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.
From what I understand, most city carriers that need a vehicle to deliver the mail will use a USPS vehicle. We do have CCAs that use their own car to deliver the mail on walking routes when there aren't any USPS vehicles available for them to use. They can get reimbursed for some of their expenses when doing this. In some offices rural letter carriers have no choice but to use their own vehicles to deliver their rural routes. For ease of maintenance and not having to wear down my own vehicle, I definitely prefer using a USPS vehicle at work. I don't have a choice in the matter. Gasoline is paid for using a fleet credit card and maintenance is handled by a contracted mechanic. Thank you for your question.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Can%20letter%20carriers%20deliver%20mail%20in%20their%20own%20vehicles&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/13551)
It probably depends on where you live and if there is package delivery on Sunday. I think you are asking me what time the package deliveries start and finish on a Sunday. It has been many years since I've done any type of delivery on Sunday, but in the office where I work on Long Island (NY), 2-3 City Carrier Assistants (CCAs) work from apprx 9AM-3PM delivering packages that arrive from Amazon.com. Again, these are just estimates since I don't have experience with this. Thank you for writing.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Around%20what%20time%20does%20the%20shipping%20start%20and%20when%20does%20the%20routing%20end%20in%20Sundays%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/12542)
Albert, your message posted 2x so I will answer it once and then copy and paste it. I currently work 7 hours a day as I am on a limited schedule for personal reasons. A regular city letter carrier can expect to work 8 hours per day (plus 30 min. unpaid lunch), 5 days per week. The 5 days may not be consecutive since mail is delivered 6 days per week. As a new hire, you will likely be a CCA (city carrier assistant) who has a very varied schedule and I'm not sure they are guaranteed any hours. I believe starting pay is about $16/hour for a CCA, with very few benefits, if any. Once you are promoted to a regular city carrier, the salary increasea to about $23/hour and tops out at about $28.50/hr after a certain amt. of years. These salaries are set in accordance with a labor agreement between the USPS and the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC), which is our union. You also get benefits once you become a regular city letter carrier as opposed to a CCA. If you visit the website www.nalc.org they have pay charts listed or you can probably just do a google search or look on www.glassdoor.com. Good luck in what is a pretty good career in my opinion.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=I%20want%20to%20be%20a%20mail%20carrier%20%28am%2019%20yrs%29%20%0AHow%20many%20hours%20do%20you%20work%20a%20day.%20%0AHow%20much%20is%20starting%20pay%20for%20an%20hour%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/12862)
Vbjmin, you ask a question that I'd love to know the perfect answer to as I've been struggling with this issue from the beginning of my postal career. Cold hands are really hard to tolerate especially when you will be out delivering hours and they must be nimble enough to finger the mail. I wear a glove (thick or thin) on the hand where I hold the mail and cradle the flats since I don't need that hand to finger the mail. The hand that I use to finger the mail and deliver the mail I try to wear a thinner and sometimes fingerless glove or one with small gripping dots on them This has worked okay over the years. Another item which can be useful is "hot hands" which are small single-use packets that form a chemical reaction and heat up for several hours. You can put those in your pocket or even inside your glove. I have rarely used these but my girlfriend, not a letter carrier, loves them. I have purchased many pairs of gloves over the years. It's just a matter of finding the ones that keep you warm enough but allows you to still feel the mail. Thanks for writing and winter is my least favorite season to deliver mail.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=How%20do%20you%20keep%20your%20hands%20warm%20in%20cold%20weather%20while%20carrying%2C%20holding%2C%20fingering%20and%20delivering%20the%20mail%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/13959)
School Teacher
Are teachers underpaid?
Claims Adjuster
Do you ever feel bad for the people whose claims you deny?
Programmer
What lessons can you share about past and present start-ups you've worked with?
SB, I don't know about the procedure in a condo complex as to how to deliver an international express package has to be delivered. Anything that needs a signature and would require to me ring a bell in a gated community would result in me going to their door and wouldn't be picky about whether I go to their door (once allowed through the gate) or they come to the gate. I have never worked in an environment like that. If I do deliver to cluster boxes and an item needs a signature I'd knock on the door of the addressee's unit to get the signature. Again, I don't know of any specific regulations on how the delivery should be attempted, but I tend to side on the addressee getting the best service possible (within reason, which is certainly open to interpretation). Thanks for writing.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=I%20live%20in%20CA%2094401%20area%20in%20a%20condo%20complex.%20%20I%20was%20told%20by%20my%20new%20mail%20woman%20that%20she%20does%20not%20deliver%20my%20international%20express%20package%20to%20my%20door.%20%20And%20I%20have%20to%20go%20down%20to%20the%20gate%20to%20sign%20the%20delivery%20notice%20and%20pick%20the%20package%20up%20outside%20my%20gate&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/11540)
Hello Joy. The area where you took the photo is probably serviced by a rural carrier or HCR (highway contract routr). These positions are different than the one I am employed as even though we all serve the same function. It makes sense to me that the barrel would be used for packages because I don't think carriers are required to deliver mail to a house that is more than a certain amt of feet from the road. The barrel is a convenient way for the customer to receive packages without having to drive to a post office which is many mlies away and has limited hours. It would also protect the package from damage in inclement weather. I can't confirm this is what the barrel is for.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=I%20have%20a%20photograph%20of%20mailboxes%20in%20a%20remote%20part%20of%20South%20Dakota.%20%20There%20is%20a%20large%20barrel%20next%20to%20the%20mailboxes.%20%20Is%20it%20used%20for%20packages%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/13110)
Linda, thanks for writing and I'm sorry that you are going through an unfortunate situation. I don't know why your new mailman wouldn't be delivering all of the mail to your house. If he's not delivering it to your house, I wonder where it is going. It is not legal to be doing anything else with the mail except deliver it to the proper addressee. You spoke with the Postmaster, not the Postmaster General. The PMG is the top administrator of the USPS in Washington, DC. Have you asked your mailman what may be happening to your mail? I doubt that you will get any type of satisfactory answers. The next step if you don't get any satisfaction from your local post office is to try to contact the region or area office that oversees your post office. Another option is the Postal Inspectors who would investigate any criminal activity like mail fraud or theft of mail. I don't have a lot of conifdence in these offices really doing too much in your situation but if you feel it is serious enough I wouldn't think twice about reporting it. Thanks for writing.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Our%20new%20mailman%20does%20not%20deliver%20all%20of%20our%20mail%20to%20our%20house.%20The%20Postmaster%20General%20says%20he%20can%27t%20do%20anything%20about%20it.%20Can%20something%20be%20done%3F%20What%20is%20happening%20to%20our%20mail%2C%20magazines%2C%20checks%2C%20etc%3F%20Thanks%21&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/12589)
-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
