The Work Bench · Stockers and Order Fillers

Recommend disposal of excess stock

The task, from O*NET: Recommend disposal of excess, defective, or obsolete stock.

Typical length 25 minutes. Time split: documents 50%, hands-on 50%. About 129,115,185 hours a year of desk work across the US go to this task.

Passes, one attempt by Claude Fable 5.1. The rubric was written 2026-10-01 03:34 UTC, before the attempt (2026-10-01 03:43 UTC); the grade came last (2026-10-01 03:46 UTC).

One attempt at one task on one date, with constructed material: it is not a statement that the job, or this task in a given workplace, can be done by AI. The rubric, the attempt and the grade were made by the same model in one session, in that order; a person's check of a sample of grades will be published beside them.

The brief

You stock the back room at Fairmont Home & Garden. Today is October 1. The manager wants your recommendation on every item flagged in the aging report: for each, one of return to vendor, mark down, transfer, donate, or dispose, with a sentence of reason that names the store rule, and the cost value involved, totaled. Follow the rules below. Where the rules do not settle an item, say what you need to know instead of guessing.

The material

Constructed for this example; the names, figures and documents are invented.

STORE RULES
- Return to vendor: allowed within 90 days of receipt for unopened goods when the vendor accepts returns (noted per line). A recalled item is returned under the vendor's recall authorization at any time.
- Mark down: up to 50% for seasonal goods after the season, with clearance tags.
- Transfer: to the sister store if it sells the category and the item is not seasonal-dated.
- Donate: unexpired consumables and usable goods to the community partner; keep a donation receipt.
- Dispose: damaged, expired, recalled-and-unreturnable, or hazardous goods, chemicals through the hazardous-waste procedure. Never donate or sell recalled or expired items.

AGING REPORT (item; quantity on hand; unit cost; received; condition; notes)
1. Patio umbrellas, 9 ft, striped; 14; $42.00; received April 2; unopened; vendor accepts returns; season ended.
2. Pool chlorine tablets, 5 lb; 22; $19.50; received May 10; sealed; expires December 2027; vendor does not accept returns; hazardous category.
3. Garden hose, 50 ft, lot B; 30; $11.00; received June 15; recalled September 12 for coupling failure; vendor issued a recall notice with a return authorization.
4. Flower bulbs, tulip mix; 60 bags; $3.20; received August 20; packaging intact; plant-by date November 30, 2026; sister store sells bulbs.
5. Charcoal, 20 lb; 48 bags; $9.00; received March 1; 6 bags torn and wet; vendor does not accept returns; sister store sells charcoal.
6. Holiday string lights, last year's; 25 boxes; $7.50; received October 2025; unopened; vendor window passed.
7. Bird seed, 20 lb; 15 bags; $14.00; received July 8; expires October 15, 2026; vendor does not accept returns; the community partner accepts pet and wildlife feed.
8. Paint, interior latex, custom-tinted returns; 9 gallons; $24.00; opened and tinted; cannot be returned; usable.
9. Lawn fertilizer with weed control; 11 bags; $26.00; received February 12; 3 bags with broken seams, leaking; chemical category.

The rubric, written before the attempt

1. Every item gets one recommendation from the five allowed, with a one-sentence reason that names the rule. Evidence: Nine items, one action each, a rule in each reason.
2. The 90-day return window is applied by date. Evidence: On October 1, anything received before about July 3 is outside the window: umbrellas, chlorine, charcoal, lights and fertilizer are not returnable; the recalled hose is returned under its recall authorization regardless.
3. Hazard and safety rules are respected. Evidence: The recalled hose is never donated or sold; the leaking fertilizer and the wet charcoal are disposed of, the fertilizer through the hazardous-waste procedure; the sealed, unexpired chlorine is not disposed of.
4. Expiry is handled. Evidence: Bird seed donated with a receipt, or marked down, before October 15; bulbs sold or donated before November 30 and not transferred, since they are seasonal-dated.
5. Open questions are stated where the rules do not settle the item. Evidence: Whether to hold the string lights for the coming season rather than mark them down; whether the sister store sells pool supplies, for the chlorine; the paint as donation versus mis-tint markdown.
6. Cost values are right per item and in total, with the disposed portion identified. Evidence: $588.00, $429.00, $330.00, $192.00, $432.00, $187.50, $210.00, $216.00, $286.00; total $2,870.50; disposed: charcoal $54.00 and fertilizer $78.00.

The attempt, one pass, unedited

Claude Fable 5.1, written 2026-10-01 03:43 UTC from the brief and the material only.

RECOMMENDATIONS ON THE AGING REPORT, October 1

| Item | Qty | Cost value | Recommendation | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. Patio umbrellas | 14 | $588.00 | Mark down, up to 50%, clearance tags | Received April 2, outside the 90-day return window; seasonal goods after the season. |
| 2. Pool chlorine tablets | 22 | $429.00 | Mark down; transfer instead if the sister store sells pool supplies | No returns; sealed and good until December 2027, so not disposal; seasonal after the pool season. Question below. |
| 3. Garden hose, lot B | 30 | $330.00 | Return to vendor under the recall authorization | Recalled September 12; recalled items are returned under the authorization at any time and never sold or donated. |
| 4. Tulip bulbs | 60 | $192.00 | Mark down now to sell before November 30; donate any left in late November, with a receipt | The plant-by date makes them seasonal-dated, so no transfer; an unexpired consumable, so donation is allowed before the date. |
| 5. Charcoal | 48 | $432.00 | 42 good bags: transfer to the sister store. 6 torn and wet bags ($54.00): dispose | The sister store sells charcoal and the item is not seasonal-dated; damaged goods are disposed of. |
| 6. Holiday string lights | 25 | $187.50 | Mark down up to 50%, unless the manager prefers to hold them for the coming season | Unopened; vendor window passed; last season's goods. Question below. |
| 7. Bird seed | 15 | $210.00 | Donate to the community partner now, with a receipt | Expires October 15; the partner accepts wildlife feed; unexpired consumables may be donated; two weeks is too short to sell 15 bags. |
| 8. Custom-tinted paint returns | 9 | $216.00 | Donate as usable goods, or mark down as mis-tints | Cannot be returned; usable. Question below. |
| 9. Lawn fertilizer with weed control | 11 | $286.00 | 8 intact bags: mark down (seasonal, outside the return window). 3 leaking bags ($78.00): dispose through the hazardous-waste procedure | Received February 12, outside 90 days; chemical category, so the leaking bags go through the chemical procedure. |

Totals: cost value under review $2,870.50. Of that, to dispose: $132.00 (charcoal $54.00, fertilizer $78.00). To return under the recall: $330.00. The rest is sold down, transferred or donated.

What I need to know
- Chlorine: does the sister store sell pool supplies? If so, a transfer beats a markdown.
- String lights: the rule says mark down after the season, but the holiday season is ahead of us. Do you want to hold them at full price instead?
- Paint: donate to the partner, or mark down as mis-tints at the register? Either fits the rules.

The grade

Graded 2026-10-01 03:46 UTC against the rubric above, by the same model.

Overall: passes. The recommendations follow the rules item by item and stop where the rules stop. The two split recommendations (charcoal, fertilizer) are the right reading of damaged partial lots.

How the examples are made and graded: the method. Every task of this job, with its length and when it comes within reach: Stockers and Order Fillers.