ARC's

Nyfarmer · Oct 27, 2016

PO has gotten around to advertise for ARCs.

'Functional Purpose
Using dynamic route descriptions, delivers packages on Sundays and observed holidays. May case, deliver, and collect mail
and packages on Saturday along a prescribed rural route using a vehicle.'

As far as I can tell the PO will have to put the potential ARC though the same training as an RCA. Evidently not eligible to be a REG (Yet!). The ARC 'benefit' is that they need not be available for weekday work - freeing up the employee to find other work, be a student , or caregiver with out encumbrance during the week. The 'benefit' to the PO is that they will not offer healthcare insurance (such a position should not break the 30 hour healthcare mandate rule). Thereby 'cutting costs'. Theoretically the PO is supposed to utilize available RCA's for Saturday route work before using an ARC. A 'good' manger might only retain enough RCA capacity for weekday work and fill whatever extra necessary with ARC's for Saturdays and Holiday work - 'cutting' costs.

I find it doubtful that the PO will be anymore successful hiring ARC's than RCA's. Maintaining an ARC workforce will require more recruitment and training resources - as I would expect such employee's to be highly transient - more so than RCA's.

Apparently there are real problems finding and retaining relief carriers - I say 'apparently' - because going on two years as an RCA neither management nor the union puts much effort into assisting an RCA to be successful and to stay on the job. I was somewhat taken aback that there is no RCA committee at the State union meeting - more time on the floor was spent on where the State meeting is to be held two years from now !

BTW I want to thank this site - as it has helped me greatly.

dannkim18 · Oct 27, 2016

ARCs will get a condensed version of RCA training. One 8 hour day of training is all they get, while RCAs will get 32 hours in the classroom.

gotstamps · Oct 27, 2016

ARCs also do not "test" in and have NO advancement possibilities. If they want to be a RCA, they must take the test.

As to your saying mgmt will keep RCAs for weekdays & ARCs will get Saturday, mgmt must attempt to acquire enough RCAs to cover those routes that request one. If mgmt cannot, then the office could go to formula. The formula uses RCAs (not ARCs) in Calculating the Saturday K-days. ARCs are the last resort prior to RDWL, but I could see mgmt skipping it & giving OT instead to Regs. Also, ARCs make the same pay as RCAs so there is no savings aside keeping a RCA below 40. Impossible to tell on a Saturday if a sub will go over 40 for the week unless scheduled 6-7 days straight. Since an ARC is to be used for Amazons prior to the RCAs, RCAs will likely work less, especially on a Holiday week.

r_becker · Jul 28, 2017

I am currently an ARC and I received 1- 8 hour class for training which was a very condensed version of the RCA training as dannkim18 pointed out. There were 7 positions available and only 5 people showed up for interview so we all "got the job" but only 2 of us made it to actually working. Not sure why other than not meeting requirements or deciding they did not want the position.

I am currently working every Saturday, Sunday (for Amazon) and Monday holidays. We have no benefits and no way to become regulars. I am currently in limbo to become and RCA in an office closer to my home. (had to apply for job just like a person off the street) I accepted the job offer but waiting for the email to tell me my End/ Start days and then going to RCA academy.
Gotstamps is correct that there is no "testing" involved in ARC position.
The only reason I have worked on Saturdays regularly is to help RCA's in my office with parcels only. I do not run any mail routes, although I do run Express mail as needed. The Postmaster can change that when he feels like he doesn't need the help or district tells him to. In fact, I was just told I do not need to report tomorrow, but to report Sunday as usual.

I am hoping to get the email soon telling me when I can begin training at my new office as RCA. Hoping it comes today. <img title="Smile" alt="Smile" src="https://www.ruralmailtalk.ruralinfo.net/wp-content/sp-resources/forum-smileys/sf-smile.gif" />

Boston65 · Jul 28, 2017

<blockquote class="spPostEmbedQuote">r_becker said 
I am currently an ARC and I received 1- 8 hour class for training which was a very condensed version of the RCA training as dannkim18 pointed out. There were 7 positions available and only 5 people showed up for interview so we all "got the job" but only 2 of us made it to actually working. Not sure why other than not meeting requirements or deciding they did not want the position.

I am currently working every Saturday, Sunday (for Amazon) and Monday holidays. We have no benefits and no way to become regulars. I am currently in limbo to become and RCA in an office closer to my home. (had to apply for job just like a person off the street) I accepted the job offer but waiting for the email to tell me my End/ Start days and then going to RCA academy.
Gotstamps is correct that there is no "testing" involved in ARC position.
The only reason I have worked on Saturdays regularly is to help RCA's in my office with parcels only. I do not run any mail routes, although I do run Express mail as needed. The Postmaster can change that when he feels like he doesn't need the help or district tells him to. In fact, I was just told I do not need to report tomorrow, but to report Sunday as usual.

I am hoping to get the email soon telling me when I can begin training at my new office as RCA. Hoping it comes today. <img title="Smile" alt="Smile" src="https://www.ruralmailtalk.ruralinfo.net/wp-content/sp-resources/forum-smileys/sf-smile.gif" /> </blockquote>
You were not trained to case mail I take it. The ARC should only be able to carry the route on Saturday after all RCA's have been placed first. ARC is not a career position.

faceindawind · Aug 2, 2017

A very simple improvement should be made to the job posting site.

"Any position offered by the USPS is not an immediate full time job." This simple quote would give perspective applicants a heads up. Over the few years we've had many applicants who came in to interview simply to walk out once they were informed it was not fulltime work.

heyman1104 · Aug 4, 2017

So if an ARC does get used to carry a route, here's how it's going to work. 2 RCA's are going to case (and probably pull) the route. The ARC is going to carry 1/4 of it, and the RCA's are going to split the rest of it. And then someone is going to be playing cleanup on that 1/4 of the route for the next week or two, finding misdelivered mail and packages daily as people check their mail.

I don't mean to knock the ARC's, but this job requires the fairly extensive training that we're given. Frankly, it requires much more than we're given. USPS is setting them up to fail and they don't even realize it.

gotstamps · Aug 4, 2017

<blockquote class="spPostEmbedQuote">heyman1104 said 
So if an ARC does get used to carry a route, here's how it's going to work. 2 RCA's are going to case (and probably pull) the route. The ARC is going to carry 1/4 of it, and the RCA's are going to split the rest of it. And then someone is going to be playing cleanup on that 1/4 of the route for the next week or two, finding misdelivered mail and packages daily as people check their mail.

I don't mean to knock the ARC's, but this job requires the fairly extensive training that we're given. Frankly, it requires much more than we're given. USPS is setting them up to fail and they don't even realize it. </blockquote>
In my office, 75% of the day-after-RCA is spent cleaning up after them. I trained my sub, but this one is lazy and has "who cares" attitude. Pissed me off so many times that I signed the OT list just to catch a break on Monday. Monday's are hard enough without having to spend +30 min to find FWDs and go through the UBBM for the same or other Rt mail or even other city's mail. An ARC might even do a better job by not being held to the eval. ?