Shipping, Receiving, & Inventory Clerks

To keep businesses on schedule, and the movement of supplies flowing, material recording clerks ensure proper scheduling, recordkeeping, and inventory control. There are several types of material recording clerks: Stock clerks and order fillers unpack shipments and track merchandise leaving the stockroom. They usually work in retail settings and sometimes help customers. Stock clerks move products from a warehouse to store shelves, while order fillers retrieve customer orders and prepare them to be shipped. Because they lift heavy materials and bend often, stock clerks and order fillers have one of the highest injury and illness rates of all occupations. Production and expediting clerks manage the flow of information, work, and materials within a business. They set workers’ schedules, estimate costs, and keep track of materials as well as production problems in manufacturing plants. Shipping, receiving, and traffic clerks keep track of outgoing and incoming shipments. Clerks review shipment orders to ensure they were correctly processed, compute freight costs, and prepare invoices. They may move goods from a warehouse to the loading dock. Material and product inspecting clerks weigh, measure, and document materials and equipment that enter a warehouse. They perform quality checks, and determine how to handle defective products. While many material recording clerks work full time and may work nights, weekends, and holidays, part-time work is common for stock clerks and order fillers. Material recording clerks typically need a high school diploma or equivalent and are trained on the job. Knowledge of spreadsheet or database software may be helpful.