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

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 over 10 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.

590 Votes

What if someone send u mail but right the wrong address

Asked by jennifer about 11 years ago

If someone writes the wrong address but a letter carrier recognizes the name as to where the letter should go, it may be delivered correctly. If we can't figure out where the letter should go and there is a valid return address on the letter, we may send the letter back endorsed "Attempted, not Known" referring to the incorrect address that was written on the envelope.

590 Votes

How do you keep your hands warm in cold weather while holding or gripping, fingering and delivering a mail bundle?

Asked by vbjmin about 11 years ago

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.

589 Votes

Hey, I applied for the usps as a city carrier , passed both assessments, n filled out a few job vacancies, I had just fixed my suspended license 2 weeks ago, it was suspended since last yr for a texting violation,think I could still be considered?

Asked by Quentin about 10 years ago

I don't know how much your license suspension will affect your job chances with the USPS. You do need a valid driver license to be a letter carrier as far as I know. You said you have fixed the suspension for texting while driving recently. I don't know if you need to provide this information to the USPS proactively or only if they ask. I would think somewhere along the application process they'd ask you questions about your past driving history and possibly request a motor vehicle department drivers abstract which has your history of suspensions convictions violations, etc. Please be sure to answer all questions honestly and possibly have proof available that your license is no longer suspended. Good luck to you and put that phone down while driving. I understand it's tempting.

589 Votes

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We have a mailman that lives in our area that is home multiple times a day. What are the rules for breaks? The same mailman also delivers to our boxes and lets his kid ride in his truck and put mail in our community box. Is this against rules?

Asked by Andrew over 10 years ago

As far as I know, the break rules for city carriers are similar nationwide. We are allowed 30 minutes for lunch, up to 2 10-minute breaks plus unlimited comfort breaks (to use a bathroom). It really wouldn't be odd if the carrier was home 2-3 times a day but only one time should be more than 10 minutes (lunch time). Some carriers may have a lot of downtime on their routes if they move quickly or the mail volume is light, but my experience is that it's not a huge amt of extra time. I'm sure others will disagree with me. To answer your second question, a child shouldn't be riding along in a USPS vehicle. If the carrier is using their own vehicle that may or may not be against the rules. Either way, nobody but authorized USPS employees should be touching the mail and putting it into a community box. I'm not sure how much would get done or how much this bothers you, but you could always call the Post Office and speak with a delivery supervisor, manager or Postmaster.

588 Votes

Hello I live in a townhouse and I'm receiving Registered Mail soon. where we live we have a common area where there are a bunch of postal boxes and I was wondering if I leave a note to authorize mailman to sign will they? I'm never home what do I do

Asked by Charles about 11 years ago

If it is truly a registered letter, a letter carrier will usually not sign for it even if you have given them written authorization because registered mail can sometimes be very valuable and individual custody is tracked along the way. If you mean a certified letter (which is often confused with registered mail) many letter carriers will deliver it and sign for you if you've given them authorization. I know that I would in this situation. Does your PO have Saturday retail hours? If so, you can pick up the item then unless that is also when you aren't home. Thanks for writing.

588 Votes

Does USPS have a procedure that a carrier should adhere to when they can't deliver mail because people are parked in the loading zone? Sympathetic to his problem, but it's not right when he harasses building tenants. What does USPS say he should do?

Asked by OfficeMngr almost 11 years ago

I don't have an answer as to what the procedure is if the carrier can't deliver the mail because someone is parked in the loading zone of a building. I agree that the carrier should not be harassing anybody re: this. As far as I know they do have the right to not deliver the mail if there is no safe place for them to park their delivery vehicle. They could mention to the tenants or bldng/office managers as to the reason there may not have been delivery on a previous day, but I believe this can be done in a civil/professional manner. Is the building staff not enforcing the loading zone policy? I rarely deliver mail to an office building but I can see how it may be aggravating when a designated loading zone or short term parking policy isn't adhered to. Either way, nobody deserves harassment in my opinion.

588 Votes

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