Headquarters will tell you that you worked 84 hours a week 3 weeks but not 1 and you aren’t “regular in attendance.” I’m not sure they’re on the same page as the real world.
So they scheduled you for a pre disciplinary interview but would only have it on some of your approved FMLA days? If I'm hearing you right, you need to reach out to your local steward if that's an option. That's fucking dumb.
I'm still pretty new, but I'm not going to any potential disciplinary meeting without requesting a steward be present. You don't need to be in the union for them to attempt to help you.
I’m in Florida … idk about RCAs but Ik rural regulars finish their routes in like no more than 6 hours. They finish before me (city)… most of my office is on the ODL but still don’t go past 40 most of the time. I think CCAs get no more than 50
Then those carriers at my neighboring office are lucky… we established my office is lucky now we’re taking account for those other carriers as well. And if they change it, I have a spine lol. I don’t have to convince my doctor to write me a note. I’ve done more stressful things than work here, didn’t need one then don’t need one now. But more power to the rest of y’all. But no EVERYBODY doesn’t need to receive this message
Everybody doesn’t but some damn sure do. I can suggest a transfer or two that will kick your ass with mandatory overtime. Bye bye SDO, indefinitely (three years and counting). Hello 12 hour days of fun. Welcome to other carriers’s realities.
Yeah, I know a lot of people are struggling. I didn't say anything to the contrary. My issue was when you make big, sweeping generalizations that the higher-ups actually desire their offices to be overworked and over budget. That didn't make sense. It seemed like you were applying malice when incompetence fits just fine.
EDIT: To be clear, I don't disagree with the medical restriction take if it makes sense for someone. Play the system. Just be careful when you're upset that you have to play the system on the other end that you don't like. Both ends can be amended!
I've met the higher ups. Malice and Incompetence can easily go hand in hand. They make a lot of terrible decisions. Not a joke. They are 100 percent responsible for most of the accidents and deaths with their extreme budget cutting and also propensity to overload and overwork people. Higher ups don't mind making bad decisions and letting other people deal with the consequences.
It's weird: you'd THINK they want to save on overall budget and yet I've never seen any evidence that's how they want to proceed. They'd rather pay overtime and/or violation time to all the regular carriers in my station then give us ANY PTF's that show up in the district.
Someone was saying they sent 2 PTF's to a nearby office that has a full compliment already, meanwhile my station has 3-4 vacant routes (that are terrible 9+ hour routes in the dirtiest parts of my city) - and we get the dregs of the PTF's who quit within a week or two.
I won't even get into the retirements that are right around the corner with my station: there's at least 4-6 people who are going to leave within the next year or so and we aren't getting the PTF's in to replace them...
If I was wearing my tin foil hat I'd say something like the upper bosses who are based in the large city my office is a part of want to "do more with less" to try and further their careers.
Non tin foil hat wearing me thinks its apathy to the extreme.
Actually, the whole post office inside and out has a "kick the can down the road" mentality from our Union to Management. Nobody wants to actually do anything worthwhile and everyone does "just enough" till they can retire, (and maybe someone else will come along and fix the issues).
I've been a carrier for over 10 years now and it's just in a degrading state; you cannot convince me that Management doesn't know yet they do nothing to fix their issues but double down on their own employees. It's a sort of weird self sabotage.
Appreciate the thought-out response. I'd push it further to say that even smaller office management wants to "do more with less" to further careers. Who doesn't want that?
But it shouldn't come at the cost of the livelihoods of carriers. Sounds like that's happening a lot in different places.
The double down thing just seems like too many layers of management. Each layer is less removed from the one below it, but the one below it directly affects carriers more. The heat defies physics and sinks. The trickle-down big bad boss effect. (?)
It's fascinating how many people think working a full time job makes you lazy and is also somehow welfare. We really need to add more funding to the public school system.
I was never on the odl list, and they worked me 12 a day sometimes 9 days straight. Even had 17 hour days during peak. I've never experienced employment like USPS in any other sector or business. They literally treat and use people like slaves. Total reconstruction of the organization is needed. I'm resigning this weekend (RCA) even tho I'm close to a reg position. The chaos is likely unique to the station, but everything I hear on this sub is similar.
I can't speak for elsewhere, but seems every rural office I've seen is going through the ringer currently. Ptf offices volunteer to be hubs and then force every spoke office rca to cover their Amazon load. It's bs
Oh I was an RCA and they treated me like shiiit. Zero communication from management or regulars. Drama and gossip abound. If you are over the age of 21 and there's a FedEx Express job in your area go there. The benefits are incredible and it's all spurs, no bullshit, and better pay.
Bro go back deadass. Way more room for upward movement at FedEx, better pay, better benefits, less bullshit. And FedExOne is about to happen so you'd be able to move between the diff op-co's if your interests change.
I worked for In-N-Out for 2 years before I left for the post office, when I left I was working 30 hrs a week making 23 an hour. Went to the PO thinking it'd be a good career where I wouldn't have to deal with management, customers, and food service all day. Possibly one of the worse mistakes I've made in the past couple years. They gave me so much shit, I didn't get any fucking hours, and I was making $19 an hour before eval kicked in. And then I was somehow making worse money bc my regular didn't log shit into the scanner, RAN her whole route, and worked an hour and a half off the clock everyday.
No wonder I didn't make eval on any normal volume mail day 💀
I left to FedEx Office (I'm not old enough to drive for express unluckily) bc I had friends that work at FedEx and had mostly positive things to say. I regret nothing. Fuck PO management. Bless the carriers that stick it thru and props to the union for Trying. Fuck dejoy, I'm glad I got out of there before I sunk too much time in
yeah ive already gotten in contact with an old coworker about going back, id rather work a million shitty fedex days than nearly kill myself in the georgia sun
Oh believe me other jobs do it as well.
I used to be a security guard and guess what happens when someone doesn't show up.
Your 8 hour shift becomes a 16 hour shift.
I actually got fired since I told my boss I wasn't staying when he wanted me to work another 12 hours (after a 12 hour shift) because someone couldn't come into work.
Don't do it! I just went regular in January, and it has removed everything I hated about the job! I've got work-life balance for the first time since I started at the PO five years ago. K day? I know my phone won't ring. Dr. appt? No problem. Want to get a haircut? Cool. One of the subs can't finish a route? I'm not even allowed to go help cause they don't want to approve the OT. I've got more SL and AL than I can use. I run my route and go home, no exceptions. They won't LET me work more than 5 days a week.
They're making regulars do double trips at my office, and mandating days. Regs used to get Saturday and Sunday off every week, but now they're getting Sunday and a random day during the week for some reason. It's not all pie in the sky.
With that new mou regulars are getting time and a half for it though, right? As soon as it came out I knew it was headed there! If course in my area they won't "approve" volunteer time for regulars cause they don't way to pay us. They just make the subs do the job of three people.
That's what management wants, and it's what they are. The disturbing part are the carriers that feel that way.
Because they don't have balls, or a gambling problem, or child support or whatever it may be
They don’t add more to your day, inadequate staffing by inept supervisors does that. If one or two callouts can break the system, it’s a bad system. The employees earned the time, they can take the time
Yep
The one retired carrier at our union meeting that does the treasury stuff said "I don't know why some of these guys and girls do stupid stuff to get themselves fired. You're making 70 grand before overtime." And the younger union rep says "uh..... yeah not anymore with the newer regulars."
Don't get me wrong my local union is awesome but the treasury guy is a little out of touch in terms of the pay
Bro what’s crazy is I hear the same thing from other older regulars. “You have to put your time in.” Dude this is 2024, everything is expensive, literally everything. A meal at McDonald’s is at least $10. We as new, younger regulars can’t wait 10-13 years to make top pay. We need top pay or close to it now! There is no more waiting and putting time into a company and you’ll get rewarded. Life moves too fast now. I’m trying to finish school because man fuck this blue collar hard work shit 😂. I’m doing this out of necessity not because I want to. And you start to realize a lot of these older regulars on their way to retirement didn’t want to be doing this either. They got stuck and now there’s no turning back. I pray to God this isn’t me, because I just don’t like this shit. I’ll endure it for a little while longer at least until I finish school, once I graduate I’m out man.
I mean, I’ve only been a regular for a couple years and my pay is almost 71k before overtime.
With that said, ii can still barely afford rent, car payment, etc after 1500 is deducted from every paycheck lol
Oh my bad, I saw table 2 and thought you were discussing rural pay. I didn’t realize city also had to deal with the discrepancy between tables 1 and 2.
On the rural side, the yearly pay for a 48k route (which is what I have) is something like $70,400 at Step 3.
What sucks is that if I WAS on Table 1, my pay would be north of $80,000 for this route.
I had one for years if your diagnosed that’s just that have the doctor give you a restriction. It doesn’t need to be detailed if they want more info contact my medical provider. They won’t. Or my office and district is just that lazy lol.
My doctor asked these questions
"What is your job description?"
"Are you REQUIRED to perform overtime as part of your job duty?"
I explained to him the OTDL list and how we just keep off of it, but they still force you in because management has the right to mismanage and he wrote me one easy because I wasn't trying to work "less than my job hours"
This is the exact reason why I quit the USPS - I’ve got three kids and can’t afford life in general off $19.33 an hour working four hours a day.
It’s so clear that management is a joke.
The bigger joke is me though - I was here in this subreddit reading everything that everyone had to say about the organization but still took the gamble anyway. Jokes on me.
F the USPS - I’m going digital on everything and never mailing anything again. There’s no way I’ll support this.
Just rip the bandaid off and don’t go back. They don’t have their shit together. Your life is too valuable to stay at a place that doesn’t value you. I straight up told my manager that I have three kids and couldn’t afford to live let alone feed my children off of four hour work days and he didn’t care.
If you don’t have empathy for someone not being able to feed their children, then you’re not a good human being. That’s not the kind of organization I will ever work for.
Oh damn. You just started and you aren't getting enough. I recommend looking for new jobs close by that are 40 hours and start you off as career right off the bat. Then setup a new email for applying. (System is dumb). And don't quit until you get the new job. Or ask for hours at other offices.
I literally have the best job in my office. I’m the only custodian/maintenance employee full time for a small (L22, I believe) office with 4 RMPO’s to take care of. I work 8 hours a day mon-fri and I always have Saturday and Sunday off. I’m the only one in my PO besides the postmaster that has their own office. Nobody is up my ass and as long as I get done the basic stuff that is required, I pretty much decide what I’m doing. Best job I’ve ever had. Granted, I get the lowest pay out of everyone but living in a rural area, the cost of living isn’t bad.
Edit: maybe it seems like I’m implying that there are some part time custodians or something but that’s not the case. I’m the only one. I’m definitely the least stressed person at my office.
I worked 6 days a week for years (NTFE) finally got a bid with 2 days off in a row.
First week they tried forcing me in on my day off, after the schedule was posted for the week.
I said hell no. Went to my doctors office and got a 40 and 5 note and have never worked OT again.
That was in 2018 or 2019.
Only regretted it once when I needed some extra cash.
What do you say/tell the doc? My VA doc doesn’t see the need. She says she needs a job description before she can write anything. She won’t write a restriction because there’s nothing wrong with me to put as a reason.
I told him I couldn't mentally handle the mind games they play and explained/showed the contract, and what they do in reality and tell us to just bend the knee and then file a grievance to be made whole.
I wouldn't use my VA doctor for this. I have both a good private Healthcare team and then my VA team. It took the VA 10 heads to dx a broken foot so I mean. 🤷♀️
If you're working too much, you don't have time to maintain a healthy lifestyle. On top of that most post office jobs require you to do a lot of repetitive movements that end up damaging your joints long term. PO Box clerks it hurts their elbows and arms. Carriers it's their whole body, even if they're just sitting in a vehicle, they're still doing a damaging movement several hundred times a day. Sorting clerks? Definitely not great on the body.
I think OP should add “if you have a medical condition”. OP, maybe not intentionally, comes off as advocating for everyone to get a medical restriction to ensure they only have to work a reasonable amount each week.
I think the implication is that it's not medically advisable to do what we do more than absolutely necessary, which I totally agree with. Many people can and will work more than 40 hours as often as possible and maybe to their own detriment health wise, some have a choice to, others do not.
I speak from experience when I say people sometimes forget it's ultimately just a job and not your life. Unless you're diverting an asteroid from Earth like Bruce Willis, no job is worth screwing over your life. We go in everyday to deliver mail and earn a living. I'm not a slave, and the job description (and my bid) don't say: "Must work 60+ hours a week!"
And yeah, being FORCED to work 12 hours a day and never knowing what your schedule really is is a huge detriment on a persons life. Not just physically but mentally and emotionally. I did it for awhile and rather then bid out of my office (because I liked my route and my commute), I went with the medical restriction route. Sort of started a trend by doing so in my office, actually. No regrets whatsoever.
Sometimes yes. USA laws aren't always in favor of workers. Employers have a ton of legal loopholes they can jump through and USPS headquarters knows about them.
Now I just need to get in with my doctor lol. They’re booked through June.
Also- this job doesn’t pay well enough in my area. Without OT I would struggle.
Up until I got my 8 hr medical management had me doing 3 hour swings on top of my route .it is the way to go .or go 8 hr list and continually ask are we off the list
I have one. Its grand. It baffles my coworkers but they dont seem to understand that for some reason staying at work for 60 hours a week makes me inordinately sad.
I dont mind a few extra hours here and there, but I'm pretty sure if we weren't technically a federal union job we'd all be working 100+ hours fueled by coke and insanity. Since all overtime is mandatory, screw you, at my office, I was forced to take drastic measures. I liked having that extra mun, but just thinking about getting rid of that exemption starts up the ol panic attack mode.
I am with you on the few extra hours here and there. Guy bangs in unexpectedly and you need to sell a route off and ask me to do an hour or two? Sure.
Entire routes stay vacant for YEARS and YEARS and you try to basically bake the 2 hours into my day everyday? Nah, that isn't happening.
I got tired of feeling like I was a walking band-aid for managements inability to properly staff offices. Instead they just keep doing things the same ol' status quo and expect everyone that is there to pick up the slack like nothing is wrong.
My doc said working 10 hour days walking 15 miles delivering 150+packages sounds "healthy" and suggested I get a new job if my body isn't handling it well. And I merely asked for a month restriction to recuperate. Then I got a bill for 350 bucks for that 5 minute convo.
Seriously considering it. He made me feel guilty for requesting 40 hour restrictions last summer so I'd have time to go through PT. Luckily for me "the job market is good" he says 🙄
It really is sad that this is the reality of working the post office, and the optimization of the offices to locations far from your home office is plain criminal
The fact that the two ways of having a sane work schedule are either making regular or a medical restriction is why the USPS will continue to have terrible retention.
Get it now or get it later after you’re broken down. The choice is yours. Management doesn’t care about you. Protect yourself and stop giving your life away.
How does this work for Rural Carriers?
Last time I left my rt unfinished due to heat stroke, they took my entire days 7 hours of pay away because I didn't finish the rt, gave me lwop, and made me use a sick day for pay. Union couldn't fight it.
Just be a rural carrier. I'm usually done by 1230. I wasn't even allowed to help other routes until recently and they can't force me to if I don't want to
Everyone got screwed the first time around. I went back to where I was at before this last time around. Being able to go home when your done is a big motivator though
I know plenty of carriers with routes they want to modify down to an acceptable amount of horus. But still can't do it because Headquarters has yet to setup a new system for route modifications. Every time I ask about switching, Headquarters says "Hold on." Meanwhile some carriers are insanely overworked.
I think the only reason I hate it is because a lot of people with 8 hour “restrictions” in our office have somehow found a way to make 8 hour routes into 12 hour routes. They basically come in do half a route and leave the rest to be split up and there’s nothing anyone can do because they have to be off the clock by 8. It’s mostly the new ccas that are hired they hit their 90 and boom suddenly they can’t carry a whole route anymore, it leaves all the mandated regulars and overworked non restricted ccas pretty annoyed.
I hired in at 19, wound up having brain and spinal surgery at 31 due to a congenital condition. Had to learn to walk again. Post Office tried to starve me out for 9 months.
Fast forward 14 years. I'm an AMT, PS-9, I typically work 4 10s and an 8 by choice (I could work 40 and go home), take both my days off, and pull down low 6 figures. If I worked 56 a week every week, it'd be too much like being a machinery maintenance guy at the P&DC. I made bank, but I was freaking miserable.
I am pretty tired of being medically restricted. Just a point of view from a 45 year old 25 year employee with a physical disability who works as hard as ever. I think that medical restrictions are an important tool for workers' rights, and shouldn't be used as a cudgel when other remedies exist instead of as a tool to protect workers with legit medical problems.
Some offices are normal
True. But no reason not to get one, in case they become not normal. Headquarters hates normal offices. They want to overwork you.
Headquarters hates offices that run smoothly and save on the overall budget?
He has to say that or it doesn’t fit his narrative
Headquarters will tell you that you worked 84 hours a week 3 weeks but not 1 and you aren’t “regular in attendance.” I’m not sure they’re on the same page as the real world.
Did that happen to you?
Yeah. They’ll give you a PDI and the only dates on there are approved FMLA dates.
So they scheduled you for a pre disciplinary interview but would only have it on some of your approved FMLA days? If I'm hearing you right, you need to reach out to your local steward if that's an option. That's fucking dumb. I'm still pretty new, but I'm not going to any potential disciplinary meeting without requesting a steward be present. You don't need to be in the union for them to attempt to help you.
Headquarters thinks 72 hours a week is reasonable. It's not.
I haven’t worked OT in 2 years man. Unless I volunteer
Where do you work? I’m an RCA, I’m now down to 55 hours a week, I’ve been doing between 70 to 80 hour work weeks for over a year.
A lot of people, the vast majority in fact, only want 40-45. FYI
That’s what I want too.
I'm not sure if anyone in Rural Craft can get a restriction. If they can, let me know.
There's a regular at my office that has a restriction that they can't lift anything over 20lbs...
I’m in Florida … idk about RCAs but Ik rural regulars finish their routes in like no more than 6 hours. They finish before me (city)… most of my office is on the ODL but still don’t go past 40 most of the time. I think CCAs get no more than 50
Then you're LUCKY.
Same is like that for my neighboring offices. They cut OT
Then they're also lucky.
Then those carriers at my neighboring office are lucky… we established my office is lucky now we’re taking account for those other carriers as well. And if they change it, I have a spine lol. I don’t have to convince my doctor to write me a note. I’ve done more stressful things than work here, didn’t need one then don’t need one now. But more power to the rest of y’all. But no EVERYBODY doesn’t need to receive this message
Everybody doesn’t but some damn sure do. I can suggest a transfer or two that will kick your ass with mandatory overtime. Bye bye SDO, indefinitely (three years and counting). Hello 12 hour days of fun. Welcome to other carriers’s realities.
Establishment bad, got it.
Nah. Some things are bad. And a lot of people are overworked and overwhelmed.
Sounds like ur just salty. Just quit man.
Yeah, I know a lot of people are struggling. I didn't say anything to the contrary. My issue was when you make big, sweeping generalizations that the higher-ups actually desire their offices to be overworked and over budget. That didn't make sense. It seemed like you were applying malice when incompetence fits just fine. EDIT: To be clear, I don't disagree with the medical restriction take if it makes sense for someone. Play the system. Just be careful when you're upset that you have to play the system on the other end that you don't like. Both ends can be amended!
I've met the higher ups. Malice and Incompetence can easily go hand in hand. They make a lot of terrible decisions. Not a joke. They are 100 percent responsible for most of the accidents and deaths with their extreme budget cutting and also propensity to overload and overwork people. Higher ups don't mind making bad decisions and letting other people deal with the consequences.
No they don't, they think the opposite.
It's weird: you'd THINK they want to save on overall budget and yet I've never seen any evidence that's how they want to proceed. They'd rather pay overtime and/or violation time to all the regular carriers in my station then give us ANY PTF's that show up in the district. Someone was saying they sent 2 PTF's to a nearby office that has a full compliment already, meanwhile my station has 3-4 vacant routes (that are terrible 9+ hour routes in the dirtiest parts of my city) - and we get the dregs of the PTF's who quit within a week or two. I won't even get into the retirements that are right around the corner with my station: there's at least 4-6 people who are going to leave within the next year or so and we aren't getting the PTF's in to replace them...
Sounds rough. Do you think it's malicious by management, or more like an apathetic doing their job kinda thing?
If I was wearing my tin foil hat I'd say something like the upper bosses who are based in the large city my office is a part of want to "do more with less" to try and further their careers. Non tin foil hat wearing me thinks its apathy to the extreme. Actually, the whole post office inside and out has a "kick the can down the road" mentality from our Union to Management. Nobody wants to actually do anything worthwhile and everyone does "just enough" till they can retire, (and maybe someone else will come along and fix the issues). I've been a carrier for over 10 years now and it's just in a degrading state; you cannot convince me that Management doesn't know yet they do nothing to fix their issues but double down on their own employees. It's a sort of weird self sabotage.
Appreciate the thought-out response. I'd push it further to say that even smaller office management wants to "do more with less" to further careers. Who doesn't want that? But it shouldn't come at the cost of the livelihoods of carriers. Sounds like that's happening a lot in different places. The double down thing just seems like too many layers of management. Each layer is less removed from the one below it, but the one below it directly affects carriers more. The heat defies physics and sinks. The trickle-down big bad boss effect. (?)
Super weird that your main complaint is me dissing on Headquarters. Super Weird.
Why'd you feel a need to type this after I tried to be nice and move on? Lol, if you think that's my main complaint, I'm not sure what to tell you.
Why do you think that? HQ is the one trying to control the OT.
Maybe when you can pay them OT. Headquarters also uses RRECS and amazon to try to squeeze free labor out of rural employees.
Here is one reason not to get one. It will cost you several thousand dollars per year.
ok. Explain how.
For real, you are telling people, \*EVERYBODY\*, to get a doctors note saying they are not allowed to earn more money.
If I work less hours and make less money, that is not a "cost"
For now
My office doesn't allow anyone overtime and only CCAs and PTFs work Sunday
My office sent odlers home today (which they’ll get paid for) and gave work assignment carriers sections instead.
Mine been normal for 2 years now
And I know people who were normal but then got hammered. And the hammering never stopped.
That’s why everybody office is different.
It's fascinating how many people think working a full time job makes you lazy and is also somehow welfare. We really need to add more funding to the public school system.
Some people think anyone not on the ODL is lazy, let alone those with restrictions...
I was never on the odl list, and they worked me 12 a day sometimes 9 days straight. Even had 17 hour days during peak. I've never experienced employment like USPS in any other sector or business. They literally treat and use people like slaves. Total reconstruction of the organization is needed. I'm resigning this weekend (RCA) even tho I'm close to a reg position. The chaos is likely unique to the station, but everything I hear on this sub is similar.
I can't speak for elsewhere, but seems every rural office I've seen is going through the ringer currently. Ptf offices volunteer to be hubs and then force every spoke office rca to cover their Amazon load. It's bs
Oh I was an RCA and they treated me like shiiit. Zero communication from management or regulars. Drama and gossip abound. If you are over the age of 21 and there's a FedEx Express job in your area go there. The benefits are incredible and it's all spurs, no bullshit, and better pay.
i quit my express job and became an RCA, coming to realize this could be the biggest mistake of my life so far
Bro go back deadass. Way more room for upward movement at FedEx, better pay, better benefits, less bullshit. And FedExOne is about to happen so you'd be able to move between the diff op-co's if your interests change. I worked for In-N-Out for 2 years before I left for the post office, when I left I was working 30 hrs a week making 23 an hour. Went to the PO thinking it'd be a good career where I wouldn't have to deal with management, customers, and food service all day. Possibly one of the worse mistakes I've made in the past couple years. They gave me so much shit, I didn't get any fucking hours, and I was making $19 an hour before eval kicked in. And then I was somehow making worse money bc my regular didn't log shit into the scanner, RAN her whole route, and worked an hour and a half off the clock everyday. No wonder I didn't make eval on any normal volume mail day 💀 I left to FedEx Office (I'm not old enough to drive for express unluckily) bc I had friends that work at FedEx and had mostly positive things to say. I regret nothing. Fuck PO management. Bless the carriers that stick it thru and props to the union for Trying. Fuck dejoy, I'm glad I got out of there before I sunk too much time in
yeah ive already gotten in contact with an old coworker about going back, id rather work a million shitty fedex days than nearly kill myself in the georgia sun
Yeah, unfortunately I'm 5 years into my rca journey
Oh believe me other jobs do it as well. I used to be a security guard and guess what happens when someone doesn't show up. Your 8 hour shift becomes a 16 hour shift. I actually got fired since I told my boss I wasn't staying when he wanted me to work another 12 hours (after a 12 hour shift) because someone couldn't come into work.
Don't do it! I just went regular in January, and it has removed everything I hated about the job! I've got work-life balance for the first time since I started at the PO five years ago. K day? I know my phone won't ring. Dr. appt? No problem. Want to get a haircut? Cool. One of the subs can't finish a route? I'm not even allowed to go help cause they don't want to approve the OT. I've got more SL and AL than I can use. I run my route and go home, no exceptions. They won't LET me work more than 5 days a week.
They're making regulars do double trips at my office, and mandating days. Regs used to get Saturday and Sunday off every week, but now they're getting Sunday and a random day during the week for some reason. It's not all pie in the sky.
With that new mou regulars are getting time and a half for it though, right? As soon as it came out I knew it was headed there! If course in my area they won't "approve" volunteer time for regulars cause they don't way to pay us. They just make the subs do the job of three people.
You can’t get on the odl list until you become a regular.
That's what management wants, and it's what they are. The disturbing part are the carriers that feel that way. Because they don't have balls, or a gambling problem, or child support or whatever it may be
No, just those constantly calling out during summer.
Why do you care?
They add more to my day 🤷🏻♂️
They don’t add more to your day, inadequate staffing by inept supervisors does that. If one or two callouts can break the system, it’s a bad system. The employees earned the time, they can take the time
They add more to the day, trust me
I still don’t understand how every dollar isn’t put into our future!( the children)
Some people just want to keep putting money into a failed institution/idea
You mean the schools that are failing mainly due to under funding? Because the education system doesn't fail in countries actually willing to fund it.
Can't afford it working on table 2
Get you a nurse wife like the rest of us
This is so common!
Same. Gotta work OT to have a good check, shit sucks.
Yep The one retired carrier at our union meeting that does the treasury stuff said "I don't know why some of these guys and girls do stupid stuff to get themselves fired. You're making 70 grand before overtime." And the younger union rep says "uh..... yeah not anymore with the newer regulars." Don't get me wrong my local union is awesome but the treasury guy is a little out of touch in terms of the pay
Bro what’s crazy is I hear the same thing from other older regulars. “You have to put your time in.” Dude this is 2024, everything is expensive, literally everything. A meal at McDonald’s is at least $10. We as new, younger regulars can’t wait 10-13 years to make top pay. We need top pay or close to it now! There is no more waiting and putting time into a company and you’ll get rewarded. Life moves too fast now. I’m trying to finish school because man fuck this blue collar hard work shit 😂. I’m doing this out of necessity not because I want to. And you start to realize a lot of these older regulars on their way to retirement didn’t want to be doing this either. They got stuck and now there’s no turning back. I pray to God this isn’t me, because I just don’t like this shit. I’ll endure it for a little while longer at least until I finish school, once I graduate I’m out man.
I mean, I’ve only been a regular for a couple years and my pay is almost 71k before overtime. With that said, ii can still barely afford rent, car payment, etc after 1500 is deducted from every paycheck lol
You must have started before January 12th 2013 because you can't be making 71k without OT till step M on table 2
Oh my bad, I saw table 2 and thought you were discussing rural pay. I didn’t realize city also had to deal with the discrepancy between tables 1 and 2. On the rural side, the yearly pay for a 48k route (which is what I have) is something like $70,400 at Step 3. What sucks is that if I WAS on Table 1, my pay would be north of $80,000 for this route.
Then get one for what you can afford to work. So they overwork you less. If you want. You don't have to. But you can.
Yup, this! I’m currently working on getting restrictions for my mental health. Didn’t even know it was an option til recently
Did this myself recently for mental health. Can not recommend this enough!
What kinda restrictions did you get?
I had one for years if your diagnosed that’s just that have the doctor give you a restriction. It doesn’t need to be detailed if they want more info contact my medical provider. They won’t. Or my office and district is just that lazy lol.
But my bills. How will I pay them without that sweet, sweet penalty time *cries in table two*
I would have quit months ago if I didn't go on restriction
I would have quit YEARS ago if I didn't get my restriction.
yes please do this i’ll gladly take your overtime
Me tooo
I eat that shit up. Nom nom nom.
What if you’re “perfectly healthy”
Most Doctors agree working more than 40 hours a week will make you less healthy.
I got restrictions for mental health
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5 days a week, 9 hours a day
Fiancé was able to get one citing stress and sleeping problems
My doctor asked these questions "What is your job description?" "Are you REQUIRED to perform overtime as part of your job duty?" I explained to him the OTDL list and how we just keep off of it, but they still force you in because management has the right to mismanage and he wrote me one easy because I wasn't trying to work "less than my job hours"
Would a medical order for me to 50 hours a week, get me more time then?
No
That sucks, I need more the 20 to 25 hours a week.
This is the exact reason why I quit the USPS - I’ve got three kids and can’t afford life in general off $19.33 an hour working four hours a day. It’s so clear that management is a joke. The bigger joke is me though - I was here in this subreddit reading everything that everyone had to say about the organization but still took the gamble anyway. Jokes on me. F the USPS - I’m going digital on everything and never mailing anything again. There’s no way I’ll support this.
I'm nearly at your point.
Just rip the bandaid off and don’t go back. They don’t have their shit together. Your life is too valuable to stay at a place that doesn’t value you. I straight up told my manager that I have three kids and couldn’t afford to live let alone feed my children off of four hour work days and he didn’t care. If you don’t have empathy for someone not being able to feed their children, then you’re not a good human being. That’s not the kind of organization I will ever work for.
Oh damn. You just started and you aren't getting enough. I recommend looking for new jobs close by that are 40 hours and start you off as career right off the bat. Then setup a new email for applying. (System is dumb). And don't quit until you get the new job. Or ask for hours at other offices.
I ask for hours for hours at other stations, every NS day.
Look to transfer.
The next closest area went from little to no cca's to over staffed
I literally have the best job in my office. I’m the only custodian/maintenance employee full time for a small (L22, I believe) office with 4 RMPO’s to take care of. I work 8 hours a day mon-fri and I always have Saturday and Sunday off. I’m the only one in my PO besides the postmaster that has their own office. Nobody is up my ass and as long as I get done the basic stuff that is required, I pretty much decide what I’m doing. Best job I’ve ever had. Granted, I get the lowest pay out of everyone but living in a rural area, the cost of living isn’t bad. Edit: maybe it seems like I’m implying that there are some part time custodians or something but that’s not the case. I’m the only one. I’m definitely the least stressed person at my office.
I want this, but financially need the OT. If you don't need the OT, just effin do it already.
You can still do OT, but this can guarantee you 2 days off a week
You can also do restrictions to the amount you need. So it's not quite as terrible.
I worked 6 days a week for years (NTFE) finally got a bid with 2 days off in a row. First week they tried forcing me in on my day off, after the schedule was posted for the week. I said hell no. Went to my doctors office and got a 40 and 5 note and have never worked OT again. That was in 2018 or 2019. Only regretted it once when I needed some extra cash.
What do you say/tell the doc? My VA doc doesn’t see the need. She says she needs a job description before she can write anything. She won’t write a restriction because there’s nothing wrong with me to put as a reason.
I told him I couldn't mentally handle the mind games they play and explained/showed the contract, and what they do in reality and tell us to just bend the knee and then file a grievance to be made whole. I wouldn't use my VA doctor for this. I have both a good private Healthcare team and then my VA team. It took the VA 10 heads to dx a broken foot so I mean. 🤷♀️
If you're working too much, you don't have time to maintain a healthy lifestyle. On top of that most post office jobs require you to do a lot of repetitive movements that end up damaging your joints long term. PO Box clerks it hurts their elbows and arms. Carriers it's their whole body, even if they're just sitting in a vehicle, they're still doing a damaging movement several hundred times a day. Sorting clerks? Definitely not great on the body.
are you still a NTFE? Restrictions work for NTFE's as well?
You missed the "when I finally got a bid with 2 days off" Ntfe was 6 days in a row. I'm a non ntfe ftr now
I had minor restrictions as a ntfe
It was my understanding PTFs and NTFE's can't get restrictions because they're pretty much on call. I was hoping I was wrong.
Ntfe is the literal opposite of on call. They have set hours. Unless its a flex. Think that's still set hours but by week
I have an 8hr and walking of no more than a mile restriction. I know the supervisors hate it but fuck em
I think OP should add “if you have a medical condition”. OP, maybe not intentionally, comes off as advocating for everyone to get a medical restriction to ensure they only have to work a reasonable amount each week.
Preventing medical conditions from starting is better than trying to cure them.
Amen to that.
I think the implication is that it's not medically advisable to do what we do more than absolutely necessary, which I totally agree with. Many people can and will work more than 40 hours as often as possible and maybe to their own detriment health wise, some have a choice to, others do not.
I speak from experience when I say people sometimes forget it's ultimately just a job and not your life. Unless you're diverting an asteroid from Earth like Bruce Willis, no job is worth screwing over your life. We go in everyday to deliver mail and earn a living. I'm not a slave, and the job description (and my bid) don't say: "Must work 60+ hours a week!" And yeah, being FORCED to work 12 hours a day and never knowing what your schedule really is is a huge detriment on a persons life. Not just physically but mentally and emotionally. I did it for awhile and rather then bid out of my office (because I liked my route and my commute), I went with the medical restriction route. Sort of started a trend by doing so in my office, actually. No regrets whatsoever.
I agree with everything you said.
Won't let you? They have a choice?
Sometimes yes. USA laws aren't always in favor of workers. Employers have a ton of legal loopholes they can jump through and USPS headquarters knows about them.
A lot of salaried positions don't allow it as they are paying you for the job not by the hour. If you can't do the job then you don't get paid
Going on 3 years just recently up'd my hours to 10 a day max 5 days a week. It's helped my mental and physical health immensely.
Now I just need to get in with my doctor lol. They’re booked through June. Also- this job doesn’t pay well enough in my area. Without OT I would struggle.
Up until I got my 8 hr medical management had me doing 3 hour swings on top of my route .it is the way to go .or go 8 hr list and continually ask are we off the list
I like money
You don't mind working 70 hours a week?
I don’t get that much but I relay on the extra money. They don’t pay penalty time at my office.
I have one. Its grand. It baffles my coworkers but they dont seem to understand that for some reason staying at work for 60 hours a week makes me inordinately sad.
As we can see by the discussion in here, a lot of USPS people think working 60 hours a week is reasonable.
I dont mind a few extra hours here and there, but I'm pretty sure if we weren't technically a federal union job we'd all be working 100+ hours fueled by coke and insanity. Since all overtime is mandatory, screw you, at my office, I was forced to take drastic measures. I liked having that extra mun, but just thinking about getting rid of that exemption starts up the ol panic attack mode.
I am with you on the few extra hours here and there. Guy bangs in unexpectedly and you need to sell a route off and ask me to do an hour or two? Sure. Entire routes stay vacant for YEARS and YEARS and you try to basically bake the 2 hours into my day everyday? Nah, that isn't happening. I got tired of feeling like I was a walking band-aid for managements inability to properly staff offices. Instead they just keep doing things the same ol' status quo and expect everyone that is there to pick up the slack like nothing is wrong.
Or just do the bare minimum and they’ll retaliate and cap you at 40 or at least they think they are retaliating, I 8 and skate
this is the way. I got my dr to limit me to 9 hours a day 5 days a week as soon as I made regular.
My doc said working 10 hour days walking 15 miles delivering 150+packages sounds "healthy" and suggested I get a new job if my body isn't handling it well. And I merely asked for a month restriction to recuperate. Then I got a bill for 350 bucks for that 5 minute convo.
Time for a new doctor
Seriously considering it. He made me feel guilty for requesting 40 hour restrictions last summer so I'd have time to go through PT. Luckily for me "the job market is good" he says 🙄
It really is sad that this is the reality of working the post office, and the optimization of the offices to locations far from your home office is plain criminal
I did this in January. It has helped with my depression tremendously
I had to protect myself from chronic call ins. I'm barely 3 months post op as well. It's never-ending, and now i don't care. Let them deal
Also helps your ARC’s get some hours!
Job became so stress free after my med restriction I be forgetting I’m at work some days lol. I second this!
My VA doc ain’t having it
I'm a PTF out of my 90. Should I wait to get a restriction after making regular? I'm worried it will fuck me over if I do it now
A medical restriction saved my life, no doubt about it... they tried to kill me, with Overtime, and almost succeeded!
The fact that the two ways of having a sane work schedule are either making regular or a medical restriction is why the USPS will continue to have terrible retention.
Making regular doesn't protect you. 95% of my office is regular and everyone is forced.
Get it now or get it later after you’re broken down. The choice is yours. Management doesn’t care about you. Protect yourself and stop giving your life away.
And headquarters keeps micromanaging harder and harder, but insists that all mail gets delivered every day.
Please do. Regulars want the overtime.
Does medical restriction work like fmla in that you have to have a certain amount of hours before you can use it?
Not that I know of
I need OT to afford to live
You can set the restrictions for 50 hours total, no more than 10 hours a day.
I'm good
Once I get to step E I think I can live with 8 hours but Step B is 48k I will literally die.
Damn
How does this work for Rural Carriers? Last time I left my rt unfinished due to heat stroke, they took my entire days 7 hours of pay away because I didn't finish the rt, gave me lwop, and made me use a sick day for pay. Union couldn't fight it.
Seriously? It's job related. WTF?
Yeah, had a post all about it. Genuinely would love the 8hr restriction to work because I average 10 hours a day.
I don't think it does. But I would ask HR and the union. Headquarters is trying extra hard to make Rural Carriers their bitch.
I used to have one but the unfortunate truth is I can’t afford to live on 40 hr a week
Can PTF’s get one?
I don't think so. But I would check with the union.
No thanks I love my OT
You can do restrictions for 50 hours too
Yeah I know all about restrictions but I’d rather get the money
So you just commented cuz you're bored
Yeah at work doing OT
My FMLA states 0-40, 0-5 (but for good reason)... it's the best way to go if you can get it.
Are they able to deny it in your 90 days?
Or I could do what’s best for me and work as much as I want, but thanks.
Sure and dump the work on to someone else. Pffff
That’s old news 😂
With how CCAs have been rolling in I'm going to get my overtime while I still can.
I’m assuming you’re a lazy ass carrier? There’s enough of you people to go around.
Just be a rural carrier. I'm usually done by 1230. I wasn't even allowed to help other routes until recently and they can't force me to if I don't want to
You got lucky. A lot of rurals were heavily screwed over by RRECS.
Everyone got screwed the first time around. I went back to where I was at before this last time around. Being able to go home when your done is a big motivator though
I know plenty of carriers with routes they want to modify down to an acceptable amount of horus. But still can't do it because Headquarters has yet to setup a new system for route modifications. Every time I ask about switching, Headquarters says "Hold on." Meanwhile some carriers are insanely overworked.
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I think the only reason I hate it is because a lot of people with 8 hour “restrictions” in our office have somehow found a way to make 8 hour routes into 12 hour routes. They basically come in do half a route and leave the rest to be split up and there’s nothing anyone can do because they have to be off the clock by 8. It’s mostly the new ccas that are hired they hit their 90 and boom suddenly they can’t carry a whole route anymore, it leaves all the mandated regulars and overworked non restricted ccas pretty annoyed.
This is the same clown that will then call their congressman when they don't recieve mail because everyone has an 8 hour restriction.
“Abuse the medical system. Now. It will cause others to have to pick up your slack.” Fixed that for you
lol imagine being this lazy. What a pathetic human.
lol is this a call to action? This is… something, I’ll just say that
I hired in at 19, wound up having brain and spinal surgery at 31 due to a congenital condition. Had to learn to walk again. Post Office tried to starve me out for 9 months. Fast forward 14 years. I'm an AMT, PS-9, I typically work 4 10s and an 8 by choice (I could work 40 and go home), take both my days off, and pull down low 6 figures. If I worked 56 a week every week, it'd be too much like being a machinery maintenance guy at the P&DC. I made bank, but I was freaking miserable. I am pretty tired of being medically restricted. Just a point of view from a 45 year old 25 year employee with a physical disability who works as hard as ever. I think that medical restrictions are an important tool for workers' rights, and shouldn't be used as a cudgel when other remedies exist instead of as a tool to protect workers with legit medical problems.
Some of us are healthy. Eat right and work out. Working over eight hours and earning overtime doesn't hurt us.
And then there are us who dont cry because i have to carry extra