I’ve worked on vehicles most of my life. Anything with an engine — cars, trucks, motorcycles, you name it, I’ve fixed it. It is what I enjoy doing. Whether at dealerships after technical school or at the Pittsburgh taxicab company where I worked for 23 years, being a mechanic made me happy. Little did I know that at this stage in life, I would find the best job I’ve ever had here at the U.S. Postal Service.
The world has changed since I left school. Back then, being a mechanic at a taxicab company was stable work. They drove the cars hard, I maintained them and fixed them when needed, and back on the road they went. I loved that job, but when the ride-share services came to town, things changed. Fewer and fewer cabs went out each day, which wasn’t a good sign for a mechanic, and about six years ago, I decided to move on.
That’s when a former co-worker who had already moved to the Postal Service mentioned that a position for a USPS automotive technician was open. I didn’t realize it at the time, but applying for that job turned out to be one of the best decisions I’ve ever made.
What stood out to me right away was how well the work at USPS is structured. The work is steady, expectations are clear and all the spare parts are available when we need them. Tools are provided. Diagnostic equipment is supplied. If a special tool is required, it gets ordered. It’s everything a mechanic could want from a job. On top of that, the money is good, the benefits are great, and the focus is always on safety and reliability.
A typical day starts with reviewing overnight maintenance requests from Post Offices in our region. It might be replacing a windshield wiper or a repair, but the goal is to get delivery trucks ready before carriers head out. After that, it’s scheduled maintenance and larger repairs.
For me, that’s the fun part. In one shift, I might work on a classic Long Life Vehicle, then turn around and service a new Mercedes-Benz Metris or Ram ProMaster. Or it might be a tractor-trailer and then a 7-ton or 11-ton box truck. And soon we’ll be adding the Next Generation Delivery Vehicle to our rotation. Whether it’s gas engines, diesel engines or advanced electronics, it’s all here.
USPS trains you before you work on any vehicle. Beyond safety and equipment training, there’s instruction for new tools and specific training for each vehicle. If you want to learn something specialized, like electrical work, that’s available too. The Postal Service wants you to be well prepared for the job.
The people here are great, too. Even though we work in different facilities, all the technicians are part of one big team. We have each other’s backs, we lean on each other when needed, and if someone runs into an issue they can’t figure out alone, there’s always another technician willing to help. It’s a wonderful place to work. And, after my last experience, it also helps to have the job security that comes with working at USPS.
I can’t recommend USPS enough for any mechanic at any stage in their career. If you’re looking for steady work, good pay, training, long-term stability and great colleagues, and on top of that, you get to help serve your family, your friends, and your neighbors, the Postal Service is a place worth considering. I’m glad I did.
Jim Rydeski
Automotive Technician
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