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 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.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=I%20did%20a%20coa%20for%20October%209%20to%20stop%20mail%20at%20old%20place%20and%20start%20mail%20at%20new%20place%20for%20same%20date.%20My%20question%20is%20why%20did%20I%20get%20a%20no%20vacant%20slip%20in%20mailbox%20on%20October%206%3F%20And%20does%20that%20mean%20my%20mail%20will%20be%20forwarded%20to%20new%20address%20or%20on%20hold%20at%20post%20offic&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/15698)
I don't think being a letter carrier is dangerous with respect to personal safety. I think most people respect the letter carrier enough not to assault or harass them. I can be accused of looking at this situation through rose-colored glasses because I am a male and deliver mail in an affluent area where very little violent crime occurs. You need to be vigilant for loose dogs and to drive carefully. The only protection we have for an emergency is for a dog attack. In that case we have dog repellent spray plus a mail satchel which could be used as sort of a shield between you and the dog. Most workplace injuries are falls which results in cuts, sprains, bruises and broken bones. In case of a real emergency we would call 911 and alert the Post Office.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Is%20being%20a%20mail%20carrier%20dangerous%3F%20Are%20you%20given%20any%20sort%20of%20protection%20in%20case%20of%20an%20emergency%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/15456)
Thanks for your question. We do sometimes get requests from attorneys or collection agencies or process servers which ask us to verify if a certain name received mail at a certain address. I don't know what the form is called but I believe this is legal as long as the proper procedures are followed by the requesting party. They will also ask if they have moved and, if so, what is the new address for the person in question. I receive these forms not too often. If I do get this written request, I just tell the registry clerk or supervisor what the status is of that name because I pretty much know all the names of people who receive mail on my postal route. As far as I know it's usually for a legal matter or debt recovery issue.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=The%20mailman%20just%20knocked%20on%20our%20door%20and%20asked%20my%20name%20and%20I%20said%20yes%20that%27s%20me.%20He%20did%20not%20give%20me%20anything%20he%20only%20said%20the%20form%20he%20was%20holding%20was%20for%20him%20to%20report%20something%20and%20he%20left.%20Now%20I%27m%20worried%20what%20it%20was%20he%20needed%20to%20report%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/15978)
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.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=if%20someone%20moves%20and%20don%27t%20put%20a%20fwd%20what%20should%20i%20do%20with%20there%20mail&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/16253)
Meter Maid
What's the meanest thing anyone's ever said to you?
Track and Field Coach
Do you let your athletes play another sport in the off-season?
Professional Poker Player
Are you worried that online poker is rigged?
I don't know the policy on this as I've never thought to put someone's mail on hold without their authorization. I suppose this could come about if their mailbox was full and the carrier couldn't deliver any more mail to that address. In that case maybe a letter carrier would hold any future mail at the PO for a certain amount of time and then possibly return that mail to the sender with the endorsements "mailbox full". A letter carrier can also hold the mail at the PO if your mailbox is inaccessible due to snow. They will usually deliver all of the accumulated mail within a couple of days of the mailbox becoming accessible. We had that situation occur at our PO this past winter when snow prevented some of the driving (mounted) route carriers from being able to drive up to a mailbox without getting out of their LLV.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=when%20can%20a%20mail%20carrier%20place%20your%20mail%20on%20hold%20without%20giving%20you%20notice&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/14769)
I was looking at the USPS website about Priority Mail Express and it says that there is a guaranteed delivery date but it's not available in all areas to be exactly the next day. We used to deliver Express Mail on Sunday but that may be only available in certain places. If you sent the item out on Friday it was possibly past the deadline for Saturday delivery and the destination PO may not offer Sunday Priority Mail express delivery. In this case the item you mailed will be delivered Monday. There is a decent amount of information about Priority Mail Express on USPS.com. Be sure to read the disclaimers as it pertains to service being available 365 days per year.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Hello%20I%20have%20a%20question%20for%20you%2C%20if%20I%20played%20for%20the%20flat%20rate%20overnight%20shipping%20with%20usps%2C%20why%20does%20the%20tracking%20number%20tell%20me%20that%20I%20won%27t%20get%20it%20for%20two%20days%3F%20I%20sent%20it%20out%20on%20Friday%20they%20said%20it%20won%27t%20get%20there%20until%20Monday.&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/15668)
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!
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Hey%21%20There%27s%20a%20high%20chance%20that%20I%27ll%20drop%20college%20and%20become%20a%20mailman.%20Which%20is%20a%20dream%20of%20mine%21%20Could%20you%20be%20tell%20me%20how%20to%20apply%20and%20expect%3F%20I%27m%20currently%20the%20age%20of%2019%2C%20legal%2C%20and%20no%20driving%20issues.&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/15473)
-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
