Tuesday, February 27, 2024
Here’s when USPS will release its next batch of stamps
The schedule includes Carnival Nights and Ansel Adams
The Postal Service has announced release dates for more of this year’s stamps, along with cities where dedication ceremonies will be held:
• Floral Geometry: Friday, April 26; Burlingame, CA;
• Ansel Adams: Wednesday, May 15; Yosemite, CA;
• Carnival Nights: Thursday, June 6; Biloxi, MS;
• Protect Sea Turtles: Tuesday, June 11; Corpus Christi, TX;
• U.S. Flags: Friday, June 14; Keystone, SD;
• Horses: Monday, June 17; St. Joseph, MO; and
• Shaker Design: Thursday, June 20; Pittsfield, MA.
Additional releases will be announced later this year.
On the Job
Great outdoors
This carrier relishes the fresh air and exercise on his walking route
My name is Jerin Hedden and I’m a letter carrier in Salt Lake City.
I started with USPS in 2005 as a part-time flexible clerk, then became a carrier two years later.
My route is mostly residential and includes an area called Emigration Canyon. I walk about 10 miles a day, or 25,000 steps. I know because a smartwatch keeps track of my movements.
The idea of being able to exercise drew me to the carrier craft. The location is great, the customers are amazing, and I like that I can get outside and walk. You can set your own pace.
I usually have plenty of energy left after work, but some days can be exhausting. It takes a lot more out of you when there’s snow on the ground.
I’m a Utah native and served as a radar technician in the Air Force in Mississippi and Arizona before moving back home.
When I’m not walking my route, you might find me hiking in the mountains with my wife, Dahlia. We have three children: Alexa, 28; Shelbie, 25; and Bennett, 15.
We’re big bird nerds. We recently were surprised to see a short-eared owl on the Big Island of Hawaii. We’re whale nerds, too. We have friends in California and take trips out there to watch whales and see all the wildlife.
As an employer, the Postal Service provides good benefits. As your career goes on, you see the progress in your retirement plan. Your financial and family stability are provided for, and that’s important.
“On the Job,” a column on individual employees and their contributions to the Postal Service, appears regularly in Link.
Got used light bulbs? Don’t throw them out
In most cases, employees and contractors should recycle them instead
USPS employees and contractors should not toss away light bulbs when they are no longer usable.
Most light bulbs — including fluorescent, compact fluorescent, high-intensity discharge (HID), light-emitting diode (LED), neon and ultraviolet lamps — contain hazardous materials such as mercury, a toxic metal.
The Postal Service considers these items universal waste that must be recycled. Facilities must also ensure that employees who manage and/or handle waste bulbs are properly trained.
To recycle universal waste bulbs, facilities must:
• Store broken or inoperable bulbs in closed containers that are clearly labeled;
• Arrange for off-site recycling within 365 days of the original waste-generation date;
• Recycle waste bulbs using Cleanlites Recycling, the organization’s national service provider; and
• Use mailback recycling containers or arrange for on-site pickup. Both options are available through Cleanlites in eBuy Plus, the USPS online purchasing platform; search under the catalog name USA Lamp and Ballast Recycling.
Incandescent and halogen bulbs can be disposed of in the trash or dumpster since they are typically nonhazardous and don’t contain mercury or other toxic metals.
The Waste Light Bulbs and Lamps Blue page has additional information.