The Pony has been working his tail off now that he's back to work. Four injured came back the same week, and the other broken ankle (broken three days before The Pony's) comes back on Monday. Trouble is, they're still losing people left and right. It's brutal work, until you make regular. That's mandatory within two years, but most make it sooner, due to turnover in The Pony's facility.
The Pony has worked just over 120 hours during this two-week pay period. Like Seinfeld's not-buddy Newwwman said, "The mail never stops." Thursday evening, The Pony came home with a baffling tale.
"I got back too late to hear any gossip, but when I looked at the schedule, two names were whited-out. Not just the hours on the schedule. Two PEOPLE were whited-out. I don't know what happened. Why are they off the schedule? Nobody is supposed to be getting off. I don't know if they got hurt. Or quit. There are two new ones since I started. One was asking about getting her uniform allowance. I'm pretty sure she already passed the 90-day probation. The uniform allowance comes after 120 days. So I don't think she'd quit. The other one is pretty close to making probation. I can't imagine they'd fire anybody right now, with us being so short-handed."
"They fired your buddy MAW (Middle-Aged Woman) the week before her probation was up. So you know they WILL do it. Maybe somebody wasn't fast enough, like her."
"Still, even somebody slow, who's already trained and has worked, is better than starting over. Especially with the holidays coming. This one is not real fast, but the one I think passed probation is as fast as me! Not that I'm fast, but the more you work, the faster you get."
Well. Friday night... mystery solved.
"I heard one of the regulars talking about it. One quit, one got fired after someone reported her throwing away mail."
"I can't imagine somebody quitting after passing probation, and asking about the uniform allowance."
"Oh, she's the one who got fired. Somebody along the route saw her dump a whole tub of mail into a dumpster."
"You mean like junk mail?"
"No. Regular mail."
"Like bills and letters? I sure hope I didn't have any mail in that batch! Do you know what route?"
"No, I don't know the route. But you wouldn't have had any local mail going out around here."
"Well... I wonder how many times it happened before she got caught. That could explain how she was as fast as you!"
As for the quitter, it IS a demanding job when you're low in seniority. Your reward for working hard and finishing as quick as you can is to be given more work, helping the slower. Like The Pony on Friday night. He went in at 7:30 a.m. At 7:49 p.m., I got a text:
"Clocked out. Manager forgot about me, apparently."
There was more to the story.
"Around 7:00, I sent in a text that I just finished my packages, and was starting my regular mail. Usually they send help as other people get done. We're not supposed to deliver any regular mail after 8:00. I guess she didn't see my text until later, because she sent one that said, 'You're STILL OUT THERE? Just bring the mail back.' It was the new manager they've been training."
Poor Pony. Forgotten on his route. I'm sorry the new manager overlooked him. At least nobody put him in a dumpster.
She dumped regular mail???
ReplyDeleteI am too shocked for words!
So was The Pony! But not me! I got a wordy blog post out of it!
DeleteIt is a grueling job. We were sitting at an ice cream store in a drizzle when a youmg man in his 20s out of uniform, came walking by with a handfulof mail getting wet, his shorts drooping down expoing underwear. He walked by the store. Bill said, "THAT is the mailman?! He walked bakc and delivered mail tot heice cream store, then walked away and came back again with more. On foot delivery. This guy won't last long enough to get a uniform at that rate. Mail in dumpster is alarming!
ReplyDeleteThe CCA (City Carrier Assistants) are not allowed uniforms, unless maybe they buy used ones from somebody else. They are given an official CAP, and wear their own clothes. Which The Pony said seems to consist of booty shorts and random shirts for the female workers at his post office.
DeleteI guess exposed underwear is better than exposed booty!
I think that is shameful. Assistant carriers should be assigned uniforms, even used ones, with "Assistant carrier" badges pinned on or even stitched onto the uniforms. This may sound silly, but wearing a uniform might just bring a tiny speck of pride to the job and that might just encourage the worker to do better, or at least feel better.
DeleteI agree. When I lived in town in my $17,000 house, I was not happy to see my mailman coming up on the porch dressed like any common tourist. I thought he was just a slob, not wearing the proper uniform.
DeleteThe Pony bought shorts and v-neck t-shirts in gray and blue. They don't look like the uniform, but they are post office colors, and a standard look that he wears every day with his official hat.
Seeing what passes for normal attire for the folks around here, I can just imagine what they wear. I once had to send a worker home for not wearing a bra. She had sirt on that barely covered an appropriate amount of her upper torso.Said her mother told her to ditch the bra, that it was too visible!
ReplyDeleteI saw one gal walking the street, and I thought she was a high school student until I noticed she was clutching a stack of mail. I swear she was wearing a backpack, but she might have also had her official satchel slung over the shoulder I couldn't see. Maybe she had water and snacks and first aid stuff in her backpack.
Delete