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The differences between office clerical assistants and general office assistants can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an office clerical assistant and a general office assistant. Additionally, a general office assistant has an average salary of $30,764, which is higher than the $28,373 average annual salary of an office clerical assistant.
The top three skills for an office clerical assistant include data entry, customer service and patients. The most important skills for a general office assistant are data entry, customer service, and general office assistance.
| Office Clerical Assistant | General Office Assistant | |
| Yearly salary | $28,373 | $30,764 |
| Hourly rate | $13.64 | $14.79 |
| Growth rate | -5% | -5% |
| Number of jobs | 83,010 | 131,527 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 34% | Bachelor's Degree, 41% |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
Office clerical assistants are professionals who are responsible for performing a variety of clerical tasks within an organization's office. These assistants must provide office assistance functions such as responding to emails, filing papers, and preparing schedules while handling customers at the front desk. They are required to use automated word processing equipment to produce correspondence, forms, or reports. Clerical assistants must also answer high profile telephone calls and forward the messages to the appropriate person.
A general office assistant is in charge of performing clerical support tasks to help an office run smoothly and efficiently. Their responsibilities include managing the office calendar and schedules, preparing and processing documents, handling calls and correspondence, organizing and disseminating files, greeting visitors, and running errands as needed. They must also monitor the inventory of office supplies, processing procurement requests as necessary. Furthermore, a general office assistant may assist staff in projects and programs while adhering to the company's policies and regulations.
Office clerical assistants and general office assistants have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Office Clerical Assistant | General Office Assistant | |
| Average salary | $28,373 | $30,764 |
| Salary range | Between $22,000 And $35,000 | Between $24,000 And $39,000 |
| Highest paying City | Santa Rosa, CA | Annapolis, MD |
| Highest paying state | California | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Erie 2-Chautauqua-Cattaraugus BOCES | Cargill |
| Best paying industry | Government | Finance |
There are a few differences between an office clerical assistant and a general office assistant in terms of educational background:
| Office Clerical Assistant | General Office Assistant | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 34% | Bachelor's Degree, 41% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | Western Carolina University | Western Carolina University |
Here are the differences between office clerical assistants' and general office assistants' demographics:
| Office Clerical Assistant | General Office Assistant | |
| Average age | 47 | 47 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 18.5% Female, 81.5% | Male, 20.8% Female, 79.2% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 10.3% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 20.1% Asian, 7.4% White, 56.6% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.0% | Black or African American, 9.0% Unknown, 4.8% Hispanic or Latino, 21.7% Asian, 9.1% White, 54.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1% |
| LGBT Percentage | 6% | 6% |