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.
I don't know that they can become a full fledged supervisor as a CCA (city carrier assistant) because that would mean being hired into a career position. A CCA is a non-career position. I've seen at least 2-3 times at the office where I work where a CCA has become a 204(b) which is an acting supervisor. It surprised me at first when this happened but I didn't have an issue with it as I had no desire to be a supervisor/manager. Some coworkers feel it's a bit absurd. The truth is that our staffing levels are so low across the board that nothing surprises me as to who goes where and does what. In our office we currently have one CCA (pregnant) who is doing the work of a 204(b). I don't know her plans once the baby is born and she comes back to work.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Can%20a%20CCA%20become%20a%20supervisor%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/18955)
I don't know anything about getting OIG to investigate anything for the USPS. I think they may have a tip hotline that can be called but I don't know if they will place your tip on any high priority. I would call that carrier a sleazeball for not delivering anything that should be. It is illegal plus the only reason our job exists is because items are being paid for that we should deliver. I have the impression that so many employees (including management) don't care at all about proper delivery of mail and what gets discarded or has the proper postage. There is so little oversight as to what we do on a daily basis unless we do something egregious or work unsafely. I'm sorry to be so negative. It's important to me that every piece of mail that is properly addressed is delivered, no matter if it's a catalog, weekly supermarket flier, or birthday card. It's all mail and should be handled accordingly.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=How%20do%20you%20get%20the%20USPS%20OIG%20to%20investigate%3F%20A%20carrier%20tech%20never%20delivers%20catalogs.%20I%20have%20tested%20and%20confirmed%20they%20did%20not%20deliver%20at%20least%2012%20over%202%20years.%20All%20other%20carriers%20have%20passed%20my%20tests%20100%25.%20This%20one%20fails%20100%25.%20USPS%20OIG%20does%20nothing.&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/18212)
I do understand what you mean. Your question is "If a carrier takes the 'shortcut' to your mailbox vs taking the stairs at the far end based on his direction of travel are you liable for any injury. I don't know the answer to this for sure but I'd hope not. We are covered by workers' compensation insurance through our employer (the USPS) and I don't know that the USPS or the letter carrier (individually) could file a successful liability claim against you as the homeowner. I can see if you were very negligent as a homeowner and maybe caused some type of tripping hazard to be left unattended perhaps there could be some liability, but I have really no insight on this.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=I%20thought%20of%201%20more%20%3F%2C%20sorry.%20If%20%20a%20carrier%20jumps%20onto%20my%20porch%20where%20there%20are%20no%20stairs%20and%20gets%20injured%20doing%20that%2C%20am%20I%20liable%3F%20To%20get%20to%20the%20stairs%2C%20one%20must%20cross%20my%20small%20yard%20%26%20enter%20at%20far%20end%2C%20based%20on%20the%20direction%20he%20travels%20on%20his%20route.&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/18948)
From what I understand, we scan the flats and letters to verify how long it takes mailpieces to get from somewhere to the delivery point. I haven’t heard this for sure. I agree it seems pointless and annoying. I make sure to take the time to do it properly though I don’t trust most of my coworkers to do it. Regarding what to do when it asks i feel the address is on the route, i usually put “yes” if it’s vacant or hold but I have to say I’m probably not consistent with that i do. I’d hit “yes”, then “end scanning” and then “no more to scan” if I had zero mailpieces with me. I’m not sure how it is in Massapequa but the communication as to what we’re supposed to do in any situation is quite half-assed and different supv may give different answers. I have so little faith in the supervisors to give the right information that I often don’t even bother asking. We had a service talk today about how to scan parcels that are on “hold”. The directions were completely the opposite of what we were told in the past. Besides that, I doubt they will repeat the service talk for the carriers who were off today or on vacation. I’m just venting but I think you can relate to my comments. Thanks again for writing and hope you liked my tangent.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=What%20is%20the%20premise%20to%20scan%20flats%20and%20letters%2C%20it%E2%80%99s%20ridiculous%20in%20my%20opinion%2C%20and%20what%20if%20a%20house%20is%20vacant%20or%20on%20hold%2C%20my%20guess%20is%20on%20the%20scanner%20to%20hit%20%E2%80%9Cnot%20on%20the%20route%20%E2%80%9Cwhen%20it%20prompts%2C%20any%20thoughts&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/19553)
School Bus Driver
If your bus is in an accident that was ruled your fault, would you lose your job?
Firefighter
How can you tell if a fire was arson?
McDonald's Manager
Were you proud or embarrassed to tell people you worked at McDonald's?
Chris, to answer your second question first,we are definitely supposed to walk through yards and across lawns unless a resident or property owner specifically tells us not to. It is the most efficient way to get from house to house without having to walk to the street unless there are fences between houses in their front yards. As far as dog poop situation, I don't know what is legal and not with regards to refusing mail delivery. I would speculate that if there is a chance the letter carrier may walk through it then maybe the note is warranted. On the other hand if the dog feces is on the lawn and you request the carrier not to walk on your lawn as he may step in it that should be a fair compromise. The carrier could also write a carrier alert card for your address which is sorted in your mail daily so when a letter carrier comes upon your house they could be alert for any possible dog poop. The alert card isn't delivered to your house. Instead the letter carrier takes it back to the PO to be used on the next delivery day as a warning card again for your address.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Hello%2C%0AMy%20mailman%20left%20a%20note%20on%20my%20mail%20telling%20me%20that%20he%20wouldn%27t%20deliver%20my%20mail%20unless%20I%20cleaned%20up%20a%20bit%20of%20dog%20poop%20in%20my%20front%20yard.%20Is%20this%20legal%3F%20I%20didn%27t%20even%20think%20a%20mail%20carrier%20was%20supposed%20to%20walk%20through%20yards.&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/18814)
Jessica, that is an interesting story. A little bit of light soap opera drama perhaps. Thanks for sharing your story and glad I could help with any insight of how easy (or not easy) it is to change routes.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=I%27m%20definitely%20not%20uncomfortable.%20I%20just%20thought%20it%20was%20strange%20he%20wasn%27t%20replying%20to%20my%20messages%20all%20of%20a%20sudden%20and%20then%20I%20saw%20the%20new%20carrier.%20I%20assumed%20his%20wife%20found%20out%20how%20flirty%20he%20was%20and%20made%20him%20change%20routes.%20But%20this%20happened%20this%20week.&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/19360)
Congratulations and good luck to you in your postal career. I'm glad you love it so far. Despite some personal hurdles I've had along the way, I absolutely love it most days and feel very fortunate to have this career. I don't know Powerade but I'm assuming it's an energy drink. I see Gatorade is the main competitor. The main criticism of those types of drinks is the high sugar content. My advice (with no scientific background) is to just drink 1-2 day at most and then hydrate with water. I mostly d non-sugar naturally flavored sparkling water beverages. I drink it quite a bit on hot days and it seems to help so much. I've avoided the Powerade type drinks mainly because I don't want to ingest so much sugar that could hurt my teeth and body. Moderation is my advice. Thanks for writing.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=I%20have%20been%20a%20CCA%20for%2060%20days%20now.%20I%20love%20the%20job.%20What%20do%20you%20recommend%20for%20me%20to%20keep%20myself%20hydrated%20during%20the%20summer%20when%20it%27s%20hot.%20I%27ve%20been%20drinking%20Powerade%20but%20I%27ve%20read%20drinking%20too%20many%20of%20those%20aren%27t%20good%20for%20you.&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/18889)
-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
