I love my postal workers. Heck, I LOVE going to the post office. But I've been seeing some cranky postal workers lately. Is it a job requirment?

So, I've been mailing my PBS books from the post office down the sidewalk from work. All three of the postal workers there know how PBS DC works and have done it before for me. Today, I go to mail a book and the one says that he can't charge me the appropiate amount for the DC before I didn't pay for the postage online and that he didn't know how to do it. I tell him what I think the other postal people did replies scarastically "Thanks for teaching me" because it didn't work. Annoyed, I just told him to just add 19 cents on to the postage cost so it would be covered anyhow. Personally, I think that he doesn't think it's right that I'm paying only 19 cents for DC. Well nuts to him! I think I'll do online postage for here on out.

Has anyone else have had one of these uneducated postal workers?

That's unfortunate Rachel *hugs* if he's rude again, you may wish to call the postmaster & let them know he's cranky and needs additional training...there's no excuse for either.

I've been very lucky (there have been some notable horror stories posted here at PBS).  My nearest PO is very well trained, and don't even blink at electronic DC.  All the PO's I've been to locally have the online computer/register, and apparently it's a no-brainer....I've been told all they have to do is push the correct buttons when prompted, scan DC when directed, and everything works out perfect.  The few times I've used a different PO (unfamiliar with electronic DC) they have been very nice, believed me when I informed them the computer would know what to do, and these transactions went very well also.

Sorry about your experience, Rachel. There's one PBS member who had the same issue and took it up with the post office (through the PBS - USPS rep) and ultimately the post office relented.

You can also print out a the relevant part of the Domestic Mail Manual, which can be found here, to show the clerk (and if necessary, the supervisor):

http://pe.usps.com/text/dmm300/503.htm#9_0

9.1.2 Fees and Postage

11-29-09] The applicable Delivery Confirmation fee must be paid in addition to the correct postage. The retail and electronic option fee, and postage may be paid with postage stamps, meter stamps, PC Postage, or permit imprint. Precanceled stamps are not permitted as postage payment. The electronic price is applicable when customers privately print an electronic Delivery Confirmation label. (See Exhibit 9.3.1c).

Come to think of it now, he already printed the regular postage before scanning the DC. Like, I said he's done it before. I'll probably just take my packages to my hometown PO, they don't mind. It's just easier to walk to that PO on my break and mail it besides it's good excerise!

I had this problem just this morning. She refused to charge me the 19 cents because I did not pay entire postage online. She also always charges me more for packages. For example, if online says 2.92, she always charges me anywhere from 10 to 20 cents more. It's so frustrating. I go there cause it's the closest to my house and bringing 3 children, one who is autistic, can be a challenge at times. I was told that I should report her. My main post office never gives me hassles. The one lady always jokes that I make her life easier having that part done. I've decided not to use the satellite post office ever again, no matter the hassles.

If no one ever reports it, they just keep getting away with it.  I know how you feel, I am not much of a boat-rocker myself.  But somebody needs to step up and do it.

well yesterday i went to a different post office -unfortunately their APC was broken
so i had to get in line

i had printed just the DC with the book i was mailing

when i got to the window i said media mail place then he said would you like delivery confirmation

i said it already has it -pointing to electronic Dc and he say thank you for pointing that out i didn't see it and he scanned the package

and only charge me the 19 cents..

later that evening i got quick credit
 

I had the same problem with my local Post Office. I've been sending my packages with electronic delivery confirmation for years and they've been good about it. But the other day this woman was telling me she couldn't scan it anymore. I replied that I didn't kow the Postal System got rid of electronic delivery confirmation and if the scan didn't work she could always type in the numbers. She did end up scanning it but I'm still not sure what the problem was. I am thinking of paying for all of it electronically now too. I think the issue has something to do with the 19 cents too. This same clerk had a problem another time when my Priority Mailer got free delivery confirmation as she kept scanning it so a fee would be charged. But that never happened.

I work at the post office - not on the public side - the mail processing side which is a whole different world (we're almost like 2 companies - mail processing  [ the private side of the business]  or delivery/retail [ the public side of the business]).  And I'm sure the various internal plants I serve would say I'm cranky and fussy and severl other choice unnice things, but not my job to be their friend, my job to make hard changes (everyone hates change) and improve.  Could be some of the postal mentality which gets very milataristic and stovepipe downward organization which breeds our craziness.

I work there too, Melissa, small town PM.  I think part of the problem on the retail side is 2 things.

1.  For everything we have a rule, and for every rule there are 5 exceptions.  Just one example:  Every accountable mail piece mulst have an Arrival At Unit scan. even if it's not for my office.  Then, the ones that are not for my office must be scanned Forwarded.  EXCEPT Express Mail that is not for delivery out of my office, must NOT be scanned AAU. 

And that's just one little bitty thing, but every other product or sservice is the  same way:  Do it this way, unless it's this then do B, or if it's C then do D.

2.  Poor communication.  PM/Supv has heard about the rule,or the change, or whatever, but never got around to telling all the employees;.  Or they think, well this just applies to retail, the carriers don't have to have this talk.  Then it turns out the carriers DID need to know about it, either because they are handling something wrong, giving customers wrong information/advice, or whatever.

I have had 2 new clerks that didn't know what to do with the DC. Once I told them to just scan it and the system will figure it out they were happy to learn something new. I think some post offices just have pissy people working there and I would call them on it. Some of my main PO guys HATE that there are so many nasty postal workers so they work extra hard at keeping that out of their PO.

Even if they print the postage before scannign the DC, they can add it and get the scan in. Sometimes we get gabbing and a DC is missed and they have always fixed it with a scan and an extra 0.19 strip. It takes some input on the screen so I would guess that's why your guy didn't want to do it.

I hate to see people let the PO employees get away with refusing to honor a service they have paid for. Don't run to another PO, stand your ground and make them do their job. Their computers know what to do as long as you make them scan it.

If the satellite post office is not a regular post office, that might be why it costs extra to mail. Some businesses will weigh and mail stuff for you for a fee. In my area, we have a Delta Sonic and a department store that use their own employees to do many postal services.

Edit to add: I do agree with the title of the post and I am also a postal employee!

So there's two post offices that are 15 mins or closer to me, and one of them is full of idiots so I avoid it. I literally got into a shouting argument with some incompetent employee because he kept trying to rip me off. It was when I first started mailing cd's and he said that they were packages, not letters, so instead of 81 cents, I'd have to pay like 1.56. I was irate. Anyway, I stopped going there, and the post office 5 minutes away from me is a lot better, the guy is awesome, and he even said he might start swapping =P 

Another story I remember: It was around the holidays, like two years ago and I was in line filling out a CN-22 and I was nearly done, all I had to do was sign, and this nasty woman with a horrible hairstyle at the counter was like "YOU AIN'T DUN YET" in the most ghetto voice ever. So after exchanging words, she got "in raged" (there was a huge space between the words) and started calling me this and that. Guess where the manager was? Right behind her, she got fired on the spot. I could not stop laughing for 20 minutes. I was afraid she was going to jump me in the parking lot so I asked to be escored to my car. Good times.

Update: I need to figure out when the cranky clerk works. I mailed a flat rate box the other day and it was acting as if I was putting him out. It was like "Oh come on! I'm throwing you some bones. I could have just printed postage online and threw it at you then walk away. It would have been a lot less effort on my part."

I e-mailed USPS about the clerk so hopefully it will be taken care of.

Kat - given the union contract I can't see any Postal empolyee being fired on the spot - she maybe working a differnet job in the back of the unit  - but I don't know that anyone can be fired on th spot.  Violence in the workplace - but that would even require an investigation in most situations.

For violence, an employee can be put on immediate administrative leave. The person is sent home and only comes back for the investigative interview. After the interview, a decision is made about employment, counciling, probation or whatever. I have heard of postal employees losing their job for using four letter words on the workroom floor.