USPS says the MOU-(DPS-Flats-Vehicle-8-11-2014) to allow routes with USPS provided vehicles to case DPS flats is terminated. They claim they have fulfilled their obligation to put 15000 RHD Employer provided vehicles on rural routes and they will instruct carriers with Employer provided vehicles to cease casing and strapping out DPS flats on March 30th, 2015. Below is the letter notifying the NRLCA that the August 2014 MOU is terminated.
So glad I am retired.
Where did they come up with 15,000 LLV’s??? Every day, we have at least 5 in the local shop and 5 at the VMF. Who is BSing who???
Our station had 10 LLVs…they were all taken away and replaced with 2015 Dodge mini vans, including all business routes. Union filed a safety greivence and won. Management said they would return LLVs, but so far only 4 were brought back. Their excuse is they cannot find any LLVs to give back. Turns out, our LLVs were given to rural carriers in other districts.
They have lost their freaking minds. I say let one of them fools come deliver the mail like that and see how it works for them!
It’s not hard just try it on lite days til you find your groove.
Its a pita!! It takes longer and is harder on the body. I cant believe anyone actually being forced to do this would believe otherwise
I am not happy that I’m driving an LLV in the first place. It takes me longer to deliver out of as is.
So state law states we are not allowed to handle mail or have it on our laps at anytime while driving. How is gathering all of this at every single box saving time?
so…case the hotcase mail…pull it down in 1 bundle…take dps to street…2nd bundle….flats to the street..3rd bundle….boxholders..possibly 4 bundles to work….this is gonna be awesome.
I do it all the time advos one tray dps other tray and loose cased mail and package markers.
Yeah and try to get those tubs in front of you while you are driving:)
How are packages marked?
I don’t but for those that do, like most subs do?
Hahaha how bout they actually put them in order first. O m g what a concept. And hey, even if they did that, no. I’m not hourly, I will do them however I like.
In my office we don’t have FFS.. So does this not apply?
Except they are trying to force us to beg for hourly. Like we begged for llv’s. Yeah, how is THAT working out. By the time we get through begging we will be minimum wage.
We don’t have FFS either and have always carried DPS to the street. Nothing new to me.
Great idea! What do we do with the unlimited amount of wrong cities, wrong states, & utf? Carry it all back.
Ummm yeah
Is this simply a way to cut time? As a new rca, casing the mail has helped me tremendously in learning my routes.
Bring it back simple.
Yes and that’s delaying the mail:) I take my DPS to the street, the only mail I case is for the drs offices I case that in.
It will delay a lot of ours. We are constantly giving each other the right addresses out of our dps. For example, I might have pieces for John smith that actually lives on the route next to mine. It’s a daily occurence. A lot of pieces. So I will have to take it with me, bring it back & send it back now. So John Smith will get his mail 2 days later, unless it comes to my dps again. This is going to be a disaster.
What? Someone tell me what this is all about!!???
oh hell no
Kathy
So I take it every rural route in the country now has a LLV?
No
No but once they put 15k llvs on rural now they can implement it
They will not be satisfied till we do everything in the most difficult, inefficient, asinine way possible. Just like they were trained to as city carriers.
Some of our routes are so heavy they take it to the street already. Its a lot of juggling for newer subs
No not every place has llvs
Heck no… we dont. If we did, I would sell my jeep back.
longer street time means more fuel to burn.. What a way to save money. Im sure the new contract will say we have to take dps letters to the street to
Our office, if we don’t get done casing by 11 we have to take the DPS to the street.
I thought in our contract we had the option if we gave no problems with dispatch? Am I wrong?
this is dps flats not letters its says
I know it was that originally.,,
Teresa Shaffer Sillivan you guessed it!
What are we supposed to do when we are waiting around on mail? We are short staffed on the clerk side and always waiting! I think we should have a choice to do what ever makes the most sense for the day.
File “wait time” on form 8127.
Yeah right….do you really think you will get o time for waiting? Lol- NOT
Cause it so much safer to work from multiple piles of mail rather than casing it all and working out of one pile
Well, there goes the friggin’ neighborhood. Now how the heck do they expect us to get done in 8 hours?
I’m confused- are we talking about fss flats only or our dps flats that come in bundles by magazine title?
The union better fight this
Ha, ha, ha…sorry that was a good one.
That was a good one wasn’t it?!
Wow !!!
with Rural Carriers being on a salary pay why does this even matter to save time on casing?..some times I have a hard time figuring out what upper management up to..Most of what they call “Good ideas” end up costing more than saving..the only concept I can see with this is it’s a prelude to whats about to go nationwide..doing away with fiber domes,consoladating case cells only seems to what the future holds for us all .
Jaime Nunes
FSS flats
What the hell are dps flats?
And ffs flats. 10 years and I don’t even know the lingo still
Ffs flats are the ones I believe that come bundled in plastic in order, or I’m wrong completely
DPS = delivery point sequence. Flats & letters will eventually arrive post office in your route order (provided your edit book is up to date ). The letter attached to this feed indicates dps flats for rural carriers with an LLV vehicle will have to take flats directly to the street.
I’ve never heard of FFS? Too many acronyms!
It’s FSS and it stands for Flats Sequencing System
So the bundled flats that we already get or are they all gonna come in some kids of order like dps? It will be impossible having 30-40 bundles of flats to pick and choose from at every house
If I got DPS flats I would take them to the street. That would be awesome!
They have been talking about this forever. Having all the flats come in order and then we just take them to the street. They suck at having or shrink wrapped shit in order then they will want us to go back and deliver stuff they put out of order
The bundled flats are called presort flats. We do not have FSS/DPS flats in our office, so I do not know if they will open these and include them in the FSS/DPS flats. If they do not, then these will still have to be cased.
They terminated the grievance too? Thought this was a step 4 that provided us the right to case them. Glad we don’t have them yet.
I am glad we don’t have FSS. YET!
Hello 20/80 problems!
does this crap ever stop….
Fss stand for flat shredded system I don’t give a dammit fawking shit, man I m tired of this crap
I say IDIOTS!!!
DPS flats and Letters to the street? IDIOTS!
So This will mean you sit longer on BUSY HWY at mailboxes with your truck hanging halfway in the lane of traffic. In My 25 years I have missed accidents by inches from SPEEDING cars and BIG TRUCKS.
So Glad I have retired.
U guys have it easy, try being a city carrier and deliver 4 bundles and a truck full of packages with the jack asses crying about us taking a minute too long. Well I guess we choose our own craft, but u all should be happy that u r in the one u chose, plus u wont have to deal with hip, knee and shoulder replacements.
Make us like city carriers like we are the inefficent and most costly per delivery address…..
Btw walked in on a tele come and the dm was saying volune doesnt slow street delivery i loled so hard and asked my pm if she heard that idiot she threw her hands up in the air
We have FFS not hard to take them both to the street.
It’s not hard I case my tub flats and hot case mail and pull down and take dps and advos to street I think it’s a lot easier. Don’t mock it til you try it. It beats standing around.
I do the same, but our problem in our office is the wait time. They go beyond the cut-off time. The only solution from management is that they threaten to keep changing start up times. We also make second trips on parcels the majority of the week, trips back for late expresses, and we have the old scanners that break down constantly, and making a trip back to the office for a replacement. A lot of our carrier’s would never make dispatch.
sorry we have pretty good pm supervisor and clerks and they get it done and we are gone by 1030 11ish.
Tangela we have the exact issues in our office. I feel we should have the choice to case it if we are standing around waiting!
I have tried taking it all to the street and am not successful. Please share how you put your mail on tray and how you do the DPS letters. Do you hold them in your hand or do you finger them with your left hand?
I have found the best way for me is to put the DPS on the right, I’m tall so I dummy the tray up with a partial tray underneath then you can have the top tray tilted down (gravity is your friend). I take a big handful and turn it up (makes it easier to see addresses and finger). My middle tray is flats, raw and small parcels/markers. The tray on the left is small parcels not cased and pulled down. If I have marriage mail, clippers or every door direct I have it in a tub on the floor (again dummy it up, less bending and stretching). We do not have FFS yet but I would probably put it on the floor, unless I had a circular then FFS would probably go on the left and tray of parcels below. Taking DPS to the street is faster for me (saves 45 minutes of pulling down), but not everybody, that’s what our Post-Disaster can’t seem to comprehend, but then again he probably does not know what that means.
Grab a handful and flip thru just like you do at office casing. Try different methods until you find a way that comfortable. I keep a small tray on floor for any misthrows or my forwards or my markups and when return back to post office sort thru them. Just keep trying its not hard and I cant stand to case my mail at office anymore. I use to practice when I was RCA and when I got my LLV oh it was smooth. I feel like I can focus better when Im at the box putting mail in…Good Luck!!
Ken, this is NOT about “presorts”. Thankful we don’t have FSS in our area! I assume that city is already doing this… I’m already getting griped at about “PM time” being over 5 minutes! Ridiculous! I guess we are supposed to have everything separated on the street, come in, drop & leave? Especially if WE ever go to taking everything to the street as this states!
Sean Choate
We don’t have that in our small office of 754 area
I think it’s time to find another job.
Ok, this says with ’empoyer provided LLV’S’. What about if we drive our own RHD vehicle? That doesn’t count then ….does it?? Could that be a technicality that will allow me to NOT have to take DPS to the street?
Lori Schneider
Tripping…
Actually it’s quite easy once you get the hang of it, it takes me about 4 1/2 hours to run a 48k route I’m off by 2:30 at the latest
Wait til they move your start time back…then let me,know….
No I come in a 7:30 it takes me about 1 to 2 hour to put up flats packages…….. I leave at about 9 ish but most of the route is apartments so that cuts the time down by a lot and I also get a lot less flats then other routes
Sandy Cranwill Lawson Allmon Gloria Hony Lovelace know anything about this?
Sandi Seeland
terrific…..
Kim Beasley Jeff Seay Jamie Tipton Thomas
Hmm… I don’t have an LLV nor do we have DPS flats, so let’s see what happens 🙂
I didn’t know what dps flats are that’s what I was wondering
Besides all the bundled flats, all of our flats are raw. DPS flats would come in route sequence just like our DPS letters. But that hasn’t happened in our office…yet.
I wish somebody could explain this to me to where it would make sense. Even if we just go off the safety issue, we cannot completely get off of every single road so they want us to sit there with our ass is hanging out and thumb through the letters and then search for the magazines and the parcells? That sounds extremely unsafe to me! On top of the amount of extra gas will be using. .. They’re wanting to save a little time at the expense of our safety? Nice!they’re wanting to save a little time at the expense of our safety? Nice!
FML!
In our office, we are being told this is for DPS letters.
Dorene Thomas Melanie Land Maureen Roode Laura Jones Rastrelli Lydia Santos Adam Davis Mustang Sallie Black Tina Harper Funk
There’s another reason I’m glad we don’t have DPS flats in our area. Why do they so love the idea of us taking mail to the street?
That’s why the big push on all the RR’s to have LLVs
Did you get one?
not yet!
Lets all thank our union for NOTHING!
You know unions just take your money and buy votes. For the wrong party.
Amanda Katon Reep
Um, NO
Hmmmm 20 years ago we had the two bundle system. Forced to change to the one bundle case. Now they think that having 3-4 bundle on the street is faster and safer?!?!
Stupid!
I saw this coming a long long time ago!!!
Erica you are a runner and either your route is under evaluated or you are not doing the job safely and correctly. Thank for screwing up the craft for everyone else.
The problem we have is the amount of FSS mail we get. No safe way to load in back end. Not to mention the ridiculous standard of 43 a minute that can’t be done no matter how you deliver it.
The fact that it takes longer to complete the route when taking fss to the street proves that casing is more efficient. Here cones more “wait” time!!!
First off @patty La Chapelle most of the route is apartments so that cuts most of the time down its not my fault that you can’t do it your not even willing to try it get over it and stop complaining about things you can’t fix gosh
Don’t sweat it girl… I also have a 48k that is half apartments and half neighborhood with fss and can deliver it in 3.5 hours. Some people are just slow! I just like to be able to case fss for the apartments and carry the rest to the street. It’s nice to have the option.
Not even sure what the correct respense should be to express my irritation in this company on so any levels and on so many issues. Hey I have an idea, how about you send out a survey with a COMMENTS box… No? You don’t like the idea of all the negative feedback or ideas on how to run the usps with intelligence?
You don’t like “this company” you can always go work elsewhere. Just saying.
And what are we to do when we are waiting for more mail??? Case FSS that’s what.
They’re trying to make us more like city carriers
I like the guy they put on probation last week for throwing his off a bridge
hmmm…. anything written on that?
Can’t believe no one has commented yet!
Im not!!
Thats dangerous
Valarie Knall we don’t get dps flats yet
The “ASSociation” had their head up their gabur when they agreed to that MOU!!! Why hasn’t the “ASSociation” completed the “industrial time study” so they could implement the revised evaluated compensation system??? Hasn’t ANYBODY figured out that bringing the FSS to the street is not only more time consuming because half of it is bassackwards, but more dangerous, too??? And to top it off, at 43 pieces a minute because the “ASSociation” couldn’t convince the arbiter otherwise. Did the PO “really supply 15,000 LLV’s” or is that what they told the “ASSociation” and those dumbells said….”Oh, OK. We believe you cuz we read it on the internet”. This job gets more STUPID everyday. Put your left foot up on a chair, bend over and tie your right shoe!!! Maybe in the next MOU we’ll get wagons, mules and rifles!!
I’d rather case it. It takes me 30 min or more extra to deliver my rte with them on the side. Ugh
Why not upgrade new truck
I agree. Distracting and UNSAFE on busy highways
I did try taking DPS to the street every day for over a month. Every bit of time I saved in the office by not casing was spent on the street dealing with missorts and markups and forwards.
If you don’t have fss then you won’t be getting it. The machine is only capable of running a certain amount of offices. And it costs to much money to build more of them. Indiana was supposed to get 2 machines but after they realized they didn’t save any money with it they cancelled the build on the 2nd machine
Wagons and mules maybe. But no rifles. Can’t have firearms, remember?
You don’t like “this company” you can always go work elsewhere. Just saying
The USPS doesn’t force people to stay. If you are dissatisfied, you can make your life AND everyone else around you by finding a job you like.
Theresa Hurley Bayer, Sherri Buckler Heather Lewis
Well that is VERY depressing!!! Given the option to case FSS has made my life so much easier, both physically and mentally. I really don’t understand being paid salary and not being allowed to handle the mail the most efficient way. I’m ready to be paid by the hour! The freedom of the evaluated system is what appeals to me…take that freedom away and make me handle mail in efficient ways equals…just pay me by the hour. Lets unite with the NALC, the NRLCA is irrelevant.
should be inefficient ways
I don’t understand a business that wants to spend more money to have us do our job. Spending more time on the street for a rural carrier means a lot more gas use. Not to mention the potential for accidents.
I have ways considered it a safety issue. I think if you don’t have it already in cased order, you will be thumbing through mail when you should be watching whats going on around you. I have tried it both ways and its more efficient for me to case it all.
I had rather get my flats raw than have to deal with those heavy awful yellow trays. Obviously whoever thought of the FSS never carried mail and does not have a clue. I have to deliver on a main highway and it is dangerous for me to be sitting and going through the flats while tractor trailers are flying by. I think we should be given a choice of what works better for our routes. This was just a multi billion dollar deal that has proven not to work and they are trying to force it to work when it clearly slows everyone down and is dangerous on the street. Just my opinion….
I can’t get my mind around it. As an RCA working in an office with 18 routes, I primarily work 3 routes by the matrix. Often I’ll get called to do a route I haven’t done but a couple times in a year. We can get quite a few DPS bundles. Each bundle can have the same addresses. How can you set up your truck with so many bundles opened, grab the letters, 13 different flats, packages, box holders, marriage mail, etc. at each mailbox. Then have to remember if someone is a FWD, UTF, on hold, etc. Now do it in a snow storm on a Monday (our heaviest day). Is there a training video?
Never mind. We don’t get DPS flats, yet.
More money? Of the 24 or so colunms you get credit for during the count how many involve on the street activities? The way management sees it everything on the street is free to them!
Nicole Rodgers it doesn’t effect us we do not get DPs flats
And there dumb ass decisions continue! Was there anyone in those discussions that do not sit in a chair all day?
Back to Being a city carrier, working 12 hours a day..
What most of you rural carriers don’t seem to understand is that postal management won’t be happy till they control every facet of your delivery like they do city carriers. The only reason they let you alone so long was because your union gave into them in so many areas. When I first started as a city carrier back in the early 70’s I asked a supervisor what “those” people were doing? I didn’t understand the difference between rural and city and he said “Oh, those are rural carriers. We are changing those routes to city because we can’t supervise them like we do you guys.” Postal management mentality hasn’t changed. They think they know best about anything and everything. They “know” it will take you less time to deliver if you do it their way. I’m not an admirer of the way your union treats the RCA’s and now my old union treats the CCA’s. It’s hastening the era of universal Wal-Mart employment. No benefits, part time and basically slavery working conditions. I wish you luck. It’s going to take some hard choices by labor and sacrifices to overcome this era of putting the average worker on poverty line wages and conditions.
I wish we had LLVs here, I’m fed up with repairing my POS jeep Cherokee.