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.
My brother works at a PO and I believe he uses the many alarm clocks method (including one across the room). There are apps that will give you a wake up call. I just set one alarm and Try to get 8 hrs. Sleep so getting up and to work on time isn't too hard for me. Promptness and attendance is an important part of staying employed.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=How%20do%20you%20make%20sure%20you%20get%20up%20in%20the%20morning%3F%20Do%20you%20have%20a%20lot%20of%20alarm%20clocks%20going%20off%20at%20different%20times%3F%20Do%20you%20have%20someone%20give%20you%20a%20wakeup%20call%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/8763)
I am not exactly sure what you mean by this but I'll give it a crack. I am also copying and pasting this answer as you seem to have asked the same question twice. With regards to advertising mail, or any mail, the letter carrier should only be delivering mail to your residence that has your name OR has another name plus "or current resident" on the address label. If it just has the previous occupants name and doesn't say "or current resident", you certainly have the option to leave it in the mailbox with a note on it saying "addressee doesn't live here. please return to sender". Depending on the class of mail there is a chance we don't actually return the ad to the sender, but we do discard it at the Post Office. It is called NOVM (No Obvious Value Mail). Mail that would fall in that category is in the class of Presorted Standard Mail. Most mail that is Presorted Standard and doesn't say "or current resident" and has a previous occupants name could be discarded into the NOVM at the PO. I don't know that I would call your letter carrier lazy, but maybe they aren't paying attention to the name on the mail. You absolutey have the right to put the ad back in the mail if you wish.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Are%20mailmen%20allowed%20to%20return%20ads%20from%20previous%20occupants%20to%20sender%20or%20is%20mine%20just%20lazy%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/11896)
I am not sure of the the regulations as to whether or not the mail should be delivered without proper lighting. It is difficult to deliver mail if one can't read the addresses clearly enough or if it isn't safe to do so. Is it possible the complex mgmt can install a light over the boxes that can be switched on or off as needed. In general if mailboxes are set up so that delivery can be effected from inside a postal vehicle, the carrier shouldn't have to get out to deliver the mail. That said, I'm sure there are many occasions that it's easier to just deliver the mail than having to bring it back to the PO for delivery at a later date. I'm sorry I can't give you any more specific info.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Can%20a%20mail%20carrier%20decide%20to%20not%20deliver%20mail%20to%20an%20apartment%20complex%20because%20he%20says%20he%20should%20not%20have%20to%20get%20out%20of%20his%20vehicle%20to%20put%20the%20mail%20in%20the%20boxes%20and%20there%20should%20be%20a%20light%20over%20the%20boxes.%20My%20carrier%20did%20not%20deliver%20my%20mail%20for%203%20days&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/9885)
I understand what you mean. Your roommate won't be able to afford to move out if they don't pass their probation period and is terminated. If you see bundles of mail again at your house, I don't know if you would feel that you could confront your roommate and ask them why that mail is there. You may feel that it's none of your business and are being nosy which is also understandable. I don't know what the best advice would be, but if you really want them out of your house AND you think they will leave once the probation period is over, then you may want to just ignore any mail you see around the house. It is definitely wrong for that mail to not have been delivered, but I know you may not want to be a snitch and still have to live with your roommate. I'm sorry that I can't give you the absolute advice of what you should do because one has to look at "the big picture" and the consequences of their actions.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=i%27m%20stuck%20because%20if%20the%20roommate%20loses%20the%20job%2C%20then%20they%20won%27t%20move%20out.%20it%20is%20as%20the%20other%20poster%20said%2C%20fear%20of%20not%20making%20it%20through%20probation%20period.%20yesterday%20the%20mail%20vanished%2C%20i%20hope%20it%20was%20delivered.%20i%20know%20what%27s%20R%26W%20but%20i%20want%20my%20house%20bac&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/11486)
Sr. Software Engineer
Is it basically impossible for a skilled programmer to be out of work these days?
Call Center Employee (Retail)
Which cable company do you think has the absolute worst customer service?
Hospice Nurse
How did you feel with the passing of your first patient?
It should be delivered without the words "APT" on the delivery address. As long as there is a space after the actual street address or the apt. # is on the line above or below the street address, the abbreviation "APT" is superfluous and your mail should get to you properly. I live in an apt. building and when I write my address, I put my apt. # directly after my street address followed by a space and have never had a mail delivery issue. I will say that having the apt. # on the delivery address is very important, especially in a building with many units. Without an apt. # on the mail, it is possible that the mail is returned to the sender marked "insufficient address" Thanks for writing.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=will%20my%20mail%20be%20delievered%20even%20if%20it%20doesn%27t%20say%20APT%20but%20it%20says%20N%20%28which%20is%20my%20apt%29%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/11492)
I have deleted one version of this question because it was posted twice. It is a very good question and I will try to be as clear as I can with the how and why of bidding for routes. Firstly, we bid for routes (or assignments, as it isn't always an actual mail delivery route) so that we are doing the same assignment every day in accordance with a collective bargaining agreement between the USPS and the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC). It allows carriers to choose what assignment (delivery route, collection route, parcel post route, floater route (which fills in for carriers on 5 routes on their days off and pays a slightly higher wage)) they would like to work. It is based on seniority at a specific installation, not necessarily when you were hired by the USPS. For example, if you transfer from an office in Maryland to an office in Florida, you will likely lose your local seniority putting you at the bottom of the list with regards to bidding on vacant assignments. There are probably some exceptions to this rule and often in cities there may be several delivery stations that you can bid between and not lose seniority if you bid from one station to another. I am no expert in this as I have always worked in the same post office my entire career. I think it is the fairest system around and am a big advocate of seniority based assignments. The airline industry uses it for Pilots and Flight Attendants to choose what equipment they would like to fly, what routes, what cities they would like to be based in, etc. Anyhow, back to the USPS. I am sure there is a process of online bidding, but for vacant assignments in my local post office that are put up for bid, here is how it works. Management will post a sheet a paper called a Notice of Vacancy of an Assignment. The notice will specify the assignment (usually the route #), the specifics of the shift times and days off. The notice will also specify the dates that bidding is open. It is usually a 10-day period. The supervisor will have a locked box on their desk and pink bid cards (blank) available for regular carriers to fill out to bid on the assignment and put the bid in the box. Once the bidding period has expired, the supervisor and union shop steward will open the bid box and sort all of the valid bids by seniority date. The top 3 bidders based on seniority are then announced. The winner then has 3 workdays to try the new assignment and then can decide to keep it or not. If they decide not to keep it, the 2nd and 3rd place bidders can then try out the assignment. It rarely goes past the 2nd place bidder in my experience. I hope this answers your question and thank you for writing.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=how%20%26%20why%20do%20you%20bid%20for%20routes%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/12266)
I think it was about 3 months (probationary period) before I received a uniform allowance. I think I dressed mostly in blue and wore jean shorts or blue jeans as a uniform for the lower part of my body and a dark t-shirt for the upper part. It was during summer months so outerwear wasnt too much of an issue but I probably had a rain jacket and baseball cap. I don't think anything had the USPS logo on it. I can't remember if I bought anything with my own money but probably would have, if necessary. With my first allowance (which was higher than subququent years), I probably bought long and short sleeved uniform shirts, a winter jacket, shorts and pants, shoes, and a baseball bap. It has been quite a few years but this is a guess as to what I bought. I know the items can be a bit pricey and eat up a uniform allowance quickly. On Long Island, NY where I deliver mail there used to be actual uniform stores that we could go in to and purchase our clothing. The one closest to wear I work/live has closed so I spend my entire yearly uniform allowance online. Some vendors will offer you a 10-20% spending bonus if you use the entire allowance at one time. I recommend purchasing items that will keep you warm and dry in bad weather even if it means spending out-of-pocket having used up your uniform allowance. It is difficult for me to work in the cold and always have to layer up properly in the winter. I don't know where you live if this is a factor or not. Good luck in your postal career and keep your head up even if management doesn't treat you like they appreciate you.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=What%20did%20you%20do%20uniform%20wise%20before%20you%20got%20your%20uniform%20allowance%3F%20Did%20you%20buy%20anything%20with%20your%20personal%20money%3F%20If%20so%20what%3F%20What%20did%20you%20buy%20with%20your%20first%20allowance%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/13347)
-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
