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.
Kyle, I think the normal amount of time for a First-class letter to get from Lancaster, PA to Charleston, SC, would be 2 days. From what you wrote it has already been 4 delivery days and the letter hasn't arrived. I don't know that it's rare, but it exceeds our service goal as far as I know. Are you sure you addressed the letter correctly and completely? Letters still get lost in the mail, missorted, misdelivered, destroyed by our automated sorting machines, etc. but that is all a very low percentage of the amt of mail processed.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=i%20mailed%20a%20letter%20on%20tuesday%20morning%20in%20the%20box%20in%20front%20of%20my%20apartment%20complex%20%20%28i%20live%20in%20lancaster%20pa%29%202%20head%20to%20south%20carolina.%20it%20is%20now%20saturday%20night%20and%20she%20has%20no%20received%20the%20letter.%20i%20am%20wondering%20if%20this%20is%20rare%20or%20if%20something%20is%20wrong%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/13261)
Mischa, I deleted one of your questions because it came up as a duplicate on this website. When we return from our routes, we put all of the outgoing (collected) mail in a dispatch area usually divided into flat, letters, parcels, priority, metered, stamped, etc. With regards to the prepaid shipping labels which is usually called Parcel Select Return Service I put the item in a separate area and our dispatch clerk knows what to do with it. I don't know when it is scanned at our post office. I would suspect that the package would be scanned at least in 1-2 days. Some packages which are being sent back as a return are transported by a 3rd party company that picks up those packages at our post office. Other packages are transported by the USPS back to the company where the package is being returned. I know when I pick it up from a customer as an outgoing return package I do not scan the item at all. I hope this helps but please keep checking USPS.com to track your package for any scans.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=What%20happens%20after%20a%20postman%20returns%20to%20the%20post%20office%20after%20finishing%20his%20route%3F%20I%20gave%20my%20postman%20a%20package%20that%20had%20a%20pre-paid%20shipping%20label%20and%20was%20wondering%20when%20I%20can%20expect%20it%20to%20be%20scanned.&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/12500)
I would say congratulations if you've been hired as a CCA with the USPS. It may seem a bit thankless at times as a CCA given that you are paid less than the regular career carriers and the benefits are also lighter. My tips would be to try to have a great work attitude, be on time for work, be flexible since your hours may be quite variable, work safely, and be respectful of your co-workers. This doesn't mean let yourself be stopped on taken advantage of by management or your co-workers. You will likely be filling in for carriers who are out temporarily or doing "pieces" on a route when the mail volume is too high. If you think you are being given too much work in too short of a time window, do your best but then call the supervisors if you won't be able to make it. They may not be happy about it, but as long as you are safe and not making many delivery mistakes, it should be okay. I also recommending to join the NALC who will advocate for your rights as a city letter carrier. Please write more if you have additional questions or you need me to be more specific. Good luck to you!
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Do%20you%20have%20any%20tips%20for%20a%20new%20CCA%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/13358)
Hello Jake. I don't think the mail truck should have driven away from you if they actually had the package. Do you know if the mail truck actually had the package for you to be delivered? The only reason that the mail truck should have just driven away is if it somehow felt that it was dangerous to deliver the package to your house. I don't think that throwing a baseball around is reason enough not to attempt to deliver a package.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Okay%20if%20im%20standing%20around%20my%20house%20i%20was%20throwing%20a%20bass%20ball%20im%20waiting%20for%20a%20package%20the%20mail%20truck%20drives%20to%20my%20mail%20box%20looks%20at%20me%20then%20drives%20away%20is%20tht%20allowed%3F..&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/12220)
Dry Cleaner
Why don't more dry cleaners stay open late?
Border Patrol Agent
When you catch an illegal alien crossing the border, is he deported immediately?
Bodybuilder
How prevalent is steroid use in pro bodybuilding?
You bad bad person Aila! Seeing that you were just 6 years old and you returned it all, there are worse crimes you could have committed. I am glad you know by now not to touch any mail or mailboxes that aren't yours. It is horrible to think of mail being taken out of mailboxes illegally. I consider it sacred, even if, in all honesty, it's not so important to a lot of people today and has been replaced a lot by technology. With regard to how it works for mailmen, I'm not sure what you mean. I have never been involved with a mail theft incident during my career. If I did I would likely tell my supervisor about it and follow their directives. Thanks for writing And stay away from those mailboxes ;-)
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=I%20recall%20going%20around%20my%20neighborhood%20when%20I%20was%206%20with%20some%20friends%20pilfering%20Mailboxes%20with%20really%20no%20idea%20of%20what%20we%20were%20doing.%20How%20does%20it%20work%20for%20the%20mailman%20afterward%3F%20%28We%20ended%20up%20returning%20it%20all%20but%20I%27m%20curious%29&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/12807)
I know this response is likely too late to help you out for today, but I'll let you know my opinion. If all the scanning of the package is done properly, then the package should have been on some delivery vehicle (not necessarily the regular mail delivery) to bring the package to your address by the end of the deilvery day (apprx 5PM local time.) I hope you have received it. I make the qualifier "if the scanning of the package was done properly" because there are times where the information as to where the package is or "attempted" but wasn't really, comes up when you use the tracking number. That brings down the integrity of the scanning data. For the most part I believe the USPS does a very good job of giving the correct tracking information on packages, but I've heard stories to the contrary at times. Thanks for writing.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=if%20i%20order%20a%20package%20and%20it%20is%20snet%20by%20usps%20and%20it%20says%20out%20for%20delivery%20when%20i%20look%20up%20tracking%20number.%20the%20mail%20has%20already%20come%20today%20and%20there%20were%20no%20special%20cards%20saying%20pick%20up%20at%20post%20office%20will%20it%20be%20delivered%20by%20truck&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/12634)
Disgruntled workers abound at the USPS but I can't say it's better or worse than other companies. I don't feel that our immediate supervisors and our postmaster are that kind to us but I'm sure it could be a lot worse. Overall our union has done a good job protecting our work rights and negotiating for a fair wage and benefits, but you will have complainers and unhappy workers no matter what. Years ago, veterans were given 5 pts preference on Federal Civil Service exams and 10 pts if you were a disabled veteran. I don't know if that still applies and if it also is in effect for exams at other levels of government. It's hard to say what makes a veteran disabled, but I'm sure Post Traumatic Stress Disorder qualifies in certain cases. Thanks for writing.
Share Answer: &caption=Jobstr.com&description=Saw%20the%20post%20about%20disgruntled%20workers%2C%20and%20was%20wondering%2C%20aren%27t%20disabled%20vets%20given%20a%20higher%20score%20on%20the%20test%3F%20Maybe%20some%20had%20PTS%20or%20something%3F&redirect_uri=http://jobstr.com/threads/show/4154-mailman-city-letter-carrier-/question/13407)
-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
