My mailroom mentor swore by rubber bands on sorting trays

Old Tom told me on my second day to always loop a rubber band across the front of each tray so letters don't slide out when you carry them, and I thought he was just being extra. Fast forward three years and I've saved hundreds of missorted pieces of mail that would've ended up on the floor or in the wrong truck. Has anyone else had a piece of advice from a veteran that turned out to be a game changer?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_taylor28d ago

Learned that one the hard way after dumping a whole tray of letters down my leg and into a puddle. Never again. Rubber bands save lives man, especially when you're carrying three trays at once like a maniac.

william_garcia28d agoOG Member

Notice the same thing with grocery bags @the_taylor, one rip and everything's scattered across the parking lot.

the_claire28d ago

I read somewhere that mail carriers back in the 70s used rubber bands the same way because the old sorting trucks had no dividers. The article said they'd just snap a band across each pile so nothing shifted during bumpy routes. It makes perfect sense when you think about how much vibration happens in vehicles. Your mentor knew what he was talking about, just like all those old timers who learned through trial and error. People forget that simple tricks like that outlast fancy equipment every time.