All applicants must meet the following requirements to be eligible for employment at the U.S. Postal Service:
>> Must be 18 years of age or older.
>> Must be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident alien(Green Card
holders).
>> Must have at least a high school diploma or a GED or
equivalent.
>> Must be drug-free and be willing to do drug screening test.
>> Must not have a felony conviction of any kind.
>> Must have a clean driving record in the past 5 years [for mail
carrier positions only].
All positions are entry level positions with no prior experience necessary--[unless stated otherwise].
1. CITY CARRIER
POSITIONS.
CITY CARRIER positions are mail delivery positions, also called
mail carrier positions. Mail carriers deliver mail to addresses
on planned routes via postal vehicle or foot. Carriers may be required to carry mailbags on their shoulders. A mailbag full of mail can weigh up to 35 pounds. Carriers have to load and unload trays and containers of mail and parcels weighing up to 70 pounds. Carrier duties require prolonged standing, walking, and reaching. They must work outdoors in all kind of weather.
City carrier applicants must have a current valid state driver's license, a safe driving record, and at least two years of documented driving experience.
Salary starting at $20.61 per hour for mail carrier position.
2. Sales, Services, and Distribution Associate POSITIONS also called CUSTOMER SERVICES COUNTER CLERK POSITIONS. As the title implies, the Sales, Services, and Distribution Associate POSITIONS are Customer Services Counter positions that involve selling stamps, handling money transactions, customer interactions, and process incoming and outgoing mail in both plant and post office facilities.
The Sales, Services, and Distribution Associates also perform distribution of mail to the proper designations or routes to be delivered by mail carriers. The associate must successfully complete an on-the-job training program. The on-the-job training program focuses on customer services, handling money transactions, customer interactions, how to fill out forms, follow postal policies and regulations, and how to perform other related duties required.
Salary starting at $19.80 per hour for clerk associates.
3. MAIL HANDLER POSITIONS.
MAIL HANDLERS are people who load outgoing mail, unload incoming mail, and distribute mail to the proper areas. Mail handlers also open and empty containers of mail. Mail handlers repeatedly lift and carry parcels and containers weighing up to 70 pounds and push heavy rolling containers. Mail handlers also perform other duties as well, such as transport and empty equipments throughout the building.
Salary starting at $19.25 per hour for mail handlers.
4. Mail Processing Clerk POSITIONS.
Mail Processing Clerks operate and monitor performance of automated mail processing equipment (called Delivery Point Sequence or DPS automation machine). Mail Processing Clerks also perform manual sorting of mail and other related duties, including collate, bundle, and transfer processed mail from one area to another, sometimes involving heavy lifting or transport of heavy containers of mail.
Salary starting at $21.50 per hour for Mail Processing Clerks.
5. MARK-UP CLERK POSITIONS.
MARK-UP CLERKS are people who type change of address data
into a computer and generate labels used to forward
customers' mail.
Mark-Up Clerks also load and unload mail and operate a
keyboard in order to process changes.
Applicants must have good data entry skills and are
required to pass a typinng test. The test to be given is called the "710: Clerical Abilities Exam." Unlike the "473: Battery Exam" or the "460: Rural Exam," which are normally given to the general public, the "710: Clerical Abilities Exams" are normally not given to the general public. The "710: Clerical Abilities Exams" are often given to the U.S. Postal Service employees already in the U.S. Postal Service workforce. This type of practice is called "Hire Within Organization." And it is much less expensive for the U.S. Postal Service to "Hire Within Organization" than "Hire Outside the Organization."
Salary starting at $19.80 per hour for Mark-Up Clerks.
6. FLAT SORTING MACHINE OPERATORS
FLAT SORTING MACHINE OPERATORS are people who key data
into a machine to distribute large flat pieces of mail,
such as magazines or catalogs.
Using a numberic keypad, the Flat Sorting Machine
Operators enter codes from memory or by reading the zip
code, to distribute large pieces of mail (called flats)
at the rate of up to 45 per minute with 98 percent
accuracy.
Applicants need to pass a typing test before eligible
to work in this position. The test to be given is called the "710: Clerical Abilities Exam." Unlike the "473: Battery Exam" or the "460: Rural Exam," which are normally given to the general public, the "710: Clerical Abilities Exams" are normally not given to the general public. The "710: Clerical Abilities Exams" are often given to the U.S. Postal Service employees already in the U.S. Postal Service workforce. This type of practice is called "Hire Within Organization." And it is much less expensive for the U.S. Postal Service to "Hire Within Organization" than "Hire Outside the Organization."
Salary starting at $21.85 per hour for Flat Sorting Machine
Operators.
Schedule Pay Raises
The U.S. Postal Service has a unique schedule pay raises, not based on job performance or some types of incentive scheme, but it is based on the length of time you are staying employed with the U.S. Postal Service.
The principle reason for using such a system is to prevent pay raises discrimination against certain employees that are doing the same job and be as productive as any other employees, but lack the cohesiveness skills or lack the sweet-talk skills that some employees have toward their bosses.
In this society, favoritism exists in all facets of life--especially in the corporate world--where promotions and pay raises are influenced by the favoritism factor. Employees who cozy up to their bosses have a better chance in getting promotions and pay raises than the employees that are as qualified for promotions or pay raises as any other employees, but do not have the coziness skills or the sweet-talk skills toward their bosses.
By using such pay raises system, it eliminates the favoritism factor from the U.S. Postal Service workforce--at least, from the pay raises standpoint.
In addition to the "schedule pay raises" there are the "contractual pay raises" and the "cost-of-living adjustment" raises.
The "Contractual Pay Raises" are the raises as a result of a contract agreement between the unions (that represent the U.S. Postal Service employees) and the U.S. Postal Service management (that represents the USPS).
The "Cost-Of-Living (or COLA) Adjustment Raises" are the raises as a result of an inflation adjustment made to keep up with the annual inflation of the U.S. dollars.
The annual COLA is based on the increases in the consumer price index (or CPI) provided by the U.S. Department of Labor and Statistics, and is reported in the Wall Street Journal periodically.
Different crafts (or positions) have different "schedule pay raises". For example, mail carriers, clerks, mail handlers, flat sorting machine operators, and mark-up clerks--each has its own "schedule pay raises".
The following schedule pay raises are for mail carriers, clerk associates, mail handlers, and mail processors only. The schedule pay raises for other crafts, such as flat sorting machine operators, mark-up clerks, and other crafts are not available for viewing at this web site at this time--due to the limited spaces available--but they might be available for viewing at the USPS personal office.
To give you an idea: all other "schedule pay raises" for other crafts are comparable to the "schedule pay raises" for mail carriers, clerk associates, mail handlers, and mail processors. As a matter of fact, the number of steps and the number of weeks and the actual dollar amounts are identical for all types of crafts--including for other Federal Government employees as well. The only difference is the base pay that each craft has. Other than that, there are no different at all.
How to Calculate the Schedule Pay Raises For other Crafts
By looking at the pay raises schedule table below, you very much can calculate the pay raises schedule for other crafts easily by substituting the base pay for other crafts in place of the mail carriers' base pay, or by just adding the actual pay raises amount to the base pay for any of the other craft's base pay.
For example, Mail carriers have a base pay of $20.61, Window Clerks have a base pay of $19.80, Mail Handlers have a base pay of $19.25, Flat Sorting Machine Operators have a base pay of $21.85, and so forth.
Let's take Flat Sorting Machine Operators' hourly base pay rate of $21.85, for example, and add the pay raises amount of $1.66 to $21.85 hourly base pay rate and we get $23.51 per hour rate after you've been working for the U.S. Postal Service for 96 weeks. After another 96 weeks, you get another raise--so add $.31 to $23.51 and you get $23.82 per hour rate; another 44 weeks, you get another raise--so add $1.94 to $23.82 and you get $25.76 per hour pay rate; and so forth.
How to read the Schedule Pay Raises
You start out as a "step A" from day 1 that you are employed with the U.S. Postal Service and if you stay employed up to 96 weeks, you get your first schedule pay raise to a "step B"; another 96 weeks, you get another schedule pay raise to a "step C"; and if you stay employed 44 more weeks, you get another schedule pay raise to a "step D"; and so forth.
After "step O", there are no more raises to be offered to the U.S. Postal Service employees, but there are other types of raises--such as the contractual raises and the cost of living adjustments.
