Employment of Postal Service mail carriers is expected experience little or no change through 2018. Keen competition is expected for mail carrier jobs because of the attractive wages and benefits and relatively low entry requirements.
Employment of mail carriers is expected to decline by about 1 percent through 2018. Employment will be adversely affected by several factors. The use of automated "delivery point sequencing" systems to sort letter mail and flat mail directly, according to the order of delivery, reduces the amount of time that carriers spend sorting their mail, allowing them to spend more time on the streets delivering mail. The amount of time carriers save on sorting letter mail and flat mail will allow them to increase the size of their routes, which will reduce the need to hire more carriers. Additionally, the Postal Service is moving toward more centralized mail delivery, such as the use of cluster mailboxes, to cut down on the number of door-to-door deliveries. However, as the population continues to rise and the number of addresses to which mail must be delivered increases the demand for mail carriers in some areas of the country will grow.
Employment and schedules in the Postal Service fluctuate with the demand for its services. When mail volume is high, such as during holidays, full-time employees work overtime, part-time workers get additional hours, and casual workers may be hired.
Those seeking jobs as Postal Service mail carriers can expect to encounter keen competition. The number of applicants usually exceeds the number of job openings because of the occupation's low entry requirements and attractive wages and benefits. The best employment opportunities for mail carriers are expected to be in areas of the country with significant population growth as the number of addresses to which mail must be delivered continues to grow.
The U.S. Postal Service employed 343,300 mail carriers in 2008. The majority of mail carriers work in cities and suburbs, while the rest work in rural areas.
Postal Service mail carriers are classified as casual, transitional, part-time flexible, part-time regular, or full time. Casuals are hired for 90 days at a time to help process and deliver mail during peak mailing or vacation periods in rural areas. Transitional carriers are hired on a temporary basis in cities for a period of one year. Part-time, flexible workers do not have a regular work schedule or weekly guarantee of hours but are called as the need arises. Part-time regulars have a set work schedule of fewer than 40 hours per week, often replacing regular full-time workers on their scheduled day off. Few carriers are classified as part-time employees, especially among rural carriers. Full-time postal employees work a 40-hour week over a 5-day period and made up 85 percent of mail carriers in 2008.
Overall Experience
Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience maybe helpful in these occupations, but usually is not needed. For example, a drywall installer could benefit from experience in installing dry wall, but an inexperienced person could learn the job fairly easily.
Education
These occupations usually require a high school diploma and may require some vocational training or job related course work. In some cases, you may need an associate's or bachelor's degree.
Job Training
Employees in these occupations need anywhere from a few months to one year of working with experienced employees.
Examples
Drywall installers, fire inspectors, flight attendants, pharmacy technicians, retail salespersons, and bank tellers.
In these occupations you can often use your knowledge and skills to help others.
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Information on job requirements, entrance examinations, and specific employment opportunities for Postal Service mail carriers is available from local post offices and State employment service offices. This information also is available from the United States Post Office online at http://www.usps.com.
Sources: O*Net data version 12.0
Occupational Outlook Handbook
Department of Labor
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