No carrier, no mail: Post Office blues hit the area

STAUNTON — Wednesday, a Staunton resident wrote a post on Facebook that she had not gotten her mail since the 11th of January.

"This is not the first time," she wrote on the post, which has since been taken down. "I went to the post office on Friday, and they told me they have no carrier for my area. I get copies in my email of the mail I'm to get each day. I had mail that was time sensitive, my water bill, and one piece of mail that had a check in it."

She then asked the Facebook community if anyone else was having an issue with their mail.

"If anyone has a suggestion for what to do next, I'd appreciate it," she wrote.

Several people commented. Many had similar frustrations with not getting their mail, or living in rural areas with no carriers and issues with the post office hiring but not getting those employees trained and working routes in a timely manner. People were clearly frustrated.

When The News Leader saw the post, we emailed a media contact at the post office. Without mentioning the person's name, we asked what they were doing to address the lack of carriers servicing Barterbrook Road. We did mention a resident not receiving mail since Jan. 11.

We had also seen comments about residents in Fishersville and Mt. Crawford having issues, so we asked about those areas as well. We asked what they were doing to hire more people. Then we asked if they could tell us what people can do (that works) to get help when they don't receive their mail.

Have you had issues in your area with postal delivery? Or, have you had a great experience with USPS you want to share? We'd love to hear from you. Email us at localnews@newsleader.com.

Here is the post office's response:

"Most post offices are adequately staffed and delivery routes are covered in the area," emailed Philip Bogenberger, media contact for the post office. "We have contingency plans when employees are on leave."

"Still, staffing challenges can arise, which has resulted in brief periods of sporadic mail delivery on a few routes," he said. "Customers with questions about their delivery should contact their local Post Office or call 1-800-ASK-USPS. We thank customers for their understanding and continued support."

And the questions about staffing...

"The Postal Service is continually hiring for full-time and part-time positions, especially in growing communities," Bogenberger said. "The Postal Service offers employees competitive pay, great benefits, on-the-job training and advancement opportunities. Interested candidates can search open positions and apply at www.usps.com/careers. The site is regularly updated."

Nothing about how to help residents living on Barterbrook Road or in Fishersville and Mt. Crawford.

When we checked the woman's Facebook this morning, the post was gone. Her timeline is now locked down.

The post office is looking to hire mail carriers. Bogenberger is right about that.

In November, a person posted publicly on Facebook that the post office was looking for part-time, weekend help in rural areas in Fishersville. People asked about the job and pay and if part-time would lead to full-time or if part-time really means full-time hours. One person commented that she applied, filled out the paperwork and took a drug test months ago and never heard back.

Read what happens next: Residents talk post office problems, defend carriers

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Reporter Monique Calello can be reached at mcalello@newsleader.com. Subscribe to us at newsleader.com and support local journalism.

This article originally appeared on Staunton News Leader: No carrier, no mail: Post Office blues hit the area