Roles

• Good communication and problem-solving abilities are important for customer service agents, according to the BLS. Customer service agents help customers with questions, problems and complaints. A customer service agent interacts with customers on the phone, email, fax, post, online chat or face-to-face. Customer service agents may also conduct some research on-the-job by looking up information on databases or the Internet.
  
  

Salary

• According to the May 2008 U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wages data, a customer service representative earned a national median hourly rate of $14.36 and a national median salary of $29,860. The median salary ranged from below $19,030 to above $48,340.
  
  

Employment

• According to the BLS May 2008 data, business support services employed the most customer service representatives with an average salary of $25,570. Other businesses that employed high numbers of customer service representatives were as follows: insurance carriers; depository credit intermediation; agencies, brokerages and other insurance-related activities; and employment services. The postal service offered the highest pay with an average salary of $60,720.
  
  

Environment

• Customer service agents often are found in office settings that are comfortable, clean and well-lit, according to the BLS. These workers may be found in workstations or cubicle spaces that include telephones, computers and headsets. Call centers may be crowded and noisy. The work can be stressful and repetitious with little time between phone calls. Some customer service agents even telecommute from their homes. Other customer service agents can be found in retail stores.
  
  

Education

• Most employers seek those with a high school diploma, according to the BLS. However, some look for at least an associate's or bachelor's degree. Training varies, according to industry. Nearly all customer service representatives receive some form of training. Length of training varies and often lasts several weeks. Some receive training updates on a regular basis, especially for those agents in banking where products and services are constantly changing.