February 4th Is National Thank a Mail Carrier Day

Today (February 4th, 2020) marks National Thank a Mail Carrier Day in the United States. If you see your local letter carrier walking around today, be sure to tell him or her “thank you” for all the hard work they do!

Being a Mail Carrier is Hard Work

The life of a mail carrier is a fairly busy one. However, too often we fail to recognize how much hard work goes into making our mail system run smoothly. The fact of the matter is, these people don’t have an easy job.

From sunup to sundown, mail carriers work countless hours delivering every piece of mail to every single residential address in the country. All 157 million of them. On top of that, letter carriers transport millions of packages every day that come in as part of USPS’ package network, as well as packages from other companies that rely on USPS for last mile delivery. Some well-known companies that use USPS for last mile delivery are Amazon, UPS and FedEx (yes, believe it or not, even the other major shipping carriers ship with USPS!).

USPS Mail Carriers Help Reduce Emissions to Make the Earth More Livable

In addition to delivering all of our mail and millions of packages a day, USPS and its mail carriers are also actively committed to sustainability. For example, USPS is currently testing out all-electric vans, as well as incorporating Motiv electric chassis into its delivery fleet.

Also, approximately 7,000 mail carriers still deliver mail strictly on foot! USPS calls this select group of letter carriers the Fleet of Feet. Day in and day out, these mail carriers solely ride bicycles and walk on select routes in Arizona and Florida. These “green” routes help reduce emissions from vehicles, and the process obviously saves fuel at the same time.

Want some more interesting facts about the Postal Service and its mail carriers? Check out USPS’ landing page dedicated to “a day in the life” factoids.

The Postal Service’s Letter Carriers Make eCommerce in America Possible

At the end of the day, America needs USPS to handle the delivery of its letters and parcels, and always will. As more and more of the economy moves towards eCommerce, USPS will become even more important as time goes on. In fact, if not for USPS’ affordable rates, quick delivery, and commitment to universal service, the birth of the eCommerce industry wouldn’t have even been possible in the United States!

To wrap this up, if you see your mail carrier out today, be sure to show some love. Even better, the next time you order something online and it arrives at your doorstep, take a second to appreciate the mail carriers who helped it get there. Remember: our mail carriers are human, and a little gratitude always goes a long way. Saying “thank you” doesn’t have to be reserved for only one day a year, after all.