Office employee vs office support clerk

The differences between office employees and office support clerks 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 employee and an office support clerk. Additionally, an office employee has an average salary of $35,825, which is higher than the $32,040 average annual salary of an office support clerk.

The top three skills for an office employee include customer service, telephone calls and customer accounts. The most important skills for an office support clerk are customer service, data entry, and word processing.

Office employee vs office support clerk overview

	Office Employee	Office Support Clerk
Yearly salary	$35,825	$32,040
Hourly rate	$17.22	$15.40
Growth rate	-5%	-5%
Number of jobs	74,182	185,683
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Average age	47	47
Years of experience	2	2

What does an office employee do?

An office employee is someone who performs clerical and any other tasks usually performed by managers. Office employees are employed as clerical workers in offices or organizations. They execute tasks such as typing and word processing, answering phone calls, bookkeeping, and stenography. It is their responsibility to ensure the smooth daily operations of an office. Their diligence, communication skills, customer service, hard work, and attention to detail are necessary for this job.

What does an office support clerk do?

Office support clerks are professionals who provide clerical and administrative duties that support the daily activities of an organization's office setting. These clerks are required to answer incoming calls from clients while maintaining all office and cleaning supplies for the organization. They must communicate with clients and direct them to the appropriate department to ensure quality customer service. Office support clerks must also utilize the automated word processing equipment so that they can produce reports, statistical information, and other departmental information.

Office employee vs office support clerk salary

Office employees and office support clerks have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Office Employee	Office Support Clerk
Average salary	$35,825	$32,040
Salary range	Between $19,000 And $64,000	Between $25,000 And $39,000
Highest paying City	East Palo Alto, CA	Tualatin, OR
Highest paying state	California	Washington
Best paying company	OSF HealthCare	Sierra Pacific Industries
Best paying industry	Professional	Finance

Differences between office employee and office support clerk education

There are a few differences between an office employee and an office support clerk in terms of educational background:

	Office Employee	Office Support Clerk
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 59%	Bachelor's Degree, 40%
Most common major	Business	Business
Most common college	Western Carolina University	Western Carolina University

Office employee vs office support clerk demographics

Here are the differences between office employees' and office support clerks' demographics:

	Office Employee	Office Support Clerk
Average age	47	47
Gender ratio	Male, 34.4% Female, 65.6%	Male, 22.7% Female, 77.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 17.7% Asian, 7.9% White, 59.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2%	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 4.7% Hispanic or Latino, 18.7% Asian, 7.7% White, 58.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.1%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between office employee and office support clerk duties and responsibilities

Office employee example responsibilities.

Manage operational FedEx relationship through order fulfillment, shipment tracking, and communication with parties involve in shipment transaction.
Complete payroll by compiling hours and verifying submissions weekly, via QuickBooks.
File paperwork, organize PowerPoint presentations, assist with typing correspondence and fax documents to appropriate destination.
Demonstrate ability to maintain composure and work efficiently in a fast-pace environment while following HIPAA guidelines.

Office support clerk example responsibilities.

Use EMR software to manage patient records and files; reinforce and uphold patient confidentiality as required by HIPAA and clinic.
Audit all deductions for each employee on payroll for various deductions such as; health care, dental and uniforms.
Initiate contact among current and potential clients by assisting in application process, new hire paperwork, and client payroll.
Compile PowerPoint presentations for various department heads.
Assist in creating Microsoft PowerPoint presentations and other documents for staff development and productivity.
Handle administrative work relate to operational process of the office and patients clinical information.

Office employee vs office support clerk skills

Common office employee skills

Customer Service, 72%
Telephone Calls, 5%
Customer Accounts, 4%
Medical Billing, 4%
Computer System, 2%
Front Desk, 1%

Common office support clerk skills

Customer Service, 19%
Data Entry, 17%
Word Processing, 7%
Office Equipment, 6%
Front Desk, 5%
Database Systems, 5%

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Office Employee
Office Employee vs Office Support Clerk

Updated January 8, 2025

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