Job Check
Mail Clerks and Mail Machine Operators, Except Postal Service
Prepare incoming and outgoing mail for distribution. Time-stamp, open, read, sort, and route incoming mail; and address, seal, stamp, fold, stuff, and affix postage to outgoing mail or packages. Duties may also include keeping necessary records and completed forms.
10 main tasks · most important first
Your main tasks and AI
Importance- 01Lift and unload containers of mail or parcels onto equipment for transportation to sortation stations.Mostly human for now
- 02Verify that items are addressed correctly, marked with the proper postage, and in suitable condition for processing.AI could speed this up, with extra tools
- 03Clear jams in sortation equipment.Mostly human for now
- 04Place incoming or outgoing letters or packages into sacks or bins based on destination or type, and place identifying tags on sacks or bins.Mostly human for now
- 05Release packages or letters to customers upon presentation of written notices or other identification.Mostly human for now
- 06Remove containers of sorted mail or parcels and transfer them to designated areas according to established procedures.Mostly human for now
- 07Determine manner in which mail is to be sent, and prepare it for delivery to mailing facilities.AI could speed this up, with extra tools
- 08Sort and route incoming mail, and collect outgoing mail, using carts as necessary.Mostly human for now
- 09Weigh packages or letters to determine postage needed, using weighing scales and rate charts.AI could speed this up, with extra tools
- 10Fold letters or circulars and insert them in envelopes.Mostly human for now
Tasks from O*NET® 31.0 (US Department of Labor, CC BY 4.0, changed by us), most important first. “Already use” comes from Anthropic’s data on real work chats with Claude; “could speed up” from task ratings made with GPT-4 in 2023.
Four studies, side by side
None is a forecast of job lossToo little dataNot enough work use was seen to measure. This does not mean the job is safe from AI.Anthropic, 2026
22%of this job’s tasks an AI model could do in half the time, counting tasks that need extra tools as half (rated in 2023).Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin and Rock, 2023
Above 24% of jobsin how often and how well AI helped with this job’s work in Microsoft Copilot chats (2024 data).Microsoft Research (Tomlinson et al.), 2025
Above 88% of jobsin how much of this job’s physical work robots have been shown to do, from factories to homes (2026).Anthropic, 2026
Your human edge
The main tasks with no real AI use seen and no big speed-up expected. This is where your skill counts most today.
- Lift and unload containers of mail or parcels onto equipment for transportation to sortation stations.
- Clear jams in sortation equipment.
- Place incoming or outgoing letters or packages into sacks or bins based on destination or type, and place identifying tags on sacks or bins.