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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1237 Questions

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Last Answer on February 18, 2022

Best Rated

If I was to put mail in the outside mailbox at post office on a Sunday buy the box said mon-fri 5 does that mean it won't be picked up until Monday at 5? When can I expect it to be delivered

Asked by lynnie about 10 years ago

It depends on where your letter is being mailed to. I think nationwide most letters reach their destination in 2-3 days, but probably no sooner than that. The mailbox you deposited the letter into said collection is m-f at 5PM. That means that as long as the letter was deposited prior to box posted time, your letter will be dispatched that day for processing and transport. It's possible that the letter was collected before 5PM on Monday but that would be a decision made locally by the post office. If it was collected early someone would still have to go to empty the collection box at or after the posted time.

598 Votes

Are you allowed to listen to music in your truck? Say for a cell phone

Asked by newcca89 about 11 years ago

As far as I know you are allowed to. I know some carriers who have portable radios or just use their PED to play music. As far as a cell phone goes, I'm pretty sure you can use it as long as it is hands free. I have a route where I walk most of the day and I listen to podcasts on my iPhone. I have one earphone in and leave the other ear free. I think it's inappropriate and a bit unsafe to have both ears covered while delivering on foot or driving. The outside noise is important to hear if a car is coming or a customer that may need your attention. From time to time, there may be a safety talk or notice at work about the use of personal electronic devices but it doesn't seem too strict or maybe just not enforced. I don't like seeing my colleagues have both ears covered while delivering mail, but I'm not a supervisor so I don't address this issue.

598 Votes

Y is the po lying about if we are home or not when delivering
They just put pink slips don't even ring the bell

Asked by Cindy over 10 years ago

That's a great question Cindy that I don't know the answer to but I'm embarrassed for the USPS that they would tolerate such lying. I believe if a letter carrier actually attempts to deliver a package or piece of accountable mail they should ring a bell or knock on the door and wait a minute or so before leaving a PS 3849. I know that Amazon.com wants all of their Prime parcels delivered by a specifc date and if they aren't at least attempted, maybe someone in the USPS supervision is held accountable. I'm not really sure. I have seen in our office that parcels that weren't delivered (either missorted or the carrier missed the house and didn't have time to go back) would get an "attempted" scan which is false. I've never done this nor have I ever been asked to do it. I'd refuse because it is dishonest. It also confuses customers when the package may say "attempted" when tracked and the customer knows full well that an attempt wasn't made.

598 Votes

Why is my mail all of the sudden being delivered to my home in Montpelier Vermont by a red mini van with Massachusetts license plates - BTW the plates are civilian style plane on mass plates

Asked by Craig almost 11 years ago

I don't know that it matters where the plates are from if someone is delivering your mail, but I'm by no means criticizing your question. Do you know if you live on a Rural Delivery route? If so, those carriers sometimes use a POV (privately owned vehicle) to deliver the mail. In the office where I work, the rural carriers used to use POVs but now they use the USPS-owned Long-Life vehicles, aka LLVs. The USPS sometimes leases vehicles if there is a shortage of company vehicles available. If you live on a rural route, it may be delivered by a Rural Carrier Associate (RCA) who may have their own vehicle for delivery. There are several variables as to why your mail is being delivered by a MA-plated Red Minivan but I can't say for sure.

598 Votes

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I live in GA. I am expecting a pkg from TX soon and when I last tracked it online it was in GA. A few hours later I track it again and its now in OH. What happened?

Asked by Jay over 10 years ago

Jay, I don't know what happened to your package. It would be odd for a package from TX bound for GA to wind up in OH once already being in GA. My guess is that it was somehow missorted and put on a truck or plane to OH. As long as it was addressed properly there is a very good chance it will soon make it back to GA and be delivered to you. While I can't guarantee this, it would take multiple sorting and delivery errors for you not to receive your package. There will be a delay of at least a day or two until you finally receive the package (assuming that you do receive it).

598 Votes

When do most mailman and women start their routes? Are there different times for different people? or is it the same for everyone?

Asked by Andrew over 10 years ago

It probably depends on the office where you work as to what time you start delivering your route. Where I work most deliveries probably start between 9:15 and 10:30 AM. It depends how long the letter carriers take to prepare their routes in the AM for delivery. Some routes get more mail than others or take longer to prepare in order for delivery. Also, some letter carriers are faster than others at starting their routes. I usually start delivery by 10AM and am finished around 4PM if the weather and volume of mail and parcels isn't out of line with what I normally get. Most of the letter carriers where I work start their tour at 7:30 AM.

596 Votes

Can charges be brought against my roommate for intercepting my mail and putting "return to sender" and sending it back?

Asked by BeccaFL over 10 years ago

I don't know about the law with regards to your question. It is certainly wrong for your roommate to be tampering with your mail and marking it "return to sender". I'd suggest asking him/her to stop doing it but it sounds like you don't have a good relationship if they are doing that to your mail. I can't say that this comes under the category of mail theft either. If you brought this question up to your local PO, I have no idea what they'd tell you. I could recommend that you rent a PO Box, but that costs money and isn't too convenient either when compared to home delivery. It's also not fair that you should have to get a PO Box because a roommate is not giving you your mail and sending it back. Another suggestion would be to call the US Postal Inspection Service, but this may not be in their jurisdiction as it's an internal matter in your residence.

596 Votes

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