Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

Mailman (City Letter Carrier)

MailmanDave

17 Years Experience

Long Island, NY

Male, 43

I am a City Letter Carrier for the US Postal Service in NY. I've been a city letter carrier for over 17 years and it is the best job I've ever had. I mostly work 5 days per week (sometimes includes a Saturday) and often have the opportunity for overtime, which is usually voluntary. The route I deliver has about 350 homes and I walk to each of their doors to deliver the mail. Please keep in mind that I don't have authority to speak for the USPS, so all opinions are solely mine, not my employer.

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Last Answer on February 18, 2022

Best Rated

if someone moves and don't put a fwd what should i do with there mail

Asked by china almost 10 years ago

I'd recommend that if you received the mail for someone who previously lived at your residence but didn't put in a forward for you to put the mail back in your mailbox and you can write on it "moved" or "doesn't live here anymore". The letter carrier should take it and not redeliver it to you. You also have the option to discard since nobody would really know but I feel that is the wrong thing to do. By putting the mail back in the mailbox you alert the letter carrier that the person has moved from that address.

address 100&102 have always shared one mailbox. How do I inform the Mail Deliverer to put 102 mail in 102 box?

Asked by esmeralda almost 10 years ago

I am not sure what you mean by this question because you first say that 100 & 102 are together in one mailbox yet you then reference a box that says 102. If you truly have two separate mailboxes for two separate addresses and is clearly labeled I'm not sure why the letter carrier doesn't separate the mail between the two addresses. You could leave a note on the shared mailbox that there is a separate mailbox for 102 and ask them to put the mail there. If this isn't resolved with a note, you could always contact the PO and speak with a delivery supervisor or a manager to register your request.

I did a coa for October 9 to stop mail at old place and start mail at new place for same date. My question is why did I get a no vacant slip in mailbox on October 6? And does that mean my mail will be forwarded to new address or on hold at post offic

Asked by Sandy about 10 years ago

I am not sure why this happened and what will happen to your mail for the 3 days you mentioned. It should have been delivered until 10/8 as far as I know. After that, the forwarding should commence to your new address and will probably be a few more days before any forwarded mail arrives there. It's possible your "old" post office is holding the mail until 10/9 to forward it but I can't say for sure. I don't know if you have time to go to the PO to ask them why this happened and it's possible that by the time you find out it will almost be 10/9 and the mail will have been forwarded.

. While driving the vehicle to make a delivery, another motorist points towards the back of your vehicle as if something is wrong. What do you do?

Asked by Arek almost 10 years ago

If I were in motion, I'd safely pull over, put on my four-way flashers, and then get out to investigate. It's possible that my gas cap is hanging out the side of the LLV, the back gate isn't secure, or maybe I'm dragging something. It could also be something that I haven't thought of. If the motorist is still around I'd ask them what they are pointing out. If it seemed to be some type of phony diversion tactic, I'd try to get far away from the motorist pointing and then investigate safely.

Is there a second seat in the mail truck???

Asked by Emily over 10 years ago

In the LLV, which is the most common vehicle for delivery that is used, there is no second seat. The exception to that is that at our post office we up have 1 Long Life Vehicle with a seat in the cargo area which is behind the mail tray that is in the front left of the vehicle. We use that vehicle as a spare in case one breaks down or is needed by auxiliary help. The other reason it is used is when a supervisor comes with you for the day to inspect your route delivery. Sometimes they will follow you in their own car, but they often will just sit in the second seat. The cargo area opens up to the drivers area with a sliding door which I leave open all of the times.

My daughter accidentally put a letter in the mailbox yesterday that she would very much like to get back before it is processed. Is there a procedure in place for her to do so? It is scheduled for pick up tomorrow.

Asked by MomofTMK almost 10 years ago

I don't know the answer to this question as to what the procedure is. I can only speculate but could be completely wrong. Someone could wait by the mailbox for a letter carrier to come by and empty the mailbox and ask to retrieve the letter, but it may need to be easily found, identifiable, and the collector would have to be willing to give it back. They may not be allowed to or unwilling to help. The letter carrier doesn't necessarily come at the time posted. The time means they won't come before the posted time. Theoretically it could be hours later. Another option is to go to the PO that services the collection box to ask for assistance. Again, I have no idea about their willingness to help. If it were me, I'd probably assist you if the letter was easily found and the return address and name matched that of the person asking for the letter back through identification or personally known to me. I've never been asked to do this so I can't base it on past experience.

Hey! There's a high chance that I'll drop college and become a mailman. Which is a dream of mine! Could you be tell me how to apply and expect? I'm currently the age of 19, legal, and no driving issues.

Asked by Alex about 10 years ago

If you want to apply to be a letter carrier, the process begins at www.usps.com and look for an employment or careers tab. It has been many years since I applied so I don't know the process now. There is an exam, interview, and medical (including a drug test). I don't believe the process is that difficult based on the quality of employees that I've seen get hired lately. If you are hired as a City Carrier Assistant (CCA), you can expect to start out just filling in where needed when routes are overburdened with mail or carriers are out for some reason (injury, vacation, jury duty, military service). It means being very flexible with your schedule and sometimes working as much as 7 days/week. We have regular mail delivery Mon-Sat and then some offices deliver Amazon.com parcels on Sunday. You can apply anytime for the position so I wouldn't necessarily drop college right away. Earning a degree can make you more marketable in other feels. Working as a letter carrier doesn't require any higher education as far as I know. When you start out the pay is approximately $16/hr and there are virtually zero benefits except a small amount of paid time off. There is hardly any guarantee of hours to work and it could take awhile before you become a full-time regular employee which can be worthwhile. I do really like the job, but I did get a bachelors degree many years earlier. I didn't know what career I wanted to have and ultimately wound up at the USPS when I was 27 years old with a lot of encouragement from my father and friends. Working safely and accurately are two important attributes to the job. Good luck to you and please post any more questions you may have!