← Occupation guides

43-5052.00 · Task explorer

Postal Service Mail Carriers: reported tasks and exploration worksheet

Sort and deliver mail for the United States Postal Service (USPS). Deliver mail on established route by vehicle or on foot. Includes postal service mail carriers employed by USPS contractors.

Read the task inventory

This source lists 21 tasks, including 17 marked Core and 4 marked Supplemental. Labels and dates are retained below. Employers can combine or divide these responsibilities differently; explore the task itself before assuming it belongs in every version of the role.

Task source dates: 07/2016.

21 tasks shown

Core · Task 20906 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Scan labels on letters or parcels to confirm receipt.

Core · Task 11341 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Obtain signed receipts for registered, certified, and insured mail, collect associated charges, and complete any necessary paperwork.

Core · Task 11344 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Return to the post office with mail collected from homes, businesses, and public mailboxes.

Core · Task 11342 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Sort mail for delivery, arranging it in delivery sequence.

Core · Task 11343 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Deliver mail to residences and business establishments along specified routes by walking or driving, using a combination of satchels, carts, cars, and small trucks.

Core · Task 11351 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Meet schedules for the collection and return of mail.

Core · Task 11346 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Sign for cash-on-delivery and registered mail before leaving the post office.

Core · Task 11348 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Hold mail for customers who are away from delivery locations.

Core · Task 11345 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Turn in money and receipts collected along mail routes.

Core · Task 11350 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Leave notices telling patrons where to collect mail that could not be delivered.

Core · Task 11353 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Maintain accurate records of deliveries.

Core · Task 11349 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Bundle mail in preparation for delivery or transportation to relay boxes.

Core · Task 11347 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Record address changes and redirect mail for those addresses.

Core · Task 11352 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Return incorrectly addressed mail to senders.

Core · Task 11354 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Answer customers' questions about postal services and regulations.

Core · Task 11355 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Provide customers with change of address cards and other forms.

Core · Task 11356 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Report any unusual circumstances concerning mail delivery, including the condition of street letter boxes.

Supplemental · Task 11357 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Register, certify, and insure parcels and letters.

Supplemental · Task 11358 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Travel to post offices to pick up the mail for routes or pick up mail from postal relay boxes.

Supplemental · Task 11361 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Sell stamps and money orders.

Supplemental · Task 11360 · 07/2016 · Incumbent

Complete forms that notify publishers of address changes.

Make the shortlist useful

  1. Choose one to three activities that tell you something different about the work. Avoid selecting several ways of describing the same interest.
  2. For each, write an example you can discuss or a question that would change your understanding of the role.
  3. Keep source task IDs with your notes so you can return to the same description. Do not include private employer or customer information.

The exported worksheet distinguishes the reported task from your own notes. It supports exploration, not a hiring decision or a validated assessment.

Keep your worksheet

Download before leaving this page. Unsaved writing remains only in the page and is cleared on refresh. Notes and learning actions are not sent to a server. This guide describes an occupation and supports study planning; it does not provide clinical, legal or equipment-operating procedures.

Source and practice material

Occupational context uses the O*NET® 31.0 Database from the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, under CC BY 4.0. View the occupation.

Skill Workbench selected and adapted the occupational information and added its own fictional cases, calculations, guidance and worksheets. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed or tested these additions. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA.