Job Overview of a Teller:

 

Tellers are people who are the front-line executives in any financial institution. Before the advancement of technology like today, tellers used to play a very prominent and effective role in any banking organisation. Nevertheless, even today, in the presence of automated transactions and secure online technologies, man-power is needed in businesses. While the number of things done by a teller once upon a time were much in number when compared with that of today, tellers still stand as the first people who represent a banking institution.

 

Their main job is to receive and interact with customers and attend to their needs, be it creating a new banking account, or resolving an ongoing issue, or validate transactions and so on and so forth. A teller’s job is like an entry level job where he/she handles the most important part of the business with accuracy and security. The things done by this professional may seem repetitive every day but utmost care needs to be taken while dealing with the transactions and interaction with the customers as the whole business is money related. This job is like a stepping stone which after gaining a few years of experience will open gates of opportunities to other higher positions, after passing some exams and meeting necessary requirements though.

 

They may advance to positions of personal bankers, mortgage bankers, banking officers, credit analysts, etc. As per the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the tellers constitute the largest number of banking professionals (around 2 million) in the financial sector. However, the demand for this job is expected to rise slowly when compared to other jobs the reason for which is obviously the immense of use of advanced technology in the banking sector today.

Basic Tasks and Responsibilities:

●     Each day, check and calculate the transactions done and the amount of currency in the drawers at the end of every shift.

●     Validate transactions after verifying the credentials and signatures and after making sure the accounts have enough funds.

●     Check if the details filled in the deposit slips like account number, name and date are accurate and verify the amounts.

●     Receive cash deposits and cheques.

●     Feed the transaction information into the bank database using various company owned tools and generate receipts for the customers.

●     Count the currency using currency counting machines and seal them in bundles for shipment to other branches or just for storage.

●     Check for failed transaction issues and the balance of debits and credits.

●     Sort out the received currency as per the denomination of coins and bills.

●     Process out-of-hours deposits, term deposits, online transactions, bill pays, etc.

●     Resolve issues related to account discrepancies.

●     Recommend services and products like cashier’s checks, travelers’ checks bonds, etc. to tailor the needs of the customer.

●     Monitor the bank safe and ensure the balances tally.

●     Order cash to meet daily transaction needs.

●     Maintain information related to all the customers in the Customer Relationship Management Tool used by the organisation.

●     Calculate the service charges, interest and taxes levied on the account holder.

●     Co-ordinate with third party companies to order things like cash cards (debit or credit) and check books.

 

Responsibilities:

●     Help new customers open new banking accounts after taking all required information and documents from them.

●     Correspond with the customer online and by mail about the discrepancies and outstanding dues on credits, loans, etc.

●     Update the customers about the foreign exchange rules and regulations and impose transaction fees as per the policies and also update them with the daily change in the transactions as per the daily international rates and online updates.

●     Issue checks to customers while settling bond transactions.

●     Prepare staff work schedules as taking into account all considerations.

 

Certifications and Licensures:

Let us now look at some facts about the certification for a Banking Teller.

●     There are many institutions that offer Banking Teller Certificate programs.

●     The classes are either conducted online or in classrooms.

●     This course is usually offered by colleges and lasts just for six months (a semester).

●     There is a Bank Teller course offered by the American Institute of Banking under the affiliation of the American Bankers Association.

●     The above course covers topics such as banking regulations, compliance, business ethics, communication and customer service. It is an 82 hour course.

Salary Information for a Bank Teller:

Let us now look at how bank tellers are paid. Furnished below are the basic salary details.

●      Hourly Rate    $8.41 – $12.88

●      Overtime       $11.82 – $19.31

●      Bonus           $96.19 – $1,490

●      Commission   $122.39 – $2,373

●      Total Pay       $17,695 – $28,273

 

Work experience directly influences the salary that an individual earns.

 

The following information tells us the range of salaries for people with different amounts of experience in the banking sector.

 

Salary by Experience

Years Experience          Salary Range

●      Less than 1 year       $14,306 – $39,276

●      1-4 years                $17,202 – $30,985

●      5-9 years                $19,223 – $34,662

●      10-19 years             $20,041 – $37,196

●      20 years or more     $18,316 – $50,893

 

Although the median salary for a banking teller is the same in the industry, it varies by the company and its size.

 

The following gives us an idea of the salary ranges offered by various companies.

 

Salary by Employer Name

Employer Name                                                       Salary Range

●      Wachovia Bank                                               $19,532 – $30,308

●      The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc.                $18,001 – $29,833

●      Citibank                                                         $13,277 – $31,424

●      Bank of America Corp. (BOFA)                          $14,298 – $39,149

●      Wells Fargo Bank                                            $19,271 – $31,148

●      SunTrust Banks Inc.                                        $15,640 – $30,595

●      J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. (JPMCC)                      $11,858 – $32,107

●      State Employees Credit Union – North Carolina      $20,213 – $29,590

●      Chase Bank                                                    $10,155 – $29,799

●      Regions Bank                                                 $17,454 – $24,220

●      First National Bank                                          $13,425 – $22,000

 

The location of work also has a direct influence on the salary. If it is a metro, then one can expect more salary.

 

Let us now look into the salary ranges of people in some important cities and provinces.

Salary by City

 

City                                         Salary Range

●      New York, New York           $20,357 – $35,928

●      Atlanta, Georgia                 $24,361 – $39,594

●      Houston, Texas                  $14,271 – $45,615

●      San Francisco, California      $11,836 – $40,075

●      Austin, Texas                     $17,114 – $33,772

●      Raleigh, North Carolina        $23,411 – $25,962

●      Philadelphia, Pennsylvania    $21,388 – $29,297

 

 

Salary by State or Province

 

State                          Salary Range

●     Texas                     $15,922 – $34,244

●     Florida                    $17,408 – $33,456

●     New York                $18,329 – $34,772

●     California                $13,680 – $45,000

●     North Carolina          $20,171 – $29,577

●     Virginia                   $17,760 – $38,131

●     Pennsylvania            $17,716 – $35,608

 

 

As discussed earlier, the size of the company matters most when it comes to good pay packages. The bigger the company, the more the salary of a candidate.

 

 

Salary by Company Size

 

Company Size           Salary Range

●     1 – 9                      $14,400 – $45,000

●     10 – 49                             $18,515 – $32,438

●     50 – 199                  $16,996 – $32,369

●     200 – 599                $16,273 – $30,579

●     600 – 1999              $19,513 – $40,268

●     2000 – 4999             $19,727 – $119,195

●     5000 – 19999           $20,087 – $40,186

●     20000 – 49999                    $13,588 – $64,000

●     50000+                   $20,956 – $41,426

 

Certifications most of the times add up to a candidate’s market value. Listed are a few certifications and the salaried offered for these certificate holders.

 

Salary by Certification

Certification                                      Salary Range

●     Business Certificate                      $25,061 – $37,642

●     Notary Public                               $24,713 – $32,556

●     Comptia A+ Service Technician       NA

 

 

Let us now look at the benefits for candidates with additional skills. Some important skills required for this job and the respective salary ranges are furnished below. Have a look.

 

 

Salary by Skill/Specialty

Skill/Specialty                                                          Salary Range

●     Sales                                                            $17,525 – $26,124

●     Customer Service Metrics                                 $13,289 – $40,547

●     Customer Relationship Management (CRM) $23,092 – $30,513

Education and Training:

 

●     Let us now look at the educational qualification and other trainings required to settle down as a teller in any financial institution.

●     A pass in the higher secondary examination is the starting step.

●     A bachelor’s degree in accounts from a recognised university is the basis of any job in the field of finance and banking.

●     Since all transactions are recorded and made using computers today, basic knowledge of computers is required.

●     Some reputed institutions need a diploma or a certificate course in basic computing and application software packages for office work.

●     There are some institutions which offer training to apply for the post of a teller where one is taught to face the interview and get through the examination.

●     Most institutions offer a short period of training to the candidates after recruiting them which will make them aware of the regulations and policies of the company.

Skills and other requirements:

Let us now look into some of the most important things required for a candidate to be a teller.

Communication:

●     A first and foremost thing one needs to have to be a teller is excellent communication skills.

●     This is because most of the work time of a teller is spent by interacting with customers.

●     The way tellers interact with customers reflects the company and directly influences the opinion of the customers.

●     Some institutions train tellers for good communication after recruiting them.

Team Spirit:

●     Any financial institution is expected to have more than a few tellers.

●     There needs to be a spirit of unity and team work while working for an organisation.

●     The ways of accomplishing tasks can be different but the ultimate goal is same.

●     Teams need to co-ordinate well in order to provide the best service to the clients and keep up the reputation of the institution.

Honesty and Integrity:

●     People in financial institutions are expected to be very honest as everything dealt there is about money and accounts.

●     At all times, the code of conduct and policies of the company are to be followed without fails.

●     Everything done by a teller needs to be transparent and recorded for future reference.

Security and Confidentiality:

●     A teller has access to the information related to the customers’ account which he needs to keep confidential and not share with anyone.

●     Any breach of the company policies may lead to legal action.

●     All customers’ transactions need to be kept confidential by the teller and are not to be used for personal gain.

Dedication and Commitment:

●     A teller is expected to be committed to his job and be sincere in all the work that he exercises daily.

●     Managers expect dedication and true hard work from these front-line professionals in order to take the institution to greater heights.