Contract clerk vs payroll clerk

The differences between contract clerks and payroll clerks can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a contract clerk, becoming a payroll clerk takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a payroll clerk has an average salary of $41,602, which is higher than the $38,001 average annual salary of a contract clerk.

The top three skills for a contract clerk include DMV, data entry and vehicle sales. The most important skills for a payroll clerk are data entry, payroll system, and photocopying.

Contract clerk vs payroll clerk overview

	Contract Clerk	Payroll Clerk
Yearly salary	$38,001	$41,602
Hourly rate	$18.27	$20.00
Growth rate	-5%	-3%
Number of jobs	74,379	71,944
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 45%	Bachelor's Degree, 34%
Average age	47	48
Years of experience	2	4

Contract clerk vs payroll clerk salary

Contract clerks and payroll clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Contract Clerk	Payroll Clerk
Average salary	$38,001	$41,602
Salary range	Between $29,000 And $48,000	Between $31,000 And $55,000
Highest paying City	-	Boston, MA
Highest paying state	-	Connecticut
Best paying company	-	MDU Resources
Best paying industry	-	Government

Differences between contract clerk and payroll clerk education

There are a few differences between a contract clerk and a payroll clerk in terms of educational background:

	Contract Clerk	Payroll Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 45%	Bachelor's Degree, 34%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	University of Pennsylvania	University of Pennsylvania

Contract clerk vs payroll clerk demographics

Here are the differences between contract clerks' and payroll clerks' demographics:

	Contract Clerk	Payroll Clerk
Average age	47	48
Gender ratio	Male, 21.4% Female, 78.6%	Male, 12.4% Female, 87.6%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 24.1% Asian, 8.3% White, 53.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.9%	Black or African American, 10.2% Unknown, 6.1% Hispanic or Latino, 18.2% Asian, 6.0% White, 58.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.5%
LGBT Percentage	6%	10%

Differences between contract clerk and payroll clerk duties and responsibilities

Contract clerk example responsibilities.

Demonstrate strong math skills in managing inmate s accounts and calmly and effectively deescalating outbursts of belligerent inmates.
Process paperwork for car deals and prepare DMV paperwork for new purchase and trade ins.
Fax and/or mail hard copy of application to participating HMO's.
Communicate with finance institutions and report sales to DMV, and registration of vehicles.
Enter salesman commission into general system and post to payroll ledger bi-monthly.
Maintain patient medications in a secure environment inventory and record all incoming medications to maintain patient confidentiality per HIPPA requirements.

Payroll clerk example responsibilities.

Manage all worker compensation and cobra benefit issues and filings.
Manage employee drug and background screenings, train new hires and verify I9 information.
Process payroll; assist in establishing new time and attendance (KRONOS) computer system; balance insurance billings.
View, key, post and monitor time and labor, absences and leave balances in PeopleSoft HRIS system.
Compile data and enter information into ADP payroll processing system.
Process payroll and transmit electronically to outside computer service for preparation of payroll checks and reports.

Contract clerk vs payroll clerk skills

Common contract clerk skills

DMV, 21%
Data Entry, 12%
Vehicle Sales, 10%
Payoff Checks, 5%
Payroll, 5%
Financial Institutions, 4%

Common payroll clerk skills

Data Entry, 19%
Payroll System, 10%
Photocopying, 7%
Excellent Organizational, 6%
Customer Service, 6%
ADP, 5%