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.
It is possible you've been lied to as your name suggests which I find to be very bad. Unfortunately I can't confirm if this is the case or not. I don't know of any rules either way as to why the postman would automatically return any mail that doesn't have the hostels name included in the address. It is pretty common for people to receive mail or packages at a hotel or some type of short-term stay facility. A woman who I work next to has a Comfort Inn that is part of her delivery route. I'm pretty sure she delivers any mail with the hotel's street address on it. It's then up to the hotel to notify the recipient that mail has arrived and then return any mail which may be for someone who is no longer there. I think that the letter carrier will accept any returned mail from the hotel and mark it "refused" or "attempted, not known" and it should go back to the sender. You ask "is this possible?" It certainly is possible as nothing surprises me about what happens at the USPS because the consistency of service among the employees and offices is not good in my opinion. I think we should deliver the mail as addressed (especially to a hotel, hostel, Airbnb, etc) and not worry about the names on the mail and let the receiving office decide whether to keep it, return it, or discard. Individual mail cannot be forwarded from a hotel or any business. In the future, if you want something mailed to a hostel, I'd recommend putting both your name and the name of the property you are staying at.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=A%20Hostel%20I%20was%20staying%20at%20said%20the%20postman%20automatically%20returns%20to%20sender%20%28without%20delivering%20it%29%20%20anything%20not%20addressed%20to%20the%20Hostel%20directly.%20Is%20this%20possible%3F%20or%20would%20the%20Hostel%20have%20to%20manually%20return%20it%20themselves%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/16702)
Hello CP2015, I'm not sure what POCs are but I'll guess and say those are the amt of possible deliveries you have each day which sounds like a lot to me. It isn't easy to work outside in the summer when the sun is pounding down on you. While I prefer the heat vs the extreme cold, the summer can be taxing on your body. I'd recommend wearing a wide-brimmed hat to keep the sun off your eyes, face, and neck. I also recommend drinking as much water as you can even before you get thirsty. It sweats off of you pretty quickly so the more you stay hydrated the better you should feel. In terms of actually burning, I suppose you could apply sunscreen liberally with an SPF of 40+. Stay safe and thanks for writing.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=i%20have%20661%20POC%27s%20in%20my%20route%20and%20I%20AM%20BURNING%20unde%20the%20scorching%20sun.%20do%20you%20have%20any%20tips%20to%20avoid%20getting%20burned%20and%20stay%20cool%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/17174)
HI Jack, that is an interesting question you pose. Since I'm pretty easy going and can filter out a lot of the garbage spewed out by some co-workers and their disruptive personalities and the sometimes incompetent management, the biggest pain to me is winter weather. As warm as I can dress for the severe cold, there are occasions where my extremities just get too cold too handle it and I haven't found, or don't use, the best gloves or shoes to insulate me properly. I think if that were figured out, there isn't too much of a pain in this job. Believe me, many other letter carriers would disagree with me and can be very petty and complain about things that I feel are insignificant. Apprx 75% of the day I'm out of the office delivering mail, listening to podcasts and getting exercise by walking. I'm getting paid a fair salary with good benefits and a high level of job security. Regarding my weather comment, there are usually just a few days per year that the weather is unbearably cold. I'm not sure how I would do in much colder climates than in NY (on Long Island). All things considered, I could be doing a lot worse for a job. Thanks for your question.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=MailmanDave%2C%0AWhat%20would%20you%20say%20is%20the%20biggest%20pain%20you%20deal%20with%20in%20your%20job%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/16937)
I'm not sure why you have recently started getting standard mail addressed to a tenant from 5 years ago. It's possible that name and address was on somebody's mailing list which was then sold to other companies/organizations. One option is to put the mail back in the mailstream or mailbox and write "person doesn't live here" on the envelope. A conscientious letter carrier would make note of it and only deliver mail addressed to you (the current tenant). Another option is to just discard/recycle the unwanted mail. Most standard mail doesn't get returned to the sender if unwanted by the recipient. We put it into a big recycle bin at work and I think it gets shipped off to a processing or recycling facility. The rate a mailer pays for standard mail usually doesn't include any type of address or return service to notify them of outdated names on their mailing lists.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=I%27ve%20lived%20in%20my%20apartment%20for%20five%20years.%20Suddenly%20I%27m%20getting%20standard%20%28advertising%29%20mail%20addressed%20to%20the%20previous%20tenant.%20This%20made%20sense%20when%20I%20first%20moved%20in%2C%20but%20why%20now%20all%20of%20a%20sudden%20and%20is%20there%20anything%20I%20can%20do%20about%20it%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/17264)
Sommelier
What's your favorite bottle of wine for under $20?
McDonald's Manager
Did you have to deal with a lot of disrespectful customers? What would they say?
Certified Nurse Aide
What's it like going into a room in the morning to find someone dead?
Now you're speaking my language Patty. This is exactly how I deliver much of my postal route. The mailboxes where I deliver mail are at the door as opposed to at the street. If the mailboxes are at the street, the letter carrier can usually remain in their vehicle and go house to house. That is called a mounted or curbside delivery method. When the houses aren't too far apart and are on both sides of the street, I'll park at the end of a block, walk down one side delivering the mail, cross over to the other side and return to my vehicle after delivering both sides of the street. That is called a relay. From the same parking spot, I can sometimes deliver up to 3 relays of mail. The method described is called the 'park and loop' method. It is efficient because you can often cross lawns without having to continuously walk to the street and move the vehicle. The relays on the route I deliver range in length from 14-28 houses.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Ive%20heard%20that%20mailmen%20have%20to%20park%20at%20the%20end%20of%20the%20street%20and%20walk%20the%20route%20instead%20of%20driving%20from%20house%20to%20house..Is%20that%20true%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/16775)
The USPS is always warning us to steer clear of dogs and don't pet them even if the owner says "my dog doesn't bite". There are some dogs on the route I deliver which I trust to come up to me. I don't pet them but sometimes they will come up to my leg. For the most part i don't get involved with dogs. If we think a dog will bite us we are taught to use our satchel (if we are using one) as a shield between us and the dog. Another item we carry is "Back Off" Dog Repellent which we can spray at the face of a dog if we are bitten or about to be bit by a dog. The dog will usually back off and get disoriented. I have never been bit except for a nip on my legs which I didn't report to my supervisor. There are many dogs on the route which I deliver but most owners are very responible in not letting them out off-leash.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=What%20do%20you%20do%20if%20a%20dog%20is%20about%20to%20bite%20you%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/17551)
You're welcome. I just always like to state here that I have never read the National Agreement between the USPS and the National Association of Letter Carriers so a lot of what I say is based on what I've seen at my particular PO as well and by attending some local union meetings. I do a little research online but I'm not lawyer and am not dedicated enough to research deeply to see if there are rules on certain issue mentioned in the National Agreement. Congratulations on getting a route assignment.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Makes%20sense%20to%20start%20on%20a%20Saturday%2C%20but%20bid%20states%2002%2F19.%20Thanks%20for%20the%20insight&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/16391)
-OR-
Login with Facebook (max 20 characters - letters, numbers, and underscores only. Note that your username is private, and you have the option to choose an alias when asking questions or hosting a Q&A.)
(A valid e-mail address is required. Your e-mail will not be shared with anyone.)
(min 5 characters)
By checking this box, you acknowledge that you have read and agree to Jobstr.com’s Terms and Privacy Policy.
-OR-
Register with Facebook(Don't worry: you'll be able to choose an alias when asking questions or hosting a Q&A.)
Browse Jobs
Host a Q&A
Search
Submit Your Question
Host a Q&A
Last 7
