Question on Postal Clerk Inquiry

i once had an incident with a postal worker. i was mailing an item at a regional office, and she asked me what was in the package, to which i responded "nothing dangerous"...she then gave me a smart butt reply along the lines of "its my job to ask"...now this was a valuable item...so i started getting a weird feeling. it was an ebay item, and had expedited shipping. so i am obligated to get the item to the person quickly. my reply was "what i am shipping is irrelevant, the safety of my package is your only concern and i informed you, nothing dangerous"....WELL....wouldnt you know, that night, i went online and checked the status, and the tracking # didnt show it moved. i checked again the next morning, still nothing. now i am have this weird feeling that something is up. so i went back the next day, the day it should be arriving in the buyers city. i went in and asked for the supervisor. i explained my concerns, and she gives me this BS story that the system is slow to update and not to worry. i said i wanted to view the tapes from yesterday to be assured that the item went from her hands, scanned, and into the outbound chute. WELL. the lady definitely saw me come in and making a stink. i was told it was not possible. i said, no problem, i will contact the PM General. i went outside, smoked a cigarette, and checked the tracking on my cellphone. it had just been scanned. i dont think she tried to steal it, but she tried to delay my package by "hiding it" behind some trolleys. i wrote a letter, explained there existed evidence of my claim, and i even received a letter back about a month later apologizing and that she was reprimanded. i see her all the time now and when i end up in her line, i always ask her "are we going to have a problem this time?"

 

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Or you could say they are children's collectible metal rounds that have designs on them that children love. It's a kids thing. Honest if not quite to the point.

And if you send a coin and something else related to it, you can call it a hobby starter kit.

 

At least you were well compensated for the loss, though?

 

That is really unconscionable of a postal employee to pull a trick like that. Unfortunately many of these usps jobs are covered by union contracts, I even heard that if workers are caught stealing they don't lose benefits, I'm not sure if this is true, whereas the ups workers lose the whole kit and caboodle. I shipped something via FedEx on Monday because the usps outlets were closed, and the tracking was terrific and the packages got there the next day without any malarkey. If a particular employee was especially giving you grief you should make noise about it beyond the usps which may just give a slap on the wrist.

 

She did the wrong thing, but let it go, my friend. Giving her a hard time about it every time you see her is like telling the McDonald's cashier that you demand a big smile with your food. It's an oppressive job. (I know, I know... at least she has one ).

 

no. not really. my reputation as a seller is risked when her untrustworthy hands touch my package. also, i am not giving her a hard time, more of just a reminder that i am not there to have fun, im not enjoying my time, try not to make me waste any more of it by hiding packages in a vengeful manner. just do your job, no smile required. i just "check" her.

 

Fortunately most people have several post offices to go to, so don't have to get into unpleasant interactions with workers who do not do their duty.

Another aspect of this is postal workers who report "suspicious" activity to the postal inspectors who have a lot of power with other federal agencies. What if you are falsely accused as "suspicious" as many have been when you are as innocent as the driven snow? It seems like sometimes they operate under a double standard.

 

Dude, you gotta give up the cigs.

 

I HAVE I HAVE. THIS WAS A GOOD BIT AGO.

 

Well Congrats

 

All I am ever asked is liquid, explosive or fragile. I think it is very rude for the employee to pry past this. You need to stick to the job. Period. I would never tell them anything else. When I was a teenager I worked for a dealer. He was buying ms67 fb mercury dimes when they were being mass graded by ngc from the guy who was submitting roll after roll . A fed ex guy took six full sized fed ex boxes filled with these dimes and just vanished. Over 100k in lost coins. They were insured but it still really disrupted the guys business. You can not be too careful when it comes to safety.

Your return address is on the package. Do you really want a guy making a starting postal salary knowing your home address and that you collect rare coins? Home invasions are a serious thing. Forget about the coins or the money really bad things happen during these events. Why give someone a reason to target you. Just tell them it is an item of value but something like a prototype valve. Something that no one would think twice about wanting because there is no way to fence it. Maybe a patent application. A new computer circuit. Whatever. Use your own imagination.

 

I shouldn't have had to even answer what the contents were as a "collectible". She claimed that her query had to do with what shipping tier to go under. I saw her feel the package like a blind person brailling to ascertain contents. I wonder how you would report a problem private usps worker like this to the oversight board. I do well over a thousand dollars a year in shipments and have a corporate usps account when needed. Ebay shipping permits you to ship even higher value coins with low cost first class shipping labels and up to 13 oz or so, no interaction is necessary with the workers.

 

not to worried about my address being on the package. i own an investment property that i have all of my items mailed to, more importantly because it has a locking, centralized community mailbox, ie, all the mailboxes in the community are at one place and each has a locking key. Very convenient. I stop by once or twice a week to pick up my purchased items. never have to worry about a home invasion.

 

I was refunded by the seller.

Eventually they are probably going to require full disclosure of items sent through the US Mail along with the fingerprint of the sender ("for your own safety").

 

NSA already takes a record of every label.

 

Hmmm. The postal employees do NOT need to know the specific contents. The only thing they NEED to know is if its Fragile, liquid, perishable or hazardous presumable for the safety of all those that are required to handle it.

Inquiring deeper into the contents is an invasion or you and the recipients privacy.

Now if you're shipping dope or something illegal..............that's what they have postal inspectors and the postal police for.

 

Customs forms get a little more particular.

 

You mean.........like...............POGS??

 

I've been asked when shipping coins, my response has always been: "nothing liquid, perishable, fragile, or potentially hazardous". Beyond that, it's none of their business.