1.
bureau staff; office worker; station employee
A person who works at a bureau, office, or station — most commonly a post office, broadcasting station, or government bureau. The specific workplace is determined by context.
郵便局員に聞いた。
I asked the post office clerk.
放送局員として十年働いている。
I have been working as a broadcasting station employee for ten years.
窓口の局員が丁寧に対応してくれた。
The clerk at the counter assisted me politely.
Compound of 局 ('bureau; office; station') and 員 ('member; staff'). The suffix 員 attaches to workplace or organization names to mean 'employee/member of': 銀行員 ('bank employee'), 会社員 ('company employee'), 駅員 ('station staff').
USAGE:
- Without a modifier, 局員 most often refers to a post office worker, since 郵便局 is the most frequently visited type of 局 in daily life.
- With modifiers: 放送局員 ('broadcasting station staff'), 薬局局員 ('pharmacy staff').
- A practical word for daily errands — you interact with 局員 when sending packages, buying stamps, or picking up registered mail.
COMMON COLLOCATIONS:
- 郵便局員: post office clerk
- 放送局員: broadcasting station staff
- 窓口の局員: the clerk at the counter
SIMILAR WORDS:
- 職員: staff member; employee — a more general term for institutional employees
- 駅員: station staff — specifically railway station workers
- 係員: person in charge; attendant — the staff member responsible for a particular task or area
- 会社員: company employee — office worker at a private company