Another concept in scheduling daily work hours for full-time employees is flex time. Although variations of flex time exist, generally personnel must work during a core period each day. The remaining hours that complete a day's productivity are chosen by the worker from flexible hours established by management. Employees find this scheduling meaningful, for it gives them some control over time. Personal and doctor appointments no longer have to interfere with employment periods.
Office employees of large companies also receive many fringe benefits in addition to salary-benefits ranging from medical and hospital care, insurance, retirement pensions, paid vacations, and free lunches, to the privilege of buying stock in the company at reduced quotations. According to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, benefits approximated 32 percent of the payroll dollar in 1977, an increase-of 24 percent from 1967.
A clerk's job, involving as it does many diversified duties, usually provides opportunities for development and promotion if the ability is there. These opportunities come through the trained supervision that is usually available and may often be supplemented by additional training at company expense. Clerks may specialize in routines which they like and for which they are well suited, eventually becoming calculator operators, data entry clerks, or file clerks. For a person looking for stability and a position which does not require aggressiveness and heavy responsibility, that of specialized clerk is appealing.
Automation has, no doubt, made some changes in the type of work done by clerical employees, but most experts agree that it has not decreased the number of clerical positions. Clerical workers in many offices are now using electronic typewriters that automatically type the final copy from rough draft and make all revisions and corrections. Filing continues to be an important part of a clerk's job, but the materials being filed now include such items as microfiche and recorded discs instead of the usual papers. The ability of the clerk to work accurately-to read and follow instructions -will become increasingly important. The upgraded clerical jobs which are appearing in automated offices may necessitate increased training and higher native ability for clerical workers.
A clerical job provides more regularity of employment than factory work, which is affected by seasonal variations and by supply and demand. The clerk who performs the designated duties satisfactorily can usually count on stability of employment and regular advancement.
Part-time and Temporary Employment
Another advantage of clerical jobs is that they are available to those who are interested in working only part-time or temporarily. Temporaries no longer are just fill-ins for sick or vacationing employees. Companies now staff themselves for a minimum rather than a maximum work flow and use temporary help for additional tasks as they arise or for once-a-year, large-scale jobs. This flexible staffing also offers advantages in terms of employee recruitment and hiring. The part-timer may be kept on the agency's payroll for a probationary period, after which time a good worker may be hired and transferred to the regular company payroll. Temporary or part-time work offers a decided advantage to the employee, too. If the worker is not suited to the job and performs poorly, a separation does not carry the same stigma of "being fired" as it would for a permanent, full-time employee.
Disadvantages
There are, of course, disadvantages to becoming a clerk. An ambitious person would use the job only as a springboard to get into the business world and would do everything possible to progress to a higher level of responsibility as soon as possible. Routine work is monotonous and lacks challenge; and many clerical jobs are just a matter of keypunching, reading, and recording data. Only a person unwilling to assume responsibility would want to stay in a clerical position for an extended period of time.
Routine clerical jobs are very much like factory piecework in that production standards can be set and output measured. Clerks in a company with high production standards may feel that they are under too much pressure in their jobs and that the standards are unrealistic. If supervision is poor, there may be peak loads of paperwork at the end of the month, for example, which add pressure to the job.
The final disadvantage of being a clerk is salary. Because clerks' jobs have the lowest skill requirements among clerical occupations, they also are the lowest paid. The worker who doesn't eventually achieve a rating above that of clerk will remain among the lowest-paid office workers.
