局員(きょくいん)

Compound of 局(きょく) ('bureau; office; station') and 員(いん) ('member; staff'). The suffix 員(いん) attaches to workplace or organization names to mean 'employee/member of': 銀行員(ぎんこういん) ('bank employee'), 会社員(かいしゃいん) ('company employee'), 駅員(えきいん) ('station staff').

Usage

• Without a modifier, 局員(きょくいん) most often refers to a post office worker, since 郵便局(ゆうびんきょく) is the most frequently visited type of 局(きょく) in daily life.
• With modifiers: 放送(ほうそう)局員(きょくいん) ('broadcasting station staff'), 薬局(やっきょく)局員(きょくいん) ('pharmacy staff').
• A practical word for daily errands — you interact with 局員(きょくいん) when sending packages, buying stamps, or picking up registered mail.

Common collocations

• 郵便(ゆうびん)局員(きょくいん): post office clerk
• 放送(ほうそう)局員(きょくいん): broadcasting station staff
• 窓口(まどぐち)の局員(きょくいん): the clerk at the counter

Similar words

• 職員(しょくいん): staff member; employee — a more general term for institutional employees
• 駅員(えきいん): station staff — specifically railway station workers
• 係員(かかりいん): person in charge; attendant — the staff member responsible for a particular task or area
• 会社員(かいしゃいん): company employee — office worker at a private company