They told me at my sort observation that they do a backround check after you apply than call for an interview, does that basically mean they hire anyone with a pulse?
Yes... as long as you can pass the background check. If you are applying for a job at a ramp or hub, in most cases you have to be cleared to handle USPS volume - which requires 5 year continuous residency in the US prior to the date you accept the job.
But don't backround checks cost money?
Yes, they do cost money
for the employer doing the check. I've heard amounts of between $500 and $1000 as the cost to the employer, depending on how indepth the check is. The cost is shrinking due to the use of computerized database searches.
So do they, literally, hire just about every person that applies? Even if i'm not very good at the interview will they still hire me?
Your putting way too much thought into this process.
If you have a clean background, no convictions or arrests...
if you are clean of any illicit drugs...
if you are able to speak, understand and communicate somewhat effectively in the English language...
then you're pretty much hired.
Or else why do a backround check if you won't hire them? I hate getting false hope up than being turned down. I've had many other interviews at places I thought went well and never heard back or got a rejection email.
Believe it or not, the job of handler ISN'T too appealing to those who can otherwise pass the requirements of Express. There are MANY who apply to the job, who CAN'T pass the background check (convictions or arrest records), who have taken illicit drugs in the months leading up to the drug test, or have difficulty in understanding instructions in English.
Years ago when I applied to Express, there was a "cattle call" session of filling out paperwork (pre-background check) for all the applicants. Out of that whole room (50+ people) filling out paperwork - only a few were eventually hired; NOT because their interview skills weren't up to snuff (its a handler job - not too much thought or decision making process required) but because they couldn't pass the background or residency check OR they had used illict drugs in the time leading up to a potential job offer.
The trouble that Express has, is that individuals that can pass all the background checks, tend to have difficulty in handling the physical aspect of being a package handler. There are many who do get hired - only to end up quitting in the first month due to their not being able to physically handle the job - or who lack the motivation to stick with the job - given the pounding that being a handler subjects one to.
The "easy part" is getting a job offer. The DIFFICULT part is coming to work day after day - when your body is getting a pounding with no respite in sight.
I did work in a supervisory capacity at a ramp before becoming a Courier (have subsequently left Express)- I saw first hand how the company went through handlers like they were potato chips. About 20% wouldn't last a month - they didn't have the physical stamina to kick out the effort necessary to get the job done. Depending on shift, you will work for between 2.5 (AM shift) and 4.5 hours (PM shift) straight WITHOUT BREAK - handling packages. There is no air conditioning for the summer, and barely any heating in the winter in the sort buildings (they are open to the outside). The packages you handle AREN'T limited to small little "FedEx boxes" - they can approach 150 pounds in weight. Imagine the most strenuous aerobic exercise you can - then imagine doing that for between 2.5 and 4.5 hours without interruption. It will KICK YOUR BUTT.
If you have ability to survive the first month - then you have both the physical capability and personal committment to see it through. Very few handlers last more than 8 months though - the job does have a cumulative impact on your body - and putting up with the daily BS associated with the job is too much for many. Many end up going "outside" to work the aircraft (much less physically demanding) - and they can hang around for a time as long as they can show up to work on time. Only a few handlers in a ramp or hub "survive" long enough to be able to bid on a position in a station (Courier, CSA) - most will sign a letter stating either 12 or 18 months in location when they hire, meaning that they cannot apply for jobs outside the location until that time period has passed.
Don't think this is some opportunity of a lifetime - it is a non-skilled job which will pound your body, for which you will not receive any benefits until you hit 90 days of employment (unless you are somehow applying for a full-time position - which is virtually unheard of for an off the street hire). When you are eligible for benefits, the premiums for the benefits (depending if you are covering your "family") will leave you with maybe $130 a week in your pocket. Many end up quitting just for this - there isn't much to show for being a handler other than having some supplemental income and health insurance.
