Cashiers

Summary

Grocery stores are the largest employers of cashiers.

Quick Facts: Cashiers
2010 Median Pay	$18,500 per year $8.89 per hour
Entry-Level Education	Less than high school
Work Experience in a Related Occupation	None
On-the-job Training	Short-term on-the-job training
Number of Jobs, 2010	3,362,600
Job Outlook, 2010-20	7% (Slower than average)
Employment Change, 2010-20	250,200

What Cashiers Do

Cashiers handle payments from customers purchasing goods and services.

Work Environment

Most cashiers work in retail stores. Work hours vary by employer, but cashiers typically must work nights, weekends, and holidays.

How to Become a Cashier

Cashiers go through a brief training period when they are hired. There are usually no formal education requirements.

Pay

The median hourly wage of cashiers was $8.89 in May 2010.

Job Outlook

Employment of cashiers is expected to grow by 7 percent from 2010 to 2020, slower than the average for all occupations. Job prospects should be good.

Similar Occupations

Compare the job duties, education, job growth, and pay of cashiers with similar occupations.

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Contacts for More Information

Learn more about cashiers by contacting these additional resources.

What Cashiers Do

Cashiers help customers pay for goods and services.

Cashiers handle payments from customers purchasing goods and services.

Duties

Cashiers typically do the following:

• Greet customers
• Use scanners, cash registers, and calculators to ring up items that customers buy
• Accept payments from customers and give change and receipts
• Bag or wrap customers’ purchases
• Handle returns and exchanges of merchandise, including seeing if the items are in good condition and using the right procedure for cash, credit cards, or other types of payment
• Answer customers' questions and give information about the store's procedures and policies
• Help customers to sign up for store rewards programs and to apply for store credit cards
• Count how much money is in their register at the beginning and end of their shift

In some establishments, cashiers may have to check customers' age when selling age-restricted products, such as alcohol and tobacco. Some cashiers may have duties not directly related to sales and customer service, such as mopping floors, taking out the trash, and doing other custodial tasks. Others may stock shelves or mark prices on items.  

Work Environment

Cashiers spend most of their time on their feet.

Cashiers held about 3.4 million jobs in 2010. Most cashiers work indoors, usually in retail establishments such as supermarkets, department stores, movie theaters, and restaurants. 

As shown in the following tabulation, 25 percent of cashiers worked in grocery stores in 2010:

The work is often repetitive, and cashiers spend most of their time standing behind counters or checkout stands. 

The work can sometimes be dangerous; the risk from robberies and homicides is higher for cashiers than for most other workers. However, more safety precautions, such as installing safes and security cameras, are being taken to help deter criminals.

Work Schedules

Work hours vary by employer, but cashiers typically must work nights, weekends, and holidays. Employers may restrict the use of vacation time from Thanksgiving through early January, because that is the busiest time of year for most retailers.

How to Become a Cashier

Cashiers need to have good customer service skills.

Cashiers are usually trained on the job. There are usually no formal educational requirements.

Education

Many jobs for cashiers have no specific educational requirements, although some employers prefer applicants with at least a high school diploma. Cashiers should have a basic knowledge of mathematics, because they need to be able to make change and count the money in their registers.

Important Qualities

Customer-service skills. Cashiers need to be courteous and friendly when helping customers.

Dexterity. Cashiers constantly use their hands to operate registers and scan purchases.

Listening skills. Cashiers must pay attention to their customers’ questions, instructions, and complaints.

Patience. Cashiers frequently interact with customers who are upset or angry, and the cashiers must be able to remain calm.

Stamina. Cashiers must be able to stand for long periods.

Training

Cashiers go through a brief training period when they are hired. In small firms, an experienced worker typically trains beginners. In larger businesses, trainees spend time in training classes before being placed at cash registers. During training, new cashiers are taught store policies and procedures and how to operate equipment such as cash registers.    

Advancement

Working as a cashier is often a steppingstone to other careers in retail. For example, with experience, cashiers may become customer service representatives, retail salespersons, or supervisors. Cashiers with at least a high school diploma typically have the best chances for promotion. For more information, see the profiles on customer service representatives and retail sales workers.

Pay

The median hourly wage of cashiers was $8.89 in May 2010. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $7.56, and the top 10 percent earned more than $12.40.  

Many cashiers start at the federal minimum wage, which is $7.25 an hour. Some states set the minimum wage above $7.25 an hour.

Work hours vary by employer, but cashiers typically must work nights, weekends, and holidays. Employers may restrict the use of vacation time from Thanksgiving through early January, because that is the busiest time of year for most retailers.

Job Outlook

Employment of cashiers is expected to grow by 7 percent from 2010 to 2020, slower than the average for all occupations. Retail sales are expected to grow, leading to increased need for cashiers over the projections decade. However, employment growth will be limited by advances in technology, such as a rise in the number of self-service checkout stands in retail stores and increasing online sales that may decrease the need for cashiers.

Job Prospects

Job opportunities should be good because of the need to replace the large number of workers who leave the occupation for a variety of reasons each year.  

Historically, workers under the age of 25 have filled many of the openings for cashiers. In 2010, about 46 percent of all cashiers were 24 years old or younger.

Contacts for More Information

The Handbook does not have contacts for more information for this occupation.