Postal Letter

When will USPS hire career employees?

Right now the postal service is not hiring any career positions, only Temporary Employment, Rural Carriers, Part Time Floaters, etc. My husband has been a TE for 2 years, working 6 days a week with no vacation, sick leave, benefits, etc. When he started this job he was told that when a career position opened up, he would be able to apply for it. To date, no position has become available. There are some people who have been doing this job for over 6 years, with no benefits at all. I want to know if there are any other postal employees in this position or ever were who got onto a career position. What can we expect? Thanks.

Public Comments

1. It is easier and cheaper for the Postal Service to use temporary workers than hire permanent employees and have to pay benefits including retirement. Many large companies and organization are currently doing this. This will not change in the near future or until there is a greater demand for employees than there are jobs.
2. No one can tell you that information without knowing the employees at your local office. Career positions only become available when someone retires or quits. Until that happens you are SOL. I know that USPS is going to give a 5 year early retirement bonus to get some of the career employees to retire sooner. When that happens he will have a good chance of getting on, especially since he has been a TE for a few years. It is all done by seniority. A few people at my office are considering the early retirement when it becomes available.
3. Well, considering that the USPS has recently begun contract negotiations with its labor unions, it is highly unlikely that there will be any new hires any time soon. The USPS is looking to make budget cuts where it can. Labor costs is one of the first places to look.