1.) Boots:
I wear something similar to this:
CSA-approved, heavy-duty boots in black waterproof leather built with a soft inner sole for comfort and a puncture- and chemical-resistant outer sole for protection. Shop Now At Red Wing Shoes.
www.redwingshoes.com
They're about $300. When I was part-time I was doing landscaping, janitorial, and maintenance work on the side. Now that I drive I'm always stomping through snow and mud puddles. These keep my feet warm and dry all day. When the soles wear out, I bust out my second pair. Take the first to the store and for $100 they ship it out and get it resoled. I'm a fan of steel toe. We never kick packages but eventually you are gonna try to push something out of the way with your foot (seriously).
2. Gloves
I'm a fan of the Atlas Showa 300.
Naturally contoured fingers for comfort. Durable poly/cotton liner. Crinkle finish. ULINE offers over 42,000 boxes, plastic poly bags, mailing tubes, warehouse supplies and bubble wrap for your storage, packaging, or shipping supplies.
www.uline.com
Even with the coating I can work the softkeys on the DIAD. If they don't give you the manual dexterity to work the scanner you can cut off the fingertips. This will keep you cooler in the summer. But in the winter you might want the fingertips. The cardboard and the dry air suck the moisture out of my skin and my fingertips start to split open.
3. Breaks
In my old building, a largeish sorting hub where I worked night shift, we never took a break. When I got divorced and moved back in with my mom, I transferred to preload in a much smaller center in another state. There we took a 10 minute break sometime during the shift when the unload was waiting to switch trailers. If you gotta piss, wait for a bit of a break in the flow and just go. Let your supervisor or neighbor know you're going, but don't ask for permission. Hurry back. Don't waste time washing your hands, those boxes have been everywhere.
Carry a GALLON jug of cold water in with you, maybe a small lunchbox with some protein bars and fruit. I highly recommend leaving your phone outside, especially during your probation period. Depending how big your building is you might have to go through a guard shack to get in.
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www.wolverine.com
