### Bureau of Labor Statistics U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

Material Recording Clerks Summary
                        
            
                                                        
                                                                
                        
            
            
            
                            
                                                
                                                
                                                
                                                
            									
							
				                                                
                                            




            			material recording clerks imageMaterial recording clerks ensure proper scheduling, recordkeeping, and inventory control.							
						Quick Facts:     Material Recording Clerks2023     Median Pay
            						$44,210     per year
										$21.26     per hourTypical Entry-Level Education
                                    High school diploma or equivalentWork Experience in a Related Occupation
                                    NoneOn-the-job Training
                                    See How to Become OneNumber of Jobs, 2022
                                    1,315,200Job Outlook, 2022-32
                                    -4% (Decline)Employment Change, 2022-32
                                    -57,300What Material Recording Clerks Do
                                                
                        
                        
Material recording clerks track product information in order to keep businesses and supply chains on schedule.
            
                        Work Environment
                        
Most material recording clerks work full time.
            
                                                How to Become a Material Recording Clerk
                                                
                        
Material recording clerks typically need a high school diploma or equivalent and are trained on the job.
            
                        Pay
                        												                            																				    														The median annual wage for material recording clerks was $44,210 in May 2023.									                                					
						
            
                        Job Outlook
                        						
												Overall employment							of material recording clerks is projected to decline							 4 percent from 2022 to 2032.
						Despite declining  employment, about 125,300 openings for material recording clerks are projected each year, on average, over the decade.
            			
            			 All of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to other occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.
						State & Area Data
                       Explore resources for employment and wages by state and area for material recording clerks.
            
            
						
                        Similar Occupations
                        
                                                    Compare the job duties, education, job growth, and pay of material recording clerks with similar occupations.
            
            
                        More Information, Including Links to O*NET
                        
                                               
                        Learn more about material recording clerks by visiting additional resources, including O*NET, a source on key characteristics of workers and occupations.
 What Material Recording Clerks Do 
            

			Material recording clerksShipping, receiving, and inventory clerks track outgoing and incoming shipments.			
Material recording clerks track product information in order to keep businesses and supply chains on schedule. They ensure proper scheduling, recordkeeping, and inventory control.
Duties
Material recording clerks typically do the following:
Keep records of items shipped, received, or transferred to another location
Compile reports on various changes in production or inventory
Organize the assembly, distribution, or delivery of goods to meet production schedules
Prepare materials for shipping by labeling or checking packages
Examine products for damage or defects
Check inventory records for accuracyMaterial recording clerks use computers or hand-held devices to keep track of inventory. Sensors and tags enable these electronic tools to automatically detect when and where products are moved, allowing clerks to keep updated reports without manually counting items.
The following are examples of types of material recording clerks:
***Production, planning, and expediting clerks*** manage the flow of information, work, and materials within or among offices in a business. They compile reports on the progress of work and on any production problems that arise. These clerks set workers’ schedules, estimate costs, keep track of materials, and write special orders for new materials. They also do general office tasks, such as entering data or distributing mail. Expediting clerks maintain contact with vendors to ensure that supplies and equipment are shipped on time.
***Shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks*** keep track of and record outgoing and incoming shipments. Clerks may scan barcodes with handheld devices or use radio frequency identification (RFID) scanners to keep track of inventory. They check to see whether shipment orders were processed correctly in their company’s computer system. They also compute freight costs, prepare invoices, and write inventory reports. Some clerks move goods from the warehouse to the loading dock.
***Material and product inspecting clerks*** weigh, measure, check, sample, and keep records on materials, supplies, and equipment that enters a warehouse. They verify the quantity and quality of items they are assigned to examine, checking for defects and recording what they find. They use scales, counting devices, and calculators. Some decide what to do about a defective product, such as to scrap it or send it back to the factory to be repaired.
 Work Environment
			Material recording clerksMany material recording clerks work in an office inside a warehouse or manufacturing plant.			

	    
				
	
	    	    		Material recording clerks held about 1.3 million jobs in 2022. Employment in the detailed occupations that make up material recording clerks was distributed as follows:
    	    	
    	Shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks
                862,900Production, planning, and expediting clerks
                396,800Weighers, measurers, checkers, and samplers, recordkeeping
                55,600The largest employers of material recording clerks were as follows:
        Manufacturing
                27%Retail trade
                17Wholesale trade
                14Transportation and warehousing
                14Temporary help services
                4Material recording clerks usually work in an office inside a warehouse or manufacturing plant.
These workers also may spend time on the warehouse or plant floor to handle packages or automatic equipment, such as conveyor systems.
Injuries and Illnesses
Some material recording clerks may need to lift heavy items and to bend frequently, which may lead to injury. Using proper lifting techniques helps to reduce the risk of harm.
Work Schedules
Most material recording clerks work full time. Some work nights and weekends or holidays.
 How to Become a Material Recording Clerk

			Material recording clerksMaterial recording clerks learn on the job from an experienced worker.			
Material recording clerks typically need a high school diploma or equivalent and are trained on the job.
Education
Material recording clerks typically need a high school diploma or equivalent.
Some employers prefer to hire production, planning, and expediting clerks who have a college degree.
Training
Material recording clerks usually learn on the job. Training for most material recording clerks lasts up to 1 month. Production, planning, and expediting clerks may train for up to 6 months.
Material recording clerks first may learn to count stock and mark inventory and then move on to more difficult tasks, such as recordkeeping. Production clerks first typically learn how their company operates before they write production and work schedules.
Workers learn safety rules as part of their training. Many of these rules are standardized through the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
Advancement
With additional training or education, material recording clerks may advance to other positions, such as purchasing agent, within their company.
Important Qualities
***Communication skills.*** Material recording clerks are frequently in contact with suppliers, vendors, or managers and need to convey their company’s needs effectively.
***Customer-service skills.*** Material recording clerks may interact with customers in order to respond to problems or complaints.
***Detail oriented.*** Material and product inspecting clerks must pay attention to detail when checking items for defects, some of which are small and difficult to spot.
***Math skills.*** Material recording clerks may need to calculate shipping costs or take measurements.
 Pay

			



	
 
                                                     
            
    
                Material Recording ClerksMedian annual wages, May 2023Total, all occupations$48,060  Material recording, scheduling, dispatching, and distributing workers$46,590  Material recording clerks$44,210Note: All Occupations includes all occupations in the U.S. Economy.Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
 

	
	



		
	
	
	
The median annual wage for material recording clerks was $44,210 in May 2023. 


The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $31,750, and the highest 10 percent earned more than $67,590.

			
                    	Median annual wages for material recording clerks in May 2023 were as follows:
        Production, planning, and expediting clerks
		$53,900Weighers, measurers, checkers, and samplers, recordkeeping
		43,270Shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks
		39,780In May 2023, the median annual wages for material recording clerks in the top industries in which they worked were as follows:	
        Manufacturing
                $46,210Transportation and warehousing
                45,460Wholesale trade
                42,620Retail trade
                36,590Temporary help services
                36,050Most material recording clerks work full time. Some work nights and weekends or holidays.
 Job Outlook

   
        
    
          
        
    
                Material Recording ClerksPercent change in employment, projected 2022-32Total, all occupations3%  Material recording, scheduling, dispatching, and distributing workers-3%  Material recording clerks-4%Note: All Occupations includes all occupations in the U.S. Economy.Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections program
            
            
			 
	
	
	

			Overall employment				of material recording clerks is projected to decline				 4 percent from 2022 to 2032.
			
			Despite declining  employment, about 125,300 openings for material recording clerks are projected each year, on average, over the decade.
			
			 All of those openings are expected to result from the need to replace workers who transfer to other occupations or exit the labor force, such as to retire.
			Employment
	
			
Projected employment of material recording clerks varies by occupation (see table). As e-commerce continues to grow, companies are expanding their use of automated storage and retrieval tools to meet rising demand for products and for faster delivery. These types of technologies, including radio frequency identification (RFID) tags and collaborative robots, will improve efficiencies of many warehouse operations. Demand for shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks may be limited as use of technology expands and increases productivity of some manual tasks, improving efficiency.
However, employment of production, planning, and expediting clerks is projected to increase because their tasks remain difficult to automate.
			

                        Employment projections data for     material recording clerks, 2022-32
                Occupational Title
                        SOC Code
                        Employment, 2022
                        Projected Employment, 2032
                        Change, 2022-32
                        Employment by IndustryPercent
                        NumericSOURCE: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections program**Material recording clerks**
			—
			1,315,200
			1,257,900
			-4
			-57,300
			—**Production, planning, and expediting clerks**
			43-5061
			396,800
			413,300
			4
			16,500
			Get data**Shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks**
			43-5071
			862,900
			790,600
			-8
			-72,200
			Get data**Weighers, measurers, checkers, and samplers, recordkeeping**
			43-5111
			55,600
			54,000
			-3
			-1,600
			Get data
 State & Area Data **Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS)** The Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) program produces employment and wage estimates annually for over 800 occupations. These estimates are available for the nation as a whole, for individual states, and for metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas. The link(s) below go to OES data maps for employment and wages by state and area. Production, planning, and expediting clerks
					Shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks
					Weighers, measurers, checkers, and samplers, recordkeeping **Projections Central** Occupational employment projections are developed for all states by Labor Market Information (LMI) or individual state Employment Projections offices. All state projections data are available at www.projectionscentral.com. Information on this site allows projected employment growth for an occupation to be compared among states or to be compared within one state. In addition, states may produce projections for areas; there are links to each state’s websites where these data may be retrieved. **CareerOneStop** CareerOneStop includes hundreds of occupational profiles with data available by state and metro area. There are links in the left-hand side menu to compare occupational employment by state and occupational wages by local area or metro area. There is also a salary info tool to search for wages by zip code.
 Similar Occupations This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of material recording clerks. Occupation
                Job Duties
                ENTRY-LEVEL EDUCATION
                2023     MEDIAN PAY**General Office Clerks**
            General office clerks perform a variety of clerical tasks, including answering telephones, typing documents, and filing records.
            High school diploma or equivalent
            $40,480**Hand Laborers and Material Movers**
            Hand laborers and material movers manually move freight, stock, or other materials.
            See How to Become One
            $36,770**Information Clerks**
            Information clerks perform routine clerical duties, maintain records, collect data, and provide information to customers.
            See How to Become One
            $40,540
 Contacts for More Information
								
For more information about material recording clerks, visit
MHI
Warehousing Education and Research Council
CareerOneStop
For a career video on shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks, visit
Shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks

                                                
                                                        
                                                                                                    O*NET
                                        Production, Planning, and Expediting ClerksShipping, Receiving, and Inventory ClerksWeighers, Measurers, Checkers, and Samplers, Recordkeeping
 Suggested citation: Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S.  Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, Material Recording Clerks, 
        	 at https://www.bls.gov/ooh/office-and-administrative-support/material-recording-clerks.htm (visited *May 21, 2024*).
 **Last Modified Date:**
                        Wednesday, April 17, 2024


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