The
pandemic didn't stop people from shopping last year—especially online. As a
result, the Postal Service predicts another banner year and is looking to
increase its workforce with 40,000 seasonal employees to help during this
year's holiday season.
Postal
districts across the country are hosting job fairs, with many of the new hires
already taking the reins more than three months before Christmas Day.
In
Sarasota, FL, a new employee orientation was recently held for about
50 men and women at the Manasota Plant. The two-and-a-half-day
orientation led by Employee Development Specialist Maria Maher, a 19-year
postal veteran, helps prepare attendees for a new career as a Postal Service
employee.
"Why
are we here today?" asks Maher as she kicks off the class. "A lot of
you left jobs to something more secure. The postal service is a great
opportunity for you. So, make the best of it. It's hard in the
beginning, but it will become easier for you."
"You're
going to be using muscles you've never used before," she adds, drawing
laughter from attendees.
"These
classes require somebody who's going to get them excited because sometimes you
encounter new hires who are introverted, and you have to get them out of their
shell," she said. "I'll tell them the different jobs I've done in the
Postal Service, including clerk, mail control flow operator, letter carrier,
supervisor, Consumer Affairs, Worker's Comp, and Employee Development."
During an
ice breaker, employees tell about their former employment, including
business owners, military veterans, and former employees of competing shipping
companies.
Breona Moore,
for example, worked at a physician's office for ten years. "I wanted to do
something different," she said. "I'll be a mail handler. I don't know
what to expect, but I do know the Postal Service is a great place to work with
good pay, good benefits, and retirement."
Acting
Plant Manager Andres Morales welcomed the new employees. "There are a lot
of opportunities out there with other companies, some of whom may offer
monetary as an enticement, yet you chose to be with us, and we thank you. We
offer you a long and permanent stable future. I started my career with USPS 22
years ago as a PTF processing mail clerk in Puerto Rico," he says.
"Maybe the next plant manager or Postmaster General is here today."
Acting MIPS
Christina Spinosa offered tips for the new plant personnel, including what to
wear. "When I came here 13 years ago, I came as you did. I was a mail
handler. So, the opportunities, if looking for growth, are there – it's
endless."
"How well
we do here in the plant will affect our carriers out in the stations. What we
do every day affects our customers," Spinosa adds.
"I
went from a mail handler to the acting supervisor to the mail handlers, then
shifted over to supervise the clerks,” Spinosa told the new employees.
"Then I got an opportunity to work in Transportation. From Transportation,
I moved over to Operations Support. From there, I became a Level 17 supervisor.
I'm now acting as Manager of In-Plant Support, and soon I'll be the acting MDO.
As I said, the opportunities are endless."
