It's 3 p.m.; do you know where your postman is?

[Cobra#2885]

November 01, 2009As a 23-year veteran of the U.S. Postal Service, I feel the need to vent.

We were recently notified that the postal service intends to install GPS units in our vehicles. Currently, every letter carrier in the country carries a scanner through which the postal service can track their whereabouts at nine different points of the day. Obviously, this is not enough for the spend-happy postal management. The GPS units will be placed in 20-plus-year-old vehicles with between 100,000 and 200,000 miles on each truck.

I think the cash-strapped postal service would be better served using this newfound money in repairing or replacing the unsafest vehicles in the delivery business. Management claims the GPS units will improve customer service (another fabrication). Any single letter carrier cares more about customer service than an office full of postal management suits.

At least you will know that the next time it costs you more to mail a letter, your money was well-spent tracking your letter carrier.

Charlie Devine

South Dennis

[talisman]

Those dipshits get paid $30 an hour to drive around a little truck all day and put pieces of paper in little metal cans. Cry me a fucking river.

[Stephen]

Originally Posted by talisman

Those dipshits get paid $30 an hour to drive around a little truck all day and put pieces of paper in little metal cans. Cry me a fucking river.

Im going to have to give a big X2 on that one!!

[talisman]

Originally Posted by Stephen

Im going to have to give a big X2 on that one!!

Maybe the "cash strapped postal service" would be better off paying people $10 an hour that don't bitch about a GPS in their vehicle because they aren't parked at the local Yank and Spank for a 3 hour lunch every day.

[Wicked98Snake]

Good then stop bringing shit to my house and filling up my trash cans with junkmail. I don't use the mail anymore anyways.

[AL P]

Originally Posted by talisman

Maybe the "cash strapped postal service" would be better off paying people $10 an hour that don't bitch about a GPS in their vehicle because they aren't parked at the local Yank and Spank for a 3 hour lunch every day.

"But I deserve $30 an hour because I am in a union!!'

[Stephen]

Originally Posted by talisman

Maybe the "cash strapped postal service" would be better off paying people $10 an hour that don't bitch about a GPS in their vehicle because they aren't parked at the local Yank and Spank for a 3 hour lunch every day.

Then stamps would be $0.25 again.

[talisman]

Originally Posted by AL P

"But I deserve $30 an hour because I am in a union!!'

It's just amazing. First the auto manufacturers, now the postal service. If only we could find the common denominator to solve it all!

[FreightTrain]

I feel your pain. We are fighting an up hill battle right now in the Rail industry. They want to installl inward facing cameras and voice recorders in all locomotives. They claim its in the name of safety.

[ruffdaddy]

Originally Posted by Cobra#2885

November 01, 2009As a 23-year veteran of the U.S. Postal Service, I feel the need to vent.

We were recently notified that the postal service intends to install GPS units in our vehicles. Currently, every letter carrier in the country carries a scanner through which the postal service can track their whereabouts at nine different points of the day. Obviously, this is not enough for the spend-happy postal management. The GPS units will be placed in 20-plus-year-old vehicles with between 100,000 and 200,000 miles on each truck.

I think the cash-strapped postal service would be better served using this newfound money in repairing or replacing the unsafest vehicles in the delivery business. Management claims the GPS units will improve customer service (another fabrication). Any single letter carrier cares more about customer service than an office full of postal management suits.

At least you will know that the next time it costs you more to mail a letter, your money was well-spent tracking your letter carrier.

Charlie Devine

South Dennis

Why is this so bad? Working people can't wait at home from 8am to 6pm a day or two in a row just to receive a package, so this may help someone to more accurately predict when tehy need to head home and pick up their deliveries assuming they can see the location of their delivery.

[ruffdaddy]

Originally Posted by FreightTrain

I feel your pain. We are fighting an up hill battle right now in the Rail industry. They want to installl inward facing cameras and voice recorders in all locomotives. They claim its in the name of safety.

Whats so bad about that?

[FreightTrain]

Originally Posted by ruffdaddy

Whats so bad about that?

I wouldn't have a problem with it if I was employed by the KGB.

[ruffdaddy]

Originally Posted by FreightTrain

I wouldn't have a problem with it if I was employed by the KBG.

I don't know what that (KGB) is

[DON SVO]

Originally Posted by ruffdaddy

Whats so bad about that?

[FreightTrain]

Originally Posted by ruffdaddy

I don't know what that (KGB) is

I need to work on my ninja edit skills.

[Jon/xpm]

This amazing post of information makes me want Govt health care badly. I mean the govt runs everything great, why would they not do the same for health care.

[Sgt Beavis]

Originally Posted by AL P

"But I deserve $30 an hour because I am in a union!!'

Do they really get that much or are you just having a hyperbole moment?

I would like to see UPS and FedEX take on the postal service for regular daily mail delivery. The USPS says my mailbox is their property but that is bullshit since I paid for it.

[AL P]

Originally Posted by Sgt Beavis

Do they really get that much or are you just having a hyperbole moment?

I would like to see UPS and FedEX take on the postal service for regular daily mail delivery. The USPS says my mailbox is their property but that is bullshit since I paid for it.

Probably not, but new hires get something like $20-21 an hour.

[Sgt Beavis]

Originally Posted by AL P

Probably not, but new hires get something like $20-21 an hour.

ahh, still a bit much.

BTW, I'm all for the GPS tracking. The postal service needs to know where the next shooting will take place..

[46Tbird]

Looks like $20-24/hr is about right.

http://www.payscale.com/research/US/...S)/Hourly_Rate

I've got no problem with them using some of my tax dollars to ensure that government employees aren't f'ing off on the clock.

[JimD]

LOL, those mofos can close up for all i care, i rarely get anything but junkmail.

[lethal injection]

Originally Posted by 46Tbird

I've got no problem with them using some of my tax dollars to ensure that government employees aren't f'ing off on the clock.

True...


If you're not doing anything wrong then whats to worry about?

[davbrucas]

I feel the same...the USPS could go the hell away for all I care. I get at least 4items of junk mail daily. Maybe you overpaid whiners could filter all that crap out of peoples boxes?
If they get paid that much that is a crying shame. They make more than people that teach our children in school...ridiculous.

[JFurst]

90% of my mail these days is JUNK. It can go the way of the home landline, AWAY.

[beefed88]

Originally Posted by FreightTrain

I feel your pain. We are fighting an up hill battle right now in the Rail industry. They want to installl inward facing cameras and voice recorders in all locomotives. They claim its in the name of safety.

Why wouldn't they have those devices? And could you really make a good case for not having them? Maybe invasion of privacy at work lol.

[aggie97]

Originally Posted by 46Tbird

I've got no problem with them using some of my tax dollars to ensure that government employees aren't f'ing off on the clock.

That's probably the purpose. USPS is trying to lose about 100k employees to cut costs as volume dwindles.

The devices are going to be used to give the USPS a big hammer with the union to fire the worthless bastards out fucking around and cull the herd.

The reason the USPS is in dire straights was long term payout of retiree benefits that were 6 years further out than even the rest of the government services. That was recently rescinded and they nearly went in the black overnight as opposed to losing OVER $6B in one quarter.

Facts to consider:

650k employees...most unionized and getting GREAT benefits cost HUGE money.
Largest Private fleet of vehicles in the world. UPS and Fedex could not begin to cover the volume and you need to keep in mind, USPS delivers about 30% of UPS's packages every day to areas not covered by UPS...and I bet USPS ends up PAYING UPS to do so.... All those LLV's were supposed to be replaced 10 years ago....but they keep on going and most have been completely rebuilt 1 or 2 times during their service.

as a government "ruled" entity, USPS follows F.A.R. and pays about 40% more for EVERYTHING than your regular business. Energy costs are killing them and universal service to shit hole towns all over the US costs 10X what it costs to deliver mail in Plano. I have been in several small town PO's that their GOAL for revenue in a day is $300. Their payroll JUST For that station is probably in the $3000 range PLUS benefits. It's a loss driven business and relies on large cities to make up the difference.

Last I heard, Postmasters MUST buy toilet paper from Grainger and it costs like $3/roll even after a 25% discount. Facilities is paying nearly 40% higher for goods/services than I can purchase on the street because you have to use "pre-approved" contractors or can't find someone that WANTS to work for a govt entity as they think it will take 120 days to get paid.


It's a dead enterprise that will either require losing the private charter and going back under the federal control like amtrak and receive tax money to cover costs, or just go away which will honestly NEVER happen. No business in it's right mind would ever consider privatizing it because it would be a lost cause when the calls from Congressman come in complaining about cuts in service that just can't generate money.

HOwever, keep buying stamps as I like having a job right now!!!!

[Frank]

Are postmen allowed to use the vehicles for personal use?

I have counted 2 different occasions. Once on Christmas Day, and once on a Sunday where there was a USPS truck in my area. It was certainly one of the current box truck types and not an old mail jeep. What gives?

[ScottJ]

Let me get this straight, you can work for the post office and earn >= $20/hr + fed benefits?

[SuperWho?]

[DFWtechie]

We have GPS on our trucks, it so accurate they can tell were we are with in 1 foot. They claimed when it first put in that is was for the safety of the technicains so we could hit a panic button for help, now this panic button does not exist any longer and the Union was told this would not be used for tracking. They bring up GPS and seeing people camped out with it all over town. Hmmm but they dont send any help out when the said vehicle is camped out for a long period of time, what if the tech is laying there dying?

It is used to wead out the bad employees, if you do your job and dont give them a reason to watch your GPS then you have nothing to worry about.

[Leah]

Originally Posted by davbrucas

They make more than people that teach our children in school...ridiculous.

AMEN brotha!

[forever_frost]

Good teachers should be making bank as should soldiers. I have a hard time telling soldiers, police, fire and teachers "You shouldn't make as much as the postal service because...ummmmm they put paper in boxes all day."

[Trip McNeely]

Dont worry, soon you will be replaced by computers, and email/electronic transfers/bill pay, etc. completely. Then you wont have to worry about being tracked.

[5.0_CJ]

Look, at my FEDERAL BUILDING by my mail box for my office there is a white label which reads

"U.S. Mail Delivery between 11:00am - 11:45am and 3:45pm - 4:30pm"

it is marked out in sharpee and reads

"Whenever letter carrier arrives"

No pitty for any postal worker, I just don't care... UPS/DHL/Fedex ALL deliver more reliably than my lazy ass mailman.

[scootro]

Originally Posted by ScottJ

Let me get this straight, you can work for the post office and earn >= $20/hr + fed benefits?

good luck!!! it's very hard to get a job with them

[Hunt4m3x]

Originally Posted by Trip McNeely

Dont worry, soon you will be replaced by computers, and email/electronic transfers/bill pay, etc. completely. Then you wont have to worry about being tracked.

Computers, FUCK YEAH.

[Blue5spd]

Thread backfire.. If you don't like it then get a new job, in this economy you should be happy to have a job.

[mikeb]

My company was recently involved with automating a system for the USPS; we took a system that required about 200 servers and condensed it so that it would run on a single, large server.

Of course, that would result in a lot of union people at risk of being layed off (you don't need as many people to maintain 1 server as you do to maintain 200 servers), but we let the USPS worry about that issue. Apparently even though the application was now streamlined, they had to keep all of the union people who previously had jobs rebooting the 200 servers on the old system.

[TexasDevilDog]

Post office is run like a joke. They need to go to a every other day delivery schedule, for just 5 days a week. Then they can lay off half the people. They need to raise the rates on business junk mail so that I don't get so much junk mail. The amount of junk would drop and they would need less people too.

[03trubluGT]

I always thought the postal service was task driven, not hourly?

[ELVIS]

as often as i find myself walking down the street to give my neighbors their mail that was put in my mailbox, i might as well work for usps. srsly prolly at least once a week.

god bless.

[NTexas_V-Star]

Originally Posted by ELVIS

as often as i find myself walking down the street to give my neighbors their mail that was put in my mailbox, i might as well work for usps. srsly prolly at least once a week.

god bless.

Same here...at my office and at my apartment.

Our mail carrier always sees fit to hang out at our office for an hour or so....sometimes having his wife meet him here with his lunch.

I put a stop to that some time ago...he still tries to hang out, but generally the second he sits down I have him move his truck so I can move a forklift. Then, when he sits down again, someone else will have him move his shit. Lol.

[46Tbird]

Just a side note here.

My company manufactures junk mail (proper term: direct mail) and there is NO replacement for it. The response rates for direct mail are 40x higher than anything sent electronically. If you want it to go away, you'll have to stop responding to it.

Oh yeah, WE also take it in the shorts because the USPS has increased mailing rates that our customers pay. Which means our volumes are down since of course our customers have a finite budget. It's a pretty clear-cut example of tax (postal) increases directly impacting private industry.

[Racewerx]

The USPS can fold it's tent anytime it wants to. I will not miss it. As for the postal employee that started this thread, Fuck off!!

[projectPONY]

Originally Posted by blue5spd

thread backfire.

lol

[Big Studly]

if everyone just starts to park their car close to their curb side mailbox, the need for mail carriers will go away. Apparently it is too difficult to deliver the mail if they can't pull up right next to your mailbox and just stuff it in, so why do we need them?

[GrayStangGT]

The only thing they ever bring me is bills and junk mail.

[AL P]

If the USPS goes away, how will I get my SWANK magazine?

[GURU]

I tried to get on at the post office once.
I was told not to bother unless I was a minority or a veteran.
Of course that's not racist because I am white .

[AL P]

Originally Posted by GURU

Of course that's not racist because I am white .

I'm glad I am not the only one who has figured this out.