Anyone run for USPS contractors?

http://albuquerque.craigslist.org/trp/5191915698.html

Not the same company. Can't say I've ever even seen Salmon running around this area. The "big dog" is Beco Inc. out of Colorado....I see those guys fairly frequently.

Checked into the Salmon website...New Mexico isn't in their hiring area.

 

I know the trucks run at least 65...that's about all I got it up to on the highway but it was only turning about 1400RPM , so unless they have a governor on it, they'll probably do 70...I hope. Last company I worked for had KW T600's & 9 spd w/ OD and those would run 85 all day long - I think I'm a little spoiled by that.

Temporarily they're renting a newer International tractor & trailer from Ryder for that route since it's only a temp. route. I was told, however, that if and when that route became permanent they would then return the Ryder combo back and stick one of their units on the route. Tractors are assigned to the route, so whoever runs that route drives the same tractor. So if I were to decide to go further in the process I would conceivably share the tractor with the other driver and we would use it for 4 days each. From what I can tell though, all the tractors and trailers are air ride. If they were spring ride I would've stopped right there....my previous back injury has a lot to do with that as I tend to get a lot of sciatic nerve pain down my leg if I spend too long being bounced around.

As a point of comparison, I've already checked into the NM Health Insurance Exchange and I've found some decent plans for less than $200 per month, so that would only be around $50 per week ($100 bi-weekly).

In regards to the drivers.....there are a lot of long-term guys that have been there 20+ years and there are a lot of guys that have been there 2 - 3 years or less. Doesn't seem to be any real middle ground from what I noticed. I did run across 4 other drivers while I was there on Saturday and they all seemed to be happy with the place, but those 4 were also in that 20+ year club. One guy I talked to in the shop area has been there 26 years and he had nothing but nice things to say.

We're getting by alright on savings and the severance package I received, but I know that won't last forever without regular income. I'm mainly considering this particular company because there wouldn't be a whole lot of physical labor involved and while I know that makes me sound lazy, both of my two previous injuries were directly attributable to my previous job and I'd like to find something that won't be as likely to cause similar issues and I figured pushing the mail carts around wouldn't be too bad. I am looking at other options, however, and I do have all endorsements except passenger, so I'm thinking about carpet bombing the local fuel haulers with some resumes in the near future as well.

The whole "pay to apply" thing is a first for me and it leaves a sour taste as does the condition of some of the equipment that I both drove and physically inspected. Just to relate something else, the guy I interviewed with went out to the truck I road tested on prior to my arrival and as part of the process, he had me go pre-trip the tractor and trailer after he had removed a few items just to see if I would catch them.

He yanked the LF wheel hub seal and the radiator cap, both of which I caught immediately. In addition to those two items, I also found several lights out, leaking wheel seal on the trailer, two tires on the trailer at the wear indicators, rear drive axle differential leaking, front timing cover seal leaking (badly - probably the source of the belt squeal), and the steering gear box leaking. When I went back into the shop he looks at me and says "You sure were out there a long time for only a couple things. So what did you find?" I looked at him and started rattling off what I found. Then, he says "Well #######, you thought to look at stuff nobody else does!" I guess he had figured I would only catch the hub seal and radiator cap....

 

It's a possibility - still weighing options.