Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators
Prepare incoming and outgoing mail for distribution for the United States Postal Service (USPS). Examine, sort, and route mail. Load, operate, and occasionally adjust and repair mail processing, sorting, and canceling machinery. Keep records of shipments, pouches, and sacks, and perform other duties related to mail handling within the postal service. Includes postal service mail sorters and processors employed by USPS contractors.
- Tasks
- 14 tasks3 core, 11 supplemental
- Family
- Office & Administrative SupportOne of its 55 occupations
- Code
- 43-5053.00SOC 2018: 43-5053
What the work is made of
3 core tasks and 11 supplemental, each quoted as published, with the survey it came from.
Core: central to the jobSupplemental: done by some, not all
- Task 1. Clear jams in sorting equipment.Core taskTask 8221Rated by 105 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 2. Operate various types of equipment, such as computer scanning equipment, addressographs, mimeographs, optical character readers, and bar-code sorters.Core taskTask 8219Rated by 103 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 3. Sort odd-sized mail by hand, sort mail that other workers have been unable to sort, and segregate items requiring special handling.Core taskTask 8227Rated by 103 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 4. Direct items according to established routing schemes, using computer-controlled keyboards or voice-recognition equipment.Supplemental taskTask 8213Rated by 103 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 5. Check items to ensure that addresses are legible and correct, that sufficient postage has been paid or the appropriate documentation is attached, and that items are in a suitable condition for processing.Supplemental taskTask 8222Rated by 103 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 6. Bundle, label, and route sorted mail to designated areas, depending on destinations and according to established procedures and deadlines.Supplemental taskTask 8214Rated by 103 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 7. Move containers of mail, using equipment, such as forklifts and automated "trains".Supplemental taskTask 8226Rated by 103 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 8. Open and label mail containers.Supplemental taskTask 8223Rated by 102 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 9. Load and unload mail trucks, sometimes lifting containers of mail onto equipment that transports items to sorting stations.Supplemental taskTask 8229Rated by 103 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 10. Distribute incoming mail into the correct boxes or pigeonholes.Supplemental taskTask 8218Rated by 103 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 11. Rewrap soiled or broken parcels.Supplemental taskTask 8224Rated by 103 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 12. Train new workers.Supplemental taskTask 8217Rated by 103 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 13. Search directories to find correct addresses for redirected mail.Supplemental taskTask 8220Rated by 103 people who do the job, July 2016
- Task 14. Cancel letter or parcel post stamps by hand.Supplemental taskTask 8230Rated by 103 people who do the job, July 2016
Where this comes from
Quoted from the U.S. Department of Labor, and credited. Nothing on this page is written by us.
How we copy and credit sources- Published byO*NET 29.0, U.S. Department of LaborEmployment and Training Administration
- ClassificationStandard Occupational Classification 2018, 43-5053
- LicenseCC BY 4.0Free to copy and reuse, with credit
- Changed by usNothing.
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