Time to Tip Your Postal Worker!

[iart]

It's about time to tip your postal worker!

Very few of them expect tips but they're always appreciative.

We have the best letter carrier. He picks our stuff up every morning, scans it before putting it in the truck. Treats our items like they're made of glass - even if they're books. Brings us post office shipping supplies when we run low. And even leaves notes to take good care of us for the people taking over for him when he's on vacation.

He's almost like an employee. And we tip him very well. We consider it profit sharing.

If your letter carrier works for you, give them a tip. If they don't, maybe a tip will help.

I'm sure some people will disagree and that's fine. But we'll continue to take care of the good people who take good care of us.

(And no, we are not now, and never have been, employed by the US Post Office, lol).

[lacemaker3]

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@muttlymob wrote:

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@emerald40 wrote:

Do know there are limits as to what a postal worker is allowed to accept

Employee Tipping and Gift-Receiving Policy. All postal employees, including carriers, must comply with the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch. Under these federal regulations, carriers are permitted to accept a gift worth $20 or less from a customer per occasion, such as Christmas.

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In addition to the portion you have posted, cash gifts are not allowed in any amount.  Here is the full policy:

All postal employees, including carriers, must comply with the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Exec­utive Branch. Under these federal regulations, carriers are permitted to accept a gift worth $20 or less from a customer per occasion, such as Christmas. However, cash and cash equivalents, such as checks or gift cards that can be exchanged for cash, must never be accepted in any amount. Furthermore, no employee may accept more than $50 worth of gifts from any one customer in any one calendar year period.

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This would mean that a gift card for, say, Tim Hortons or Meijers, would be acceptable because it can't be exchanged for cash, is that right?

[lgonzalez28]

I adore my mail carrier! I ship many packages each day on another selling platform, most times the sales happened overnight without time to schedule a pickup. He always comes back with the truck to load my packages and scans EACH AND EVERY ONE at my door. I leave Dunkin gift cards every other month or so, but the last 2 times, I wasn't home and left them in an envelope, low and behold, both times it was a random fill-in carrier that day. I guess I should have handed them over personally. Much respect for these people walking in South Florida heat and down pours!

[cherry*fizz]

We have literally 4 different people deliver a week.  This has been going on for a long time, not just now that the holiday season has started. 

[cherry*fizz]

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@ads*and*ends wrote:
No! I didn't know this! I guess I generally don't check policies or guidelines before attempting to show kindness or appreciation to another human being.

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I completely appreciate the thought behind your post, and it's admirable, but sometimes it really does help the person out to know that. It sounds like the PO might be a little lax on this, but some companies are not. I used to work in a job where we were tipped (blackjack dealer) but we pooled and split our tips. Regular customers would often want to give us a gift, and would even bring them in, and we absolutely could not accept them or we would be fired. Once a customer bought an ice cream sundae from the casino's fancy ice cream parlour for me and another dealer and tried to give it to us when we went on break. Couldn't accept it. I felt so bad for the people who put money and their hearts out there, and it really felt terrible to have to decline these gifts. 

[emerald40]

I am in the same boat.  After my reliable, mail delivered between 11 and 11:30 each day, mailman retired we now have ones who after finishing their own route do ours.  Mail at 7 PM in the dark for collective mail boxes.  Most of it is put in the wrong box because I am sure they are tired by then and because it is too dark to see anything.

And when I called and complained I was told that if I did not like it, open a PO box and come and get it every day. 

[muttlymob]

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@castlemagicmemories wrote:

I thought there was something about postal workers not being allowed to accept cash, so I checked on that.

I found this:

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You could have saved time by reading the previous posts in this thread.

[labs118]

General reply just tagging on to the last post

I knew there was a policy, I could care less about it & so could my Wonderful mail carrier.
She works 5 days a week  , is a single mom & works a second job.
If I get sales overnight from the West coast and don't have a pick up scheduled when I go to bed  I can just walk down the street & place a note in my mailbox asking her to come up the road to my house for a pick up. 
She has alerted the fill in carriers as well.
They both get cash and not one of them are going to self report  !
Like I never broke other polices & rules in the past 

[betst_11]

I've never heard of tipping the postal carrier. Considering she drives the route every day but only puts mail in the box once a week, I'll pass

[moo*cow*corner]

My carrier is great. She gets a Christmas tip and a Fourth of July tip. Sometimes a bit extra if I have a lot going out.

She's drawn a map to my place to make sure the temps can find me if I order a pickup on one of her days off. She went and hunted down a small package that had been put in another resident's box by one of the temps, then drove back and brought it to my door.

She's in line and waiting for a supervisor job. When she gets it, I'm going to miss her.

[emerald40]

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@labs118 wrote:

General reply just tagging on to the last post

I knew there was a policy, I could care less about it & so could my Wonderful mail carrier.
She works 5 days a week  , is a single mom & works a second job.
If I get sales overnight from the West coast and don't have a pick up scheduled when I go to bed  I can just walk down the street & place a note in my mailbox asking her to come up the road to my house for a pick up. 
She has alerted the fill in carriers as well.
They both get cash and not one of them are going to self report  !
Like I never broke other polices & rules in the past 

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Things have a way of getting out.  Sometimes I see cars following the postal trucks and wonder if they are watching them to see how well they are doing their job. Fellow carriers can be petty and report you.

For a few bucks at tip time I would hate to see your mail carrier lose a well paying federal job.

[moo*cow*corner]

That's easy...Rules? What rules? There was a thank you card in that envelope. No cash, just a card. Have a nice day!

[escuintla]

Come on people!

If you are a cheap person, which I am, but I am a fair person, it won't matter if it's Santa, Mother Teresa, or the Pope serving you, you won't tip them, we get it.

But, it doesn't stop you from saluting your mail carrier who is tired, wet, over heating, etc. You just extend your hand and shake his or her, from there, you say thank you. I hope you get my suggestion, do you?