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.

SubscribeGet emails when new questions are answered. Ask Me Anything!Show Bio +

Share:

Ask me anything!

Submit Your Question

1237 Questions

Share:

Last Answer on February 18, 2022

Best Rated

On the holddown scenario it sucks bc the holidays r coming up and that carrier had no right to u know what.. The former carrier and the comp guy should reap the benefits for their hard work, especially when the unassigned is not well liked and aa ak

Asked by jvitto48 over 9 years ago

You are obviously referring to holiday gratuities, no need to hide that on this forum. We aren't really supposed to expect or accept cash tips but know that many of us do (me included). I can't really comment on who has a right to them. Maybe the comp man and the unassigned regular could split anything they get but I'm guessing there may not be enough trust to do that. I'm not really sure why the former carrier deserves anything if he voluntarily bid off that route for another assignment. I don't know what "aa" means but "as" means ass kisser. I guess I don't really agree with you in this situation and holiday gratuities really shouldn't be basis for any rules about bumping or holddowns. It really just seems to cause problems when it shouldn't even be entering into the picture.

460 Votes

Hello just curious my mailman delivered a package to my door yesterday then when I went to check mail there was an "attempt to deliver" notice for another package and my mail for the week was gone .. Why would this happen

Asked by Ash over 9 years ago

I don't know why the mailman would take away the mail for the week that had been sitting in your mailbox as well as an "attempted" notice for another package. Did the other package perhaps need a signature? It is common for some people not to check their mailbox for days and it rarely fills up to the point that I can't put any more mail in the mailbox. I hope that the mail reappears or is it possible you received none (not likely) or that someone else in your household (if you don't live alone) took the mail in to your residence?

459 Votes

I use the surge rival gloves for delivering mail but was wondering if there is a really good made glove that is good for hot summers as well ?

Asked by MailmanChris over 9 years ago

Chris, I'll be honest that I don't know anything about gloves to wear for delivering mail in the hot summer. I use my bare hands probably 99% of the time. I don't concern myself with the cleanliness of the mail whatsoever and it's never been an issue for me. I have noticed in very cold weather that I need to cover my extremities well so I just wear as warm gloves as I can but don't know any brand. Some coworkers use sealskin gloves. it is difficult for me to finger the mail with a gloved hand so I hold the mail in a gloved hand and keep the hand that I use to finger the mail in my pocket as much as possible with no glove. I don't do too well in the extreme cold. Thank you for your question.

459 Votes

Can I stop receiving letters from a particular sender?

Asked by Lois over 9 years ago

I am not sure if you can. An option is to contact the sender by phone or another means and request to not be sent any mail. If the mail is First class you can write "refused" on the envelope and it will be returned to the sender. Generally any mail that is sent as Presorted Standard (bulk mail) will just get discarded at the local PO if you write "refused" on the mail. The sender would never know you didn't want that mail. I'd just recommend that you discard/recycle any mail you don't want. For the most part customers I deliver mail to don't refuse many letters and probably just throw away anything they don't want. If they give it back to me I handle it as above (either discard the PO where I work or return it to the sender).

459 Votes

Also on Jobstr...

Call Center Representative

Call Center RepresentativeAre you allowed to hang up on a caller if they're being very rude?

SWAT Team Commander (Retired)

SWAT Team Commander (Retired)How do you decide whether to try and kill a hostage taker?

"The Onion" Contributors

"The Onion" ContributorsWhat's your favorite Onion headline of all time?

If i put a mail such as a letter in the mailbox will the mail carrier get it make sure it sent to the person . We they even get the letter out the mailbox . Do i have to write return to sender even though its a letter that i wrote for someone .

Asked by temorrow almost 10 years ago

As long as you addressed the letter properly and affixed the correct postage the letter should make it to its destination correctly. When letter carriers pick up outgoing mail we generally just put it in a basket with all of the other outgoing mail and a processing facility sorts the mail based on where it is going to. It's recommended that you put a return address in the upper left hand corner of the letter just in case it doesn't reach the intended recipient. This way the letter would be returned to you, the sender. A return address isn't mandatory.

459 Votes

Hey do mailman's pick up first class packages no matter the weight & size as long as it fits in the mailbox?

Asked by Jazmin Landeros almost 10 years ago

The mailman should pick up any first class outgoing parcel just like they would any other item you wanted to mail as long as there is sufficient postage. An exception to this would be any item weighing over 13 oz that had postage stamps on it (as opposed to a Click 'N Ship label). This would be a Priority Mail item anyway, not First Class. This would need to be presented at a retail counter to be mailed due to security rules when mailing heavier items that may go on aircraft. I often pick up outgoing First Class parcels from a woman who sells items online and ships them from her house.

458 Votes

I need to leave a payment for a company and she is not home. ..can I leave the payment in an envelope in her mailbox

Asked by louann over 9 years ago

I wouldn't recommend it unless you put a stamp on the envelope. The reason I say this is because the mailbox is only supposed to be used for US Mail with proper postage. That being said, if you leave the envelope in the mailbox clearly marked for the recipient company or resident with no postage it's possible the letter carrier would notice it and just leave it in the mailbox. That is what I would do but I can't speak for another letter carrier who isn't paying attention and just takes an envelope that looks like it could be outgoing mail. If you put the payment envelope in the mailbox with the address and postage it could be taken as outgoing mail but you can rest assured it will get to the recipient within a couple of days as a regular piece of mail. If possible, could you find an alternate place to put the payment or pay electronically?

458 Votes

Home Browse Jobs Host a Q&A Search Blog FAQ Terms Contact

Copyright Jobstr 2014