clerks receive, unpack, check, store, and keep track of
- merchandise or materials. They keep records of items entering or
- leaving the stock room and report damaged or spoiled goods. They
- organize and, when necessary, mark items with identifying codes or
- prices so that inventories can be located quickly and easily. In
- many firms, stock clerks use hand-held scanners connected to
- computers to keep inventories up to date. In stores, stock clerks
- may bring merchandise to the sales floor and stock shelves and
- racks. In stockrooms and warehouses, they store materials in bins,
- on the floor, or on shelves. In large establishments where they may
- be responsible for only one specific task, they may be known as
- inventory clerk, stock control clerk, merchandise distributor, order
- filler, property custodian, or storekeeper. In small firms they may
- also be responsible for tasks usually handled by shipping and
- receiving clerks.
-
- Stock clerks count all goods entering and leaving the warehouse to
- keep inventory records current.
-
- Employment
-
- Stock clerks held almost 2 million jobs in 1992 with almost 80
- percent working in wholesale or retail trade. The greatest numbers
- were employed by department and grocery stores. Jobs for stock
- clerks are found in all parts of the country, but most work in urban
- areas where stores, warehouses, and factories are concentrated.
-
- Job Outlook
-
- Job prospects for stock clerks should be favorable even though
- employment is expected to grow more slowly than the average for all
- occupations through the year 2005. This occupation is very large,
- and many job openings will occur each year to replace stock clerks
- who transfer to other jobs or leave the labor force. Many jobs are
- entry level, and therefore many vacancies are created by normal
- career progression.
-
- Growing use of computers for inventory control and new automated
- equipment are expected to slow growth in demand for stock clerks.
- This is especially true in manufacturing and in wholesale trade, the
- industries whose operations are most easily automated. In addition
- to computerized inventory control systems, firms in these industries
- are expected to rely more and more on sophisticated conveyor belts,
- automatic high stackers to store and retrieve goods, and automatic
- guided vehicles, which are battery powered and driverless.
-
- Employment of stock clerks who work in grocery, general merchandise,
- department, apparel, and accessories stores is expected to be
- somewhat less affected by automation since much of their work is
- done manually on the sales floor and is difficult to automate.
-
- Related Occupations
-
- Other workers who also handle, move, organize, and store materials
- include shipping and receiving clerks, distributing clerks, routing
- clerks, stock supervisors, and cargo checkers.
-
- Sources of Additional Information
-
- State employment service offices can provide information about job
- openings for stock clerks. Also, see clerical and sales occupations
- elsewhere in the Handbook for sources of additional information.
-
- General information about stock clerks can be obtained by
- contacting:
-
- National Retail Federation, 701 Pennsylvania Ave. NW., Washington,
- DC 20004-2608.
-
- (Information on training and earnings is in the introduction to
- material recording, scheduling, dispatching, and distributing
- occupations.)
-