US mail contractors

I've seen them post a route from Oakland to Reno every month. I wonder why nobody wants it

 

Good question

 

I put in with Pat Salmon as a casual driver. I have to say, this is the weirdest hiring process I've ever experienced. First thing they did was spend money on a physical and drug test (no interview or nothing). The next week they have me do an online safety course...I still don't know if I have a job or not and it's been 3 weeks.

That said, does anybody know if you can opt out of the insurance as a Veteran already signed up with the VA? I'm assuming I'll get that extra pay directly, right?

 

Yes you can opt out. That's why you see a lot of Vets hail mail because they don't need health coverage. Mail contract carriers around my area make about $27 an hour if they opt out.


I don't work for a contract carrier, but I do work for USPS directly. Hauling mail is a great industry to get into and you'll find that a lot of Vets work in this industry. Good luck and I hope you get the job.

 

I would call them frequently. And make sure they allow you to opt out of the insurance. Typical mail hauler insurance is over $100 a week for a single guy and mid $200 a week for a family policy. I will stop short of calling mail hauler insurance a scam.

 

Not sure where you're at but Hoovestol has a terminal in Oakland. I don't know the first thing about them though, just that I see them all the time in that area.

 

Careful. Some contractors don't pay you the excess health and welfare directly. These force you to put it in 401k. Personally I think that is a loose interpretation of health and welfare.

 

I hauled mail for a bit, it should have been easy but the contractor screwed it up. He put his oldest, trashiest trucks on those runs, figuring the DOT wouldn't run inspections at 9pm.

I fought for weeks trying to get basic things like lights and leaks addressed (making myself known as a complainer in the process) until one night while pulling into a convienince store for a cup of coffee, a local cop decided to write me up. Turns out the trailers hadn't been registered in 3 years!

I quit about two weeks later. Too shady to risk my licence.

 

Loose?

Actually under the McNamara-O'Hara Service Contract Act which contractors are regulated under for mail business labor rules the Health and Welfare benefits are tightly defined. The money designated by the Post Office for H&W is required to be separated out from regular pay in order to be tracked. It can be put into Health Insurance and/or retirement account.

OR it can be paid directly to the driver as Cash In Lieu of Benefits. Within the Dept of Labor they require this action to be well-documented in order to prove the driver has gotten what's coming to him. The problem with paying the driver cash is the company has to pay payroll taxes on it whereas if it goes to insurance or retirement it's pre-tax money.

 

I understand that.
Two issues I have with it are as follows.
1. I appreciate an employer offering a 401k. I don't care for forced participation.
2. The Trojan Horse debacle (there are others) makes me a little gun shy of that practice.