More than eight months after their contract talks hit an impasse, the National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association and the U.S. Postal Service are headed to arbitration, according to a new USPS financial filing. While mediation would normally be the next move, both sides are interested in bypassing that step and going to straight to arbitration, the third quarter financial report says. The next step will be to select an “interest arbitrator” and decide on some dates for the proceedings.
A Postal Service spokesman had no further information Monday, but in a phone interview that evening, NRLCA President Don Cantriel said the decision to go to arbitration was made a week or so ago. “We just couldn’t accept where they wanted to go,” Cantriel said. While the rural letter carriers had offered concessions similar to what the American Postal Workers Union had accepted earlier this year, he said, the Postal Service then wanted to “completely alter” several of the standards in the evaluated system used to determine carriers’ pay. The effect would be “devastating,” Cantriel said.
“They basically want us to do the same amount of work for significantly less money.”
Under interest arbitration, the arbitrator decides which provisions the parties will have in their collective bargaining agreement, as opposed to interpreting and applying the terms of the agreement to decide a grievance, according to the Office of Personnel Management.
The impasse with the rural carriers dates back to last November, triggered in part by USPS proposals to freeze wages, cut benefits for current career employees and create a lower wage scale for new hires, the union said at the time. Nonetheless, the two sides had kept talking–at least until recently.
Don’t forget, by the way, that contracts with two other postal unions, the National Postal Mail Handlers Union and the National Association of Letter Carriers, expire Nov. 20. Talks on replacements will start about 90 days beforehand, the Postal Service has said. This May, APWU members overwhelmingly ratified the new contract that will run until May 2015.
[Post updated at 6:25 p.m. to reflect Cantriel comments.]
72 Comments
How many workers will work for less pay while still providing their own vehicles to work in? Auto expense is an important part of our job. Why not let RCA’s buy back some of their sub time, in order that they can go out sooner? Why not offer a regular carriers a good retirement buy out? They make a lot more money than those of us who have only been employed at a regular status for a shorter period of time and due to the fact that routes were downsized before be awarded.
Phew Brenda , way too throw everyone under the bus…
Lets just fire everyone senior to you… What you’re saying
is lets give the P.O. the right to fire you 6 mo. before you
can retire… Wow Brenda look at all the money they can
save if they never allow you to retire….
Are you joking? If you haven’t noticed (and probably don’t know anything about it), the USPS has been moving all rural carriers into LLVs. They do not have to pay gas or fix their vehicles. The rural carriers in Upstate NY work, literally, 4.5 hours a day and get paid for OVER 8 hours. That’s why the quote:
“They basically want us to do the same amount of work for significantly less money.”
Is a joke. They do absolutely nothing and get paid ridiculous for their hours worked. Clerks are another craft that, while I am neutral about their pay rate, can be cut. Every day it is common to see the clerks do about two hours of work in the morning, then joke, smoke, and text message the rest of the day.
Why not start at the top with the Postmaster General and cut salaries from top to bottom instead of bottom to top? It is the Postmaster General and upper management who make enormous salaries but never touch mail. The post office is in the MAIL buisness.
The Rural Carriers are Doomed. Back in 02 the last time it
went to arbitration they lost and the USPS was still making
money. Do you really think they are going to win this time?????
They work 4.5 hours for over 8 hours pay in my office also. They get double the office time of the city carriers and have less mail. In the last ten years the p o has increased our city route sizes by over 35 % and the rural routes by nothing. Some of them are home by the time I get to lunch .
I’ve NEVER seen a clerk,city carrier or any form of management transfer into the rural craft. EVER! I’m sure I would have if it was so damn easy.
To Transfer to the rural craft we have to get behind all the subs that only work one day a week. Thats the only reason you don’t see it. If they converted my city route to rural it would be timed at like 11 1/2 hours. The city carriers do it in 8.
I’ve been a city carrier for a long time. The rurals now make lots more than city carriers and have for a while. That’s including city overtime. I’m amazed that the rca’s don’t get any benefits. They work day in and day out on routes in my office and they don’t get benefits. All I can say is that your union needs to get their ass in gear. Also I think your peak has come and now will start the inevitable decline.
Thank you. I thought I was the only one seeing things wrong at the office I work at. Rurals with LLV’s having routes close to the post office, home by noon, and a terrific paycheck. 10 carriers and more have that privledge. And to boot the rurals don’t even have to punch a timeclock. And what about getting paid for every step they take. Everything from the distance between their case and their LLV, loading time, etc. When there is a count, the snails come out. It’s time for an hourly wage rural carrier.
How can we have a mail count when we don’t have a contract???
Rural carriers make more money, have bigger routes and can do it in less time because we have the incentive to do so. You do not see us taking breaks, eating lunch and have you ever watched us case and pull down mail? I have seen you city guys do it, slowly. We hit the streets and get it done, I pass you guys sitting under trees and reading the paper on my way home. Stop whining! You are jealous of our craft. BTY – distance is measured, not timed…doesn’t matter how slow or fast you go.
All I ever hear when a rural carrier comes back off the street after 4 hours and gets paid for 8 is,”well thats what the route is evaluated at”. Don’t you people GET IT, the evaluation systym needs to be overhauled to a point where you either get paid for JUST the 4 hours you work OR somehow get 8 hours work out of you for your 8 hours pay. Thats what the arbitrater will look at, not just what the APWU gave up.
Wow, read the comments.Way to stick together, you are all getting screwed so you turn on each other? how about turning on the one who is giving all of you the real screw job.
Reading the notes, I’m not sure if any of you work for the USPS, except for Diane…..
it the postmaster general cant make a profit get someone in there that can/ we need a business mined person not a clerk or city carrier trying to run this company
City and Rural – apples and Oranges.On average the bump is 2 hrs(undertime) a week. Coincidentally, city carriers get two ten minute breaks and 30 min lunch per day(50 min = 4.16 hrs per week).98% of rural carriers take no lunch(choosing to graze as they work) and minimal breaks usually yapping time) that must be documented.Who is working less?Rurals don’t get paid for breaks ,why take them.Nationally ,rural routes are 1/3 larger than city routes(mounted)Rurals work at their own pace,usually very rapid.They don’t have an 8 hr block of time to fill(plus no opportunity for OT.If a city route has 10 ft of letters one day, and 6 feet of letters the next day, why does it take the same amount of time to do that route.The gravy days of the rurals went away in 2002.Most of us work 6 days a week or every other week. 5 day K routes are the exception now. Most of the rural routes have not changed dramatically.I wonder how many city carriers would appreciate having to work more days and get payed substantially less as they get closer to retirement.This is a reality that rurals face because of falling mail volume, bad union decisions in the past ten years,postal fiscal irresponsibilities and bad management and other factors.You city carriers better hope you don’t go evaluated because you do more for less.That is why we get done early, we hustle and do our jobs.We don’t milk a time clock.
This is why I send and pay everything on the computer.. I don’t need the junk mail i get from you guy’s. Would not care if USPS closed doors forever
It’s true rural carriers get done in 6 hours and get paid for more than 8 hours, but we are moving out there. I dont take any breaks or lunch. I get in there and hustle. If I was reguired to be there the full day I would take all my breaks and lunch and not kill myself everyday. Rca are the ones who get screwed by usps and the Union. The RCA’s show up to work and are basicaly a hostage each day. They show up for work and have know idea if they are going to be needed on other routes or put on a route they dont even know. The union does nothing for them. No benefits , no vacation, always on call.
JT, Can you name me another company in the WORLD that would pay there employee 8 hours pay while they work 6 hours and still survive. If you continually work your route in 6 hours, that proves it can be done in 6, so why continue to pay you 8 hours. The evaluation system is scewed. Needs to be overhauled to the point where you WORK 8 Hours for your 8 hours pay. If you can’t see the logic then you and yours are dumb asses. Benjimen Franklins mother must have been a rural carrier.
City carrier days are 8.5 hours . 30 minute lunch is not paid.
RETIRED MAIL CARRIER 37 YEARS WITH MILITARY…
IS TIME TO WORK TOGETHER AND MAKE THE CUTS TO SAVE THE PO AND YOUR JOBS. YES MANY ON THE LOWER END WILL LOSE THEIR JOBS, BUT MANY WILL NOT.. I AGREE WITH SOME OF THE CUTS MANAGEMENT WANTS TO MAKE.
ENDING SATURDAY DELIVERY NO BIG DEAL, LETS GO TO 5 DAYS… TAKING A PAY CUT ? I’M WELLING TO DO IT TO SAVE THE PO AND YOUR JOBS.. AND PENSIONS…. MORE FAT NEEDS TO BE CUT FROM MANAGEMENT —– CUSTODIANS ? HOW MANY CUSTODIANS DO OFFICES NEED ? IN MY OFFICE WE HAVE 4 AND WE ONLY NEED ONE.. YOU ALL HAVE 2 CHOICES ,, GO ALONG WITH CUTS ?? OR CHAPTER 13 ?? THE UNION NEEDS TO WORK WITH MANAGEMENT… JUST DON’T LET MANAGEMENT TAKE CONTROL OF THE PENSION FUNDS, A HUGE MISTAKE IF THEY DO.. IF THEY HAD CONTROL OF OUR PENSION FUNDS RIGHT NOW ? I BET THEY BE USING IT TO PAY FOR THINGS. GOOD LUCK ALL… JOSE FROM ILLINOIS—-GOING FISHING ..
TIRED OF IT —-I AGREE WITH YOU. WE HAVE MANY CARRIERS THAT WORK 6 HOURS–7 HOURS AND GET PAY FOR 8 HOURS.. I USED TO GET PISSED OFF BECAUSE OF THAT. YOU ARE HONEST—YOU WORK HARD AND YOU GET SCREWED WITH HUGE ROUTE ADDITIONS .. SLACKERS TAKE THEIR SWEET TIME AND AVOID ROUTE ADDITIONS… A HUGE PROBLEM… I USED TO BE CALLED STUPID BY FELLOW CARRIERS FOR GIVING OUT 100 % .. I’M RETIRED NOW WITH 37 YEARS AND GOING FISHING.. LET SOMEONE ELSE DEAL WITH THAT PROBLEM. ALL ROUTES SHOULD BE ADJUSTED EVEN A CROSS THE BOARD, FAIR IS FAIR. EQUAL WORK FOR EQUAL PAY SHOULD BE THE WAY, BUT IS NOT.
THE REAL QUESTION IS WHY WOULD MANAGEMENT KNOWINGLY PAY 70000 RURALS 8 HOURS FOR 6 HOURS WORK. 140OOO HOURS A DAY PAID FOR NOTHING . OVER 800 MILLION A YEAR. IF MY CITY ROUTE IS 10 MIN SHORT DUE TO MAIL VOLUME THEY ADD 15 MINUTES TO MY ROUTE THAT DAY. THE RURALS ROUTES HAVE BEEN OVER 2 HOURS SHORT FOR YEARS AND NO ONE CARES. WHY
That , my friend Joey is the $$$$$BILLION$$$$$ question
I’m a rural carrier on a 9 hour a day route. I finish my route on average 2 hours early. This is not because I am doing 7 hours of work for 9 hours of pay. I am doing what is deemed as 9 hours of work faster than the “average” person. I bust my butt to get the work done because we are on evaluated time. We are allowed to case our dps which is a huge time saver. On days that I choose to relax my pace a bit I finish my route closer to the 9 hour mark. Also, on heavy days it’s not unheard of for me to work beyond the 9 hour mark even when I’m busting my butt to get done.
It’s not an issue with the evaluation being off, it’s envy from other crafts and the postal management seeing an opportunity to cut somewhere where they can deem it “fair”.
I am a rural carrier who usually works at or over my evaluation. I would love to be a city carrier. They make for 40 hours what we have to evaluate at 42-43 hours. I would love to have help after holidays and on Mondays when I have to work 10-12 hours and get paid for 8 hours. The grass is not always greener on the other side. Why doesnt your union endorse the evaluated system if it is so great? Instead they want no part of it, although the USPS wants the city carriers under such a system.
Brian and Cangonow,,,Pleaeaeaeass
Tired of it, Did you hear what I said? I am a rural carrier and I WANT to be paid hourly! I repeat….I WANT to be paid hourly!
Cangonow. As a rural carrier you are the exception to the rule. you do know that you make more than a city carrier though right?
Tired of it….Compare what city carriers make for 40 hours and what rurals make for 40 hours. You will find that city carriers make substantially more due to NRLCA mistakes on past contracts. By the end of their current contract a 40 hour city route will pay about the same as a 43 hour rural route. Thats 3 OT hours to make what a city carrier makes. Also, if the evaluated system is so great…why doesnt the city carriers union become evaluated. The USPS has been after that for years? I would like you to answer that question and not ignore it!
Rural carrier step A for 40 hours..$40454/city carrier step A grade1…$44291 and grade 2 is $46210
http://www.nalc.org/depart/cau/pdf/wages/paychart0911.pdf
Cangonow, All I know is that there are 11 rural routes in my office and every one of them makes more than the city carriers,, working from 5 to 7 hours a day
What I am telling you is that a rural carrier must evaluate at 43 hours to make what a city carrier makes for 40 hours. Sometimes rural carriers have to work 6 days a week (H routes) and if they evaluated at above 43 hours then they would make more. On 6 day routes they may only be evaluated at 7-7.5 hours a day so that is why they seem to go home early. You still havnt answered my question…if the evaluated system is so great, why does the NALC refuse to adopt it? Like I said, I would go hourly in a minute, especially if I could make city carrier wages! Also dont forget that the summer season is the lightest for mail. No one remembers this when I am working 5 hours over my evaluation during the busy times of the year.
Probably because they have seen the writing on the wall. The systym is antiquated and soon will be abolished. There has been a new idea that has been sweeping the nation for about a hundred years now. 8 hours WORK for 8 PAY
Probably because they have seen the writing on the wall. The systym is antiquated and soon will be abolished. There has been a new idea that has been sweeping the nation for about a hundred years now. 8 hours WORK for 8 hours PAY
Thats what I am hoping for….hourly pay at city carrier wages!
I hope you get it my friend. Good Luck
Tired, I will agree that the evaluated system needs an overhaul but why would you not want it if you could work so much under what you get paid? In one way you seem very jealous but then you say you would not want such a system yourself. How do you know the salaries of the rurals where you work? Do you know the route sizes and what their evalation actually is? Are they 6 day, 5.5 day or 5 day routes? Before you get envious you should know all the facts. Do you now agree that city carriers are paid more than rurals?
If the rurals go hourly I hope they don’t go back and use your average times. Thats what they do to city carriers that busted there butts and came in early. Hourly is always based on average past street and office time. How early have you been getting out in the morning and coming in in the afternoon? there is a website that list all the salaries of every postal
http://php.courierpostonline.com/data_public/datauniverse/usps/
In my office the rural 6 day routes are taking 4.5, 5.5 day 5.25 hours and 5 day around 6. Those are average not easy day times. No walking, just drive around and come in 2 or more hours early and make more than the city guys . 28.00 an hour for 8 plus 40 dollars tax free mileage pay, 264.00 for 6 hours. Its killing the po.
Joey, Did you check out post 32. Rural carriers make much less than city carriers. I dont know what else to post. I posted facts and you guys ignore them! Did you also know that EMA is insufficient for most rurals? The amount received does not cover much beyond gas for the route.
Also Joey, as per previous post…a rural carrier in step A makes $19.45/hr. City in the same step makes $21.29/grade 1 and $22.21/grade 2.
I believe walking routes should be done away with and city carriers converted to evaluated system. Ask supervisor to show you in growth program shat the same route gets paid whether city/rural/contract. My 42j is 56,000 rural, 74500 for city and 40000 as a contract route. So come on to the evaluated system not the system where employees milk the clock. Average rural carrier salary 55,800 average city carrier made 74820 last year so who is cheating the post office.
wow… interesting stuff… when the fall/winter comes and i’m out until 6 pm doing my best to deliver the mail in the snow and not bring it back because i will not get help for what i bring back, much less for the next days work.. i don’t get paid overtime for this… or double time. i WOULD
take a wage freeze. i WOULD take on an extra hour or two a week for the same money. Will the people at the top do so also? at the most i will get 30% roughly when i retire.. not 50.. or more like the bosses… i don’t even try to keep up with what every body else is doing.. it is counter productive to my life.. i love what i do and i can pay my bills. so surprised that the Post office is just a bunch of “all for me” types.. carriers aren’t even for each other.. too many different unions.. just mho…
There is not a rural carrier on the planet that could strap on a pouch and carry a solid 8 hour city route in 6
Cangonow, Its 12:13 on your last post. I guess your job doesn’t even take 6 hours.
I live on my route and take a 30 minute lunch break each day…thats when I posted! Today I started at 7:15…left for the route at 9:40…returned to the office at 4 PM and cased bulk until 4:45. My route is evaluated at 8 hrs. 36 minutes/day. Worked 9 hrs. today during the summer slowdown? Travel 42.6 miles and serve 515 boxes. EMA is $33.60/day. You guessed wrong!
Cangonow I wish you the best. You can’t foolem. The free ride is coming to the end I believe. They’re closing half the dist sites and alot of PO’s. I don’t think they can afford the PR nightmare or financial loss of paying 70,000 people 1 to 3 hours a day for nothing. Good Luck.
Not sure what you mean by fooling them. What I would like to point out is that not all rurals are getting done early. If we go hourly (which I hope we do) the ones going fast are going to slow down. I am use to working my evaluation and even working 5 or more hours of free OT for the USPS when the mail picks up or the weather is bad. I do not dog it but do my job by the book and try to give good service. We are going to get a national count in Sept. and the loss of mail volume will correct some of the undertimes. In my case, I will get another reduction in evaluation due to FSS and end up working even more OT hours for free. The evaluated system does not work for me. My salary has remained the same for over 5 years due to losses from mail counts yet my work hours have increased. How many craft workers put in free time for the USPS? I hope you also see that rural carriers are not paid as much as city carriers per hour and can only make more than a city carrier if they evaluate over 43 hours/week. Car allowance is not tax free. The amount we receive was deemed equal to our expenses and in fact for most rural carriers does not come close to covering expenses. Please look at the whole picture when judging us.
Bring the city side to the evaluated times stop paying lazy city carriers to stop milking the clock! Do away with walking routes such a waste of time. Paid lunches what a joke! Make em work go through any major city go to fast food restraints city carriers just sitting there! There is a reason post office wants city carriers in evaluated system stop them from wasting all day taking breaks. Put up cluster boxes make them deliver 800 to 900 deliveries instead of the pathetic 418 average they deliver now. Shame on y’all!
Mark, the city carriers that I work with have my respect, work hard and I have no problem with them. They are forced to carry the mail the way management determines. They dont have choices like we have (such as sorting DPS) I cant imagine carrying a satchel and working 3 bundles of mail. Maybe in the past they had time to play with but I think those days are gone. I wanted to clarify some of the misconceptions about rural carriers and our pay. The evaluated system does not work for all and we do have to evaluate at 43 hours to make what a city carrier makes for 40. The USPS has tried to get the city union to convert to evaluated pay and they have refused, wisely! With the hits the NRLCA has taken I think its time for us to join the city carriers and go hourly..once and for all. I just hope we can get equal pay.
cangonow, you may have to evaluate at 43 hours to make what a city carrier makes for 40, but 99% of you do it in 33 hours
I will agree that many rurals beat their evaluation but the 99% figure at 33 hours is inaccurate. Nationally the USPS claims that routes are beating their evals by 6 hours a week, on average, and I think the Sept mailcount will correct much of that. My question in a previous post stands….If the evaluated system is so great….why wont the NALC adopt it for their members? It sounds too good to be true but the city carriers dont want it! Doesnt make much sense to me. Remember that under such a system your pay for the whole year, or longer, will be determined by a 2 week mailcount that many rurals believe is manipulated. No help on Mondays and after holidays or when the weather is bad or the mail is just plain heavy. You are on your own. You work 10 or more hours in a day or way over for the week and your pay stays the same. Yes, on light days you can go home early..but is it worth it? The NALC says NO!
Tired, just so you know…today started at 7:15…left for the route at 10:00…returned at 5:00 and got done (or was forced to leave because the office was closing) at 5:35.
If you have dps and fss what exactly are you casing to cause your extra long office times. Less than an hour is expected.
No Fss in our office and all 17 routes are out in less than an hour 9 out of 10 days. 10 rural
The evaluated system is not great, except maybe for the rural carriers. Behind the pre funding health benefit issue, its probably the #1 reason the PO is going broke. By the way kudos for being in the 1%.
Tired, First of all the 99% figure is something that you are pulling out of the thin air. You say the evaluated system is not great except for the rural carriers. Im saying you could have the same system for you guys, and if you are lucky, you could get paid the same salary as we do..43 evaluated for 40 NALC. The loss in salary from mailcounts along with the lower wages rural carriers receive has saved the USPS billions of dollars since the early 2000’s and particularly after the Wells arbitration decision. Like I said before , if going home early is so obsetting for you than join us and get the opportunity to go home early! The USPS would NOT want the NALC to be evaluated if it would cost them MORE money! The rural system saves the USPS money and if the NALC would join us and be evaluated, that would help balance the books. We are not the reason the USPS is going broke, we are a way to keep it from going broke! Come join us! Talk to your union and make your opinion known, we as NALC members want rural carriers salaries and the opportunity to go home early! If enough of you speak up, you just may get what you want 🙂
The way the PO would save billions is to get rid of 2 in every 10 rural routes by having the remaining 8 routes work 8 HOURS!!!! enough said you’ll not here from me again good luck in your arbatration.
I disagree. The way to save billions is to have the NALC go evaluated. Then you guys will understand what we deal with. Rurals have taken hits with every count we go through. We lose hours and end up working more days at less per hour pay than city carriers. You dont understand that rurals routes dont get disolved usually, they get reduced and end up working 6 days instead of 5 days for the same or less pay. Another thing, pay city carriers what rurals make per hour and the USPS could save even more! Like I said, you will enjoy going home early every so often if evaluated, but you wont like working free hours on Mondays, after holidays,on heavy mail days and weeks, and when the weather is bad. Come join us!
cangonow, of course you disagree. you’re looking at it from the inside looking out like any rural carrier would do. the rest of the world is outside looking in. 3 years ago we had 12 full rural routes and an auxillary, today we have 11 routes in my office. we need to get it down to 9. this time I mean it. you will not hear from me again, good luck.
Tired, Are you a city carrier, manager or clerk? As a rural carrier I have an inside view, of course. Let me ask you this…The main reason you are obset is that rurals are getting done early. As I said, not all rurals get done early and I am one of them. No one cares when I am still at the office after a busy day at 5:30, already having worked 2 free OT hours in a day. They only get obset when we go home early. I see managers playing on their computers, talking on the phone with friends and lolly gagging around as well as clerks standing around doing nothing and custodians also. We have an incentive to get done early if we can (I usually cant), and everyone gets obset at that. I have no problem going hourly, but you should know that those carriers that do get done early hustle the whole day, many dont take breaks and work at breakneck speed. I dont see that from the hourly paid employees, in general. And also remember that we are paid less per hour than most other Postal Employees. Hourly pay for rurals at city carrier wages would be a great upgrade for us. No one could get jealous about us going home early and I would welcome knowing that I would get help or OT when I needed it and I would get a pay raise for 40 worked.
Mr. Petterman, I am usually the first rural carrier out of my office, departing for the route, out of 10 rural routes. I work in an affluent town where we still receive lots of mail. I dont know how a carrier could possibly get out in one hour. By the time I case residual letters and flats, pack up my DPS, mark the parcels and get our accountables, process markups, pull the mail and load, the earliest I get out is two hours after I start. Most of the other rurals still case their DPS to reduce the number of bundles they must work from and reduce their street time but not me, I only rubber band it up. Today I had 7 trays of FSS, 6 trays of residual letter and flats and four trays of DPS….departed at 10AM for the route.
I am a rural carrier and yes sometimes I come in under evaluation. However in the winter, we have snowbirds and our mail doubles I typically work 2 hours over evaluation. So in the end it balances out. They save a ton of money on us subs, no benefits for 5 years no sick time no vacation time and be available for the usps beck and call (this is my scenario)
im an rca.i deliver both rural and city routes. i can do the city routes in about 4 hours.there a joke.so stop bitching.And stop hiding on your routes.
Ive read most of the comments and am amazed how people turn on each other. Look people we are all in this together. First class and most forms of mail are dead. The future of the postal service is in parcels. Its the only thing on my route that is increasing in volume. Maybe our leadership should be pushing that hard. Ive worked city routes ive been a mail handler and am a rural carrier. Ive also worked 28 years in the in industry. Weve all mgot it good in the usps, prey you dont end up out there.
I see this same crap in my office. The City carriers and rural carriers will not even speak to each other. Its really stupid. Truth is, both sides are correct. We have 9 rural and 2 city routes. The 2 city routes get 360 and 470 boxes. The rurals have one really easy route that has about 350 boxes. And 3 routes with over 600 boxes. The city routes have 19 and 27 miles. The rurals are from 49-130 miles. So, If the rural carriers are doing 130 miles 600+ boxes in 6 hours, why do the city carriers do 27 miles 360 boxes in 8? Have you ever seen a rural carrier sleeping under a tree in a customers front yard? Cause my city carrier does. At the same time, the city carriers are missing the chance to rush through a day and go home early. They have to milk the time. If they don’t, the pay sucks. So, I can run a city route, take a nap, eat lunch at a nice place, take a few smoke breaks. OR, I can be a rural, drive 40 miles an hour down a dirt road in a car covered with dents slinging mail like a lunatic and go home and have a beer while the city guy is still taking his nap. Both work for me. BTW I run a “rural route” that used to be a city route. In other words, Businesses. I walk through several strip malls. Deliver to the counter, not a box. But because the route was changed to rural, I don’t get a satchel, I have the hold 2 feet of mail in my hands to start every new strip mall. In the summer, sorry but the city guys routes are worse. It is hot as hell here was 120 heat index today. When I run the pure rural, I have A/C on max in my face, yes I work faster, but I stay cool and don’t get as much feet pain. They both have things that are bad and good. So, shut the hell up.
I have been a city letter carrier for a long time. I have always said that city carriers get punished for working fast. i.e. umm do your city route in less than 8 hrs and watch what happens(hint) you will get more work. And rural carriers get rewarded for working hard. I dont have a hatred to the rural craft we all have to stick together, but I dont understand the difference in the rules we all work for the same place. Bottom line, our unions are to big and the people who should get fired dont get fired and the good, hard working people who are not lazy and who bust their butts everyday get punished while the lazy and lame get smaller routes and management positions, dont worry though the post office we work for wont be here in ten yrs it will be closed and ups will own it and you will pay 20 dollars to mail a letter then the u.s. will see what service they actually can count on…….good luck to all of you
Never seen so many whining, complaining babies like the city carriers posting here.
What a joke- we beat each other up and management will not really go after what count- the pacel business. We don’t have the tools that fedex or ups has. Just like any unionized organization- they will run it into the dump- get huge concessions and then all of a sudden-provide a great product. Example the US auto industry. Blame the union- nearly destroy the organization- get concessions- make a million or billion for the stock holder or government. It is crap.