That depends on whether they're constrained by supply (couriers) or demand (customers). If they're demand-constrained, I think it makes sense to be very selective about which couriers they take on to ensure their customers have a great experience, and choosing which couriers to accept based on how early they arrive for their job interview seems like an excellent metric to use to attempt to differentiate between applicants you otherwise know very little about.
"Late arrivals will not be admitted, be sure to arrive 5-10 minutes early."
Even if that wasn't true, though, I suspect that I would not be interested in hiring the guy who didn't show up early the second time.
This isn't about the forces of the courier market (although I'm sure there's a fascinating market in NYC). This is about breeding a culture where participants in that culture have a sense of punctuality that supersedes all else. I wouldn't have been much more surprised if showing up too early would have gotten the author turned away. It's easy to show up 45 minutes early to something if you blow out everything leading up to that appointment, which you can do because you see it as a one-off. Being on time for every appointment you make takes more diligence. It takes cutting people (even yourself) off from an arguably more interesting diversion.
I wouldn't lose much sleep over this story; the author describes another courier who's been in this situation before. He clearly failed and was given a second chance. This isn't one of those "fail once and you're banished for life" kinds of things. Postmates will probably keep slamming the door in these people's faces until they show up 5-10 minutes early (ie they learn the lesson Postmates is trying to teach).
Or, you know, they find another job, where this kind of nitpicking isn't normal.
http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/232420
To sum it up, Van Halen would put in their contracts that they are to be served M&M's with no brown ones present. If they found that there was indeed brown ones, they would not play because they felt the gig was not paying attention to detail.
Seems to me that if you are applying for a job that basically is all about time (delivery in 30 mins) then it is a great litmus test to not let people who are late to the orientation have a job. These people obviously did not care enough for the job interview- It stands to reason they likely wont care to be extra fast once/if hired.
I may be weird in this way, but if you want me somewhere at 6pm, tell me 6pm. If you want me there at 5:50pm, tell me 5:50pm. But if you want me there at 5:50pm, don't tell me 6pm.
Asking participants to arrive early would, at least to me, strike as a caveat to those who might otherwise arrive late -- but not at the "time in question".
On time is on time, which is AT the stated time. Not before, not after.
(If the OP arrived at 5:55, then unless he knocked on the dot, he was technically later than the "5-10 minutes early" notice. OTOH, it seems to be a common convention that when a time is set, i.e. 6:00PM, that is the actual drop-dead time)
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