Going Postal

For the last two years I have been delivering packages for Amazon. With all the walking on concrete and climbing apartment stairs my knees got torn to hell. I was always tired on my days off with me working 12 or more hours a day it would wipe me out, luckily most of the time I would have three days off. To me it looked like the post office would be the better fit. In my Amazon delivery area I hardly ever saw houses with the walk up mailboxes. I figured if I got in with the post office, I could get an all driving route (what I now know is called a mounted route). Apart from my physical wear and tear, I knew that with a bad economy companies like the one I worked for could got belly up at anytime. Since the post office is not going away, I realized if I got a job there I'd be secure because no matter how bad an economy gets, government work goes on. Also I could eventually retire (something that would be difficult with what I was doing).

I first applied to the rural delivery job because I enjoy being in the country. Went through the process only to find out I'd have to provide my own right side drive vehicle. Since I just got a new car, that was a no go. Weeks later I found a city carrier job to apply to. Despite finding out many of those mail trucks had no a/c (a feature all the Amazon vehicles had) but thought at least I would be driving and not walking and with the money ($18.50/hour-$2 more than I was making) would make up for it.

Didn't hear from them for a while but the post office takes forever during the hiring process so I waited. Then I got the news, the company I was working for delivering Amazon was closing down. We had such bad drivers that the company could no longer get insurance. I figured that if I didn't hear from the post office I could take some time between jobs. On the last day of work I got the news that my application went through. Knowing I would have very little time off I convinced them to let me give my company a two weeks notice giving me two weeks of a vacation. It was a great two weeks, but it was time to div into my new career.

During orientation, I found out this was not going to be any easier than my last job, as a matter of fact, it was going to be much, much harder. CCAs (City Carrier Assistant) are the bottom of the barrel. Not only do we have to work 6 days a week, we can be expected to work up to 12 hours a day (lunch included) and almost all our routes will be all walking. Part of me felt like quitting before I started. You know, going back to Amazon delivery where I would still work hard but get to be in an A/C van and have 2-3 off in a row. However, I knew my dad didn't raise me to walk away from a challenge and he would expect me to stick it out were he still around. I determined I will do everything I can to make it and not be a statistic (CCAs have a very high turnover rate).

After orientation but before CCA school I had to shadow (follow) a mail carrier for a day. At the end I was on the verge of heat exhaustion despite drinking copious amounts of water. More doubts about sticking with this came up because that was just one day and we still have about a month of high temperatures. But I steeled myself to continue on. I have to tell myself I can get used to the heat and at least I will have one day off. Of course the biggest factor is all the money I'm going to make. Overtime for work over 8 hours in one day and double time for over 10 hours (suspended during December). I will feel like I'm dying every day but the pay will be worth it. If I can make it through 2 years I will automatically become a career employee with almost full benefits until I get full career status (it's possible to get a full career position before two years). Then I will be set for the rest of my working life. I will get my own route (until then I'm going to be used like a yo-you between routes), more days off, no Sunday or Holiday work, and enrolled in retirement benefits. I will be able to retire in about 20 years and because I served four years in the military, I can put that toward my retirement time.

However, I can't put the cart before horse. I have to get used to the physical hardships and make it through my 90 day probation. Until then I'm going to have to fight thorough the pain and exhaustion. If I can make it past the summer heat I should be OK. After 60 days of probation I can bid on routes when their permanent carriers are on vacation. That will also give me whatever days they have off, off.

This is the hardest job I've ever have to do but I am determined to make it. Time will tell if I can.

Have you ever considered working for a trash pick up company? You don't need a cdl,and the money is some of the best you'll find. I was going to do it once, but I was nursing an injury at the time they wanted to hire me, and I was also planning on moving to a another state soon, so I never did it. I know for the first year or two you'd be put thru the ringer, but if you got on with the type of company I almost got on with, you would be rolling in dough. They started new drivers out at around $25.00, topping out at $32.00. They put $9.00 per hour towards your pension, free benefits for you and your family, and after a year you would get company stock option. It was crazy. Hard work, but the longer you're around, the better routes you can pick. Start off in residential, but after a while, you could do the parking lot business type pick ups.

DallasBlack wrote:

For the last two years I have been delivering packages for Amazon. With all the walking on concrete  and climbing apartment stairs my knees got torn to hell. I was always tired on my days off with  me working 12 or more hours a day it would wipe me out, luckily most of the time I would have three days off. To me it looked like the post office would be the better fit. In my Amazon delivery area I hardly ever saw houses with the walk up mailboxes. I figured if I got in with the post office, I could get an all driving route (what I now know is called a mounted route). Apart from my physical wear and tear, I knew that with a bad economy companies like the one I worked for could got belly up at anytime. Since the post office is not going away, I realized if I got a job there I'd be secure because no matter how bad an economy gets, government work goes on. Also I could eventually retire (something that would be difficult with what I was doing).

I first applied to the rural delivery job because I enjoy being in the country. Went through the process only to find out I'd have to provide my own right side drive vehicle. Since I just got a new car, that was a no go. Weeks later I found a city carrier job to apply to. Despite finding out many of those mail trucks had no a/c (a feature all the Amazon vehicles had) but thought at least I would be driving and not walking and with the money ($18.50/hour-$2 more than I was making) would make up for it.

Didn't hear from them for a while but the post office takes forever during the hiring process so I waited. Then I got the news, the company I was working for delivering Amazon was closing down. We had such bad drivers that the company could no longer get insurance. I figured that if I didn't hear from the post office I could take some time between jobs. On the last day of work I got the news that my application went through. Knowing I would have very little time off I convinced them to let me give my company a two weeks notice giving me two weeks of a vacation. It was a great two weeks, but it was time to div into my new career.

During orientation, I found out this was not going to be any easier than my last job, as a matter of fact, it was going to be much, much harder. CCAs (City Carrier Assistant) are the bottom of the barrel. Not only do we have to work 6 days a week, we can be expected to work up to 12 hours a day (lunch included) and almost all our routes will be all walking. Part of me felt like quitting before I started. You know, going back to Amazon delivery where I would still work hard but get to be in an  A/C van and have 2-3 off in a row. However, I knew my dad didn't raise me to walk away from a challenge and he would expect me to stick it out were he still around. I determined I will do everything I can to make it and not be a statistic (CCAs have a very high turnover rate).

After orientation but before CCA school I had to shadow (follow) a mail carrier for a day. At the end I was on the verge of heat exhaustion despite drinking copious amounts of water. More doubts about sticking with this came up because that was just one day and we still have about a month of high temperatures. But I steeled myself to continue on. I have to tell myself I can get used to the heat and at least I will have one day off. Of course the biggest factor is all the money I'm going to make. Overtime for work over 8 hours in one day and double time for over 10 hours (suspended during December). I will feel like I'm dying every day but the pay will be worth it. If I can make it through 2 years I will automatically become a career employee with almost full benefits until I get full career status (it's possible to get a full career position before two years).  Then I will be set for the rest of my working life. I will get my own route (until then I'm going to be used like a yo-you between routes), more days off, no Sunday or Holiday work, and enrolled in retirement benefits. I will be able to retire in about 20 years and because I served four years in the military, I can put that toward my retirement time.

However, I can't put the cart before horse. I have to get used to the physical hardships and make it through my 90 day probation. Until then I'm going to have to fight thorough the pain and exhaustion. If I can make it past the summer heat I should be OK. After 60 days of probation I can bid on routes when their permanent carriers are on vacation. That will also give me whatever days they have off, off.

This is the hardest job I've ever have to do but I am determined to make it. Time will tell if I can.

Careful… be aware that nothing is a sure thing. Any government job can be defunded. Not that it would be completely done away with… but downsizing can happen.

True, but I have a very good chance as the Post Office has a hard time keeping good employees, they are almost always understaffed and are hiring new people every week. The turnover rate for CCAs are extremely high. If I can stand out from the crowd by working harder than the rest, when downsizing ever does happen I have the greater chance of survival. However, as stated, I need to get through probation and two years of CCA first (probation is where most people drop out, once that's over, you have to really be-and I mean REALLY bad at your job to lose it after that).

Well it looks like you are determined. So that is good!

Good luck in your new adventure man.

Think about the records you can buy with the money !

I hope it works very well for you. 

Am I right in assuming you will be making more money every week at the postal job?

Sure sounds that way.

How many women work this job?

Maybe I should apply for this work. I would be earning a lot more than I am now.

Good luck DB! Way to stick with it!

Good luck!

Troublezone wrote:

Well it looks like you are determined. So that is good!

Well, I have to remind myself that I've been spoiled for years and it's good to have some hardships and push my body past it's limits. I will have no time for a social life, but even when I had plenty of off time for one, I never had one. When I did have free time I would spend a lot of it just lazing around. This will teach me not to take off time for granted. And get myself in good shape in the process.

Gilbert wrote:

Good luck in your new adventure man.

Think about the records you can buy with the money !

Thanks! Oh, I do! My music library has grow a hell of a lot in the last 4 years and it will just get bigger. I can't listen to music while working, but I can when I get off of work and on my day off (and days off in the future).

Jan It Or wrote:

I hope it works very well for you.

Am I right in assuming you will be making more money every week at the postal job?

Sure sounds that way.

How many women work this job?

Maybe I should apply for this work. I would be earning a lot more than I am now.

There a lot of women working there. It's about half and half. If you do apply, prepare to have little time off. That includes working at the window or sorting mail (people working at the plant have it worse, they work 7 days a week). Don't count on Sunday off or federal Monday holidays because City Carrier Associates deliver Amazon packages on those days. Also, don't go with the Rural Carrier Associate. Not only do you have to provide your own vehicle but despite them paying you by the mile, you will probably only get about one day or two of work a week. They have regular Rural carriers and you only get to work when they have a day off or go on vacation.

exact33 wrote:

Good luck DB! Way to stick with it!

scottmitchell74 wrote:

Good luck!

Thanks guys!

In other words I will be working very long hours with very little time off and working my ass off the entire time.

Wrecked Neck wrote:

Have you ever considered working for a trash pick up company? You don't need a cdl,and the money is some of the best you'll find. I was going to do it once, but I was nursing an injury at the time they wanted to hire me, and I was also planning on moving to a another state soon, so I never did it. I know for the first year or two you'd be put thru the ringer, but if you got on with the type of company I almost got on with, you would be rolling in dough. They started new drivers out at around $25.00, topping out at $32.00. They put $9.00 per hour towards your pension, free benefits for you and your family, and after a year you would get company stock option. It was crazy. Hard work, but the longer you're around, the better routes you can pick. Start off in residential, but after a while, you could do the parking lot business type pick ups.

Coincidentally our local news just ran a story on how certain parts of St. Louis have overflowing trash dumpsters because there are not enough drivers to pick up the trash.  They're actually offering a $3000 signing bonus to new hires in an effort to recruit more drivers.

I've watched those guys when they pick up my trash, they don't even get out of the truck.  All the trash receptacles are constructed to work with a mechanical arm that comes out of the truck, grabs the bin and upends it into the back.  In 16 years of living in this subdivision I've never even seen the guys who drive around and pick up our trash. 

Anyway, good luck DB!  As always, I give you credit for wanting to work at something unlike a lot of freeloaders in this country.

Jan It Or wrote:

In other words I will be working very long hours with very little time off and working my ass off the entire time.

Pretty much but it pays real well. Starting at $18.50 an hour base pay. Over 8 hours you get time and a half. Over 10 you get double pay (suspended in December since EVERYONE works over 10 hours). On Sunday and Monday holiday you get time and a half + the holiday pay you get automatically. Even though you only get one day off a week normally, if you are past 60 days of your probation period, you can bid on permanent carrier routes where you get their route and days off when they are on vacation (career employees depending on seniority get up to a month of paid vacation a year).

After a year of CCA you are put on a five day leave while your contract is renewed. Unless you are highly piss poor at your job, you will get renewed. It used to be you would wait up until 6 years to become career but the union negotiated a new position created. After 2 years of a CCA if you haven't made career, you automatically get a career position called part-time flexable. You don't get all the career benefits but you get a lot more than a CCA and you no longer have to work overtime. Though you can sign up for it. But unlike full career, you are still hourly (career is salary + overtime if you choose it).

Really you only sacrifice two years to reach the promise land.

Wrecked Neck wrote:

Have you ever considered working for a trash pick up company? You don't need a cdl,and the money is some of the best you'll find. I was going to do it once, but I was nursing an injury at the time they wanted to hire me, and I was also planning on moving to a another state soon, so I never did it. I know for the first year or two you'd be put thru the ringer, but if you got on with the type of company I almost got on with, you would be rolling in dough. They started new drivers out at around $25.00, topping out at $32.00. They put $9.00 per hour towards your pension, free benefits for you and your family, and after a year you would get company stock option. It was crazy. Hard work, but the longer you're around, the better routes you can pick. Start off in residential, but after a while, you could do the parking lot business type pick ups.

Sorry, wasn't ignoring you, just forgot to reply. That sound like a great opportunity. If this doesn't work out I'd have to look into it.

tohostudios wrote:

Anyway, good luck DB!  As always, I give you credit for wanting to work at something unlike a lot of freeloaders in this country.

Thanks Toho! Well after all the time in the past I spent unemployed, I realized I have to have a job, as being out of work never feels right and makes me even more lazy than I usually am.

Hope the best for you DB

Don't hold your breath regarding job security and a pension.
The USPS has been solvent for decades, not to mention obsolete.
There is usually a reason why places have high turnover with workers.

tohostudios wrote:

Wrecked Neck wrote:

Have you ever considered working for a trash pick up company? You don't need a cdl,and the money is some of the best you'll find. I was going to do it once, but I was nursing an injury at the time they wanted to hire me, and I was also planning on moving to a another state soon, so I never did it. I know for the first year or two you'd be put thru the ringer, but if you got on with the type of company I almost got on with, you would be rolling in dough. They started new drivers out at around $25.00, topping out at $32.00. They put $9.00 per hour towards your pension, free benefits for you and your family, and after a year you would get company stock option. It was crazy. Hard work, but the longer you're around, the better routes you can pick. Start off in residential, but after a while, you could do the parking lot business type pick ups.

Coincidentally our local news just ran a story on how certain parts of St. Louis have overflowing trash dumpsters because there are not enough drivers to pick up the trash.  They're actually offering a $3000 signing bonus to new hires in an effort to recruit more drivers.

I've watched those guys when they pick up my trash, they don't even get out of the truck.  All the trash receptacles are constructed to work with a mechanical arm that comes out of the truck, grabs the bin and upends it into the back.  In 16 years of living in this subdivision I've never even seen the guys who drive around and pick up our trash. 

Anyway, good luck DB!  As always, I give you credit for wanting to work at something unlike a lot of freeloaders in this country.

The company I was thinking about working for had those trucks too, but sounded like the guys on the low end of the seniority list had to get out and physically dump the cans. Not sure, but I do know that part of your training was to see how many times you can exit the cab, run to the back of the truck, then enter the cab in an hour. The lady I spoke with on my interview said they worked an average of ten hours per day, and averaged about 700 stops per day. She also said after a year or two, I'd most likely end up with an easier route, but the first year is normally pretty brutal. If I wasn't close to fifty, and nursing a messed up shoulder back then, I would have jumped on it in a heartbeat. That's retirement in ten to fifteen years type of money if you do it right.

Best of luck!!

You can do it, man ! Good luck !

Thanks everyone! The job really isn't difficult, it's just getting used to the heat (which hopefully will be gone in a month) and the long hours.

Oh and in response to James B., of course there are no guarantees, that's true for every job. Will the post office go away eventually, perhaps, but it will be 10-20 years from now. In two years when I get career, I'm automatically enrolled in the retirement savings plan. Just like a 401K, 5% of your paycheck goes into it and you can up that if you want to. The union rep told us that when we get any kind of a bonus, put half into that retirement savings so there's that as well. If I get cut from the post office in the future, I would have already invested quite a lot in retirement and can roll that over into the one my dad left for me when he passed. After that who knows. What really works in my favor is I have no wife or children and at this point in my life I'm resigned to the fact I might never have either. That means apart from the money I spend to help my mother out, I only have to worry about myself.

I can't think about that right now. I still have rough weather (summer heat, rain, cold winter, etc.) and limited free time to get used to plus a 90 day probation, then two years as a CCA, and then another 90 days probation after career. And then it will probably be many more years until I'm full career and won't have to work overtime (found out that part time flex still must work overtime). Then if I get though all that I can worry about what will happen when it all ends.

Like already stated, hope the best for you DB

James B. wrote:

Like already stated, hope the best for you DB

Thanks!

I can't help myself, but...

News Headline- "North Texas Postal Worker bounces mail truck off of parked and moving vehicles while wearing an animal costume and alleged shouting racial slurs. Witnesses claim to have heard, "loud heavy metal music" coming from the mail truck. "

James B. wrote:

I can't help myself, but...

News Headline- "North Texas Postal Worker bounces mail truck off of parked and moving vehicles while wearing an animal costume and alleged shouting racial slurs. Witnesses claim to have heard, "loud heavy metal music" coming from the mail truck. "

I hope you didn’t jinx DB.

Troublezone wrote:

James B. wrote:

I can't help myself, but...

News Headline- "North Texas Postal Worker bounces mail truck off of parked and moving vehicles while wearing an animal costume and alleged shouting racial slurs. Witnesses claim to have heard, "loud heavy metal music" coming from the mail truck. "

I hope you didn’t jinx DB.

Well, first of all, a fursuit is not approved for a postal uniform plus it's way too hot to wear one. Also, I keep my racial slurs to myself these days and the mail trucks have no radios. So no jinx there.

No radios?? That would suck. Seems like the perfect job to get hours of listening in.