Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine Operators

• Summary

• Details

Work Activities

• Open and label mail containers.
• Load and unload mail trucks, sometimes lifting containers of mail onto equipment that transports items to sorting stations.
• Distribute incoming mail into the correct boxes or pigeonholes.
• Direct items according to established routing schemes, using computer-controlled keyboards or voice-recognition equipment.
• Operate various types of equipment, such as computer scanning equipment, addressographs, mimeographs, optical character readers, and bar-code sorters.
• Bundle, label, and route sorted mail to designated areas, depending on destinations and according to established procedures and deadlines.
• 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.
• Move containers of mail, using equipment, such as forklifts and automated "trains".
• Load and unload mail trucks, sometimes lifting containers of mail onto equipment that transports items to sorting stations.
• Train new workers.
• Sort odd-sized mail by hand, sort mail that other workers have been unable to sort, and segregate items requiring special handling.
• Rewrap soiled or broken parcels.
• Cancel letter or parcel post stamps by hand.
• Clear jams in sorting equipment.
• Search directories to find correct addresses for redirected mail.
• Bundle, label, and route sorted mail to designated areas, depending on destinations and according to established procedures and deadlines.

Skills

• Learning Strategies
  • Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
• Operations Monitoring
  • Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
• Repairing
  • Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
• Systems Evaluation
  • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
• Speaking
  • Talking to others.
• Instructing
  • Teaching people how to do something.
• Monitoring
  • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
• Troubleshooting
  • Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
• Equipment Maintenance
  • Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
• Programming
  • Writing computer programs.
• Systems Analysis
  • Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
• Service Orientation
  • Looking for ways to help people.
• Mathematics
  • Using math to solve problems.
• Reading Comprehension
  • Reading work-related information.
• Time Management
  • Managing your time and the time of other people.
• Negotiation
  • Bringing people together to solve differences.
• Social Perceptiveness
  • Understanding people's reactions.
• Management of Personnel Resources
  • Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
• Writing
  • Writing things for co-workers or customers.
• Persuasion
  • Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
• Critical Thinking
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
• Active Learning
  • Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
• Management of Financial Resources
  • Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
• Operation and Control
  • Using equipment or systems.
• Coordination
  • Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
• Judgment and Decision Making
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
• Active Listening
  • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
• Management of Material Resources
  • Managing equipment and materials.
• Equipment Selection
  • Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
• Installation
  • Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
• Quality Control Analysis
  • Testing how well a product or service works.
• Science
  • Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
• Complex Problem Solving
  • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
• Operations Analysis
  • Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
• Technology Design
  • Making equipment and technology useful for customers.

Abilities

• Finger Dexterity
  • Putting together small parts with your fingers.
• Reaction Time
  • Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
• Speed of Closure
  • Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
• Time Sharing
  • Doing two or more things at the same time.
• Arm-Hand Steadiness
  • Keeping your arm or hand steady.
• Trunk Strength
  • Using your lower back and stomach.
• Problem Sensitivity
  • Noticing when problems happen.
• Oral Expression
  • Communicating by speaking.
• Gross Body Coordination
  • Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
• Written Comprehension
  • Reading and understanding what is written.
• Static Strength
  • Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
• Explosive Strength
  • Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
• Rate Control
  • Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
• Manual Dexterity
  • Holding or moving items with your hands.
• Depth Perception
  • Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
• Number Facility
  • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
• Inductive Reasoning
  • Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
• Auditory Attention
  • Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
• Wrist-Finger Speed
  • Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
• Far Vision
  • Seeing details that are far away.
• Selective Attention
  • Paying attention to something without being distracted.
• Information Ordering
  • Ordering or arranging things.
• Oral Comprehension
  • Listening and understanding what people say.
• Visualization
  • Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
• Extent Flexibility
  • Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
• Glare Sensitivity
  • Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
• Visual Color Discrimination
  • Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
• Speed of Limb Movement
  • Quickly moving your arms and legs.
• Originality
  • Creating new and original ideas.
• Flexibility of Closure
  • Seeing hidden patterns.
• Gross Body Equilibrium
  • Keeping your balance or staying upright.
• Fluency of Ideas
  • Coming up with lots of ideas.
• Speech Recognition
  • Recognizing spoken words.
• Peripheral Vision
  • Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
• Spatial Orientation
  • Knowing where things are around you.
• Deductive Reasoning
  • Using rules to solve problems.
• Mathematical Reasoning
  • Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
• Response Orientation
  • Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
• Speech Clarity
  • Speaking clearly.
• Hearing Sensitivity
  • Telling the difference between sounds.
• Written Expression
  • Communicating by writing.
• Night Vision
  • Seeing at night or under low light.
• Near Vision
  • Seeing details up close.
• Control Precision
  • Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
• Stamina
  • Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
• Dynamic Flexibility
  • Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
• Category Flexibility
  • Grouping things in different ways.
• Sound Localization
  • Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
• Multilimb Coordination
  • Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
• Perceptual Speed
  • Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
• Dynamic Strength
  • Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
• Memorization
  • Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.

Knowledge

• Fine Arts
  • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
• Transportation
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
• Medicine and Dentistry
  • Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
• Communications and Media
  • Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
• Customer and Personal Service
  • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Chemistry
  • Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• Geography
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
• Mathematics
  • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Administrative
  • Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
• Administration and Management
  • Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Public Safety and Security
  • Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
• Sales and Marketing
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
• History and Archeology
  • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
• English Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Mechanical
  • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• Biology
  • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Engineering and Technology
  • Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• Physics
  • Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
• Education and Training
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Economics and Accounting
  • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
• Computers and Electronics
  • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Building and Construction
  • Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
• Foreign Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
• Law and Government
  • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• Telecommunications
  • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
• Philosophy and Theology
  • Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
• Therapy and Counseling
  • Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
• Food Production
  • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• Personnel and Human Resources
  • Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
• Production and Processing
  • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
• Design
  • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
• Sociology and Anthropology
  • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
• Psychology
  • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

Education

Education

No formal educational credential

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

Less than 1 month on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

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Education and Training Opportunities

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Pay

Washington Annual Salary

57490/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

27.64/hr

Washington Employment Trends

Currently Employed

1,650

Yearly Projected Openings

130

Personality

Conventional: People interested in this work like activities that include data, detail, and regular routines. They do well at jobs that need:

• Integrity
• Attention to Detail
• Dependability
• Cooperation
• Self Control
• Stress Tolerance

Tools

• Automatic postal or mailing machine
• Bar code reader equipment
• Belt conveyors
• Carts
• Delivery trucks
• Depalletizers
• Dollies
• Forklifts
• Franking or postage machines
• Interactive voice recognition equipment
• Label making machines
• Laser fax machine
• Material handling racks
• Optical character recognition systems
• Parcel wrapping machines
• Personal computers
• Photocopiers
• Point of sale POS terminal
• Postal scales
• Scanners
• Sorters
• Stamp canceling machines
• Tugger
• Wrapping machinery

Technology

• Bar coding software
• Cloud-based data access and sharing software
• Data base management system software
• Data base user interface and query software
• Electronic mail software
• Enterprise resource planning ERP software
• Human resources software
• Inventory management software
• Map creation software
• Office suite software
• Optical character reader OCR or scanning software
• Point of sale POS software
• Spreadsheet software
• Time accounting software
• Word processing software