# Clerical Officer - is it a good job?



## Lamps (21 Jan 2008)

Is a clerical officer with a governemnt body considered a good job?

Reason I ask is, i did a 4 yr degree in a completly seperate area, the area is quite small and really competitve so i never managed to secure a job. Instead was placed on panel after panel but never got called up as nobody ever left the jobs!

So i applied for a few other jobs and have been offered a job as a clerical officer - apparently there was 6 jobs and over 200applications and I got a job , so im pretty happy about that.

It seems pretty good, great location for me, good hours and the office seems a good place and a laugh. There will be little or no stress either hopefully.

Would promotions be realistic to get? Im a very determined person and would be wanting to move up as fast as is possible. Roughly how long are we looking for for somebody to move from CO to EO?

Moneywise, there is a scale as there is with most governement jobs, starting on 23,500 and rising up. Will I have to start on 23.5k? I really dont think i could afford to live on that so I may not accept it on them grounds. But I will be discussing this in a few days but would just like to get a heads up in this area?

Any other adivce form CO's in governemtn jobs would be much appreciated.


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## liaconn (21 Jan 2008)

You need two years service to do an internal EO competition. However, you will be competing against a lot of people, and would be very lucky to get promoted that quickly. Also, decentralisation has made things more complicated.
 There are also open EO competitions which are open to the public and which you can find out about on .  

The quality of your job really depends on the section you're appointed to although, in general, the work will be fairly routine. However, you may get lucky and also, the more you show you're willing to do the more responsibility you're usually given. (If you've a decent manager anyway).

I'm not sure if the starting salary is negotiable, it certainly usen't to be.


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## mir2001 (24 Jan 2008)

I had a government clerical position in the mid 90's but because I had a degree etc I thought I could/ should do better and left to pursue a different career (with higher status). Obviously this is just a personal view but if I could do it again I would stick with the clerical route. People with a good education will typically move up to grade 4 (at least). At that level you would earn as much as I currently do in my technical role and you wouldnt have the job insecurity factor and stress. Also there are generally better provisions for parents which does matter to most people eventually. I know some people see clerical work as very boring but in my view a lot of jobs are boring once you do them for long enough.


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## kramer2006 (24 Jan 2008)

Is this statement:



Lamps said:


> the office seems a good place and a laugh. There will be little or no stress either hopefully.



compatible with this?



Lamps said:


> a very determined person and would be wanting to move up as fast as is possible.


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## liaconn (24 Jan 2008)

kramer2006 said:


> Is this statement:
> 
> 
> 
> compatible with this?


 


I thought that looked a bit strange as well. Despite what you may hear about the Civil Service, you certainly don't get promoted for simply showing up then sitting around having a laugh and a stress free existence.


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## mir2001 (25 Jan 2008)

I dont see why hard work and having a nice office atmosphere are mutually exclusive. I think a person can want to have a laugh with their co- workers and also want to get their work done. Stressful environments are not by default efficient environments. I worked in a series of county council and dublin corp clerical roles and you did have to work of course. However my experience was that clerical was nowhere near as stressful as a lot of IT roles I've worked in. I have a friend in accountancy and he moved from a private company to the civil service and he is happier with the latter. He does work hard in the latter role but its just not as stressful.


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## csirl (25 Jan 2008)

There are opportunities for graduates to enter the civil service at higher levels that clerical. You should look out for these. 

There would be advantages and disadvantages to you taking a clerical job if it is your intention to seek a job more suitable to a graduate within the near future. The advantage would be you would be more familiar with how the civil service works. The disadvantage would be, if you do not have experience other than clerical, you may find it difficult in a low level job to demonstrate that you have the skills needed to do a graduate entry job (usually middle management).


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## redbhoy (26 Jan 2008)

I left a decent job in the service sector and got a job in the civil service as a CO grade 3. The money is pretty bad starting off but the hours are shockingly good. 
Flexi time is a must from now on and annual leave and other entitlements are worth the drop in pay in my opinion.
Ive a lot more time to pursue differnet interests in life now. I can basically work my job around my Life which is a big plus to me.


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## gebbel (27 Jan 2008)

Lamps said:


> It seems pretty good, great location for me, good hours and the office seems a good place and a laugh. There will be little or no stress either hopefully.
> 
> Would promotions be realistic to get? Im a very determined person and would be wanting to move up as fast as is possible..


 
What a naive post. You seem to view the world through rose-tinted glasses. You want little or no stress and a good laugh, yet cite your determined nature and will to ''move up as fast as possible''! 

You sound to me like the stereotypical lazy and greedy public service employee-in-waiting who wants to do sweet f.a. and get well paid for it. Wake up.


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