Yes and No Christmas Gifts for Your Mail Carrier

Here's a question that comes up every year, at least for me. Should I or should I not tip or give a thank you gift to people who provide great service all year? I'm particularly referring to my mail person, the carrier who, rain, snow or shine, delivers my mail and packages. After all, it can be rough out there for these postal employees in Michigan.

So I always want to say thanks, and since they are not city, county or state workers but Federal employees, I'm not sure what I can and can't do.

The rules, however, for offering a gift of thanks to a United States Postal Service (USPS) worker are very specific and fall under the Standards of Ethical Conduct for Employees of the Exec­utive Branch of government.

Here is what the Feds say:

"Carriers are permitted to accept a gift worth $20 or less from a customer per occasion, such as Christmas, however, cash and cash equivalents, such as checks or gift cards that can be exchanged for cash, must never be accepted in any amount. Furthermore, no employee may accept more than $50 worth of gifts from any one customer in any one calendar year, period.” 

Well that certainly spells it out. Okay, now I know what I can't give, but what can I give? What makes for a good gift?

I usually get to know my carrier, so maybe I'll give them a restaurant gift card. I used to have many conversations with one of my carriers' in the past, and in our talks pie came up for what ever reason.

I remembered his favorite pie, Pecan, so I gift wrapped a big pie for him at Christmas!

If you don't see them much or haven't had a conversation with this person, maybe something that would make their job easier like an insulated travel coffee mug that will keep their beverage hot or cold for extended periods of time. .

But if you're not feeling an actual gift, how about a card or note of encouragement. Kind words may not cost any money, but they can go a long way in terms of making someone feel appreciated and help make their day better.

Thank you postal delivery people. You do a wonderful job!