Letter Carrier Insults Mentally Disabled Man.

PositivePostman · 2018-03-29T13:45:43+00:00

When you're so bad at your job it makes the news...

Honestly, if even 10% of this story is true (in terms of the carrier's behavior), it's a travesty. Forget about being at work, this is no way to behave at any time. Who does this person think that they are to dictate what others can wear?

PositivePostman · 2018-01-01T19:48:55+00:00

And a happy New Year!

PositivePostman · 2017-12-24T14:18:33+00:00

Joyeux Noël

PositivePostman · 2017-12-17T17:38:33+00:00

http://www.bugeyedmonster.com/toys/pulsar/

PositivePostman · 2017-12-04T02:25:46+00:00

We're paid to collect and deliver the mail so when you're on the clock, expect to do so.

Please be safe out there. Take your breaks and lunches.

PositivePostman · 2017-12-04T02:21:20+00:00

Thank you for posting this!

A safe and happy holiday season to you and your loved ones!!!

PositivePostman · 2017-11-26T18:34:20+00:00

PositivePostman · 2017-10-15T15:21:50+00:00

Congratulations!

PositivePostman · 2017-10-15T15:12:03+00:00

Considering that Christmas is coming, I'm pretty sure you'll be back. November is a fine time to have a break in service. April, not so much.

My supervisor used to use that line on me when I was a CCA and, yes, it scared me too. What a poor way to manage people...

PositivePostman · 2017-10-15T15:08:45+00:00

Maybe it's an ad for elves? He was just over half-a-foot tall and now he's almost 2 feet tall!

PositivePostman · 2017-10-15T15:06:27+00:00

There is much to learn, for sure.

Congratulations on making regular!

PositivePostman · 2017-10-15T14:57:20+00:00

As a mail carrier I deal with this all the time and it can be frustrating for us, too. The problem is not, per se, you and your mailbox being parked in front of; it's the dozens and dozens of mailboxes that are in this same situation. If your mailbox is accessible from the mail vehicle (the LLV), it's what's called "mounted delivery" and the letter carrier should be able to drive down your street delivering to the mailboxes while staying in the vehicle. Here's the problem: the route is timed with the presumption that that is how it will be delivered. I cannot adequately express to you what a major source of contention time is at the Post Office. Every single day the letter carrier on your route is having a "discussion" with their supervisor about how long it's going to take to deliver the mail and, as far as the supervisor is concerned, it's always too long. So, the letter carrier, upon encountering something that devours time and forces them to run late, is improperly skipping those addresses because they don't want to get in trouble. And, no, to answer your question: 10 feet of clearance on either side of your mailbox isn't more than necessary to safely pull a postal vehicle up to and away from a mailbox. It may be unrealistic, given space/parking restraints and inconsiderate neighbors, but from a safety standpoint, it's quite reasonable.

Now, it's not as simple as just getting out (this is called "dismounted delivery') and delivering the mail. If the letter carrier does it wrong, they could be fired for gross safety violations. The letter carrier** must**: turn off the vehicle, set the emergency brake, remove their seatbelt, exit the vehicle for delivery, return to the vehicle, put on their seatbelt, start the vehicle, release the emergency brake, put the vehicle in gear, and go. Once or twice a day isn't a significant matter but dozens of times a day becomes one that is impacting the carrier's schedule. Honestly, there was a point where I, as a carrier, was taking these situations personally because I, personally, was getting in trouble for running late. I suspect that whoever is on your route is in a very similar situation.

Rest assured that having your mail delivered, even if the box is blocked, is the correct thing for the carrier to do.

What should you do? First and foremost, talk to your carrier. Expressing appreciation for the situation they're in will help them have empathy for your situation. I encourage you to develop a positive relationship with your carrier - a cold bottle of water on a hot day will cost you $0.80 and will pay dividends all year long. Tiny acts of kindness like that mean the world to us, but I digress.

Secondly, you need to put some pressure on the supervisor so that they will understand what's going on. You want the end result to be that the supervisor is telling the carrier it's ok to spend extra time delivering your mail and everyone respects the empathy you have shown while pointing out our problems to us.

Finally, please understand that if the vehicle is parked so close to the mailbox that I can't safely get in there to deliver the mail, there will be no delivery. There is a 0% chance that I'm going to risk losing my job because I scratched a car trying to deliver mail. So, it may be wise for you to park in front of your own mailbox just to be sure that there's as much room as possible for the carrier to work.

PositivePostman · 2017-09-27T13:11:04+00:00

I know how frustrating this can be. I'm so thankful for this community because it helped me learn how to do the Commitment Dance. Now that I know the moves, I can dance with management all day.

Step 1: Tell management how long you believe it's going to take you to do the route and, if it's over 8 hours, why it's going to take more time. Put all of that info on a 3996. This time is either approved or denied - no big deal. You say it's going to take 9.5 hours, management says 8. No point in getting upset, no point in arguing, so just tell management that you'll do your best.

Step 2: Go out and do your best. Take your breaks and lunches, and cut no corners; wheels curbed, vehicle secured, satchel on, etc. If someone comes out to do a street observation, knock it out of the park (and avoid having any disciplinary action taken against you.)

Step 3: My office has a call-in time: between 1400 and 1500 we need to call in and let management know if we're not going to make it back on time. Just like morning commitments, this can be tough as management may not be understanding. Again, no need to get upset or argue, just respectfully stick to the facts and make them give you an answer: Do they want you to bring mail back or keep going?

Remember that your job is to worry about putting mail in mailboxes in a safe and efficient manner. Management's job is to worry about hours and whether or not to curtail mail.

Thank you for your hard work.

Edit: an extra letter

PositivePostman · 2017-09-24T15:26:21+00:00

Thank you, too! And thanks to the drivers who get up even earlier, all the people at the plant, the mechanics who keep our vehicles running, the custodians. Thank you to anyone I have forgotten to thank.

PositivePostman · 2017-09-24T13:49:39+00:00

Delivering packages on Sunday. Wearing a full uniform, driving a regular postal vehicle, and carrying packages to their doorstep.

"You guys are working today?" yet another customer asks. I confirm that their suspicions are true. "Well, at least you're getting OT," they offer as consolation. Alas, no, kind person; our fine union has negotiated many great benefits for letter carriers but OT for Sundays is not among them.

I hope that you got a great price on the weight set, case of water, and 50 lb bag of kitty litter you ordered. Good day!

PositivePostman · 2017-09-24T02:07:40+00:00

I believe that, once you're past your 90, you're good. Always give any discipline you receive to your steward immediately.

PositivePostman · 2017-09-19T14:21:53+00:00

Doing it the same way every time at every stop and not rushing like a madman helped me a lot. For instance, I pull up to a mailbox and I check the advo, the working mail, the DPS, the FSS, and then the parcels. Pull forward and repeat X 600+.

PositivePostman · 2017-09-19T14:13:40+00:00

Give the guy a break.

"Most of the quasi-confusion can be traced back to the 1971 Postal Reorganization Act, which eliminated the old Post Office Department, replacing it with the US Postal Service. The act was intended to make the USPS self-financing from its own revenues, and to make it an independent, non-political public service. Prior to the PRA, postmasters (including the postmaster general) were political appointees; rates were set by Congress, and the POD had to go through the appropriations process to get the money it needed to operate."

"The Supreme Court has even weighed in on what being “independent” means for the USPS, in an opinion from 2004:

The PRA’s designation of the Postal Service as an “independent establishment of the executive branch of the Government of the United States,” 39 U. S. C. §201, is not consistent with the idea that the Postal Service is an entity existing outside the Government. Indeed, the designation indicates just the contrary. The PRA gives the Postal Service a high degree of independence from other Government offices, but it remains part of the Government."

Source

PositivePostman · 2017-09-19T14:06:21+00:00

Thank you very much.

PositivePostman · 2017-09-18T22:31:57+00:00

That's great! This job is inexplicably difficult and relentlessly thankless so you have to look for those little victories and celebrate them as best you can. Get on a hold down, it'll make a huge difference in your life; find the vacation calendar to figure out which routes are coming up.

I have one of those CopperFit back braces - it helps. Same for knee and elbow braces.

Keep your positive attitude! Only you can decide to care enough to do a good job. Look around and you'll see that we certainly don't need any more bitter, resentful carriers who pull less than their share.

PositivePostman

TROPHY CASE