Forest Service Clerical Jobs

Forest Service clerical positions involve various support activities for the agency’s business, office or fiscal operations.

There are over 3,000 people employed in clerical positions at any one time, and these positions can be found in every Forest Service agency across the country, from business centers located in large cities to in-park administration centers, including all 28 of the Forest Service Job Corps Civilian Conservation Centers located around the nation.

Clerical positions are typically filled as temporary appointments lasting between six months to one year, at which time employment can be further extended for one additional year. They are popular with young college students looking for part-time, short-term or seasonal work, and offer you the chance to get valid office experience in an eco-sustainable business field. With more and more people jumping onto the green bandwagon, students and out-of-the-gate college grads are actively searching for positions that allow them to work in their field of business while keeping a clear and easy conscience.

FACT! A single acre of trees naturally removes almost thirteen tons of dust and gases from the surrounding atmosphere per year. It’s like having a super-sized, industrial strength air purifier and humidifier rolled into one good looking, eco-friendly package!

Job Descriptions

Although they are generally entry-level positions, clerical jobs range from basic phone and office skills to lower level account management and communication work. These types of positions provide excellent experience for people on an administration career path.

• General Office Clerks perform basic office work such as typing, answering phones, data entry, as well as other general administrative tasks as directed by their managers.
• Accounts Maintenance Clerks review documents in order to verify the accuracy and completeness of accounting data, enter data into the system, manage the general ledger accounts, journals, subsidiary accounts and the various debit and credit entries made. They summarize transactions and prepare control documents, and may be called upon to handle customer service and inquiries related to accounting transactions.
• Information Assistants‘ duties involve general management support work for the organization’s information services program, including data collection, compilation, research and tracking.
• Public Relations Assistants provide public relations and marketing support, using public relations tools such as brochures, web tools, audio-visual materials and equipment to present the public with information regarding forest service activities.
• Visitor Services Information Assistants support the daily activities and operations of a visitor center, working in a variety of areas including sales, security, and inventory and customer service. They provide visitors and callers with information regarding the organization and center, including functions, activities and organized events.

FACT! The average American consumer uses about seven trees per year in paper, wood and other tree-based products. With the appraised value of a single tree ranging from $1,000 to $10,000, that’s a consumed value of between $7,000 to $70,000 per person, per year in the United States.

General office clerk positions require very little experience or coursework beyond a basic high school graduation or equivalency. The more specialized clerical positions, however, do require a minimum of one year of experience in clerical, office or other specialized task work. Alternatively, you may substitute education for job experience if you have completed at least two full years of study at an accredited business, secretarial or technical school, junior college, college or university. All clerical positions will require a minimum typing ability of 30-40 words per minute, and some specify stenography skill at 80 words per minute.

Forest Service clerical employees qualify for grades 1-5 of the General Schedule (GS) category of the Federal Wage System. While promotions between grades are rare due to the temporary nature of clerical assignments, workers on extended assignments can be promoted up a single grade level for a pay increase of 3% after one year of satisfactory employment. For GS levels 1-5, you can expect to make between $9 and $13 per hour.

Quick Summary:

• Clerical positions with the forest service industry tend to be short-term, temporary or seasonal assignments, lasting no longer than two years at the maximum.
• These are great entry level, experience building office and business administration positions for people who are interested in keeping their resume green.
• Basic office clerks require minimal training or experience beyond a high school level education, but the more specialized clerical positions typically require at least one year of job experience, or two to four years of higher education at an accredited institution.
• All clerical positions require basic typing and office skills, with a baseline typing speed of 30-40 words per minute.
• Forest Service clerical positions typically pay between $9 and $13 per hour.