Postal Service Mail Carriers

• Summary

• Details

Work Activities

• Report any unusual circumstances concerning mail delivery, including the condition of street letter boxes.
• Scan labels on letters or parcels to confirm receipt.
• Travel to post offices to pick up the mail for routes or pick up mail from postal relay boxes.
• Register, certify, and insure parcels and letters.
• Return incorrectly addressed mail to senders.
• Sign for cash-on-delivery and registered mail before leaving the post office.
• Complete forms that notify publishers of address changes.
• Maintain accurate records of deliveries.
• Record address changes and redirect mail for those addresses.
• Return to the post office with mail collected from homes, businesses, and public mailboxes.
• Sort mail for delivery, arranging it in delivery sequence.
• Sell stamps and money orders.
• Hold mail for customers who are away from delivery locations.
• Provide customers with change of address cards and other forms.
• Deliver mail to residences and business establishments along specified routes by walking or driving, using a combination of satchels, carts, cars, and small trucks.
• Obtain signed receipts for registered, certified, and insured mail, collect associated charges, and complete any necessary paperwork.
• Obtain signed receipts for registered, certified, and insured mail, collect associated charges, and complete any necessary paperwork.
• Record address changes and redirect mail for those addresses.
• Turn in money and receipts collected along mail routes.
• Bundle mail in preparation for delivery or transportation to relay boxes.
• Answer customers' questions about postal services and regulations.
• Register, certify, and insure parcels and letters.
• Leave notices telling patrons where to collect mail that could not be delivered.

Skills

• Installation
  • Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
• Operations Analysis
  • Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
• Critical Thinking
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
• Learning Strategies
  • Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
• Active Learning
  • Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
• Management of Personnel Resources
  • Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
• Systems Analysis
  • Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.
• Time Management
  • Managing your time and the time of other people.
• Mathematics
  • Using math to solve problems.
• Coordination
  • Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
• Repairing
  • Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
• Quality Control Analysis
  • Testing how well a product or service works.
• Management of Material Resources
  • Managing equipment and materials.
• Equipment Maintenance
  • Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
• Science
  • Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
• Complex Problem Solving
  • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
• Service Orientation
  • Looking for ways to help people.
• Speaking
  • Talking to others.
• Management of Financial Resources
  • Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
• Technology Design
  • Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
• Reading Comprehension
  • Reading work-related information.
• Judgment and Decision Making
  • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
• Monitoring
  • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
• Programming
  • Writing computer programs.
• Instructing
  • Teaching people how to do something.
• Writing
  • Writing things for co-workers or customers.
• Systems Evaluation
  • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
• Persuasion
  • Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
• Active Listening
  • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
• Equipment Selection
  • Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
• Social Perceptiveness
  • Understanding people's reactions.
• Troubleshooting
  • Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
• Operations Monitoring
  • Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
• Operation and Control
  • Using equipment or systems.
• Negotiation
  • Bringing people together to solve differences.

Abilities

• Number Facility
  • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
• Memorization
  • Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
• Far Vision
  • Seeing details that are far away.
• Auditory Attention
  • Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
• Dynamic Flexibility
  • Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
• Category Flexibility
  • Grouping things in different ways.
• Oral Expression
  • Communicating by speaking.
• Deductive Reasoning
  • Using rules to solve problems.
• Static Strength
  • Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
• Night Vision
  • Seeing at night or under low light.
• Hearing Sensitivity
  • Telling the difference between sounds.
• Fluency of Ideas
  • Coming up with lots of ideas.
• Multilimb Coordination
  • Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
• Arm-Hand Steadiness
  • Keeping your arm or hand steady.
• Extent Flexibility
  • Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
• Gross Body Coordination
  • Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
• Selective Attention
  • Paying attention to something without being distracted.
• Trunk Strength
  • Using your lower back and stomach.
• Reaction Time
  • Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
• Near Vision
  • Seeing details up close.
• Finger Dexterity
  • Putting together small parts with your fingers.
• Mathematical Reasoning
  • Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
• Visualization
  • Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
• Speed of Closure
  • Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
• Flexibility of Closure
  • Seeing hidden patterns.
• Information Ordering
  • Ordering or arranging things.
• Explosive Strength
  • Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
• Gross Body Equilibrium
  • Keeping your balance or staying upright.
• Spatial Orientation
  • Knowing where things are around you.
• Speech Clarity
  • Speaking clearly.
• Speed of Limb Movement
  • Quickly moving your arms and legs.
• Wrist-Finger Speed
  • Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
• Sound Localization
  • Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
• Problem Sensitivity
  • Noticing when problems happen.
• Inductive Reasoning
  • Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
• Written Comprehension
  • Reading and understanding what is written.
• Manual Dexterity
  • Holding or moving items with your hands.
• Time Sharing
  • Doing two or more things at the same time.
• Speech Recognition
  • Recognizing spoken words.
• Response Orientation
  • Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
• Depth Perception
  • Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
• Rate Control
  • Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
• Peripheral Vision
  • Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
• Stamina
  • Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
• Written Expression
  • Communicating by writing.
• Oral Comprehension
  • Listening and understanding what people say.
• Perceptual Speed
  • Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
• Visual Color Discrimination
  • Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
• Glare Sensitivity
  • Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
• Dynamic Strength
  • Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
• Originality
  • Creating new and original ideas.
• Control Precision
  • Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.

Knowledge

• Computers and Electronics
  • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
• Law and Government
  • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
• English Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Biology
  • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
• Building and Construction
  • Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
• Mechanical
  • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• Sociology and Anthropology
  • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
• Engineering and Technology
  • Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
• Administrative
  • Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
• Mathematics
  • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
• Administration and Management
  • Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
• Design
  • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
• Communications and Media
  • Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
• Philosophy and Theology
  • Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
• Medicine and Dentistry
  • Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
• Psychology
  • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
• Physics
  • Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
• Transportation
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
• Telecommunications
  • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
• Education and Training
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Geography
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
• Foreign Language
  • Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
• Chemistry
  • Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
• Economics and Accounting
  • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
• Customer and Personal Service
  • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
• Food Production
  • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
• Fine Arts
  • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
• Public Safety and Security
  • Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
• Production and Processing
  • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
• Sales and Marketing
  • Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
• History and Archeology
  • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.
• Therapy and Counseling
  • Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
• Personnel and Human Resources
  • Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.

Education

Education

No formal educational credential

Work Experience

No work experience

Training

Less than 1 month on-the-job training

Education and Training Opportunities

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Education and Training Opportunities

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Pay

Washington Annual Salary

58390/yr

Washington Hourly Wage

28.07/hr

Washington Employment Trends

Currently Employed

6,410

Yearly Projected Openings

490

Personality

Conventional: People interested in this work like activities that include data, detail, and regular routines. They do well at jobs that need:

• Dependability
• Attention to Detail
• Integrity
• Independence
• Self Control
• Stress Tolerance

Tools

• Automobiles or cars
• Bar code reader equipment
• Carts
• Light trucks or sport utility vehicles
• Mail box
• Non metallic baskets
• Portable data input terminals
• Safety chains
• Storage racks or shelves
• Time card machines

Technology

• Data base user interface and query software
• Enterprise resource planning ERP software
• Human resources software
• Map creation software
• Office suite software
• Operating system software
• Time accounting software
• Word processing software