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

I have been invited to an interview in a week but I was wondering if I get the job....How do I know house numbers if there are no house numbers on the house or mailbox? For instance, on the street where I live the address goes from 2200 to 2232.

Asked by Curtice over 12 years ago

There is often, but not always a pattern to how house #'s run. It isn't too smart for a resident not To have a # on their mailbox or house Or curb unless they don't care about getting deliveries or having an ambulance/police find them easily. when we deliver mail it is usually put in order of delivery so you can usually just "follow the mail". If you see a house with no # on it but the one before and after it have a #, you can often assume the house # is between those two. Believe me, you will be trained and I have rarely heard of this being a problem where I work, though It doesn't mean it's not a problem elsewhere. My advice is To be as careful as you can to deliver the mail accurately. Good luck to you!

My friend is a CCA. He asked for a day off a month in advance and was told it was not available. He is in a wedding and absolutely cant work that day. Are there other options to get a day off? Can he get fired for just not showing up?

Asked by MMM over 12 years ago

I don't know whether he can get fired for just not showing up on the day of the wedding. as a CCA I know you may not have as many job protection rights as a career employee. Does your friend have a wedding invitation to show the supervisor? is it possible that he goes to work for a couple of hours in the AM. I am guessing that's not likely. I don't have any other info, but would hope that mgmt comes to their senses and allows the day off. 

We just purchased a lake home. The mailbox is a quarter mile away in a different zip code than the house. Which zip code is correct? (USPS lookup gives me where the mailbox is but I have successfully used the other one)

Asked by Dan over 11 years ago

Dan, I don't know the answer to your question. You likely live on a RR (Rural Route) or HCR (Highway Contract Route) given the fact that the mailbox is so far from your lake home. This has no bearing on what ZIP code you use as far as I know. I could see either ZIP code working based on what you told me, but I'm sure only one ZIP is actually correct. My suggestion is to stop in at a local post office during their business hours and ask a clerk or supervisor what ZIP you shoud be using or possibly call them if you can find their phone # or possibly 1-800-ASK-USPS. Thanks for writing and congratulations on your new home purchase.

I am applying for City Carrier Assistant Tech 1 position,, is this a full time position do you know,, in the applicaton it says hours vary

Asked by Sally over 12 years ago

The hours will likely vary based on the staffing needs of the office to which you are assigned. It is not a FT position and I don't know what benefits, if any, you receive. You will get a uniform allowance after a certain amt. of time working. When I was a PTF (similar in flexibility to a CCA), I usually worked at least 40 hrs/wk. The important thing to understand is that there is no guarantee to this many hours. I wish you well in your pursuit of this job.

I manage a large mixed use building that has been remodeled from one address into 40 different adresses/ tenants. We have a main mailbox lobby for letters, but not for parcels. Is USPS required to deliver parcels to the doors of these businesses?

Asked by Mbrant over 12 years ago

I don't know the answer to this question. I would think if there are no parcel lockers in your lobby, then the USPS should attempt delivery to the business and leave the parcel if it can be sAfely left. Sorry I don't have more info on this.

Is. the USPS jobs pay though out the nation, or does it differ where cost of living could be more or less

Asked by stephanie over 11 years ago

Our salary is uniform across the nation even though the cost of living could vary widely. The only exceptions may be in AK or HI where the cost of living is a lot higher than most of the 48 contiguous states. What you are referring to is known as locality pay and most federal agencies have that. Our union, the National Association of Letter Carriers, negotiates our pay scale with the USPS every few years. They don't ask for locality pay as far as I know. As a national union, there is wide disagreement as to whether some areas should be paid more than others for doing the same job. Living in NY Metro area is expensive and it would be nice to have some locality pay. But for those living in less expensive regions, they probably wouldn't want to see some of their fellow union brethren making more than them for the same job. They might feel if someone in an expensive area is making more, that leaves less $$ for them in negotiating a contract and the NALC represents all of the carriers nationwide. I have definitely seen more carriers transfer out of my post office to lesser expensive areas (NC, PA, FL) than transferring in. Great question!

I droped my mail on the blue box , on saturday. When will it get delivered? I know that they don't work sundays.

Asked by shanen over 12 years ago

1-3 days from when it was picked up from the blue mailbox would be the normal length of time For delivery.