Your work. Your records.
File Clerk Workplace Records
File clerks organize materials and retrieve them for authorized users. A workplace concern may involve a missing item, an access restriction or a request that changed priority. Explain the handling sequence and the instruction you received without treating access to a filing system as permission to keep its contents personally.
Call now(800) 800-5555Free initial case evaluation. Representation depends on work state and case eligibility. This guide explains record preparation; it does not determine whether a legal claim exists.
A record map for your role
What to organize first
Handling sequence
List receipt, filing, authorized retrieval and return stages, distinguishing recorded information from direct observation.
Priority changes
Record who changed a filing or retrieval assignment and the response to your clarification request.
Access boundaries
Describe the record that may clarify the event without taking its contents or using another worker’s credentials.
Start with the work you actually do
File correspondence, cards, invoices, receipts, and other records in alphabetical or numerical order or according to the filing system used. Locate and remove material from file when requested.
O*NET classifies this occupation as File Clerks (43-4071.00). Its description covers a typical occupation, not every workplace or individual job. It does not establish employee status, overtime eligibility or employer misconduct.
- Perform general office activities, such as typing, answering telephones, operating office machines, processing mail, or securing confidential materials.Source task 20628 · updated 08/2025
- Keep records of materials filed or removed, using logbooks or computers and generate computerized reports.Source task 20629 · updated 08/2025
- Gather materials to be filed from departments or employees.Source task 2596 · updated 08/2025
- Find, retrieve, and make copies of information from files in response to requests and deliver information to authorized users.Source task 20630 · updated 08/2025
A reference point for your pay records
May 2025 wage estimates by state
Compare your pay records with published BLS estimates for File Clerks (SOC 43-4071). These describe an occupation across employers. They are not a required pay rate, an overtime calculation, or evidence of discrimination or unpaid wages.
Select your work state to see its published pay range. No personal pay information is requested or sent.
The 25th and 75th percentiles mark the middle half of the estimated wage distribution; the median is its midpoint. Actual pay can differ with experience, employer, location and duties. Hourly and annual figures are shown as published, without converting one into the other.
All published state estimates for this occupation
| State | Hourly 25th | Hourly median | Hourly 75th | Annual median |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | $15.51 | $18.41 | $22.50 | $38,290 |
| Alaska | $19.37 | $24.00 | $29.00 | $49,910 |
| Arizona | $18.53 | $21.01 | $23.12 | $43,690 |
| Arkansas | $15.45 | $18.49 | $22.51 | $38,470 |
| Connecticut | $16.54 | $21.55 | $27.06 | $44,810 |
| Delaware | $17.00 | $19.20 | $22.21 | $39,940 |
| Florida | $17.36 | $20.07 | $22.97 | $41,750 |
| Georgia | $16.69 | $19.71 | $25.88 | $41,000 |
| Hawaii | $18.30 | $24.34 | $24.52 | $50,630 |
| Idaho | $18.37 | $22.07 | $23.36 | $45,910 |
| Indiana | $17.36 | $19.11 | $24.03 | $39,740 |
| Iowa | $18.06 | $22.38 | $26.89 | $46,560 |
| Kansas | $18.12 | $20.26 | $23.65 | $42,130 |
| Kentucky | $14.65 | $18.87 | $22.25 | $39,250 |
| Louisiana | $12.00 | $15.48 | $18.60 | $32,200 |
| Maine | $18.93 | $21.11 | $22.72 | $43,910 |
| Michigan | $17.81 | $21.13 | $25.78 | $43,950 |
| Minnesota | $21.24 | $22.43 | $25.17 | $46,640 |
| Mississippi | $13.50 | $15.03 | $18.17 | $31,260 |
| Missouri | $15.84 | $18.46 | $22.49 | $38,400 |
| Montana | $15.45 | $18.45 | $21.42 | $38,370 |
| Nebraska | $17.24 | $19.54 | $23.47 | $40,640 |
| New Hampshire | $17.51 | $21.34 | $24.05 | $44,390 |
| New Mexico | $17.37 | $18.12 | $21.85 | $37,700 |
| New York | $18.83 | $21.32 | $24.78 | $44,340 |
| North Carolina | $17.73 | $20.80 | $24.14 | $43,260 |
| North Dakota | $19.67 | $20.61 | $23.18 | $42,860 |
| Ohio | $15.10 | $19.54 | $23.43 | $40,650 |
| Oklahoma | $16.59 | $18.83 | $23.40 | $39,170 |
| Pennsylvania | $18.45 | $20.63 | $23.92 | $42,920 |
| Rhode Island | $16.28 | $17.50 | $24.05 | $36,400 |
| South Dakota | $17.61 | $17.62 | $17.93 | $36,640 |
| Tennessee | $17.51 | $20.68 | $23.57 | $43,010 |
| Texas | $15.87 | $18.98 | $23.60 | $39,480 |
| Utah | $17.26 | $19.93 | $22.19 | $41,450 |
| Vermont | $17.38 | $22.86 | $26.03 | $47,540 |
| Virginia | $16.35 | $19.18 | $23.05 | $39,900 |
| West Virginia | $12.67 | $15.19 | $19.07 | $31,600 |
| Wisconsin | $17.02 | $21.70 | $24.45 | $45,130 |
| Wyoming | Not published | Not published | Not published | Not published |
“Not published” preserves unavailable or suppressed source cells. “Above reporting limit” preserves a top-coded source value without inventing a number. A missing state estimate does not establish service eligibility. The data describe wage and salary employment; they do not measure self-employment income.
Source: BLS May 2025 state workbook · OEWS tables · BLS technical notes. Use your own schedule, pay statement and compensation terms to identify the question you want reviewed.
Follow custody and retrieval
Describe the general document category, request date and authorized destination. Note whether another person checked out or returned the material. Distinguish what the tracking record states from what you personally witnessed, and do not assume a missing item was lost during the stage you handled.
Explain competing processing duties
Record new filing, retrieval, copying and office assignments relevant to the evaluation period. Note unreadable labels, incomplete requests or access problems you reported. A retrieval count may not include sorting or securing records; keep your own permitted feedback and response to explain those duties.
Leave confidential files intact
Do not copy personnel, customer, financial or legal records into a personal archive. Identify relevant logs by category and custodian without exporting request histories. Retain your own employment correspondence, and never remove or relabel a file to make the record match a later recollection.
Choose your next step
Review the workplace retaliation guide, unpaid wages guide, or discrimination guide if those concerns fit your experience. A job title alone does not establish a claim.
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