Charlotte Mail Carrier Suspended After Calling 911 In Medical Emergency

[@jeanneratterman]

Her supervisor who didn’t respond to this woman’s call for help needs to be investigated.

[@jenniferjohnson9722]

Agree!!

[@susanKWithAnE]

Yeah, she is probably the one who got the lady suspended. I wonder what story she gave her bosses to approve the suspension? She’s on the naughty list 😈

[@californiadreamer2580]

That's the person who needs to be relieved of duty!

[@rinzler9775]

Should be fired.

[@willlawson6126]

​@@susanKWithAnEYou are exactly right...... Is in my 41 years on this earth, I have seen plenty jobs where supervisors abuse their power, Make mistakes that should get them fired..... But then turn around and make up lies to get somebody else in trouble.

[@carmaela2689]

She didn't abandon her route, her manager abandoned her duties. This woman needs reinstated, an apology, and the manager needs fired. Period!

[@limited50scla]

Yup, back pay and keep her seniority

[@Valeperez1000]

Exactly!

[@YahsLoveisEnough]

Manager will be promoted and moved around only to come back and harass this lady to retaliate against her for saving her own life.

[@JadenYukifan28]

She eventually got her job back after the News Station covering the story started asking questions.

[@carolechaney2830]

Don't forget retro her pay for the suspension

[@DrSergioHernandez]

She followed protocol. The USPS MUST pay her for the days she did not work. Otherwise, she needs to take legal action against the USPS.

[@reubensandwich9249]

No she didn't. If she did, the union would file a grievance and easily win. The fact she's going to the news tells me she lost.

[@dfirth224]

@@reubensandwich9249You sound like you are management. Are you?

[@WereCreed]

​@reubensandwich9249 Putting an employee on lwop due to a documented medical emergency is considered retaliation/hostile work environment and is very much illegal 😊

[@djrosette]

​​@@WereCreedtrue. The USPS will retaliate against people that were having medical problems regardless of the cause of the medical issues. Speaking from experience as a former postal carrier.

[@MonkeyJedi99]

Another symptom of Louis taking De Joy out of working at the USPS.

[@work204]

It is clear the manager misreported the emergency as abandonment to hide her non performance of her job and duty. This is a lawsuit right there.

[@scottdoubleyou563]

You're damn right it is.

[@Malignantt1]

Unfortunately this is the post office. That manager will most likely get a promotion!

[@laurenlongfellow9714]

This is exactly why we need more whistleblowers in every trade. Notice how they didn’t care about rectifying the situation until the employee got the public/media involved. I hope she gets a lawyer.

[@kendrajones9708]

@@franciscopizarro2877 EXACTLY!

[@christielincoln5727]

Her supervisor should be on leave for a month with no pay for NOT responding. That's exactly why I have no loyalty to these companies .They don't care about you or anything you go through.

[@MrMysticmatt]

Merica

[@lopiklop]

EXACTLY!

[@marie.s9995]

I'd definitely get a good lawyer!

[@rdonovan1]

This woman needs to contact the Department of Labor. What they did to her is a clear violation of FLSA and FEMLA laws.

[@ronv6637]

As it is USPS a quasigovernmental agency are they covered by same labor laws as private companies or are they ruled by federal bureaucracy?

[@MásCebollasPorFavor]

​​@@ronv6637same laws and regulations. I hope she sues and wins enough to take a vacation.

[@rdonovan1]

@@MásCebollasPorFavor I agree. If she does choose to sue them, she will most definitely win that case. She can still contact the Department of Labor and file a claim with them. I have no idea as to what she intends to do about it, but if it was me I'd contact the Department of Labor and file a claim with them. I'd also contact an attorney regarding the issue and see if I can get them to take the case. I certainly wouldn't sit around and do nothing about it.

[@wolf2179]

​@@ronv6637 federal agencies are not above the federal laws unless its expressly written said agency is exempt from said law or act in question.

[@ronv6637]

@@wolf2179 Since the USPS is now a quasigovernmental agency do they follow rules and regulations for government agencies or for private enterprise. Am looking for knowledge not opinion

[@Pearlruby718]

Heart attacks are one of the most misdiagnosed medical issues for females. She 100% percent did the right thing for herself and her family to seek medical attention. The post office supervisor should be suspended for not handling responding to this carrier's medical crisis. I'm glad she is medically alright. However, at that particular post office, there need to be some changes made starting with management.

[@happyslappy02]

tip of the iceberg.

[@OregonCrow]

Just for females? lol

[@sssssssss111]

@@OregonCrow Don’t let your mind go to gender war immediately. She’s just speaking from stats and pointing out its prevalence when it comes to misdiagnosis. To make you feel better, men receive misdiagnoses as well

[@Pearlruby718]

@OregonCrow Misdiagnosed for women. The medical field pays more attention to male heart attacks. So yes, the answer is just for females.🤦🏼‍♀️ Maybe I should have led with the fact that I am retired RN. But the story wasn't about me. So what part of the medical industry do you work in?

[@WolfieRAWKs]

@@OregonCrow Women often experience different symptoms when experiencing a heart attack compared to men. Because their symptoms tend to be more like nausea and midback pain instead of the "typical" crushing chest pain/pain that radiates up the neck/etc., heart attacks in women tend to be misdiagnosed or even missed entirely. Not to mention the sexism that still is alive and well in medicine, which also ends up chalking these "atypical" symptoms up to anxiety or some other non-life-threatening problem that can be addressed at a primary care appointment. So yes, to best preserve their own health, women need to be particularly aware of how heart attacks can present in women and seek help immediately if they feel it prudent to do so.

[@dorispoggi7246]

As a former employee of the USPS, now retired, this does not surprise me one bit. They look for the bad in all things and blame the person ... believe me , I know. This woman needs to hire a lawyer .. also, file a grievance with the APWU. Her manager looks like a damn fool!

[@jamesmparkerjr2451]

I cannot hit the "like" button enough!!!!!!!

[@infoskrimp420]

my stepdad is about a year from retirement and it can’t come soon enough. he just brought covid to the family unintentionally for christmas because they don’t give a fk if people were actively sick and working.

[@KevinGonzalez33470]

APWU does not represent Letter Carriers. Letter Carriers are either represented by the NALC (City Carriers) or the NRLCA (Rural Carriers)

[@shereescott8162]

She also needs NALC union .

[@sayitaintso7544]

Post office: "She went bye bye and just left the truck sitting for hours" Wow! So had she been in her truck and died of a heart attack the post office would still say she abandoned her truck.

[@Trund27]

Disgusting. The supervisor who either ignored her messages or slipped up and didn’t see them is trying to cover their butt by laying all the blame on the postie. That’s diabolical. Sickening.

[@darrennew8211]

The definition of evil is seriously harming someone else to cover up your own failures.

[@floydjohnson7888]

@Trund27 I would add "inexcusable"

[@penitent2401]

they should have more than just one message alert to notify of emergency. people don't always notice text and email right away. My company has two numbers to call, procedure is call the first, if no response call the second, two different health and safety officer is on call 24/7, and this is after calling emergency services first.

[@MissyMuthaTruckiN]

the ENTIRE post office is corrupt this is only 1/1000th of how deep it really is messed up

[@reubensandwich9249]

​@@penitent2401Mine is the same way. Emergency and absence are all phone call, not text messages. In her case, she did neither. Considering postal workers are union, the fact that she's contacting the news tells me she lost her grievence petition.

[@IceLynne]

I'm so glad you're covering her story! I hope that USPS pays her for all the damage they've caused!!

[@nunyadambusiness3530]

She's gonna have to sue!

[@IceLynne]

@@nunyadambusiness3530 yes, I imagine she'll have to.

[@mynamesjudge]

You mean that the taxpayers should pay for the damage that the government officials caused? Why? Why not call for your government officials to be held accountable?

[@rona4960]

@@mynamesjudge Why would taxpayers have to pay?

[@lunaticbz3594]

@@rona4960 Well if money comes out of the post offices budget, then tax payers or those who use the post service are the ones who will have to pay for it. They aren't going to take money from her managers that made these decisions they aren't liable for their own actions.

[@jakebrake3000]

The supervisor wasnt doing their job. They weren't monitoring text messages. They had an employee in a hospital and didnt know it, then tried to cover their a$$ by punishing the driver. The union should demaand that supervisor be fired...

[@jakebrake3000]

*their a$$

[@zachprice2652]

@@jakebrake3000 their ass* quit censoring yourself.

[@wannabetrucker7475]

​@@zachprice2652?

[@IceLynne]

Unions suck.

[@nooshinscorner]

Agreed. They may already be doing that if this driver has brought it to their attention. Let's remember, this just happened. Hopefully, this news agency will follow up and we'll hear more about it in the future.

[@gott2641]

Besides the incompetence of her supervisor, what really baffles me is that no one wondered where she was after being gone for nearly 6 hours?!

[@DonoVideoProductions]

They clearly weren't paying attention to anything.

[@rashadhaughton22]

It was easier for them to note it as abandoned vice a medical emergency because they didn’t respond to the notification via the app!!

[@meadowsofbliss8722]

This woman is obviously an exemplary employee! So pleased WBTV was able to right this wrong. It's a sad state of affairs when the boss asks about the location of the vehicle before asking if you're okay. Shame on the Post Office!

[@miketeacher9016]

The drivers for UPS and Amazon and others have gotten heat stroke from the terrible heat this past summer. Supervisors need to be more supportive! She seems like a good employee!.

[@loridean177]

I guess you didn't see the story of the Amazon driver that fell in a sewage tank. His boss told him to finish his shift. A lot of people are dying in Amazon warehouses. 😮

[@ronkali5365]

A power company lineman told me a tree fell on their bucket truck.The super asked how much damage too the truck, instead of inquiring how the linemen are

[@canaudit]

You'd be surprised that employees would be fired for not following Policy and Procedure , so asking where the vehicle is, is top priority from the Post Office

[@bigbossimmotal]

Putting your life, or your job, or a Postal vehicle in the hands of a text was irresponsible. She had a phone in her hand, she should have used it to CALL her boss. Not necessarily before 911, which is when she sent the text, but at some point during those 6 hours. Her boss found the 'text' on her computer, so clearly it wasn't a text message to her boss's phone. It's technology people, if something is TRULY important, talk to a human.

[@atgn-0088]

How did the supervisor not get suspended!?

[@kevinmartinez249]

she was having a medical emergency too and had to go to the ED :v

[@mikes5637]

White male v black female subordinate. Calling it now.

[@rsplatt100]

The employee referred to her supervisor as “her”

[@msolomon1781]

​@@rsplatt100white/pink female vs "black" female 😏

[@WildlifeWarrior-cr1kk]

I would have fired him

[@Sandman60077]

You can't even use a sick day without getting a passive aggressive threat where they "remind" you of possible consequences of calling out sick.

[@princessmarlena1359]

Exactly, they even try to pit the coworkers against you for that.

[@zephyrite1264]

I had two incidents with different managers at two jobs. The first one was a severe case of vertigo (thought I might have had a stroke but could think and speak clearly so I was fairly sure that wasn't the case) and the other was food poisoning. Each manager kept calling me every 1-2 hours because I had an upcoming deadline, work wasn't getting done, and they didn't think my illness was that bad. The vertigo manager thought I just had a head cold and the food poisoning manager thought it couldn't be that because I didn't have the more disgusting symptoms that goes along with food poisoning. Both had relatives who were MDs so they thought they knew something about medicine.

[@cjames0723]

@@princessmarlena1359 Yep. This happens in nearly every profession today. I'm a doctor and one time during my residency I literally threw up in an exam room in front of a patient. That was my fifth time vomiting that morning and I finally insisted that I take off. Management threw an absolute fit saying I was "abandoning my patients". When I stood my ground and pointed out I was using my legally protected sick leave guaranteed in my contract, they used that exact tactic. Made one of my resident mates who was coming off of an 18 hour shift stay to work a double to cover for me and then framed it as how unprofessional and inconsiderate I was to dump my work onto my colleagues. My philosophy towards this type of management is now "Your lack of planning is not my responsibility". Ensuring adequate coverage during unexpected absences is not the role of the employees, but of management.

[@good4jg]

True, but many times it went beyond that. One summer when temperatures had been in the 100s for a while, I experienced heat exhaustion while on duty. I left work early after the supervisor had other carriers take the remaining mail and immediately went to the urgent care facility, where the doctor took me off the clock for the next three days. When I returned to work with the doctor's note, I had to get the union involved to quash discipline after the supervisor's supervisor came by the station to personally perform the investigative interview and told me that I was being questioned for "irregular attendance". Stuff like that was routine rather than exceptional.

[@silbury2325]

"You have a PATTERN of calling in sick adjacent to a scheduled day off" Two of your work weeks in a 6 week rotation be like: "You better not call out on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, or Saturday" "You better not call out on Monday, Wednesday, Friday, or Saturday."

[@nancybrannon3863]

The day my Mom passed away, our mail carrier, who had been our carrier for many years & who would spend a minute to get my Mom riled up, in a good way. He was making his delivery & Mom did not meet him at our mailbox like she usually does & he went up to our front door with no response. That was when things started rolling on getting into our house as Mom was not able to drive & everyone else in our household were either working or in school. It ended up with my dad having to break into our house & finding Mom on the floor as she was epileptic seizure, but technically she was already gone. Our mail carrier came back by our house later that night & he was crying along with us. He even came to the visitation for Mom. Frank was a great guy & was from Germany, but to me he is like family cause he knew something was not right with my Mom. I agree some supervisors & some managers are the reason why the post office is losing good workers & costing USPS business. I have had bad dealings with the management here in my town & it was not customer is always right. Management is not above delivering mail in fact that should be a requirement at least 1-2 days every year so they can remember what the lower people on the pole have to do.

[@NarwahlGaming]

That's a rule at our company. Everyone who works for us has to have at least a Chauffeur License. Warehouse and dispatchers have to make at least one delivery every 6 months to remember what it's like for the regular drivers. That's why we're always rated as the number one place to deliver to by outside carriers - because our warehouse team knows what it's like to sit in a dock for hours for 3 skids.

[@nancybrannon3863]

That is a good thing. When I was a service desk supervisor, if I was available & my cashiers were busy, I was right there helping bagging items for them, giving them neck rubs to release tension & get them & their customers laughing to ease the stress.

[@amy129]

I’m a medic and this angers me. I’m so glad she put herself first. A month without pay? I hope she goes after them and wins. Chest pain is no joke. I’m so happy she’s doing well. God bless all out you reading this and Merry Christmas 🥰

[@Paradys8]

I agree!👍🏻👍🏻

[@WakkasLove]

God bless you and yours as well! Merry Christmas!!

[@gridley]

The lack of basic common sense, normal courtesy & baseline ethics in today's society is scary. The flip side to the postal carrier being treated like a rag doll are folks running around with an air of self-entitled arrogance. SMH.

[@stghesonetap]

Merry Christmas

[@jadeansumney7060]

She will win...

[@coryc9040]

This seems like a major OSHA violation. The message they are sending by suspending her is that they should not seek medical treatment for emergencies and instead complete their route which could lead to a death that would be on USPS. Especially if they could be shown to have heard about this case and were worried about losing pay. Whoever made the decision to suspend her without pay is guilty of criminal negligence.

[@flagmichael]

I am not an expert on the matter, but research I did for a department safety presentation reveals OSHA only enforces regulations enacted by NIOSH. NIOSH focuses heavily toward physical matters - a can of soda in an ice filled potable water container, for example - and not at all toward interpersonal behaviors.

[@jmswillow5969]

It isn't osha but a labor law violation. She used the company policy and they didn't follow it.

[@FrankWolenczak]

This is like that woman who died at CVS waiting for someone to relieve her for a medical emergency! I'm glad this lady was able to get help! But damn...

[@sophiabennett5676]

Should be sued shame on usps

[@GoonyMclinux]

The entire government treats workers like this.

[@johncrumpley8702]

My personal experience with how sickening USPS "managers" can be came when our local carrier went around the back of an elderly lady's home to see her lying on the floor of her kitchen after suffering a heart attack. He knew the lady always got her mail as soon as it was delivered to the box at the front of her home. On rare occasions, when the woman was going out of town to visit family, she would always tell him to "hold her mail" and filled out the postal form requesting the "hold". When he walked his route and saw the prevous day's mail still in her box and there had been no form or communication from her the previous day, he feared the worst... He was correct. He immediately called 911 and medics entered the house to save the woman's life and took her immediately to the hospital. When the story of the postal worker's reaction that saved her life was on the local news, the postal supervisor immediately suspended the carrier for leaving his route to go around the back of her house. This awful action put the entire neighborhood in the news. It just so happened that one of the neighbors was a local judge who literally went ballistic. The local USPS supervisors tried to stand their ground as they suspended the carrier without pay for thirty days. However, that kind of action further infuriated the entire central Ohio town to the point that the Governor of Ohio stepped into the fray. Needless to say, the USPS backed down. After that, I have had zero respect for anyone in a USPS management position.

[@at0micbunnygirl]

Holy %#&!!! That's insane!!! What town was this? Was this before or after Louis DeJoy was made Postmaster General?

[@ann-jz7bz]

I worked for USPS as a rural carrier and I had some very good managers, but this also doesn't surprise me. I had a route that had a lot of retired folks in a very rural area. Often, we are some of the only contact that people have, and we serve as a kind of community watchdog. I had a very kind postmaster at this small office. There was an older woman living alone in a trailer on my route that asked me if I could help with a stray husky puppy that was sick. She couldn't afford to take her to the vet. It was a light mail day, and I asked my postmaster if I could take the puppy to the closest vet (1 hr drive round trip...so it took 1.5 hrs out of my day, which is A LOT of time for the post office). I did, the puppy tested parvo negative, I came back and delivered the rest of my route on time. I didn't feel good about it though and I took the puppy down to the Emergency Vet in the city. Puppy had parvo. Thankfully a staff member wanted to adopt the puppy. I would've spent 1k, maybe 2 on her but they were talking 5-10k kind of cost for parvo treatment and she still could die. But I don't think she did. It was very early parvo. I took time with older people on my route, especially when delivering cremated remains. There were several occasions when I picked up loose dogs and returned them home (completely against USPS rules and would get me fired). I was working at a very, very rural office. Some of the really small offices are still nice. Amazon has made USPS hell. Small rural offices that don't get pallet drops of Amazon are still humane.

[@lionessprowess3581]

Don’t leave us having. Did the mail carrier get compensated for the days he was suspended?

[@terripebsworth9623]

​@@lionessprowess3581Watch the video til the end.

[@dianamanwaring4794]

Sounds like some of the morons in management where I used to work at USDA.

[@Occupy23]

After working the holiday for USPS I can absolutely say carriers and clerks go through sooo much. It’s not an easy job at all. I hope she gets completely compensated.

[@karenrosales6970]

When I was a carrier, I was suspended for 2 weeks for abusing my sick leave because I had emergency surgery. She needs to see her union shop steward to end this ridiculous crap.

[@Meeleefosterbubbas-bq9ii]

@karenrosales6970 Pls define union shop steward

[@karenrosales6970]

@Meeleefosterbubbas-bq9ii a union shop steward is a representative of the union working on behalf of union members. They work in the same office doing the same job as union members. They represent members in actions against the members.

[@Sara-L]

autocorrect typo. 'She needs to see her union step forward'@@Meeleefosterbubbas-bq9ii

[@dianamanwaring4794]

Agreed. She needs to file a grievance with the union. As for her boss, that person should at least get written up or fired.

[@J-tt1lu]

Wow- the union

[@TheEbulla]

Thank you for doing this story. People are forgetting basic human decency on so many levels. So glad she came forward and stood up for herself. It helps everyone.

[@seanrosenau2088]

​@dharmaslife3361As long as everything is delivered, that's all they care about.

[@Reed-2big]

@dharmaslife3361That’s probably a suspendible offense too, before they figure out the can’t do that either!

[@marianne1959]

USPS is a government agency.... They truly have zero common sense

[@Window4503]

I don’t think they’re even forgetting. More like ignoring. It doesn’t take a doctorate to understand that there are people behind the work especially for mail delivery.

[@KingBreezy777]

This is terrible, and Manager need to be fired and she don’t never need to work for them again. She is not doing her job.

[@benitosalazar3749]

We had the same postman for over 10 years. Super nice guy who all the neighbors loved. He died of a heart attack two years ago, working on his route. This story makes me wonder if he could have been saved. Sounds like poor supervision and policy at work here. Glad she shared this story.

[@Valeperez1000]

I’m definitely positive that his family had to wait a year for his triple indemnity insurance payout!

[@contramachina354]

USPS is a disgusting organization that is utterly disorganized. Due to the disorganization, carrier safety is at risk. The NALC doesn't care. Nobody cares

[@601madwoman5]

His family needs to see this

[@Cylonknight]

Probably has something to do with the government hamstringing the usps in the early 2000s, so that way cooperate entities could take over so the politicians could get their payout from them. USPS used to make profit and used to work better, now because of the bills that were passed, I assume this is the outcome. Not saying it's ok in any way, no corporation or government should be able to hold you liable for taking care of an immediate health emergency. That manager should be fired because that could have cost a life.

[@workingcountry1776]

stressful job with low pay.

[@slcRN1971]

Our eldest daughter let us know over a year in advance, about her wedding date. My husband put immediately in, for leave to attend. As each month went by, he would ask again if his leave (with the USPS) had been approved. Not yet, would be the reply from supervisors and his Post Master General. Finally it was four months before the wedding, he was told that he’d need ‘to call in sick’ to go to the wedding!! He was astonished that they wanted him to lie (he had been working with them for over 13 years). About that time there was an early retirement incentive, so he took that. We attended the wedding as planned, where he walked our daughter down the aisle.

[@mcfrisko834]

My father died of a heart attack while working his mail route with USPS. RIP Pops ❤️

[@tanyeshawilson1864]

So sorry to hear that 😞

[@RichmondStar510]

🙏🏾

[@London4329]

We had a guy fall out unresponsive they didn’t even call 911. They had to wait for approval. Then didn’t allow people to stand beside him…. The manager was yelling keep working. He said there for 45 min then paramedics came. He died but of course the workers who were their were all scared to speak up. I wasn’t at work that day but people quit after seeing how management did a man working there for decades. I left as well. They don’t care about nothing but numbers! The postal service has so many skeletons. They think they are above the LAWS

[@moonshoes11]

Sorry for your loss.

[@TheTrueKat]

I am so sorry for your loss🙏🏻🙏🏻🙏🏻

[@k.w.5329]

That is ridiculous. No response was given because there was no reasonable response to support what they did. She should sue.

[@R.Oates7902]

I think she has a good case. Shame on USPS! They only care about their property, not their people!

[@brendahowe1898]

This lady should sue the hell out of the post office

[@cynthiashaw45]

You can’t sue the post office. She would have to file an EEO and they always win on a technicality. Several years later. The attorney you hire will be offered a bribe. If you can even find one that will take it.

[@1w598]

You can't sue a government agency/organization.

[@DADVICETV]

Thank you for covering this serious story. A persons health is always the top priority and it’s unacceptable the way the USPS responded to this.

[@Paradys8]

EXACTLY!👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻

[@dustinjackson2383]

If you have ever worked for them you would not be shocked

[@AnaDiaz-wz4cf]

True! I absolutely adore my mail lady. She is simply the best and she deserves to be treated with respect and dignity. If this had happen to her I would be so mad.

[@101stairborne6]

@@Paradys8they have suspend her to do an investigation first. I’m not surprised. What if someone broke into the mail truck and stole people’s personal mail. So was the truck locked? Mail is highly sensitive to people. People’s personal information is just as important as their health.

[@motorcitylady13]

Yet if she continued to drive and had a heartache driving into someone....... even a child or children...... she would have been held accountable, and most definitely fired and charged for not being a responsible driver. Thank you for being more considerate of both safety for yourself and the public. The suspension should go to the management! Thank you to every one of the people who work so hard to get packages to us every day. Not just Christmas.

[@caspianblue4141]

I hope a really good attorney comes forward to help her!

[@ovniusa15]

Yeah pro boner

[@mikewurlitzer5217]

You realize a "good attorney" is a contradiction in terms? America's most dishonest and despicable professionals, lawyers, lawyer politicians, lawyer justices.

[@pauladuncanadams1750]

USPS is union. They have lawyers to represent employees when needed. No need for an ambulance chaser or pro Bono. And she doesn't have to pay. This is what unions do.

[@kenjackson264]

​@pauladuncanadams1750 The union is absolutely useless when you have a serious problem. They will negotiate for you but it's not always what you want, I have tire tracks from the bus they put me under.

[@ThorOdinson-s8m]

@@pauladuncanadams1750they weren’t any help. I mean off for a month?? They’re only there for their own self interest just like politicians. This isn’t 1950 anymore. This is the era of me me me.

[@LynneAnn51]

Absolutely disgusting, shame on the USPS. 😡😡🤬🤬

[@EmpressKai]

Some people don't need to be in a position with authority. They have absolutely no knowledge of how to use it❤

[@HummaKavula-DontVoteForStupid]

Not so much shame on the USPS. Shame on that supervisor. The USPS trained her on what to do. It’s not the USPS’ fault that the supervisor is a total incompetent.

[@Walrus101]

And shame on you for blaming an entire organization for one person's actions

[@whitneymcclendon16]

Ooo better watch out. They'll withhold your mail for sassing them.

[@tamarahaislip5985]

Trump's buddy. He ran DHL in ground now he is doing the same with an institution that's hundreds of year old.

[@vuittonet666]

I've been working for the USPS for about 3 years and can verify this story. I'm an RCA which is a part time position, but the office I work in is so understaffed and overwhelmed that the three of us have had 90+ hours weeks without time off. When brought up to management about safety concerns when we are working 14 to 16 hour days they shrug it off and ignore our health concerns and just tell us to stay until the job gets done. My heart goes out to this city carrier and glad she seeked help on her own, because the higher ups truly don't care about our well-being as much as they care about their image of getting things done.

[@MsDropofrain]

and can you imagine if one of your teammates was placed on LWOP for no apparent reason during this time? shameful

[@pearlsswine]

"I kant beleeb dat my boz dun ker bowt me, he onlee ker bowt his jub" You're shocked that the world doesn't treat you like your mommy did.

[@JWRay-xh9wl]

There's nothing here that can be used as an excuse by any supervisor. Nothing. If they can't do their job,they need to find another one. This could have cost a life.

[@stuffeyemake6506]

ya , i know how you feel . i work as a clerk in operations . our plant has already had at least 2 live shooter incidents . the first one was a vehicle mechanic that was badgered to the point that he snapped and brought a gun in and tried to shoot his supervisors . they had been harassing him nonstop over taking time off to care for his wife who was dying of cancer . the second one was a murder suspect had jumped the fence and ran through the plant with police running after him . he had killed a convenience store clerk the month prior . rather than announce "active shooter" so that we could all rush out to safety , they announced "turn off your machines and exit the building ." it can take up to 3 minutes for some of the machines to shut off . they didnt care if 200 people went home in bodybags as long as their production numbers werent hurt (which is why we had to shut the machines off so the timers would stop and it wouldnt hurt the throughput numbers.) they had a town meeting the next week where they made it pretty clear they didnt care and were NOT going to do anything differently . but what i have come to realize is that when we have the "active shooter" topic in a weekly stand up , it means they had ANOTHER person either making threats , or some one was caught with a gun on them or in their vehicle .

[@LadyMaeloraBeesbury]

I feel so bad when I hear stories of ppl working these long hours when they don't want too. Why force ppl when you have young childless workers like my friends and I who would gladly take those hrs, but they don't want to pay us the OT. They force you guys to work when you don't want to to cut the OT hours (you said you're already PT), then get mad when the employees need time for themselves. We're people, not robots or just figures on a spreadsheet!

[@Mathewmatic]

I once witnessed a postal worker experiencing what looked like a panic attack outside of my duplex. Shortly thereafter, a half dozen other postal workers showed up, transferred her mail to their vehicles, and departed. The whole thing lasted less than ten minutes. Ms. Brooks could have and should have been treated better during her emergency.

[@kenhuffman9306]

My Dad worked for USPS about 50 years ago, and while working, he was suffering from chest pains, and a neighbor saw him and called 911, then called me. He was taken to hospital where he stayed for 7 days,he didn't have a truck back in those days mail was delivered by walking to deliver mail. I took his mail bag and gave it to his boss and his boss accused me of stealing so I called the hospital and they told his boss what happened. They tried to accuse my Dad of giving the USPS false Information about his health. My Dad hired a lawyer to get his job back and 2 years later he was awarded a sum of money. Most people think thst the USPS is easy job, think twice because nowadays you are constantly being watched

[@JuanGarcia-fw4bn]

It is an easy job,drive,walk,deliver,drive,walk deliver,pepper spray for dogs if needed....where is the difficult part?

[@michelleflores3956]

@@JuanGarcia-fw4bn It is not an easy job!! How dare you!

[@thamertanner5448]

​@@michelleflores3956my dad was a mail carrier and it was the easiest job ever. He drove around in his own car. Never had an issue. I really think it depends on location, we are in a very rural area.

[@donaldewing7405]

The mechanics of the job aren't the hard part. The inflexible rules, the union atmosphere, the management willingness to fight and dispute any situation and fire people for infractions make the job just hell on earth.

[@JuanGarcia-fw4bn]

@@michelleflores3956 yeah,not easy wink,wink. We know the truth though.

[@donknupp8864]

As a retired postal employee i can tell you that nothing is more important to postal management than its own bureaucracy and covering its own "behind" - and that even includes moving the mail. The general public will likely have trouble accepting this but those of us who have worked or still do work for USPS know this to be true😢

[@xlerb2286]

I don't have any trouble believing it. My mom worked as a clerk for a government agency for about 25 years. The individuals are almost all hard workers (maybe frustrated and tired from dealing with the bureaucracy though). Immediate managers often are also good and have the worker's backs. Above that it goes downhill fast. I'd imagine the USPS is about the same.

[@delilah9334]

I don't have any trouble believing this. The term going postal came about for a reason

[@lym3204]

The supervisor is in deep sh!t for not covering her own behind. Upper management cracks down on the supervisor who responds by placing the carrier on unpaid leave but we know that the carrier will get her money eventually and this did not help in advancing the supervisor's career. The supervisor is more worried now than the carrier because the carrier did everything correctly even though she did not do everything possible such as calling in.

[@zekemedia1310]

@@xlerb2286 Totally agree with you. I Worked and retired from a state government agency and ran into the things you mentioned.

[@PunguinYoga]

I believe you. Most bureaucracies seem to be like that.

[@richardbeckenbaugh1805]

You can also be fired or suspended for being the victim of a crime. An arena worker from my city was fired for being shot during a carjacking and although he survived, he lost his job because he was “involved” in a carjacking. The union went to bat for him and found out that federal law allows employers to fire or discipline employees who are victims of crime. While researching this, our lawyer found multiple instances of postal workers who were fired after they became victims of crime both on and off the job.

[@princessmarlena1359]

That’s horrible! This country’s labor laws suck. And yet these employers whine that no one wants to work anymore.

[@ablemagawitch]

That sounds like Charlotte IASTE Local 322 behavior, which city and state or union name local number. Don't be afraid to name shame bad ones.

[@allyrose6437]

​@@ablemagawitchagreed

[@allyrose6437]

That's fucked up

[@strawberryme08]

It’s like people have no logic anymore!

[@markanthony1004]

I remember working for AT&T and I was doing an install at a home full of kids and the parents doing drugs in the home while Theo grandmother just didn’t seem to care. I called CPS and reported it because I told them I won’t finish this install while they’re doing meth inside the apartment. Well apparently AT&T don’t like when we report things so before they could fire me I spoke with the union and resigned. That pissed me off to no end but hey I went back to school and I work in the medical field now and those kids were taken out of the home to live with relatives who have their crap together, thankfully

[@mambi74]

There was a walking mail carrier that died a few months back in AZ on somebody's property... This type of punishment for having a medical emergency is criminal.

[@gloriayouchisonbrown7734]

She got her job back because they were afraid of a lawsuit Thanks for the article ❤️

[@reubensandwich9249]

Actually no. She's in the postal workers union. When you do a major workplace violation the postal service places you on emergency leave without pay, in accordance with article 16-7 of the National Agreement. When your suspension is lifted, in accordance with article 16-7, you return to work.

[@roylavecchia1436]

@@reubensandwich9249 What "major workplace violation" did she commit?

[@reubensandwich9249]

@@roylavecchia1436 From Article 16-7, "failure to observe safety rules and regulations...loss of mail or funds". Listening to the story, the latter of the two is what got her in more hot water. Although she also probably didn't follow their emergency procedure or call off procedure also.

[@matttaylor817]

The union will fight on her behalf and will most likely fix the issue and get her missing pay. There's a lot of managers out there that don't understand the union agreement and make bad decisions. The union puts them in their place.

[@rinlo1424]

​@@reubensandwich9249 She did exactly what she was supposed to do. She sent her supervisor an email through the appropriate system to tell them what was happening. She waited for a reply but didn't get one. THEN she called 911. The person who should have been suspended without pay is her supervisor.

[@pamelacaro8556]

We don’t realize what these mail carriers go through. Praying for her ❤

[@altha-rf1et]

they could not pay me enough to do that job

[@ann-jz7bz]

@@ContentRemoved___ HA! Easy job? It's a simple concept but one of the hardest jobs you'll ever do. Try it. Most people don't make it a month. The volume of mail that you are expected to deliver is outrageous.

[@leelew.1462]

My mail carrier looks miserable when he comes through. I want to tell him so bad if it's not a bill, letter from someone. Throw it away. Majority of the junk mail, credit card advertising, and coupons goes straight to the trash soon as I get it out of the mailbox.

[@JacksonTerrier]

@@ContentRemoved___ easy? My mom has trained quite a few people during her tenure. The ones that quit the fastest? Ex military. And even they said being in the military was easier than being a carrier. So please, on the next 101 degree day, volunteer to take your carriers route. Or drive thru the next ice storm. Or even a bright, sunny cool day. If the weather doesn’t make you drop dead, the people passing you on blind corners nearly causing a head on collision will.

[@altha-rf1et]

@@leelew.1462 hate all that junk mail wish people could opp out from getting it

[@Opforvideo2]

Worked for the Post Office for 26 years, loved my route, loved the job, loved my customers and co-workers, had to quit because of the organization.

[@DawnAltaLove]

As a retired Postal Worker (Window Clerk), I can see this happening. My question is, did she lock her truck? All management cares about is was the mail secure and delivered. They really don't care if you're sick, injured, etc; their first duty is to secure the mail. I retired way too early, because I had an abusive Postmaster. She didn't know much about delivering mail, in fact, she WOULD NOT deliver mail, that was NOT her job, but she had firing people down to a science. It is management that makes or breaks a local post office. I'm glad this carrier is ok, and back on the job, but they seriously need to look into the management at her office. Oh and another thing. To the Postal Service, you are just a body, and can be replaced. My friend who was a carrier, was murdered, (murder/suicide-I went to her house because she didn't show up for work, etc). Her mail was delivered that day and her position was filled within the week. If this woman would have had a heart attack on the job, they would have rolled her body over to make sure they had all the mail and have someone else start delivering it before they call EMS. I'm sorry, the more I think about it, the angrier I get.

[@jeffwade1107]

This whole thing is a bit confusing. Where was her union rep while all this was going on? As far as I know the USPS is still unionized right?

[@hollyshope5814]

As a former Injury Comp employee for the USPS, if she had died on her route they'd be paying her family compensation until her heirs died. Guess they don't care about the bottom line either.😢

[@ann-jz7bz]

I left the post office for the absence of work-life balance, but I had some very cool postmasters (and some bad ones). The good postmasters that carriers respected would deliver the mail. Really, everyone is supposed to deliver mail if it's necessary! We had 3 city carriers busted by postal inspectors for putting deliverable mail in UBBM at one office I worked at and the clerks and postmaster were out doing their routes!

[@Pathite]

@@jeffwade1107 The union for the rural carriers are basically nonexistent. Their stations get no steward and have to instead call one at the city carrier station, who doesn't know the full situation and can't help very much unless there are several other carriers also filing statements. That also means there's no union steward to contract related questions, leaving it fully up to the carriers to search through the hefty contract themselves and try to interpret it as best they can, which no one really has time to do, except on their own off-time. Depending on the local union too, they could also be corrupt and choose not to help or defend the employee in question, for any number of reasons. That goes for all the other union crafts too.

[@leelew.1462]

Ma'am f*** that truck. She had chest pains. Possibly a heart attack and because she's black put a raggedy truck before her health?

[@21KJH]

I'm glad she's ok. I had the same exact symptoms as she did, and it was a blood clot in my leg that had broken up and went to my lungs. I spent a week in the hospital. In a medical emergency, time is of the essence.

[@traveler320ak7]

I’m glad you are ok!!!

[@beverlyweber4122]

You survived! My husband died from this same thing back in 2015.

[@MamaJLW]

It’s amazing that you survived. A thrown blood clot that moves into the lungs is usually fatal. I’m glad you got help.

[@MamaJLW]

@@beverlyweber4122 I’m so sorry you lost your sweetheart.

[@21KJH]

Thank you.@@MamaJLW

[@Chilidog335]

As a USPS employee, I am not surprised at this- I have had to cancel several doctors appointments because of “ needs of the service , “ understaffing is a huge problem.

[@Charlotte-wx4jz]

This sounds just like the UK Royal Mail service.

[@HarambeKojima]

They treat their employees like crap, so, I can totally see this.

[@dianebrady6784]

It will CONTINUE to be an issue until postal workers are seen as HUMANS.....not robots or slaves.

[@BrentARJ]

It will continue to be an issue until politicians and their wealthy donors lose the fight to privatize the USPS and they are properly funded again. And if anyone thinks this wouldn't happen, or wouldn't be even worse as a for-profit corporation, have you seen how Amazon treats its employees?

[@TherdsGeorge]

And the ones that do work there are a bunch of morons!!! 🤷🏿‍♀️

[@yourguidetorights3909]

Retired from PO. They are a joke. Management is a joke. Hope she sues their arse.

[@p0pp4]

For those unfamiliar with how the "management vs union" conflicts work at the USPS: after she got her letter normally she would go to her union steward and they would file a grievance. The grievance procedure consists of 4 “steps”. Step-1 where an individual meets and discusses the issue with their supervisor, Step-2 where an union official meets with a Postal Service official if the issue was not resolved at step-1, Step-3 where a national APWU representative meets with an area postal official if resolution does not occur at step-2, and Step-4 finally, binding arbitration in front of a neutral arbitrator selected jointly by the parties to hear the grievance. I have little doubt she'll eventually win this and when it's over she'll get back pay, including overtime. But it can take time. I knew a carrier who went 2 years before he won his grievance but he got a full payout for those years in the end.

[@BerzerkaDurk]

regarding step 1, one should _NEVER_ speak to a supervisor on a potential disciplinary issue without a union rep.

[@joseph1150]

The Union reps should have been involved from pretty much the get go given the nature of the incompetence on management

[@IamHischild-Is54]

if she's smart, she will just get an personal injury attorney and make them pay for their negligence.. NEVER have to work again! This was a threat to her LIFE...and THEY need to be fired immediately. Something similar happened to me in L.A. California...I won...and they paid.

[@funnyfarm5555]

And the big thing to remember is that it takes time to work through the grievance process. I, being a USPS ex shop steward (retired) believe she will win her case. I just hope that she asked 'to be made whole again not limited to....... ' With that statement in your remedy, if you find something that somebody missed paying her it makes it easier to get. They did not have the scanners with the texting ability when I retired, but as normal with the USPS she was probably able to text, but it would go to the supervisors computer and not a cell phone or a scanner that the supervisor never had at which point the supervisor would have to log onto her computer to see it. I retired at age 60; 5 years longer than I needed to stay and I decided that after we had a temporary 'Officer in Charge' that liked to hold onto payroll accounting paperwork till the last day, an hour before I was supposed to leave and would not force the other person that was supposed to help do it to take the required training. The straw that made me leave is that I signed up for two weeks of annual leave to go to the east coast and Niagara Falls. She up and told me 3 weeks prior, i could only have one week of it . I told her; Keep the other week too I will be retiring at the end of the month, and I did.

[@SweetTea-Stephens]

unions suck and this is why

[@fecklesstech929]

I'm a military instructor. I always ask my trainees about their lives before they joined the armed forces. A young E-1 told me she had been a postal clerk. I was amazed! I said "you quit the USPS for boot camp"? She replied she'd rather start her professional life over again than continue her career in USPS. She said every bad thing I ever heard about working for the postal service is true, except that it's even worse.

[@DDee-oi6kn]

God be with this woman and let her get her job back. Companies don't care about their employees anymore, especially good employees.

[@vell5052]

She should sue so she’ll never have to work for careless people another day in her life

[@SamLopezI]

I retired from post office over 20 years and was not surprised. Postal management has no accountability!

[@veganpotterthevegan]

When did big business care about their employees outside of rare anecdotes?

[@NativeAmericanSwag]

Amen 🙏

[@s.e.rolfllc354]

Your comment couldn't more truthful. The companies are all about speed and production. Customer service employees experience the same kind of treatment.

[@pamyuhnke8143]

Thank you for highlighting this story!

[@Crash_Linux]

I had an instance where I totaled my truck because someone ran me off the road and the police refused to let me file a police report. Their reasoning was “you left the scene of an accident.” First off, a police officer drive by the accident. Didn’t stop. An older couple did stop. They drove me to the ambulance station where my family works. The ambulance took me to the ER where I was admitted for 4 days in the critical care unit for fracturing 3 ribs and my sternum. Also had cuts on my head, arms and legs and a huge hematoma on my inner thigh. I was under the care of a general surgeon for a couple months after I was released. Apparently, you are not allowed to go to the ER, even if you’re dying from a car accident unless you talk the cops first.

[@lisaivey8392]

Or the driver that ran you off THE ROAD & caused The wreck was a spouse friend or relative of the theirs. d​@@princessmarlena1359

[@TRene-up9zq]

@@princessmarlena1359not true… only if it was fatal or caused serious harm and injury to another . You do not have to call the police to an accident scene by law unless it’s fatal etc … so no they wouldn’t have arrested her . But she should’ve called 911 and waited for medic. Her story is sus and missing something. Cause why would you leave?

[@TRene-up9zq]

Why didn’t you call the police ? Thats accident 101. And just because an officer drove by doesn’t mean he’s entitled to stop when there was no call ….he could’ve been en route to another call.

[@princessmarlena1359]

@@TRene-up9zq oh, I see…it’s different where I’m from.

[@ronv6637]

Do you now own a police dept because the lawsuit should be enormous. The pigs have one responsibility and that is to file reports per USSC

[@cynthiashaw45]

I worked for USPS 32 years and endured harassment to retire. They are some cold stone wall takers of leave pay or on the job injuries too. They made up stuff to take from retirement 2 years later. I feel your frustration and pain that you mean so little to them. ❤ I am also in NC. Management is never held responsible or accountable for the inhumane actions

[@ronswansonsdog2833]

More people should know about this.

[@BoltRM]

My guess is likely her supervisor dropped the ball in not responding to her emergency & then tried to blame her.

[@fremontpathfinder8463]

The sad part is those who are age discriminating will get older themselves.

[@tricatfilms6136]

DEI hires ruined our postal system in Chicago. The feds had to come to arrest 7 of them for stealing our packages and CCs out of the mail. They pressured all the veterans (WHO WERE QUALIFIED) to retire.

[@cynthiashaw45]

@@fremontpathfinder8463 I was 55 with 30 years when a younger coworker wanted me to bid out because she didn’t want to be the one excessed and send back to the night shift. They let her linger for 8 months harassing me daily. I am not the only one pushed out the door of retirement. They can make work a hellscape.

[@ItstheCarolinashow]

The post office picks and chooses who gets away with things and who gets disciplined .

[@rentslave]

So too do the inspectors. At the NJI&BMC in the 1990's,they let slide a supervisor who was well connected for being involved in a group stealing computers from the mail.

[@justsayingforafriend7010]

If you're a slacker you get treated that way!!!

[@Trund27]

@@justsayingforafriend7010what does this mean? How is this relevant?

[@answerman9933]

@@Trund27 It is relevant because known slackers are given less consideration for their complaints.

[@ItstheCarolinashow]

@@justsayingforafriend7010 I’m Mexican my husband is white we walk in at the same time clock in at the same time . I got written up he did not. So I’m a Mexican slacker he is a white privileged man!

[@nicoleortiz9884]

usps is a terrible place to work. my dad was a carrier for years, retired even. Once during 100+ temperatures he fainted on his route. People saw and called 911, he was taken by ambulance to the ER. He had hit his face pretty bad when he fainted. The post office refused to see this as work related and did not cover any of it under workers comp. He went to the union and everything and they denied him.

[@ae2948]

Thank you WBTV for taking up her story. The USPS would NOT have done the right thing otherwise. They have a history of instantly firing anyone who gets sick or injured on the job.

[@MissyMuthaTruckiN]

they called the cops on me when i tried to resign, said i was "tresspassing" because i tried to quit. un fucking believable

[@SybilKibble]

Am sorry to hear. My father worked for them and I believe you. The hardest job with the worst managers.@@MissyMuthaTruckiN

[@dicky7600]

The union doesn't allow that

[@andreariegler]

​@@dicky7600if they haven't negotiated for it, it doesn't exist in their eyes

[@travishanson166]

It is very difficult to get fired from the post office unless you are a non-career employee. Even then it's not exactly easy and requires merit.

[@Raytheking6]

This sums up my experience working at the post office. They do not treat you like you are human. They treat you worse than an animal.

[@kareemwatts3653]

They treat us like trash here in MD also

[@bikiniluvnguy1]

same here in TN@@kareemwatts3653

[@illyrian4life]

@@kareemwatts3653 In Ct too

[@Romans1.24-27]

Most jobs are that way beyond the facade

[@ann-jz7bz]

@@Romans1.24-27 It's next level with USPS. I worked every day of December but Christmas, and those were 6:30am to sometimes 10 or 11 p.m. days...

[@pcl8993]

That's crazy and totally unexceptable! I've been a mail carrier for 17 years and management always tells us in any kind of emergency to call 911 first and then your supervisor second. She should definitely not been suspended for even one day let alone a month. Someone in management needs to be held responsible for allowing this to happen. I would go the the postmaster of her area directly!

[@mychinapig]

9 I By

[@good4jg]

I was there for 18 years and, like you said, they TOLD us to be safe, take care of the customers, and take care of ourselves, but WANTED us to finish our routes as quickly as (superhumanly) possible. One time, I took the bait - I pushed myself into heat exhaustion. I visited the doctor's office and called in the next day after the doctor told me that I couldn't work for three days. Upon my return to work, the supervisor's boss was waiting to issue discipline to me for 'irregular attendance'. Grieving that discipline only led to more battles. About ten years later, my wife told me it was okay to retire early because she could see the effects of that toxic work environment. It seems as if she may endure a similar fate - if she's able to hold on that long.

[@johnnyrocco]

I retired from the post office; the public has no idea of all the crazy stuff management did. I saw them suspend a left-handed person for not using his right hand to process the mail. The rule book said you did it with right hand, so had to follow the rules. They also never fired a lazy worker; they promoted them into management.

[@darlener824]

The lazy ones almost always went into management. I retired after 35 years as a clerk , they'd hire in, sucked up to a supervisor and the next thing they were a 204B. I had a few supervisors that were decent people but some were just terrible hateful humans

[@johnnyrocco]

You nailed it.@@darlener824

[@RJTC]

It's very common in big businesses for incompetents to be promoted, so they are someone else's problem, rather than just be fired. That's why there are so many lazy, vile and incompetent mangers in such positions!

[@gotchagee3315]

Yep I saw this too.

[@thelovelysherrie]

Facts

[@choleluvstoshop8134]

Thank you for timely, spot on reporting. The USPS employee deserves full support.

[@teishahickman2108]

So...A police officer gets paid leave when they are suspected of murdering someone, but a mailperson get suspended without pay for being suspected of abandoning their truck...Got it.

[@nooshinscorner]

Thanks to our lovely Postmaster General that was appointed by a sitting President! Yay! Let's all guess who that competetant President was! 😎

[@michellethomas4928]

This‼️

[@1398go]

Police should also have tried to contact her supervisor(s) or some how sent a message to their HR department about this being a medical emergency. If need be, get a doctor’s note.

[@dominiquealisemerlano2590]

My dad was a mail carrier for ovr 30 yrs he is finally retired. Our postal service workers do so much and work so hard and are never thanked enough. Love u daddy ❤

[@janofb]

Not "how are you feeling", but "where's the truck?"

[@MissChelle857]

Sounds like it’s time for her to lawyer up and sue tf out of these nasty people. She could have been suffering a heart attack and possibly died. Absolutely disgusting

[@woodstream6137]

They didn't deny her medical and force her to keep working. The problem was suspending her for leaving the truck because they dropped the ball.

[@pauladuncanadams1750]

USPS is union. They have lawyers to represent employees when needed.

[@cillamoke]

For sure darl, these big corporations need to be made accountable

[@jacksonrelaxin3425]

@@pauladuncanadams1750 apparently not in this case

[@pauladuncanadams1750]

@@jacksonrelaxin3425 I didn't hear anything in this story that indicated that she filed a grievance with the union. You have to do that first.

[@Cfomodz]

Thank you for covering this. This is life-ruining and the kind of thing that is only fixed when attention is brought to the problem. We can not have things like this happen and everyone just move along as though it isn't a huge injustice.

[@nubkaaj7225]

Ex postal carrier here. If you send a message through the scanner management will ONLY be able to see it if they go into the app. So most of the time they won't get a notification. Most if not all communication is done on cell phones. They train us to communicate through the scanner but that usually never happens, so that's why the supervisor didn't know. It's great she messaged them on the scanner because then it's logged into the system and it can be used against Management if something bad happens.

[@lym3204]

The first action should have been to call the supervisor with your cell phone then if there was no response leave the scanner message. Then try if able to contact the supervisor over the phone throughout the day to confirm if the message was acknowledged. Just leaving the scanner message and forgetting about it invites this type of situation to occur. Similarly, if your truck breaks down and you leave a scanner message you don't want to be stranded out there all day with no help coming so you use your cell phone to contact someone.

[@nubkaaj7225]

@lym3204 yes i definitely agree however Management is supposed to read scanner messages because there's been times I've been on a route and my phone was so close to dying that if my phone were to die, my scanner would've been the only way to contact management. I was in the office once and heard management scold one of the CCAs for using the scanner to communicate because he said that they manually have to check those messages where as cell phone they are notified right away when they get a call or text. The post office city carrier acadamy literally teaches us to communicate on the scanner so it's management's fault for not checking their messages.

[@2muchboobz]

Even if she didn’t check the text messages she would have seen on the scanner it’s been sitting in one spot for 6 hours. Even if she took the scanner with her they would have got notifications she’s out of route and sitting in one spot. They get notifications if a carrier has been sitting over 30 min in one spot. Should have raised flags

[@joshyoung5160]

This happens all the time with them. My mother almost lost her pension cause she hurt her back on the job and they fought for 2 years before she was able to get SOME of it. USPS is the worst.

[@Thunder_Dome45]

Call your Union Rep. And a lawyer.

[@janm2able]

From what my husband had told me when he worked there, I can believe this happened. I’m so glad he’s retired now.

[@dovebair]

Awesome work! This is exactly the kind of community oriented news and investigative reporting I want to see!

[@HH-kg4fq]

100%

[@Alicia_1970]

Omg that’s ridiculous. I’m glad she’s ok and was able to go back to work. I hope she gets paid for her suspension.

[@ramonhernandez1623]

She will. Her union will make sure of it. It’ll be quickly since it was on the news. They’re not going to apologize for what they did. Despicable

[@moondancer334]

Agreed. She deserves a nice bonus as well for the stress she's been under for the past month, through no fault of her own

[@leelew.1462]

It's still the principle. I would work, but be looking for another career. F*** USPS.

[@leelew.1462]

​@@ramonhernandez1623unions aren't s***. They just collect money out of our paycheck.

[@GlamGadz]

This is insane! I hope she is able to sue for what happened. There was a postal carrier in TX that died this summer as a result of the brutal heat. He probably was scared to do as she did for fear of retaliation. The managers and HR person who approved should be fired ASAP! People are some heartless bastards. I thought it was just in corporate America, but I see its across industries. Infuriating!

[@a-b0t633]

I was today years old when I learned you can message the office with the scanner. I've worked there for 4 years now and nobody has told me we could do that. But the response from management doesn't surprise me. They'll probably fire me when I pass out in the stairs to an apartment for not telling anyone I'm unconscious.

[@curtissly439]

I have been a mail carrier for 26 years. I recently had multiple stressful situations that forced me to call out sick. Only used sick leave once before in 26 years. I have a years' worth of sick leave. They took my vacation time even though I had a doctors' excuse to be off a week due to stress. We have some hateful supervisors / postmasters.

[@princessmarlena1359]

Exactly. My brothers and friends told me it’s not hard to be fired from the post office in your first few months, the postbastards and stupidvisors are evil and find every excuse to single you out.

[@garycarpenter2980]

If she was having an emergency she should call 911... what is wrong with that... without pay that's not fair...if I were her I'd sue the company or go somewhere else

[@nooshinscorner]

The thing is, she is not simply "Suing a company". USPS is a Federal Entity; not a company. If this news station hadn't stepped in, chances to sue the goverment are quiet slim. If she loses, she has to pay all court costs including the lawyers. She doesn't have that kind of money.

[@lql1094]

​@@nooshinscornerI'm glad she contacted the news, and she should still at least inquire with a lawyer. It's sickening to know how much mistreatment government entities get away with.

[@nunyadambusiness3530]

There are lawyers that won't make you pay a dime if you don't win. Only if you do. Please research more on Lawyers!! It's how I got my settlements for Wrecks, Medical Injuries, Crappy Employers, and eventually my Disability & SSI. Then again, I'm in Florida now, and the lawyer industry is BIG here. Not sure how much has changed up there since then.@@nooshinscorner

[@nunyadambusiness3530]

Especially if you're not in a State that has good lawyers.@@lql1094

[@nooshinscorner]

@@lql1094 Agreed. But how to find one that does pro bono and will only take money if you win? I don't know how to. Do you?

[@JustMe-dn9fh]

The supervisor wants to cover her behind and her own job. She neglected the workers emergency and then turned around and suspended the postal worker for being sick.

[@clarkclarke]

You know they probably do this all the time ... I guess a lot of folk just don't talk about their "abuse" cause it is abuse ...

[@JaneDoe-tr5xy]

TY for coving this story so this mail carrier could get her job back.

[@WaitingxInxSilence]

A month without pay is enough to ruin a person. Most of us are one paycheck away from not paying rent.

[@kellyburns5032]

The postal service is “broken” because those in charge don’t want it to work. This type of cold, uncaring, unbusinesslike behavior is no surprise. I hope the supervisor who made this ridiculous decision against the employee is held accountable. Likely, that won’t happen. ☹️

[@TisEyerish1]

This is absolutely disgraceful. I hope that she's received all her back-pay by now and I also hope that those who ignored her messages have been penalized for doing so. Good luck to her!

[@jessicaroth9662]

Not surprising at all. My husband is a letter carrier and had to go through investigative interviews for absences during a severe tooth infection that had him in the ER, even though he provided documentation for all dental visits and the ER visit.

[@johnaltobello5095]

Now they will look for any excuse to either fire her or suspend her again

[@lyianx]

Yep. They will be scrutinizing everything she does, and if she breaks a rule one little bit.. even those they typically ignore, they will punish her for it. Just because she brought attention to their fuck up.

[@clarkclarke]

So weird all these big corporations like this.... Why are the CEO etc getting paid all this $$ WHY... If they don't want TO DO THE WORK and have the the system operating the way it should let someone else do it ..GET OUT OF THE WAY ....

[@socialbutrflie]

So basically they failed to do their job by responding to her notification that she was having a medical emergency and blamed it on her. SMDH.

[@katcraig7525]

Yep. That's exactly how it sounds.

[@regigill7186]

I used to work at the post office and I quit because of supervisors like this. Once time I hurt my back at work and was off for a 3 months. The post office literally called my doctor and tried to pressure him into releasing me to come back to work but he was having NONE of it. He told them He would release me to come back when my back was healed. About a year later when I was pregnant, I started having issues early on in the pregnancy and was at risk of having a miscarraige, so I had to be put on bedrest during the 1st trimester. When I called in, my supervisor actually suggested rather than go thru all that, I should just take care of it now since it was still so early. I quit during that phone call.

[@serenityinhim]

As a Social Worker at a State run employment center many of my old clients whom were mail carriers started with the same symptoms chest pains. They were diagnosed with heart conditions… then fired. Mail carriers is such a physically difficult job! The laws need to be changed to have them work less hours. Walking 8 miles a day is insane totally inhumane! That supervisor should be fired what a jerk! ❤

[@sharongagnist6428]

If there is a medical emergency call 911. It is sad and sickening what this woman had to go through. I appreciate USPS drivers (although I normally just get junk mail). I hope ALL workers are safe and healthy all year.

[@CarriedAwayWithDolls]

This is disgusting of USPS to treat this individual this way! What an absolute disgrace! They may have hired her back but they dropped the ball grossly on this. If i were her, id sue them. Thats probably why they hired her back, to avoid a multi million dollar lawsuit. Whoever fired her are the ones who should be getting the boot!

[@benwagner5089]

Not fired, just suspended, but yeah. They are very exposed on this one and she better get a heck of a "Christmas bonus" to cover a month off of work.

[@MissyMuthaTruckiN]

this sh*t happens so much, this is only 1 story most get silenced or the cops called. the USPS is ROTTEN, it's not this grand job everyone believes, the stupidvisors and post masters are bullies and a lot of suicides happen that never get talked about

[@DesertHobbit]

This doesn’t surprise me I used to work for the US post office, and it was horrible. They would constantly remind me that they could let me go at any time during my 90 days. Also I was encouraged by other city assistant carriers to not take my lunch and only I have one day off a week. I’m glad I no longer work at the post office. There are much more worse stories than this

[@lani1life]

She needs to file an eeoc complaint asap!

[@marymac674]

Thank you for reporting on this! Look what good came from this exposure!❤️

[@WildlifeWarrior-cr1kk]

Nothing good came from this nothing is going to happen to the post office

[@julianachandler2975]

This is outrageous. She’s only back because of your report. Good job making that happen. She should certainly be paid every penny that she’s owed. They are lucky to have her.

[@seanrhone5306]

Sounds like the supervisor is trying to cya!

[@mangographics225]

Supervisor should be reprimanded!

[@crystalhernandez1819]

A former retired USPS employee sent me this and I cried watching this because I feel for her. I am a current Postal Clerk. In the response to everyone asking “why didn’t the supervisor respond?” and “why was she suspended?” and “why didn’t her supervisor get suspended?” and “I hope she gets her money.”…….Although I do pray she gets paid especially with the holidays, they will come up with some bs to not pay her and will get away with it. And if you try to sue USPS you need a Federal Lawyer and most federal lawyers will not represent you unless you have already filed an EEO. Which is a whole other process. Her supervisor didn’t respond bc her supervisor was probably not at the office bc they didn’t feel like coming in or was too busy taking care of person shit while on the clock to pay attention to there employee. The carrier was suspended bc the supervisor had to cover their ass and make someone accountable but themselves. And the supervisors never get in trouble for anything. They can have sex in the office get caught and continue the next day like nothing happened. Plain and simple USPS doesn’t give a shit about their employees. The ones that work hard get shit on and the ones that are lazy and kiss ass get whatever they want. All upper management cares about if scans were on time and that you don’t work over time and that you can handle the office alone so they can just sit on their ass and let the office run its self and get paid six figures. And if you try to go over your supervisor it doesn’t matter bc nothing will happen to them bc everyone in management covers up for each other. Don’t even think you can go to Postal Inspectors because they are all together it’s all one big circle and who you know. So in the end there is absolutely no one you can turn to and if you do expect retaliation.

[@DRicketts]

She can and should file a grievance with the union

[@thingserik7269]

I feel like i've known for decades not to work for the postal service. Thought it was public knowledge

[@MissyMuthaTruckiN]

finally some common sense, ppl that have never worked at the USPS don't "get it"

[@crystalhernandez1819]

@@DRicketts The Union will do nothing as well, they may get this incident removed from her record but that’s it. Unless she has a good rep with a backbone that will fight but I honestly sadly doubt it. They’ll check if she’s signed up and if she’s paying dues first and if she isn’t they may ask her to sign up for them to represent her, even though they should represent her regardless. They want their money too. But from experience if the Union was gonna help her they would of the moment she was served suspension papers not wait a month.

[@crystalhernandez1819]

@@thingserik7269 lol no way! I think you only know this craziness if you or a family member has worked for the Postal Service and they’ve given you the whole “inside scoop”.

[@juliej5917]

Thank you, Claire from WBTV. That story is ludicrous and completely unfair. That woman looked fit and healthy; had she not listened to her body and gone to the hospital who knows what might’ve happened. Thank you for following up with the post office and allowing that lovely woman to get her job back. Shame on the supervisor who suspended her.

[@Paradys8]

Yes!👍🏻👍🏻

[@matthewfusco2835]

As a carrier myself this does not surprise me. They say one thing and do the opposite. They say they don’t want you to work if sick or injured but if you call out, even if you are under doctor’s orders they don’t care and will try to discipline you. Oh, and better not get hurt on the job, I don’t know anyone who has gotten hurt on the job who hasn’t had to fight to get workers comp because the post office denied it.

[@Angelina0077]

I hope she receives her unnecessary lost wages!! Plus more for the stress of it all !! Good for her for speaking out...and Good for WBTV news for doing this story!!

[@101Sarahsaurus]

Absolutely ridiculous. Thank you for reporting on this. We need more advocacy for situations like this. I hope she’s doing better.

[@-relentlessxchaos-]

They stopped responding to the news because they know they messed up. So it's time to sue them for their incompetence as punishment.

[@batmanxgr]

Anaheim postal worker here, I'm sorry to hear that this happens to you. But, management is like this nation wide!!! They are worried about processing mail over someones health. I'm so sorry and glad you're still alive!!! God bless you. Merry Christmas and Happy new year!

[@lisawilkerson8408]

I AM glad she took it to the media

[@karenbarkman8901]

Thank you for covering this story. Why was this nice postal worker suspended in the first place? We all get sick sometime, and what if it was the supervisor who got sick? Where is compassion? I hope this woman gets her back pay. Merry 🎄 Christmas.

[@Trund27]

Very well said, and I second this.

[@cisco1138]

On Nov. 30, she received an Express Mail letter; Apparently reporting the medical emergency by using her postal issued tracking device was not good enough for her supervisor. The message went unread therefore never authorized. Management failed this employee! A competent supervisor would have sent other carriers to cover the remainder of her route. a manager should have gone to the hospital to bring her back to the office after being discharged. What management did is try to cover their behinds by putting 100% blame on carrier. An EMERGENCY placement in OFF-DUTY STATUS needs to be documented in writing and a copy provided to employee before removing employee from premisses, not mailed a week later. The carrier should be compensated for lost pay.