By Ruralinfo.net
You might have seen an article I posted yesterday about the Postal Service approving new larger mailbox standards. While it will not affect boxes currently on rural routes, (unless a customer voluntarily goes to the larger box) it will NOT be good for the craft as a whole.
I hope most of you know by now that the rural carrier evaluation system is currently undergoing an engineer study. They are measuring everything rural carriers do. I mean everything. The new scanners can tell whether you go to the door with a package or not. When the study is complete, we can be sure that parcels that go to the door will have a higher standard than those that fit in a box.
I know we all love the big boxes we can put parcels in, but the USPS officially making this change going forward is NOT going to be good for the craft. This will most certainly hurt a route’s evaluation when the new standards from the Engineering study go into affect.
I think we all need to think about the ramifications when these boxes actually start showing up on rural routes. I know that was the first thought I had!
I agree with this. The Postal Service will have lower time allowances for packages that fit in the box. Or they will classify those as flats. Maybe I’m wrong but these changes do not usually benefit the craft.
Nope, they never do!
I hope every one of my customers puts up the biggest box they can find. If I wanted to be a UPS driver, I would have went to work there 25 years ago.
Bigger boxes would equal a pay cut for us.
The sky is falling!! The sky is falling!! You do realize you’re only getting ten seconds of street time for that parcel now? Even if it fits in the box, I can’t see the standard dropping past ten seconds.
Amen, Heywood. I’m with you!
Bigger boxes would equal a pay cut for us.
I think it’s the first thought we’ve all had.
They already counting pkgs as flats…look in your buggy in the mornings…see that amount…those med bags, checks…etc..etc…under 2 lbs..
If they are flats, why are they in the buggy?
Weight has nothing to do with it. Dimensions do. Check your last mail count guide. 🙂
If they count it as a flat or letter, that’s what they better be charging the customer! !
I agree! If they have to pay parcel postage because of the guide lines required to mail it.ex: thickness and size, we should get the credit for that parcel…do not bend…that is a parcel!! Anything with a bar code, box or.. bag…is a parcel…
This is all panic, they would have to physically go out on every route and mark down which box you have and they would see that a large number of my boxes are actually lockable ones that don’t fit small parcels even. They will not go that far they will come up with one standard for curbside boxes .
Well just before mail count the PM does go out with us on our rts to count boxes. I am sure they will be counting them big boxes
Or take the info from the new scanners
Not to mention boxes with parcels from yesterday, full boxes, boxes changing overnight, etc.
Especially medicine. I have 6 lock boxes. Medicine and anything thicker than a southern living will not fit
Nope they will charge them a package
Chris Torick, not a panic at all. The scanners know whether you go to the door or not..
What does that have to do with the box type
Oh. my. Lord.
You *really* don’t get it, Chris?
Parcels that go to the door will end up with a larger time standard than those that do not. With these larger boxes, parcels that we would normally get paid to take to the door will fit in the box, thus giving us a lower time standard for the parcel
“Parcels that go to the door will end up with a larger time standard than those that do not.”
What is the source of that claim? I haven’t seen anything about how the new standards will be arrived at.
Of course we do not know what the exact standards could be, but it would seem logical that parcels that go to the door would get more time than just throwing one in the box. I have also heard this from many other carriers that have spoken to officers, been at meetings, etc. Nothing official, of course. (when was the last time we heard something “official” about this study? )
OK so all the dozens of small ones I take to the door because of the lockable boxes with the tiny slot will make up for the few customers who end up with the new box.
So your argument is the increased time we will get for “to the door” parcels will be negated by what we lose in parcels fitting in the box? How much less than 10 seconds can it take? If you want something to worry about, worry about that 18 second scan credit.
Yup…that’s why they changed the scanners…didn’t have a dam thing to do with….the customer
They have no clue…where you left it…other than time it was…and it was delivered
Actually it does let you know where you left it when you check.. I receive packages all the time and it tells me every time where my carrier left it.
I asked one of my customers…she said it didn’t…I don’t order many packages..I don’t constantly check I’ll get it …unless it don’t arrive when it said…when I placed my order…
We got folks constantly calling office to see if it’s there…from these drop offs…don’t they believe the email…
The customers can’t see where you left it, but the postmaster can.
The PM can see it..to the very inch…this is fact
Write down one of your tracking numbers, then go to the usps.com site after work, put the # in and it will tell you exactly where you left the package.
Get ready for your body to give out…not your age…because…your workloads are getting heavier…our hands and backs will go quicker..
yes!! I just had that convo…this job will now be a “young man’s” job. I am bringing in 40# large parcels as a pick-up and delivering lead in flat rate box. The in/out of truck, coupled with digging the package out from under all other packages is def having a toll on body.
I have customers that have larger mailboxes than this one they’ve approved years ago. Large mailboxes are not a new thing. Even during count, when they follow us to count our stops, big box is 1 stop & 2 small is 1. I typically scan in my truck when I drop at the door. It’s difficult juggling it when both of your hands are carrying these SuperParcels. I’ve already dropped the scanner twice & I know we’re not responsible but…
I have tried taking scanner to door too to finish scan and dropped it so unless it is a long walk to door i just do it before i get out.
I hope that neither you nor Miss Lisa are involved in the time study, because carriers across the nation are depending on the time study carriers doing everything correctly in order for us ALL to benefit. I carry the scanner to the door. Have dropped it many times. Not my problem if it malfunctions.
Additionally, Lisa, it doesn’t matter whether the PO is counting the “new” big box or the “old” big box…if you are taking the package to the door, the standard will be higher than if you are delivering to the box.
Sad, your time standards will surely be affected with the time study
I just read on here the other day the USPS is already looking into THINKING about allowing FedX and UPS to use our mail boxes! This will be BAD! Postal sevice in Europe already allow this.
I would be so mad if ups or fedex got to the box first and then my parcel wouldn’t fit!
Pull theirs and replace them with yours 🙂
I hope this doesnt happen but its been brought up already so you know they will make it happen another way to screw the carrier.
Of course the large mailboxes have been around for years, the point of this one is that it will be the new standard going forward… In other words, the minimum sized USPS approved box.. While it may not affect your current route today, it will affect the craft as a whole, especially with new territory..
I realize math makes people’s eyes cross, but… It takes six parcels to equal 1 minute of street time. Let’s say 5 of 6 fit in the box. If the standard falls to 5 seconds for in the box parcels,that’s 25 seconds for those 5 parcels. The standard for the to the door parcel only has to be 35 seconds for you to break even. There are bigger things to worry about.
Won’t affect new territory as the postal service is only allowing CBUs for new construction.
not true in my area!!
Determination as to whether an article is a letter, flat or parcel is NOT determined by the size of the mail box as anyone who has ever done a mail count would know! Method of delivery does NOT determine this either! When they start changing these standards then you can panic!
this is bad eniough, but the worst will be the Sunday Amazon.
Sunday Amazon has NOTHING to do with our counts or evaluations. Those parcels go to the door no matter what!!!
no they don’t…. It is subs doing Sunday Amazons and my boxes are ALWAYS filled on Monday!!!!
Sunday amazon GO TO THE DOOR
I’ve been getting parcels delivered on Sunday left IN the Mailbox
I keep complaining about amazon Sundays , too many parcels found in the box on Mondays and sometimes you can’t even fit mail in the box . Will the time study include this problem lol
Maybe they will open some daily package routes and create some new rural positions and get some us off the rca to rcr
As long as I am being paid fairly for what I do is all that matters. That’s what the time study is suppose to be doing for the rural craft.
just like we have the blue rulers to use at mail count they will make a blue box the same size of the new standard size box if it fits in there it is a slug…… don’t think this won’t happen. anything smaller then a large shoe box will not be a to the door parcel, even if no one uses the new boxes… just because the standard is set this is the size they will hold us accountable for..
I suppose if you’re worried about it you could take everything to the porch no matter the size, just say the customer is worried about theft
That’s fraud too.
It was mine too.
But w/all the lock boxes now, I’m carrying a lot of packages to the residence that would have fit in a regular box. Hope something is done about them too .
It was my first thought also, I knew they were not doing it for us
As long as the industrial study figures the right times for the things we do (such as pkg delivery) I’m all for the larger boxes. I know the USPS is just trying to save money but these larger boxes will make our jobs easier than serving the small ones that we have now. I don’t want to be dismounting for so many parcels when we don’t need to, if only the boxes were larger. I think almost every rural carrier loves when customers erect large mailboxes! I’m also tired of confronting dogs so often. We are getting enough large pkgs that wont even fit into these new and improved models that our evals should be OK as long as the time study is accurate.
the scanner can not tell what is inside of the box and what condition the box is in. Location and etc…
Also the scanner cannot tell if the packages would have fit in the box but I took them to the door along with the package that wouldn’t fit in the box. One large package and 3 smaller packages left at door and scanned left at door.
That’s fraud.
How is that fraud. I agree with Nancy. The postal service may be smart enough to take pictures with the scanners but there is no determination of how many packages a resident or business might have on that day. I do the same thing for my customers that have more than one package instead of serving both the box and have to walk to the door I would take it all to the door. Having to serve the box and walk to the door takes up too much time. I can say the postal service is getting smart by putting several steps in those scanners that it takes up every bit of the .28 sec for each scan. I think our union need to look at that feature and get an increase in scans per package.
Present parcel credit is way out of line for the trips to the door. Rural carriers do not get paid by the foot for parcels to the door. If you can gather, sort, load, and deliver a shoe box to a mailbox in 30 secs you are doing well. The bigger ones to the door will still be a loss, but fewer means the loss is less. Less negative is a positive in my book. The scanners will track your trips by the foot, and eventually those feet will go into the evaluation.
I think this is long overdo, I don’t get paid for the extra miles I drive every day down driveways. You carriers that have LLV’s don’t pay for your fuel. Lets hope these engineers figure out a way for us in our own vehicles can get paid mileage