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Parking Attendants

People classed as Parking Attendants park vehicles or issue tickets for customers in a parking lot or garage. The skills rated most useful are speaking, service orientation, and active listening. A regular part of the work is to take numbered tags from customers, locate vehicles, and deliver vehicles, or provide customers with instructions for locating vehicles. The strongest interest signal is Realistic (5.6 of 7), then Conventional (5.1) and Enterprising, which gives it the code RCE. Getting in usually takes a few months to a year of learning on the job, a level O*NET calls some preparation. People who want hands-on work with tools, machines or the physical world usually fit better here than those who need research, analysis and working through hard problems.

What they do

Park vehicles or issue tickets for customers in a parking lot or garage. May park or tend vehicles in environments such as a car dealership or rental car facility. May collect fee.

Main tasks

  • Take numbered tags from customers, locate vehicles, and deliver vehicles, or provide customers with instructions for locating vehicles.
  • Inspect vehicles to detect any damage.
  • Greet customers and open their car doors.
  • Issue ticket stubs or place numbered tags on windshields, log tags or attach tag to customers' keys, and give customers matching tags for locating parked vehicles.
  • Perform cash handling tasks, such as making change, balancing and recording cash drawer, or distributing tips.
  • Explain and calculate parking charges, collect fees from customers, and respond to customer complaints.

Skills

  • Speaking
  • Service Orientation
  • Active Listening
  • Social Perceptiveness
  • Critical Thinking
  • Writing

Who this career fits

May suit you if

  • You like ending the day with a physical result you can point to.
  • You like clear rules and getting the details right.
  • You want to start work after a short stretch of training.
  • You are comfortable relying on speaking and service orientation.

May not suit you if

  • You would rather stay away from physical, hands-on tasks.
  • You want to spend most of your time analyzing and researching. Investigative rates 1.0 out of 7 here.
  • You want a career built on years of advanced study.

Interest profile

O*NET rates each occupation from 1 to 7 on six interest types. The code RCE takes the three highest, and Realistic comes first here.

Preparation

Some preparation. Most people start with a high school diploma, then learn from experienced coworkers over a few months to a year.

Most-reported requirement in the O*NET survey: High School Diploma or the equivalent (such as a GED). This reflects what workers reported most often and is not a legal minimum. Licensing rules can differ by state or industry, so confirm what applies where you plan to work.

Also called

  • Hiker
  • Parking Attendant
  • Parking Cashier
  • Parking Lot Attendant
  • Parking Ramp Attendant

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This page includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.