In 2 of the 16 jobs that do this, AI or robots already show up on it, most often as help from AI. In the other 14, there's no evidence yet. Jobs spend a median of 27m of an 8-hour shift on it, and about 5.2 million U.S. workers hold these jobs.
Every job that does this
Each job words the task its own way. Minutes are that job's estimate for a typical shift; the label is the evidence for that job's version.
| Job and its version of the task | Per shift | Evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Postal Service Mail Sorters, Processors, and Processing Machine OperatorsSort odd-sized mail by hand, sort mail that other workers have been unable to sort, and segregate items requiring special handling. | 1h 21m | No evidence yet |
| Postal Service Mail CarriersSort mail for delivery, arranging it in delivery sequence. | 1h 16m | No evidence yet |
| Postal Service ClerksSort incoming and outgoing mail, according to type and destination, by hand or by operating electronic mail-sorting and scanning devices. | 1h 15m | No evidence yet |
| File ClerksPerform general office activities, such as typing, answering telephones, operating office machines, processing mail, or securing confidential materials. | 1h 2m | No evidence yet |
| Telephone OperatorsPerform clerical duties such as typing, proofreading, and sorting mail. | 53m | Often handed to AI |
| Word Processors and TypistsPerform other clerical duties, such as answering telephone, sorting and distributing mail, running errands or sending faxes. | 51m | No evidence yet |
| Couriers and MessengersSort items to be delivered according to the delivery route. | 28m | No evidence yet |
| General Office ClerksOpen, sort, and route incoming mail, answer correspondence, and prepare outgoing mail. | 27m | No evidence yet |
| Executive Secretaries and Executive Administrative AssistantsOpen, sort, and distribute incoming correspondence, including faxes and email. | 25m | No evidence yet |
| Clerical Library AssistantsPerform clerical activities, such as answering phones, sorting mail, filing, typing, word processing, and photocopying and mailing out material. | 22m | With AI |
| Switchboard OperatorsProcess incoming or outgoing mail, packages, or deliveries. | 21m | No evidence yet |
| Receptionists and Information ClerksCollect, sort, distribute, or prepare mail, messages, or courier deliveries. | 20m | No evidence yet |
| Mail Clerks and Mail Machine OperatorsPlace incoming or outgoing letters or packages into sacks or bins based on destination or type, and place identifying tags on sacks or bins. | 19m | No evidence yet |
| Bill and Account CollectorsSort and file correspondence and perform miscellaneous clerical duties, such as answering correspondence and writing reports. | 19m | No evidence yet |
| Hotel, Motel, and Resort Desk ClerksDate-stamp, sort, and rack incoming mail and messages. | 7m | No evidence yet |
| Library TechniciansSort and deliver library mail and packages. | 7m | No evidence yet |
How to read this
This task type comes from O*NET's detailed work activities, which link similar tasks across jobs. A label applies to one job's version of the task: AI use comes from real AI conversations (Anthropic Economic Index) and robot evidence from deployments in real workplaces. "No evidence yet" may just mean the task is rare in the data. How we keep time.
See all 250 shared tasks, or find any job on the big clock.