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

According to union standards how many hours can a postman be required to work daily?

Asked by Martha Archer about 11 years ago

I don't know the answer to this. The most I've seen in the office where I work is 12 hours in one day and that isn't too common. A standard work day is 8 hours plus lunch (usually :30). There are pay changes when you work more than 8 hrs but I've never heard of an actual maximum number of hours to work in a day.

I mailed an document from new york to china by global express guarantee service via USPS. But it said my destination address was wrong. However the shipment wasn't even sent oversee, how could they tell the address was wrong?

Asked by Daniel over 11 years ago

I am not sure how the global express guaranteed product works. I am not sure if there is a database that the USPS uses to know this. The transportation and delivery is provided by FedEx Express so it's possible they also know that the address was wrong. Hopefully you will get the document back, but I'm not sure that you qualify for a refund. That information can be find on the website about.usps.com and do a search for money-back guarantee for GXG.

Hello-

I live in a standalone condo complex with 4 units, and I keep getting mail from certain senders for the owners upstairs because they seem to have specified my unit #. I left a note for them to fix this, but it has not stopped. What can I do?

Asked by Liz over 11 years ago

I dont know what you can do for sure to stop the owner's mail from being delivered to your unit if it has your apt # on it. Your neighbor may have contacted some companies to get them to change it, but I imagine names and addresses are often sold from one company to the next which results in the wrong address being distributed to other mailers. You can put a note in your mailbox saying "please only deliver mail for (insert your name(s) here" and that may stop your neighbors mail from being delivered to you. You are correct that it is your neighbors responsibility to advise senders of their correct address if the want to receive their mail. 

So I was home all day and received from 3849 as far as I can tell guy never left his truck. When is a carrier supposed to fill out the form an why did my working doorbell not ring? Is this common?

Asked by upset mo fo over 11 years ago

It doesnt sound too common to me though it doesn't surprise me at all when I hear this story. If a carrier has an item that needs a signature or needs to be handed to someone personally then they should make an attempt to ring the bell or knock on the door. If you live in an area where snow or ice would prevent them from getting to your door then it is appropriate to leave the PS Form 3849 in your mailbox. Sometimes the carriers are too lazy or under a lot of time pressure to get done so they may cut corners when it's time consuming to go to one's door. This is not a legitimate excuse, but I'm not surprised by what happens. In my office we are pretty short staffed as of late and I see quite a bit of mail not getting delivered correctly or in a timely fashion. It's pretty pathetic if you ask me. The rough winter in the Northeastern US with a lot of snow, etc. doesn't help matters. On a side note, I'm not a fan of your user name as it denotes profanity which is not very classy. Just my opinion, of course.

While competing for a CCA position I tested positive for marijuana and didn't contest.

Will this prevent me from being considered for DOT jobs like city bus driver? Do I have to disclose the failed test to other employers?

Asked by green pee over 11 years ago

I don't know the answer for sure green pee (clever name BTW). Do you think you could reapply for a USPS job in the future? I would think so after a certain amount of time has passed and are then retested. As far as jobs go with other agencies or employers I don't know. It may depend how they ask you about it on their applications. I haven't heard of any type of central database that potential employers could check to see if you have failed a drug test. This is a very interesting topic as well since marijuana use is now legal in 2 states and I think it will be an upward trend in other states legalizing it as well. I don't think this means an employer has to tolerate it and when the job involves operating a motor vehicle I can see them being more careful in who is hired. So maybe it will be a good idea to lay off the weed for ahwile if it means the difference between getting a job and not.

Can a mailman refuse to deliver mail to a rural box if the box is open?

Asked by Collette about 11 years ago

I'm not sure why a mailman would want to refuse delivery to a rural mailbox if the lid is open. Most of the ones I see just have flip down lids which aren't secure or they have no lids at all and may have broken off over the years. I don't know the exact rules of what condition a rural mailbox must be in to receive mail. I suppose if the carrier felt the mail wasn't secure they could refuse delivery until the condition of the rural mailbox is rectified. I've never refused to deliver mail due to an open mailbox, but then again, I'd rather deliver the mail then have to bring it back to the PO and re-attempt delivery on a subsequent day. Thanks for your question.

I am waiting for my package outside my apartment's mail box am I allowed to ask for my package before he or she puts it in my mailbox

Asked by Jaime almost 11 years ago

It depends on who your letter carrier is. Some will give it to you ahead of time and others will want to place it in the mailbox so they know you have legitimate access to your mailbox. As long as I knew the individual resided at the address associated with the package or they could prove it with identification, I would hand them the package. In my career I've never had a problem. Please remember that not every letter carrier behaves the same way. Thank you for the question.