“No tip for us again, horsey. You’re the only one who loves me.”
Every year, on December 26th, I wake up thinking, “Shit! I didn’t tip the mailman again!” And then I wonder, “Do people tip the mailman anymore?”
My parents, back in Maine, tip the mail lady every year in Christmas. Of course, they know their mail lady’s name and every disease she’s had in the past twenty years. I don’t think I even have the same mail carrier every day. Maybe this is something that comes with rural and suburban life—I guess if I had my newspaper delivered, I’d tip the paper carrier. People tip garbage men and other workers, but in an urban environment, I never see these people, let alone know their names.
The weird little freakshow that is Yahoo Answers has pulled the following from the USPS website:
Gifts to Postal Service Employees
While many Postal Service™ customers have traditionally thanked their letter carrier with gifts of cash during the holiday season, this practice puts our employees at risk of violating federal law. The Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Executive Branch (“Standards”), specifies that Postal Service employees may not accept gifts from outside sources (including Postal Service customers) or gifts given to them because of their official positions. Postal Service employees are also prohibited from soliciting gifts from outside sources.There are a number of exceptions and exclusions to the general gifts rule. Postal Service employees may accept the following items:
-Snacks and beverages that are not offered as part of a meal.
-Items with little intrinsic value (i.e., greeting cards, plaques, pens, coffee mugs, etc.).
-Perishable items (i.e., flowers, chocolates, cookies, etc.); if the items are clearly worth more than $20, employees should share them with others in the Postal Service workplace.
-Items with a market (retail) value of $20 or less.
-Gifts motivated solely because of a personal relationship.
-Gifts for which the employee has paid market (retail) value.
-Gifts paid for by the Postal Service.
-Postal Service employees may not accept cash – in any amount or form (bills, checks, money orders) – from an outside source.
I love the postal service. it brings me magazines, movies, and, occasionally, actual real letters from friends. But every year, I forget to tip the mailman. Maybe next year.
In Maine, you’d better tip the mailman.
I tip the newspaper delivery people. They enlcose a self-addressed envelope in the NYT and card saying how hard it is to deliver the paper every single day of the year. EVERYONE in Wedgewood/Ravenna knows what I am talking about. Talk about a guilt trip!!
I tip the mailman on New Year’s Eve. Last day of the year, thank you for another year’s worth of mail, that kind of thing.
So just because it’s Dec. 26th you can’t leave cookies for your mailman as a nice gesture for the end of the year? Just wait until New Year’s Eve. Or wait and leave something for them with a nice note on some dreary day in February. Generous impulses shouldn’t be squashed simply because of the calendar.
Does this tradition harken back to some period when mail carriers didn’t make a good living and have ridiculously secure employment? Or was there a time in this country when you had to bribe your carrier so he/she wouldn’t steal your mail (as still happens in some third world countries)?
I guess I’ve been violating the ethics code. Every year for the past four years since we moved here we’ve given our letter carrier a $25 Target gift card. So sue me.
Our letter carrier (we actually know his name and he’s a really nice guy) delivers probably 90% of our mail (except when he’s on vacation or whatever and someone covers his route). I work at home so have the occasion to see him on regular basis if I’m out on the porch or walking the dogs or whatever. Probably not too many people know their postal carriers these days.
We also give the the trashmen $10 each (3 per crew) but I don’t know them. I don’t even know if its the same guys every week. And this morning I thought “Shit! I forgot to tip the Friday recycle waste pickup crew!” I’ve only tipped the regular Monday trash guys… have never tipped the Friday recycle guys. Maybe next year.
WHAT A BUNCH OF BABY SHIT FUCKWADS
OF COURSE, SLIP THE GUY A TWENTY AND SAY THANKS – SIMPLE – DIRECT – HE/SHE WILL TAKE IT
BE CIVILIZED AND URBANE, AND RESPECT WORKERS, THEY MAKE YOUR LIFE POSSIBLE
BABY SHIT POSTERS
AND, ALWAYS TIP THE GARBAGE TRUCK GUY – IF YOU HAVE EXTRA YOU WILL NOT BE CHARGED – A FEW YEARS BACK, MY PARTNER AND I BOUGHT A HOUSE TO REBUILD, TIPPED THE GARBAGE GUY COUPLE OF HUNDRED BUCKS AND OVER SIX MONTHS GOT RID OF TONS AND TONS OF GARBAGE AT CURBSIDE WITH NO EXTRA FEES
GOOD INVESTMENT, VERY HANDY
SOME PEOPLE ARE TOO STUPID TO SURVIVE OUT OF MOMMIES BASEMENT/BELLY
@7,
Some people are too stupid to turn off the caps lock key.
People who work for private employers often get christmas bonuses. This is a way to give the same to public sector employees. Public sector employees rarely get any kind of bonus. And like all caps man said you never know when you need a hand from a public servant.
I left a greeting card for my postal carrier (she’s always cheery and didn’t give us the stink eye when we didn’t shovel our walkway) before we split town for Christmas and it was sitting there, untouched, when we got back. Shrug.
My postman brings me twice my body weight in junk mail every year. The rest is bills.
Fuck him.
@7 has a point–treat postal and garbage/recycling workers with respect–but the shouting was obnoxious and unnecessary.
Depressing. It’s mechanical, bureaucratic bullshit like this that eventually leads to acts like xmas eve’s Santa killer extravaganza in Covina. The line “items with little intrinsic worth” sums it all up; this should be a slogan printed on our money nowadays.
my dad is a mail carrier in a small town, and knows and talks with pretty much everyone on his route. for christmas he never gets money, but he does accrue a nice assortment of christmas cards, nuts/popcorn, candy, baked goods, and sometimes an occasional hat or shirt.
My dad left our mailman a bottle of Canadian Club every year. Without fail.
I know a postal worker on Bainbridge who RAKES it in on tips during the holidays. We give our postal workers something home-baked or a box of chocolates. Showing appreciation for these hard working folks with all the B.S. they have to put up with only seems right. They do call it “going postal” for a reason.
@15, my Dad also left booze for the mailman, garbage guys too.
I regret that I’ve had a hard time bringing myself to tip the newspaper delivery guy who dropped off the Wall Street Journal every morning.
Maybe it was because it just was weird getting a Xmas card from someone with an obviously Muslim name.
But still, even if sometimes my paper got wet, probably should have done so.
On the other hand, you should always be nice to the garbage guys. Seriously!
We tip a little something every year. This year is was an Itunes gift card because she often listens to her ipod on her route. I think it is a nice thing to do.
How do you tip the trash and recycling pickup people? If we left anything out for them in our neighborhood it would get stolen immediately. They do their pickup when I am at work, so I can’t just hand a tip directly to them. However, I appreciate them and would love to tip them. Any ideas?
The mail service here in the south part of 98122 sucks. We have a different carrier every day and they constantly lose mail or deliver the wrong mail. No tip for them.
I tip. Big. I know his name. He knows my name. He has to bring me stuff. He has to wear shoes approved by the postal service. It’s not his fault it is bills and junk mail. Apparently, I am putting him at risk of violating federal law? Well, fuck.
Our mail lady is the bees knees and gets money every year. We haven’t had garbage service since it snowed but NOT ONCE have we missed a days mail. She rocks.
This post reads like a writing assignment for a 12 yr old kid : pretend you are twice your age and angry about something in a comedic sort of way.
Despite many numerous (polite) requests, our mailman treks through the plantings in our front garden every day on the way to our neighbors. He gets nothing.
Though honestly I don’t believe in tipping the mailman anyhow. It seems a little like tipping the electric meter reader or the garbage collection. I mean, I don’t get an annual tip for performing my job.
How exactly do you tip the garbage man? Do you just leave some cash on top of the bin when you take it to the curb, or bury it inside where it won’t get stolen? Or maybe cookies! I’ll leave a plate of cookies. That’s not disgusting at all.
@24 — I agree that tips are not in order for these folks. They are just doing their jobs which we already pay them for. I surely don’t receive tips and did not get a bonus this year or any kind of gift from my employer. If they want a job with perks, maybe they should look for a job elsewhere.
I just add a little extra postage. Usually 15%.
Um, I another note, I had to suffer through that crappy ass Kevin Costner (I hope I spelled that wrong) movie and let me tell you, not even a fuckload of pot could save that cinematic disaster.
The National Association of Letter Carriers consistently opposes setting up a do-not-mail list to cut down on junk mail.
So, in short, it is kind of your mail carrier’s fault that you get so much junk mail.
As of today, I have not had any mail delivered December 23.
Plus, my cranky old mailman throws packages onto the porch while standing at the front gate (about 25 feet), even if labeled “fragile.” He’s dented my screen door and damaged goods before.
He gets spectacular benefits galore and a nice wage.
I would never tip him.
My cleaning lady: I tip her tons, in June and in December.
Tipping yes! My mailman’s name is Scott. He’s the second Scott, the old Scott got transferred. So New Scott seems pretty good, so he got a $25.00 local chain coffeeshop goiftcard & a loaf of banana bread & jar of homemade jam. If you think that’s excessive, I live in upstate NY, & that guy earns every single freakin’ icy, snowy, tip he gets.
I would have zero idea how to tip my trash/recycling collectors. I’m working when they come by & leaving money anywhere near there would ensure that it would be stolen. :/
Yeah, I’m with the “seriously??” crowd. I appreciate my mail carrier, but I’ve never once thought about tipping them. Though at least this is explains the handwritten xmas card. I thought he was being sweet, but he was really just angling for a tip? Odd to me. But I think it’s really sweet that others do tip theirs.
What kind of tipping is customary for the Vietnamese, the Pakistanis, Ukrainians, Luxembourgers, etc? We “NEED” to establish a correctly diversified standard, this is the US Postal Service after all. Slog is pioneering the new dogma! Hooray!
I’ve exchanged pleasantries w/ my mailman a couple of times. And our mail kept coming throughout this mess even though the garbage men did not. So I put a some home made doughnuts and a thank you note into the box. And then yesterday, I saw a man deliver our mail. IT WAS NOT OUR USUAL CARRIER! Who got the doughnuts? I have no idea. But I suppose both men deserved them equally, even if our usual carrier is unaware of the gesture.
I tip my mail carrier every year. He is fabulous, if there’s something in my mail, like the envelope with my son’s Santa photos, that could get crumpled in the box, he stops and puts it on my front porch instead. He takes great care of my elderly neighbors too. I just think that if someone goes out of his way to do more for you it is nice to thank that person once in a while and the holidays are a good time to do it.
I’m probably one of the few people on the planet that enjoyed Costner’s “The Postman.”
Totally dig those post-apocalyptic dramas he seems to think the world enjoys watching.
And “Waterworld” !!! Yes! Costner in that is like an older, quieter, more contemplative and still more suck-tastic Keanu Reeves. They have the same acting style. Except, Costner has GILLS!
Awesome.
@22, you haven’t had your garbage picked up because, guess what, GARBAGE TRUCKS CAN’T RUN IN THE SNOW. Use your head.
I’m a mailman, I’ll be blunt.
Most of us don’t report our tips to the IRS so there is no way anyone will know how much or if you decide to tip. I get goodies, coffee cards, cash, and nice christmas cards from my customers.
Some of you say you don’t get the same mailman. This most likely because the route you live on sucks, it’s too long or too heavy, not your fault, I know. We bid on routes and if the route sucks, no one wants to stay on it. Or, you have an auxillary route, a smaller route given to new carriers or split up for non-regular carriers. They don’t care, it’s not their route. Sorry. I love my route. I love most of my customers. Some are real assholes.
If you don’t want them to cut through your garden, tell them. Leave a note. Call the office. They will take the shortest path and if you haven’t said anything for years, they will keep taking it.
Clear the snow of your walkway or stairs. We can skip your house if it isn’t safe. If we like you, you’ll probably have a better chance of getting mail.
If you have a misdelivery, don’t write on the mail. This is so annoying. Leave it at the box. Thank you Mr Hall Monitor.
Like I said, I love most of my customers. I’ll watch their homes when they’re on vacation, I’ve called the cops on an open door once. I love dogs, I carry treats. I take in garbage cans for some. I put newspapers up high for my old people. I’ve made a lot of good friends and met a lot of cool people.
Not all of us are totally crazy but I know some are because I work with them everyday.
Thank you, real mailman @38. Tip for you!
Sounds like Brian, my mailman. The guy rocks. Damn right he gets a tip. Dilletante chocolates, starbucks card, whatever seems like a nice little luxury for the guy slogging through puddles, dogpiles, newsprint stains and junkmail for me.
I’m a former New Yorker – you tip everybody; the super, the doorman, the mail carrier, the car service dispatcher, the cable guy, your receptionist, your lease agent, the whole schmear. Know why?
Karma.
You don’t tip to make up for wages or anything like that you dolts. Tips aren’t a subsidy, they are manifestations of faith in a greater good: You send the good stuff out and the universe finds a way to keep the balances even. You’ve created a good feeling. Some people call it a favor to cash in, but that’s crass. Think: Someday you’ve got a special need, and now they will feel like it’s fair they help you. Cable guy looks the other way when you splice out to the neighbor. Mailman doesn’t drive away ‘not seeing you’ (on a day he wants to get home early for his kids’ play) when you have a last minute bill to send out. Apartment manager doesn’t mind or tell the owners about the extra dog you’ve adopted.
Karma baby. Pay up.
Karma? For reals? If you don’t want to do your job properly, then find another job. We used to have awesome mail service in the small town I grew up in, but a decade in Seattle makes me wonder if USPS holds their urban employees to the same standard?
Our mail carrier has never worked a minute past 4:59 (seriously, he will stop whatever he is doing and drive away), and will instead just hold onto the mail till it’s convenient for him to drop it off… even if it’s the following week! He insists on leaving mail for people who haven’t lived here in half a decade, the names are clearly marked on our box and have been for the last 5 years so I’m not sure why it hasn’t sunk in for him yet- maybe he really misses them and is hoping they will return someday? Of course, on some days he doesn’t come at all, even when the weather is fine… suffice to say, I didn’t see him at ALL last week, and didn’t get any mail till it melted yesterday! My neighborhood is flat!
Sorry, but Federal and state workers whose job security makes them take their responsibilities lightly are a huge pet peeve of mine! If they were held to the same standard as private sector employees, many of them would be out of a job! And then the KARMA would be that they would be seeking help in getting their UI benes from state workers- who of course share the same apathy about their jobs that the postal workers themselves once enjoyed! My parents are both government employees, so I’ve heard enough- you may not get the same pay up front as a private sector worker (boo hoo!) but the benes rock and it is damn near impossible to fire you no matter how much you suck- it more then balances out in their favor, even if they don’t get the bonuses that those of us in the private sector supposedly get. Of course, the only time my SO or I have EVER gotten a holiday bonus was when he was working at Blue Video- if that’s not irony, I don’t know what is!
Dude has the benefits and job security that I can only dream of in this economy, and he can’t even do his job correctly- since when do we reward mediocrity? My folks still tip their mail carrier- and tip her well- but then, they actually GET their mail every day!
Re-read Smith’s post, and it has me wondering… is it karma, or payola? Are we talking about rewarding someone for doing their job well, or are we talking about paying people off so they will look the other way when we want to break the rules?
I don’t have a problem with that per se, but IMO it’s two different things… then again, maybe this is my mailman’s way of giving the neighborhood a shake-down, and I’d actually GET my mail if I greased his palms with a few bucks first…?
I agree with you, SeattleMama, some of my co-workers are lazy and they are an embarrassment to the Post Office. They are spoiled men that have never worked a hard day in their life and then bitch and moan about their present job. Read that sentence again- SOME of my co-workers. Not all, SOME. If your mailman sucks, and it sounds like he does, don’t tip him. In fact, call 1-800-ASK-USPS or USPS.com and make a complaint if you’re so upset with his misdeliveries. Do something instead of holding the anger towards all of us. Some of us really do give a shit. Smith said his mailman rocks.
Do you tip your waiter when you get good service or are you one of those people that by stiffing them you’re doing your part (“find another job”). I don’t think every mailman deserves a tip, I work with a few people that are bad stereotypes of government workers, it’s embarrassing.
You had good service in the small town you grew up in- what year was this? Was it before the PO was losing millions a year and stopped caring about customer service? Most of us care about customer service, it’s a joke how things have changed in the past 20 years, removal of blue boxes, stamp machines, closing branches, etc. Things change.
BTW, the 4:59 thing- a couple of years ago the PO started this arbitrary time cut off where we have to be back in the office at 5. That’s his boss that made that rule, it sounds like he would be happy to soak the OT if he could, that’s why the rule is there, for slackers like him.
Again, I’m not disagreeing with you, it’s just that there are a lot of things the public doesn’t see. I used to think the PO was a well oiled machine but I could tell you stories…
PS You’re right, we can’t get fired unless we steal or use violence. Try working with 80 illiterate-misogynistic-corn fed-military minded-homophobic-overtime entitled-crybabies six days a week, it sucks.
Job security? Not so much. If you’be been working for USPS for less than six years your job is not secure.
As far as tipping someone for doing their job.. I suppose I can understand that. Many of you don’t understand just what some Letter Carriers do to go above and beyond.
I check in on my elderly customers if they haven’t checked their mail for a few days.
I pay the postage (out of my own pocket) for my customers incoming mail with postage due.. it’s frustrating how often I’m not reimbursed even though I tape an envelope which clearly states “your letter carrier has paid the postage on this letter so you could receive it without delay…”. $0.75 might not seem like much to someone driving a Lexus but when I do it every other day it adds up when I’m not reimbursed. And trust me.. I remember who doesn’t reimburse me.
I ALWAYS treat parcels as if they were my own. Never leaving them out where they can get wet and never throwing them around.
I remember the names of my customers so I can deliver ALL their mail.. even what is addressed incorrectly. You have no idea how often 7516 Anystreet can become 7156 Anystreet.
If a customer forgets to put a stamp on outgoing mail I knock on their door and tell them instead of just leaving the mail.
None of these things are in my job description. Yet I do them because I care and I take pride in a job well done.
Tips aren’t necessary but they are appreciated. I have one customer who has left me a chocolate bar ever day for about a week straight. Every time I open his mailbox I can’t help but smile. But even a thank you goes a long way. I received so many “thank you’s” and “good job’s” while delivering in the snow.. it made my day. I am just doing my job.. but I care about my customers and their mail.