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The differences between service operators and phone operators can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both a service operator and a phone operator. Additionally, a service operator has an average salary of $36,971, which is higher than the $30,289 average annual salary of a phone operator.
The top three skills for a service operator include customer service, food handling and emergency calls. The most important skills for a phone operator are patients, customer service, and phone calls.
| Service Operator | Phone Operator | |
| Yearly salary | $36,971 | $30,289 |
| Hourly rate | $17.77 | $14.56 |
| Growth rate | -4% | -4% |
| Number of jobs | 87,078 | 87,484 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 34% | High School Diploma, 39% |
| Average age | 53 | 53 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 2 |
A service operator is responsible for providing the best customer service by responding to the callers' inquiries and concerns, depending on which business they are employed. Service operators process callers' requests by directing them to specific resources or coordinate with the appropriate person to resolve callers' issues. They also keep an organized record of resolutions for the business reference, as well as for immediate callbacks as needed. A service operator must have excellent knowledge of the industry they are working for, as well as impeccable communication skills to verify and address the callers' needs.
The primary job of phone operators is to help customers by answering questions, providing information, and transferring calls. They handle special billing requests from customers such as credits or refunds for bad connections or incorrectly dialed numbers and third-party charges. They may also handle emergency calls and aid children or people with disabilities to make phone calls. Other tasks of phone operators include calculating and quoting charges for services, operating telephone switchboards, and monitoring automated systems for collect calls placement.
Service operators and phone operators have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Service Operator | Phone Operator | |
| Average salary | $36,971 | $30,289 |
| Salary range | Between $19,000 And $71,000 | Between $25,000 And $36,000 |
| Highest paying City | Mountain View, CA | - |
| Highest paying state | New York | - |
| Best paying company | - | |
| Best paying industry | - | - |
There are a few differences between a service operator and a phone operator in terms of educational background:
| Service Operator | Phone Operator | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 34% | High School Diploma, 39% |
| Most common major | Business | Business |
| Most common college | - | - |
Here are the differences between service operators' and phone operators' demographics:
| Service Operator | Phone Operator | |
| Average age | 53 | 53 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 50.1% Female, 49.9% | Male, 22.7% Female, 77.3% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 14.2% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.4% Asian, 3.5% White, 59.0% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% | Black or African American, 14.3% Unknown, 3.6% Hispanic or Latino, 18.1% Asian, 3.2% White, 59.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 1.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 19% | 19% |