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

I am expecting something in the mail shipped priority. Its was dropped off Aug18th for delivery . Its coming from New York and I live in So.California. I still haven' received it Aug 24th. Could it be delayed or lost? or maybe not actually sent?

Asked by vanagain over 12 years ago

I can't say for sure what happened to your priority mail item that you were expecting. Did the sender give you a tracking number? Most items shipped via Priority Mail would have a tracking number? As long as the mailer put the correct address on the Priority Mail and actually shipped the item, it is not likely to be lost, but not impossible. 

Hi,
Which part of Long Island do you work? Just curious because I live on LI. Also, do letter carriers spend their whole workday delivering mail, or do you also work inside the post office?
Thank you!

Asked by Name almost 12 years ago

Thanks for your question. I work at the Syosset, NY 11791 PO. City Carriers usually spend 1.5 to 3 Hrs each day in the office sorting the incoming mail into delivery order and then spending apprx. 5-6 Hrs each day "in the street" delivering the mail. A lot of mail these days comes pre-sorted into delivery sequence which has reduced the amount of hours that carriers spend in the post office compared to many years ago. The volume of mail over the years also hasn't remained as high so there is less mail to sort in the post office and deliver. For myself and most of my co-workers there is certainly still 8 hrs/day or more of work.

Is it true that obvious outgoing mail does not have to be collected unless there is mail to be delivered at that address that day?

Asked by Sandy almost 12 years ago

That is a very good question. I don't know the official answer to that question, but I know if I saw that outgoing mail was obviously there to be collected, I would collect it. Most addresses I service have at least 1 piece of mail per day to be delivered, but if it didn't I may take a glance from a distance to see if there was an obvious outgoing mail or a flag up on their mailbox indicating an outgoing item.

How many times per day does the USPS deliver mail?

Asked by Ismael V. over 11 years ago

The USPS delivers mail 1 time per day to each address. The only exceptions are if an Express Mail item has to be delivered by a separate letter carrier because it arrived at the PO after the regular letter carrier has already left to deliver their route or if the regular letter carrier wouldn't be able to make the delivery guarantee time on the Express Mail. In that case another letter carrier would deliver the Express Mail but not regular mail to the address. So the main answer is 1x per day Mon-Sat.

Can a mailman leave mail if there is no mailbox?

Asked by Wayne almost 12 years ago

If the letter carrier feels it is secure enough to leave mail in a place without a mailbox, I think they can though it's probably not a great idea. I don't know the official rule on the proposed situation. 

Can I legally require a USPS letter carrier to NOT WALK ACROSS MY YARD (50' lot). I've gone to great expense and care to sod, then RESOD when prev. carrier wore a path in my lawn. I hate to erect a iron fence,but I may have to!

Asked by Ruth in Memphis about 12 years ago

I believe it is legal to advise the USPS to not have their employees walk across your yard. It would be better to put signage up stating that is your request. While we generally aren't too enthused about not being able to cross a lawn, we need to respect the property of our postal patrons and honor such requests as long as the letter carrier can still access your mailbox and comply with your instructions not to cross your lawn.

A package was supposed to be delivered to my box Wed. according to tracking. I am pretty sure the postman put it in the wrong box, but regardless It was not in mine. Is there someone I could speak to that could get my package back?

Asked by Sarah In Birmingham almost 12 years ago

Sarah, I would suggest that you speak with either the letter carrier who delivers to your address regularly or call your local PO and speak with a delivery supervisor. I am not sure how either way will result in the package getting to its correct address (you), but I wish you well. As letter carriers we all do make mistakes, but I would hope they aren't too frequent and that the errant recipient of the package would leave it out for a letter carrier to pick up to be brought to the correct address. Thanks for writing.