Don’t Forget Your PS Form 3996
With the USPS conducting test on how to (reinvent the wheel) case and deliver mail called Expedited Street/Afternoon Sortation (ESAS) and Expedited Preferential Mail (EPM) Delivery Program, it will be very important that you fill out a PS form 3996 if you will need overtime or auxiliary assistance in the street or in the office in the afternoon casing mail.
According to the M-39 section 144 Expedited Preferential Mail Delivery Program Section 144.1:
This is a system designed to give management better control of their delivery operation.
It is designed to rearrange the sequence of carrier work functions and establish an earlier and consistent leaving time. Under this system, carriers normally case only preferential and time-value mail in the morning. The casing of non-preferential mail and markup work is done in the afternoon when the carrier returns from the route. Parcel post will be handled in the established manner.
The purpose of the ESAS test is to determine if the current Expedited Preferential Mail (EPM) Delivery Program can be enhanced to assist in reducing the morning office time for city letter carriers by enabling them to get on the street earlier to better serve our customers and provide more consistent delivery times.
With that said it is very important that we know how to complete PS Form 3996 for overtime if need be, if we don’t complete PS Form 3996 and take overtime management will be looking to discipline us for the unauthorized overtime.
PS Form 3996 is the carrier’s tool. All carriers are required to fill out a PS Form 3996 if they can’t complete their assignment in eight hours or the time authorized. We may have to fill out two PS Form 3996; one in the morning for street duties and one in the afternoon when we come back to the office and see how much mail we have to case.
According to Handbook M-41, City Delivery Carriers Duties and Responsibilities, section 131.33 states:
Unless otherwise instructed by a unit manager, deliver all mail distributed to your route prior to the leaving time for that trip and complete delivery within scheduled time. It is your responsibility to inform management when this cannot be done.
According to Handbook M-41, City Delivery Carriers Duties and Responsibilities, sections 131.41, 131.42, and 131.43 state:
131.41 It is your responsibility to verbally inform management when you are of the opinion that you will be unable to case all mail distributed to the route, perform other required duties, and leave on schedule or when you will be unable to complete delivery of all mail.
131.42 Inform management of this well in advance of the scheduled leaving time and not later than immediately following the final receipt of mail. Management will instruct you what to do.
131.43 Complete applicable items on Form 3996, Carrier-Auxiliary Control, if overtime or auxiliary assistance is authorized in the office or on the street.
According to Handbook M-39, Management of Delivery Services, section 122.33 states:
The employee, upon request, will be provided a Form 3996, Carrier - Auxiliary Control, after the supervisor has been verbally informed as to the reason for the request. The employee shall not be denied the form and, upon request, a duplicate of the completed form will be provided the employee. The regular carrier shall prepare the form as follows (except as indicated)
A. Enter the name of the delivery unit.
B. Enter the telephone number for the unit.
C. Enter the date requesting assistance.
D. Enter the name of the carrier requesting assistance or overtime and the route number.
E. Enter the lunch place and time, if applicable.
F. Place an "X" in space below the number indicating the case shelf containing the mail for which assistance is being requested. The bottom shelf of the letter separations is designated under 1. When assistance is required for less than a full shelf of mail, enter the portion of shelf infractions. The portion should be identified as follows: L 1/2; R 1/4; (L) indicates "Left"; (R) Right; and (M) is for Middle of the shelf.
G. Indicate if Keys are required for delivery of this portion of the route.
H. Indicate if Carfare is required for delivery of this portion of the route.
I. Indicate if there are any Accountable mail pieces for delivery of this portion of the route.
J. Show the reason assistance is being requested. (Omit during Christmas period)
K. The carrier must enter the estimated hours and minutes of the amount of assistance being requested.
L. MANAGEMENT ACTION - This section is completed by the manager reviewing the form. The manager reviews the request and makes a determination as to the appropriate actions. The manager shall check the appropriate actions and initial each section.
M. Show the transportation information as indicated.
N. Indicate the delivery starting point and the blocks of each street to be delivered.
O. List the points where relays will be found. The form is handed to the carrier assigned to provide the assistance, who will complete the bottom time entries.
P. This section is completed by the carrier providing the assistance and the delivery manager. It is broken into four sections; the replacement carriers name, office work, street work and the total workhours used. The carrier will complete the following items: The assisting carrier will enter their name and regular route number if applicable; Enter the begin and end time for any office work performed as assistance on this route; Enter the begin travel time to the delivery territory and the end travel time to the delivery territory on this route; Enter the begin delivery time to the delivery territory and the end delivery time on this route; Enter the begin travel time from the delivery territory and the end travel time from the delivery territory on this route, and then turn in the completed form to the delivery manager. The Delivery Manager will complete the following item: Office time used; Travel to time; Delivery time;
At the top of the PS Form 3996 write copy requested so you will be given a copy of your request as required by the National Agreement.
Turn your 3996 after you receive all mail. If you can check your DPS mail prior to turning in your request you should do so in order to better estimate your workload. If you pick up your DPS and determine the need to fill out a 3996 or amend your 3996 turned in earlier you may do so. The supervisor is to advise the carrier of the request promptly after a review of the circumstances, If you are unable to come to an agreement with the supervisor do not argue, call in at the required time and let the supervisor make the decision to carry the mail or bring it back or send assistance. All carriers must remember that we should fill out 3996s when we can’t take all the mail and do our route in eight hours. We must carry our route safely and professionally at all times.
Letter carriers get paid to deliver mail. Managers get paid to make decisions. If you realize that you will not be able to deliver all the mail and make it back to the office by the time the manager approved, you should do everything you can to put any further decisions in the manager’s hands.
Managers will probably tell you that you don’t need the requested overtime or auxiliary assistance because of what DOIS projects for your route. Multiple national-level settlements (e.g., M-01664 and M-01769) have held that these time projections are not the sole determinant of your daily workload. Nothing can replace the opinion of the professional letter carrier, so don’t forget your PS form 3996.
