Mailmen need bags of determination to do their jobs
Mailmen need bags of determination to do their jobs
JAKARTA (JP): True to his trade, the mailman refused to give
up. He leaned on the bell, hoping someone would eventually come
out of the house to get the letter he was carrying. There was no
mailbox, and observing regulations, the mailman waited for
someone to emerge.
Someone did eventually come out, only to yell "I'm eating,"
and instead of a "Thank you" delivered a punch to the mailman's
face.
This true story indicates that few people appreciate the
importance of mailmen or the ordeals they endure to ensure a
letter reaches its destination. A punch in the face or being
bitten by a dog, however, are rare compared to traffic accidents.
The fact is, for millions of people, getting a letter is a
source of enjoyment. The postal service therefore still occupies
an important place in Indonesian society despite telephones, fax
machines and e-mail.
In Jakarta, the Central Post Office handles 3.2 million
letters and parcels a day. The figure increases to 4.5 million
before Idul Fitri.
Manned by 3,000 people, the Central Post Office is equipped
with two sorting machines capable of sorting 30,000 letters an
hour. Manual sorting is also done at a speed of 1,440 letters a
person each hour. Manual bar coding is still necessary for
letters without area codes before they are fed into the sorting
machines. An employee can bar code an average of 2,500 letters an
hour.
The delivery and collection department is the post office's
largest section with 500 employees. They empty the mailboxes
scattered across the city and bring the letters to the office on
Jl. Lapangan Banteng Utara No. 1 in Central Jakarta. On average,
the delivery and collection department handles 800 mailbags
containing 1,500 letters each day.
The bags are then unloaded, the letters sorted according to
destination, arranged face front, postmarked and then loaded into
their respective bags. There are three groups of seven people who
unload and load the letters, each group move 1,000 bags a day.
Bags for Jakarta addresses are then sent to the city's five
mayoralties where around 1,000 mailmen are ready to collect the
letters and parcels marked for their area, organize them and then
depart on motorbike to deliver the mail. A mailman stops at an
average of 275 addresses every trip. Some mailmen make two trips
a day.
The next time a mailman leans on your bell, consider this. You
don't have to thank him for bringing you your mail. Just don't
punch him. Not after he has braved the crazy Jakarta traffic under
the blazing sun or in pouring rain to deliver your mail. (lem/byi/oby)