March 31, 2012

Video: They’re Trying to Privatize the Post Office

"NALC 82 organizing committee members Willie Groshell, Brad Melland, and Tom Richardson defend our postal service on local cable access show.”  |

Dispute among Senate Dems threatens postal reform before May 15 deadline

A disagreement over tactics in the Senate may derail efforts to avert the closure of hundreds of mail-processing centers and rural post offices around the country. Congress will have only a month after the two-week April recess to pass legislation before a moratorium on post office closures expires on May 15.  |

Satisfaction Guaranteed (not!): Redefining "service" — the Postal Way

by Postmaster Mark Jamison via Save The Post Office - I want to tell you a story about the state of customer service in today’s Postal Service. It’s about a solitary incident, a small incident really, but it holds a larger truth. PS Form 1509, “Recall of Mail,” has been around for years. It’s a form a customer can fill out to try and retrieve a piece of mail before delivery. In January, when postal rates were increased, the form and the retrieval process were updated, and the service was introduced as a “new domestic service.” The form number remained the same, but the service was given a new name — “Sender’s Request for USPS Package Intercept Service” — and now this is something we charge for. |

Editorial: Northern Virginia Residents Battle to Save Local Post Offices

Washington Post - A disagreement over tactics in the Senate may derail efforts to avert the closure of hundreds of mail-processing centers and rural post offices around the country. Congress will have only a month after the two-week April recess to pass legislation before a moratorium on post office closures expires on May 15.  |

Postal Supervisor confesses to stealing $40,000 worth of valuables in mail

The postal supervisor took photographs of the $40,000 in stolen merchandise that he’s accused of peddling on eBay and stored the images on his work computer. |

Postal Truck Strikes 6-Year-Old Child

 47, not 2, jobs to be lost in Pasco post office closure

March 30, 2012

House postal bill would save billions, CBO says

House legislation aimed at reforming the business operations of the U.S. Postal Service would save the agency about $20 billion during the next decade, according to an updated analysis of the bill by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. The bill, approved in 2011 by the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, would achieve the multibillion-dollar savings largely by eliminating Saturday mail delivery, CBO said. Reducing mail delivery from six to five days a week would save USPS about $2.5 billion annually by fiscal 2015 in personnel and transportation costs; those savings would decrease to about $2 billion per year by 2022. The cost estimate CBO released Thursday is similar to the office’s December 2011 analysis of the bill (H.R. 2309); the latest version estimates the costs and savings through 2022. eNAPUS: Senate to Act on Postal Bill After Recess (PDF) |

Congressman Rahall Introduces Postal Service Bill

The bill – H.R. 4335, the Postal Service Accountability Act – would strengthen the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC), the independent regulator of the Postal Service, enabling it to act as a check on postal closures, directing the Commission to focus on the community impact of a closure. |

Georgia Woman Stole ID to Obtain U.S. Citizenship and Get USPS Job As Mail Carrier As part of the scheme, ADIGUN obtained a job as a mail carrier in the Hiram Post Office under the name “Mary Afolabi,” an identity she had stolen from another person ... During ADIGUN’s time with the Hiram Post Office, over 85 victims on her mail route reported that their identities were stolen and used to open multiple financial accounts in their names.  |

Missouri postmaster charged with planning an alleged robbery

the Eagle Rock, Mo., Postmaster was charged in federal court today in connection with conspiring to rob or burglarize a convenience store. The Postmaster, was charged by complaint with conspiring to interfere with interstate commerce by threats or violence in connection with planning an alleged robbery of Uncle Roy’s convenience store in Eagle Rock.  |

Maintenance Craft PSE National Dispute Resolved
APWU News - The APWU and the Postal Service settled a Step 4 grievance [PDF] on March 30 regarding the use of Postal Support Employees (PSEs) in the Maintenance Craft. The settlement [PDF] stipulates that PSEs will only be used in custodial positions.  |

U.S. Postal Service Plans to Allow Mailer Logos and Marks on Permit Indicia

The U.S. Postal Service is planning to revise its mailing standards and has recently filed with the Postal Regulatory Commission to allow commercial mailers to include logos, trademarks, brand images or other kinds of marketing designs in the permit imprint indicia area of their mail . |

APWU Calls for April Actions To Save the Postal Service

The APWU is asking state and local organizations to participate in two nationwide activities in April: Lobbying your senators at their home offices during the Easter recess, and informational leafleting on Tax Day, April 17. |

US Senate considering commission to review USPS business model
Post & Parcel - The US Senate is proposing a new Commission to review US Postal Service operations and recommend new ways for USPS to generate revenue when it returns from recess next month. Among his (Sen. Bernie Sanders) recent proposals have included the setting up a Blue-Ribbon Entrepreneurial Commission, comprising appointed entrepreneurs and postal stakeholders, to develop a new business model for USPS.  |

Florida Letter Carrier Saves Mail From Burning LLV

A United States Postal Service mail truck driver is recovering from injuries he suffered after his mail truck caught fire Thursday afternoon in Edgewater. More photos of burning mail truck  |

What happened to postal reform?

Historic downtown post office may close

Mail stopped after post office gets it dead wrong

Cloned Postal Service op-ed offers small comfort

National Postal Forum: This ain't your grandfather's post office

Postman’s heroics draw adoration from neighbors

March 29, 2012

Wisconsin carrier pleads guilty to driving postal van while intoxicated

Barbara Quirk: Hightower’s take on Post Office is right on

Can an edible stamp save the US Postal Service?

Postal Vision 2020 Meeting June 2012

New retirement counseling videos on LiteBlue

Two former postal employees arrested on theft charges

Magazines' Digital Circulation More Than Doubles-- But Remains Small

PRC Chides Cash-Strapped Postal Service for Pricing Issues

Why Merchants Should Move to Intelligent Mail Barcode Full Service

PRC Approves Sequel to USPS's QR Code Promo

Mailman memoirs: People will tell you that you're late and you'll hate them for it

New Orleans Tries to Hold on to Its Mail Plant During USPS Cuts

March 28, 2012

Hochul, Griffith & Noem Introduce Bipartisan Legislation Capping USPS Executive Pay - The Postal Executive Accountability Act would reinstate the longstanding policy of paying the Postmaster General and other USPS executives no more than the President’s Cabinet ($199,700 in FY2012).  Additionally, this bill would prohibit the issuance of bonuses to USPS executive officers in years that the Postal Service closes any retail or processing facility. .  |

USPS YTD Loss of $5.7B – Retiree Health Benefit Pre-Funding Expense $5.1B

The USPS had a net loss of $1.108 billion for February 2012 according to preliminary (unaudited) data submitted to the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC). USPS is attributing $1.017 billion of that amount to the Postal Service’s Retiree Health Benefit pre-funding expense. USPS is also reporting a year-to-date fiscal year loss of $5.669 billion.  |

USPS Planning Retirement Incentives To Help Downsizing, Donahoe Testifies

.Dead Tree Edition - “We do plan on issuing some incentives based on the fact that we make some changes in our operation,” Donahoe responded during a hearing. “As we shrink the network, as we move from six- to  five-day delivery, we would put in some incentive money to move people along.”  |

Keys postal carrier accused of delivering 10 pounds of pot to 'Puppy'

Rockefeller, Manchin Vote Against Postal Reform Bill

Senator Merkley to Introduce Amendment to Save Rural Post Offices

PMG Tells Congress: Take Postal Workers Out of Federal Healthcare Program

Mail burned in fire at Ohio Post Office

Banks find opportunity in U.S. Postal Service woes

Postal Service bars TV cameras from meeting with businesses on service changes

PRC: Annual Compliance Determination Report 2011 (PDF)

March 27, 2012

FERS & CSRS Disability Retirement & the Postal Service: An Exodus, and the Reasons Why by Attorney Robert McGill - There is a rush to the exit door, and it is not because someone has yelled “fire” at a Postal Facility; rather, it is because the trickle-down reality of Corporate excesses, mismanagement and Congressional disregard of a once-vital and important institution has devastated the renowned organization once deemed a paradigm of American efficiency.   Part of the exit door has come about through attrition; some through incentives of early retirements; others through Federal Disability Retirement.  It is this latter course which is the focus of this article.   |

Senate votes against invoking cloture on Postal Reform Bill S. 1789

Senator Reid and several others ended up voting against cloture so they can move to reconsider the vote in the future, probably after the Senate returns from its Easter recess on April 16. By then, the Republicans will either vote with the Democrats to invoke cloture or allow the bill to proceed to debate.. Republicans block Dems from moving off their own Big Oil tax bill  |

USPS plan to set up own health plan faces lawmakers' skepticism

The Postal Service's plan to withdraw from the federal health insurance program and set up its own health program for postal employees and retirees faced skepticism from lawmakers.  |

James C. Miller III Nominated For Reappointment to USPS Board of Governors

Because of Mr. Miller's repeated calls for privatizing the U.S. Postal Service, he has not been regarded as a friend of the postal unions. Mr. Miller has been considered "anti-union" over the years.  |

A Final Tale from the CPU Hit List

USPS Seeks 'Soft Landing' For Downsized Employees, Donahoe Says

March 26, 2012

Senate will take up S. 1789 after Easter recess

NALC: Senate will take up S. 1789 after Easter recess: Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-CT) announced Monday evening that the Senate would not be taking up consideration of S. 1789, the 21st Century Postal Reform Act, until sometime in mid-April after Congress’ Easter recess. Largest Postal Union Calls on Senate to Reject S. 1789 As Currently Drafted | NAPS Update: False Start for Postal Reform in the Senate | Postmasters League: Senate Consideration Likely To Be Delayed  |

Expert: USPS pullout would jeopardize federal health insurance program

PMG Donahoe will testify Tuesday that the USPS could save nearly $7 billion in the first year of running its own health care plan, largely through eliminating the need to prefund retiree health benefits. But a leading federal health care expert will blast the Postal Service's plan as unrealistic and disastrous. Walt Francis, who writes the annual Checkbook guide to health plans, will say the Postal Service would "massively disrupt or destroy" the Federal Employees Health Benefits Plan by withdrawing nearly a quarter of the 8 million enrollees in the federal government's employee health care plan. PMG Donahoe and Walton Francis Testimony  |

Modern Times at the Postal Service: Network Rationalization gives work to idle machines. Save The Post Office - If you go into anyone of our plants today at this hour, we’ve got about 6,000 delivery bar code sorters.  The vast majority of those machines are sitting on the workroom floor and they’re not doing anything.  They’re just sitting there.  And those machines were purchased to process delivery point sequencing volume, and that operation typically starts at say 11:30 at night and goes to 6 or 7 o’clock in the morning, and it’s that idle time in terms of mail processing equipment for delivery point sequencing that we need to address.  |

Post office debate triggers lobbying

New York Times - Wine wholesalers and amateur beer makers want Congress to repeal a law that makes it illegal to ship alcohol by mail. Giant insurers like Aegon of the Netherlands want to make sure that the Postal Service stays out of the insurance business. And medical supply companies like Medco oppose plans to cut Saturday delivery.. As Congress begins work this week on legislation to shore up the finances of the debt-ridden post office, companies representing a cross-section of US business are spending millions of dollars lobbying lawmakers to oppose or support various proposals.  |

Postmasters Hear Frank Assessments of Challenges Facing the USPS

Postal Police Officers reach out to Chicago carriers

March 25, 2012

Editorial: Wrong message - Postal executives not making sacrifices like others
Daily Independent- Postal executives are sending the wrong message by continuing to accept high salaries and lucratve benefits while the postal service is drowning in red ink. Sacrifices should be shared by all.  |

NAPS: It’s Show Time in the Senate for Postal Reform

The Senate is trying to complete action on a comprehensive postal bill before May 15, when a moratorium on closing postal facilities is set to expire. Although both houses of Congress are not expected to reach agreement on a final postal bill before May 15, Senate passage may be enough to prompt the Postmaster General to extend the moratorium. NAPUS: Senate Finally Ready to Move on Postal Bill  |

Postal battle illustrates that change is tough

March 24, 2012

NAPUS Board Prepares to Deal with Tough Issues

Video: Arizona woman blames post office for losing 10 packages

March 23, 2012

USPS Statement on Market Survey Research Filed with the PRC

Upon review of the initial study results, the study’s design was deemed to be seriously flawed.The research project was cancelled at that time and a new survey was conducted. USPS Explanation of Secret Study Is Misleading, Inaccurate, APWU Charges  |USPS press release on secret survey- they still can't get their story straight  - Save the Post Office | Postal Service steers attention away from 'flawed' revenue study   |

Congressman Critz Requests Immediate Review of “Loophole” the USPS may be using to close Post Offices - Congressman Mark S. Critz (PA-12) sent a letter to the Postal Regulatory Commission today requesting an immediate review of concerns that the United States Postal Service (USPS) may be deliberately labeling post office lease holders as “unreasonable” in an attempt to close postal centers outside of the public review and appeals process.  |

APWU Makes Progress On ‘Shared Services’

Computerized bidding is undoubtedly here to stay, but until recently, problems with the Postal Service’s Human Resources Shared Services Center (HRSSC) have thoroughly frustrated employees, local union representatives and national officers alike. Since the Shared Services Center opened five years ago, almost all personnel services have been centralized in the Greensboro NC office.  |

Mail Handlers’ contract dispute moves to mediation process

Earlier today, FMCS Director George Cohen announced that he was appointing Herbert Fishgold as the mediator for the NPMHU/USPS dispute. As required by statute, Mr. Fishgold is “a mediator of nationwide reputation and professional stature, . . . who is also a member of the National Academy of Arbitrators  |

Ask The Experts – Do I continue Making TSP loan payments if I take the USPS early out?

Springfield Postal Facility to Close Operations February 9, 2013.

Why the Postal Service is Needed: the Digital Divide

Postal Service steers attention away from 'flawed' revenue study
Former North Carolina supervisor guilty of workers' comp fraud
Man Who Fatally Hit Postman, Severing His Legs, Charged With Vehicular Manslaughter
Postal Service Closing Plans Panned by Lawmakers

Kansas OIC charged with money order fraud

Postal Worker Cited for OWI

Backlash against USPS mail plant closures threatens reform bill

Postal Service Delivers a Record Share of FedEx Ground Shipments

77 year old Kansas mail carrier admits not delivering mail

March 22, 2012

Maryland Senator Puts Hold on Postal Legislation in Objection to Flawed USPS Consolidation Plan - In a letter to Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), Senator Mikulski expressed that "while I absolutely agree that the USPS must be reformed to meet the country's needs in the 21st Century, I must object to moving forward on consideration of this legislation while the USPS continues a rushed study to close a needed mail processing center on the Eastern Shore of Maryland." Postal bill vote to be held over Mikulski's opposition -Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid filed a motion Thursday to hold a key vote next week on postal reform legislation shortly after Sen. Barbara Mikulski announced she had placed a hold on the bill.| Senate Vote on Postal Bill S. 1789 Could Be Taken on Monday    |

The Plight of the Postmaster

by Robert Brinkmann, National League of Postmasters Legislative Counsel - We need to get Congress back to the point where it really looks at facts, explores the facts, and considers the facts. We need to get back to the point where views are formed by people who know what they are doing, and don’t rely on bureaucrats who sit behind the scene, in rooms with computer programs and numbers. You know the type, those consultants and technicians that make recommendations about people, communities and markets that they have never seen, nor explored, and really don’t understand. The truth of the matter is that few, if any, people making decisions about postal matters either on Capitol Hill or at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue have any idea what they are talking about. |

Postal reform bill to hit Senate floor next week

The Hill - .Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), who has called the postal legislation a priority in recent weeks, filed for cloture on Thursday, setting up a Monday vote on the bill from Sens. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Scott Brown (R-Mass.).Carper said Thursday that he welcomed Reid’s decision to move the bill to the floor, and said that Congress had to move fast to help an agency that has lost billions of dollars in recent years.  NALC: Flawed Postal Reform Bill Headed to Senate Floor Next Week  |

NALC President: Ryan budget plan is path to inequality and national decline

The House Budget Committee’s proposed budget for 2013 continues the assault on federal employees by calling for a freeze on federal workers’ salaries for an additional three years and for massive cuts to retirement benefits. “These newest attacks on federal workers’ pay and benefit seem to follow the example set by Congressman Dennis Ross,” Rolando said.  |

San Antonio Post Office Gets Pounded, Storm Tosses Truck

Feds probe possible theft of passport payments at Pennsylvania post office

To cut costs, Postal Service turns to groceries

Man reportedly exposes himself to postal worker

Letter: Greed is undermining the noble work of USPS

 Incline Village Postmaster Retiring

USPS: We Can't Fail With Junk Mail

Your Local Post Office: From Public Service to Profit Pinata

Rhode Island mail handler to plead guilty in card theft

March 21, 2012

Secret market survey reveals USPS plans would cost over $5 billion in lost revenue -Save The Post Office - the research showed that mail volumes would drop by 7.7%. That translates into $5.2 billion in gross revenue losses, and $1.9 billion in net contribution losses (the contribution loss figures in lower costs for lower volumes). We've also learned that the research shows a whopping 10.3% loss in First-Class mail volume. Losses like that would wipe out nearly all of the $2.6 billion in cost savings the Network Rationalization plan hopes to achieve. Given that the AMP studies suggest cost savings might be far less than $2.6 billion, the consolidation plan could easily end up losing more money than it saves. USPS Market Research on Consolidations: Revenue Losses Could Wipe Out Savings -“Congress must act immediately to prevent the Postal Service from going forward with this destructive program,” APWU President Cliff Guffey said. “It is now clear that massive consolidations will do much more harm than good.” NALC: New USPS data indicates proposed cuts could mean greater losses in volume, revenue  |

Senators To PMG: Clean House before Cutting Rural Post Offices

The Postal Service cannot balance its books on the back of rural America,” Tester said. “We are working together to find common-sense financial solutions such as co-locating post offices with local businesses, sharing postmasters between rural communities, and capping pay and bonuses for Postal Service executives.”  |

Politics, Network Optimization and Early Retirement

As Senator Susan Collins’ speech on the Senate floor indicated, the Postal Service’s announcements that it is going ahead with its network optimization plan shortly after the moratorium expires on May 15th has created some significant political blowback. While this has not changed the Postal Service’s public statements on network optimization, the Postal Service has its network support staff developing staffing plans for a range of scenarios based on how the political winds blow. |

What UPS-TNT Merger Could Mean for Postal Service
California postal clerk pleads guilty to embezzlement
MIT forum discusses USPS future
UPS Snags Europe's No. 2 Package Delivery Outfit

OIG: 'Junk Mail' Concerns Unwarranted (PDF)

Primer on Postal Costing Issues (PDF)  

Postal Service: We Need More Junk Mail -

U.S. Postal Service Expects $1 Billion in New Ad Sales

What Opportunities Exist for the Postal Service to Integrate Its Traditional Role in the Digital World?

March 20, 2012

U.S. Postal Service Targets Small Businesses for Growth

Forum discusses USPS future

Cash4Gold missing jewelry still not found

March 19, 2012

Oakland Postal Vehicle Manager charged with Defrauding USPS of more than $4 Million - San Francisco Chronicle (California) The Postal Employee served as manager of  vehicle service operations in Oakland (Bay-Valley District), oversaw contracts with outside vendors and "knew that he was ethically prohibited from participating in USPS contracts in which he or his spouse had a financial interest,". Instead, the Postal Manager in 2005 nominated a trucking business that he and his wife operated and had invested in as a truck-leasing vendor for the postal service, federal prosecutors said. From 2005 to 2009, The PM submitted fraudulent invoices to the postal service, overstating the number of trucks leased and the mileage incurred by the vehicles, authorities said.  |

Senator Collins Calls For Bipartisan Postal Reform

Despite these negotiations, the Postmaster General has pushed ahead with plans to abandon current mail service standards in favor of reduced access, slower delivery times, and higher prices, which will force many customers to pursue delivery alternatives. If those adjustments involve shifting to non-postal options in even a minority of cases - say 10 or 20 percent, the Postal Service would face an irreversible catastrophe. Once customers turn to other communication options and leave the mail system, they won't be coming back, and the Postal Service will be sucked into a death spiral. Principles for Postal Service Reform| Sen. Susan Collins faults the Postal Service (and the Postmaster General)  |

“Because we said so”: The unassailable logic of postal managers and their salaries - Save The Post Office - Thirty-eight senior executives of the Postal Service make salaries in excess of those paid to Cabinet Secretaries.  Now Chief Operating Officer Megan Brennan may have an important position, but is it more important than that of Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta, who makes $26,000 less than Ms. Brennan?  (And that doesn’t even take into account the additional $135,000 in bonuses she received in 2011.) Mr. Marshall says that the Postal Service must pay these salaries to attract and retain competent people.  The problem with that argument is that nearly all of the senior postal executives are postal lifers, people who have spent virtually their entire careers in the Postal Service.  |

Video: I’m The Mailman-Part 2 RAP

Video of letter carrier rapping about the Postal service

Congress should stop targeting federal employees

Sen. Daniel K. Akaka  via Federal Times - CBO did find that federal benefits are often higher than private-sector benefits. One reason is that private companies have been cutting pensions, a trend that will lead to a tragic, predictable and preventable increase in the number of older Americans living in poverty. Rather than pinching federal workers, Congress should focus on increasing long-term economic security for all Americans. Another reason is that federal employees are often allowed to keep their health insurance in retirement, which has also become uncommon in the private sector. But this merely shifts costs onto the federal Medicare and Medicaid programs. It is time to stop targeting federal employees and focus on protecting all middle-class Americans' economic security.  |

When Will USPS VERA Announcements Come, What Will be Offered, and Who Will Be Eligible? Courier Express and Postal Observer - As the discussion below indicates, an announcement about early retirements coming early this week fits the Postal Service’s current plan to implement the network restructuring in the second half of June, 2012. Any further delay in announcing early retirement incentives could force the implantation date closer to the end of June or possibly into July. |

March 18, 2012

NAPUS To Postmasters: Don’t Be Misled By Invitation to Join NAPS

The Postal Service does not recognize a supervisory organization to represent Postmasters in the consultation program. |

USPS Seeking Contractors to Operate Central Repair Facility In Topeka, Kansas

Northrop Grumman Corporation is currently under contract to provide depot-level repairs as well as inventory and ordering system management at CRF. Following the expiration of the current contract, USPS will request competitive proposals for the operation of the expanded Topeka facility. |

Video: USPS Medical Delivery Drill

Video of letters carriers being escorted by local police delivering medicine.|

Could Royal Mail’s Approach to Postal Retail Services Work in the United States?
Idyll Banter: Junk mail? Worth more than you know

Michigan postal centers prepare to close, consolidate

March 17, 2012

If at first you don’t succeed, try revising the survey
Postal carrier named Service Person of the Year

Baucus calls on PMG to visit rural post offices before closing them

90 Days in Jail for Former USPS VMF Technician in Detroit Postal Corruption Case

Optimized Postal Service Infrastructure

Ask the Experts: Clerk wants to leave the Postal Service

Envelope company watching postal cuts

Arizona postal worker convicted of possessing stolen mail

Delaware postal worker robbed by 3 armed men

March 16, 2012

It was a very good year: The salaries of USPS executives

Save The Post Office - Back in November, the Federal Times  revealed that "as the U.S. Postal Service was careening toward a record $8.5 billion loss in 2010, it was paying more than three dozen top executives and officers salaries and bonuses exceeding that of Cabinet secretaries."  A list was not available at that time, but using the salary finder, we’ve produced a list of the 38 postal executives earning the highest (base) salary as of February 2012.  You can see the list here. |

NAPUS: No “Official” Announcement from USPS on VER Or Incentives

The NAPUS National Office has been hearing from many Postmasters concerning rumors on Voluntary Early Retirements (VERs) and retirement incentives for those who are eligible to retire. |

Maryland Senators outraged over lack of transparency or public input on mail center closing U.S. Senators Barbara A. Mikulski and Ben Cardin (both D-Md.) today sent a strongly worded letter to Postmaster General Patrick R. Donahoe expressing their outrage over the "total disregard for a transparent and public process for consideration of the closure and consolidation of the Easton mail processing center to the Hares Corner mail processing center in Wilmington, Delaware." |

Man who robbed postal carrier sentenced to thirteen years

Female postal workers honored with bench

Accident that killed postal worker referred to LA city attorney

Residents share postal woes since mail-sorting facility's closure

Private Mailbox Companies File Complaint Against USPS Over PO Box Enhancements (PDF)

March 15, 2012

Postal Employees Salary Database Updated

Results show details as of February 2012. Salaries show base pay or hourly rate only and do not include Pay for Performance or other additional payments.  |

Video: Postal Worker’s Bone Marrow Saved Life Of British Cancer Patient

That exact match was from postal worker Audrey Pollard. Her bone marrow saved Worrall’s life. This week, Worrall had the chance to meet Pollard for the first time at a New York post office. |

 The Incredible Shrinking Postal Service

Hopes of a Senate hearing for US postal reform “within weeks”
Mail delivery delayed, customers in Maryland say
Even money-losing rural post offices must stay open, Senator says

Drug-dealing mailman walks after rehab stint

March 14, 2012

Congress’s war on the post office
Salon - The Postal Service faces a threat greater than email or economics: Politics - After a stopgap measure last year, Congress will once again debate whether the United States Postal Service as we know it can survive. The better question is: Will Congress let it?  |

The U.S. Postal Parcel Service
DC Velocity Parcels may not save the USPS, but they may help the Eagle fly above the digital tsunami until it somehow rights itself.  |

Feds one step closer to an option for easing into retirement

The Senate on Wednesday passed an overhaul of highway and transportation programs that includes language allowing retirement-eligible federal employees to work part time to help pay for other government programs.   |

Congressman Connolly Requests PRC Release USPS Revenue Impact Info From Service Changes - The info includes data on total and contribution revenue losses from the aggregate impact of Post Office closures, reduction in mail service to fewer than six days per week, processing facility closures, degradation of mail service, and possibly other factors such as rate increases. Connolly Calls on USPS to Release Hidden Report  | The Case of the Missing Market Research Study  |

Postal Service's budget woes hit Edgewood again Jonathan Battaglia - The Carolina Reporter

North American advertising spend to increase in 2012

Dead Tree Edition: Printed Magazines or Digital Magazines: Do We Have To Choose?

Postal workers: ‘We can’t do this by ourselves’

Three keys to saving the U.S. Postal Service

March 13, 2012

A Stunning Admission: USPS Hasn’t Considered Combined Effect of Proposed Changes - APWU News Bulletin - In a document  filed with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC), the Postal Service declared that it “has conducted no ‘combined impact’ analysis” of the proposals. The USPS filed the document in response to an APWU motion that sought to compel the Postal Service to provide testimony about how it weighed the cumulative effect of the pending changes.    |

Sen. Reid says he'll plow ahead on postal reform
The Hill (blog) Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) sounded a bit impatient on Tuesday about the pace of postal reform negotiations, and pledged to move legislation on the matter in the coming weeks. Sanders and the postal reform bill’s sponsors have been working together to bridge their differences. But Reid signaled Tuesday that it was time to move forward, even if senators hadn’t come to an agreement yet.  |

Gene Del Polito: It’s Time To Eliminate The USPS Monopoly
Courier Express and Postal Observer - Gene Del Polito, President of the Association of Postal Commerce presents the case for eliminating the mailbox monopoly and an American approach to privatization.  |

VER Announcement On the Way?

 from message on postalreporter : this morning I checked the liteblue Workforce Connection page for any news of a VER and it WAS listed there.  |

Florida mail carrier gets prison in tax fraud

America is hemorrhaging knowledge as federal employees rush to retire
Communities miss perks of old post offices
U.S. Postal Service Cutbacks May Impact Large Customers

Conservatives, Liberals and the Use of the Web and Mail

March 12, 2012

Katherine Tobin Nominated To Return As Member of USPS Board of Governors

From 2006 to 2009, Dr. Tobin was a member of the U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors, where she was Chairman of the Board’s Audit and Finance Committee.   |

Letter: What Should Be Done to Save the Postal Service?

New York Times- Reducing service won’t save the Postal Service but rather destroy it, by driving people away and lowering revenue. Ending Saturday delivery, for example, would cede 17 percent of service to save 2 percent of expenditures, while inconveniencing small businesses, the elderly, rural residents and others. |

Gene Del Polito: The Impact of Congressional Inaction

Courier Express and Postal Observer  - In the Previous two parts of the interview, Gene Del Polito reviews the prospects of both comprehensive and more limited postal reform legislation.    Mr. Del Polito clearly finds passage of H.R. 2309 (” Postal Reform Act”) nor S. 1789 (“21st Century Postal Service Act of 2011) unlikely before the election and has indicated that even more limited legislation faces obstacles either prior or after the Presidential election. Gene Del Polito: The Prospect for Any USPS Reform Legislation This Year   |

Great minds think alike, and so do USPS District Managers
Save the Post Office- Over the past few days, Postal Service District Managers across the country have submitted “opinion” pieces to their local news media, and somehow they all stumbled upon the same words.  At least thirteen DMs have written one of these “opinions,” and they’re all the same, almost word for word.  |

Postal Service defends executive salaries as lawmaker looks to cap pay

Postal officials, however, argued because USPS functions like a company, it is important for executive salaries to remain competitive with the private sector.“When you compare the size and scope of an organization that employs well over half a million employees operating among 32,000 locations linked by more than 210,000 vehicles, our officer compensation is well below that of similar private sector positions,” Saunders said.  |

NALC: Issa continues campaign to dismantle the Postal Service

This weekend, Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) continued his social media assault on the Postal Service, making a case to the American people that Congress should make the cuts to begin the process of dismantling the USPS.  |

Gimme My Discount!

A directory of deals on travel, entertainment and more for frugal federal employees, retirees and members of the military. |

APWU TV Ad: USPS Provides Critical Services to All Americans

The spot is one of three new television spots that highlight the critical ways America depends on the Postal Service — and the devastating effect closing post offices and mail processing plants would have on our nation. APWU TV Ad: Small Business Owner Speaks Out  |

Call To Occupy the Post Office, April 17 – Tax Day

Congress appears stuck. We have a majority in the House signed onto HR 1351 but it languishes in committee. We have turned in a million petition signatures to no avail. The Postmaster General has already bowed to pressure twice — postponing the closure deadline to May 15th and now pledging no closures between August 15th & January 1.We need to turn up the heat and raise the level of fightback or the postal service will be plunged into a death spiral. |

Police searching for man in Harlan, KY post office theft

Postal Workers, supporters protest closing of Maryland mail sorting facility

Insufficient Postage Leads to Arrests

Best Date to Retire Tips

Letter of the Week: Postmaster General Delivers a Bad Decision

March 11, 2012

Closure of Frederick Mail Processing Facility utter disaster

Hagerstown Herald Mail - According to area residents, businesses and postal workers, delays of this sort have become common in recent months, and Shoop and other postal workers say they know why.The November closure of the Frederick, Md., Mail Processing and Distribution Facility, which resulted in mail to and from 217- ZIP codes being sent to Baltimore to be sorted, has been an “utter disaster,” overwhelming the Baltimore plant and leading to mail delays of, in some cases, more than a month, said Richard Shelley, who works at the Baltimore Processing and Distribution Facility and serves as director of organization for American Postal Workers Union 181.  |

Mail delivery sees change as USPS seeks to eliminate door delivery

A change in the way mail is delivered in the hardest-hit area of Joplin’s tornado zone has sparked complaints by some residents and a grievance by union postal workers. U.S. Postal Service authorities have decided to eliminate door or porch delivery in that part of the disaster zone where expedited debris removal, or EDR, took place. The postal service can decide to deliver by curbside or cluster mailboxes in new subdivisions that have not had door delivery before, but cannot change it in areas where new homes or businesses are built within a block of door or porch delivery. Apparently USPS disagrees.. |

USPS officials answer local businesses concerns about likely processing center closure.

Letter: Postal profits diverted

March 10, 2012

Why Not Allow Phased Retirement For Postal Workers?

Dead Tree Edition - The U.S. Senate approved a concept this week that, if applied to the U.S. Postal Service, could be a big help both to the beleaguered agency and to many of its employees. As written, the “phased retirement” amendment may not even apply to USPS and would not be particularly relevant to the financially strapped independent agency. But the concept of enabling retirement-eligible employees to switch to part-time status without messing up their benefits could offer the Postal Service a relatively employee-friendly method of reducing costs. Phased retirements — Good idea?  |

USPS Seattle District welcomes second Village Post Office

Postal workers protesting closing of Frederick mail sorting facility

Hero’ Mailman Stops Attempted Abduction In Bucks County PA
Postal worker who discovered children living in school bus speaks out

Containers fall off mail truck in Amity, block lane

Private mail haulers try to steer through uncertainty of Postal Service changes

In Easton, loss of mail center would ripple through economy

USPS Salutes Girl Scouts' 100th Anniversary With Forever Stamp

March 09, 2012

Congresswoman Hochul Announces Legislation To Cap Executive Pay At USPS

In Letter to Chairman of the USPS Board of Governors, Hochul Calls for Cap On Salaries & Bonuses for Postmaster General and Executives, While Local Processing Facility Remains In Jeopardy. . |

USPS Bay-Valley District Manager To Retire Effective March 30

Kim Fernandez, District Manager, Bay-Valley District will retire on March 30, 2012. He has been with the Postal Service for more than 33 years. PR note: There are a lot of shocked employees in the Bay-Valley District over this announcement.  |

The Post Office is not broke–and it hasn’t taken any of our tax money since 1971.Answering the lies that privatization zealots and FedEx are peddling - From the gated enclaves and penthouses of the ueber-wealthy to the inner-city ghettos and rural colonias of America's poorest families, the US Postal Service literally delivers. All that for 45 cents. And if you've written the wrong address or your recipient can't be found, you'll get your letter or package back for no charge. The USPS is an unmatched bargain, a civic treasure, a genuine public good that links all people and communities into one nation. So, naturally, it must be destroyed. . |

Gene DelPolito on the Status of Postal Reform Bills
Courier Express and Postal Observer - One of the biggest concerns of readers of this blog is  the long term prospects for the Postal Service.    This and the next few Posts contain an interview with Gene Del Polito, the President of the Association for Postal Commerce and his opinions. |

In Meeting With PMG, Sen. Brown Pushes To Minimize Ohio Closures, Preserve Rural Post Offices, And Maintain Six Day Delivery - Brown is a cosponsor of the Postal Service Protection Act, which preserves Saturday mail delivery, restricts the closure of rural and urban post offices, and protects mail processing facilities to ensure maintenance of timely service. The legislation would address the most immediate financial problem facing the postal service by eliminating the unique requirement that the postal service pre-fund 75 years worth of future retiree health benefits in just 10 years.  |

March 08, 2012

APWU: Latest USPS Announcement on Consolidation Raises More Questions than It Answers - It appears that the Postal Service intends to implement as many consolidations as possible between May 15 and Aug. 31; take a break, and resume consolidations early in 2013.  |

USPS spokeswoman retracts statement: No Guarantee on Jobs

USPS spokeswoman for the United States Postal Service retracted a statement she made to the Queens Chronicle last week on whether all 1,140 people employed at the agency’s Whitestone plant will be kept on once it closes. |

Postal Worker Dies Week After Pit Bull Attack

The postal worker, who the county medical examiner's office identified Thursday as Diane Jansen, 59, died   Sunday at Palomar Medical Center, an investigator with the office said |

Closure of US post offices threatens rural America

March 07, 2012

Arizona Congressman Introduces Bill to Prevent Post Office Closures In High-Growth ZIP Codes - When USPS officials calculated which post offices, sorting centers and other facilities would be closed, the high pace of population growth in Arizona and other quickly growing areas was not taken into consideration. That oversight led to the recent announcement that the Tucson sorting center would be closed and all Arizona postal sorting would be moved to a single center in Phoenix.  |

Burrus: Confusion Over Starting Date Of APWU Contract

There is understandably some confusion about the different contractual dates as reported in my recent post. The cover of the contract lists one date and the governing contractual clause lists a different date. For many, the question is which one is right or does it make a difference?|

U.S. Postal Service Statement on Election Mail Process“

Mail is an increasingly important part of the U.S. election process and we are confident in the dependable and timely delivery of election-related mail,” stated U.S. Postmaster General and CEO Patrick R. Donahoe. USPS Suspension plan runs from From Sept. 1 Thru Early 2013    |

Sen. Carper Wants PRC To Deliver Advisory Opinions Faster
Federal Times - Sen. Tom Carper is not happy with the Postal Regulatory Commission. More evidence of that fact came during yesterday’s confirmation hearing for Tony Hammond, nominated for another term on the five-member oversight body.  |

What kind of a Postal Service do you want?

OIG Blog Series: Guest Blogger - Steve Hutkins - The Postal Service’s new business plan will close half the country’s post offices, eliminate Saturday delivery, slow down First Class mail, and raise postage rates for average Americans while keeping them low for big bulk mailers. That’s not a business plan. It’s a plan to dismantle the Postal Service. The forces behind the plan are private corporations that stand to reap larger profits and free-market ideologues who oppose workers, unions, and government services. Their goal is to turn the Postal Service into a lean, mean, profit-making machine,   |

More numbers on the AMP studies, and they still don’t add up, not even close

Save The Post Office -When the Postal Service announced the Network Rationalization plan to consolidate 250 area mail processing plants (AMPs) back in September, they said it would save $3 billion a year.  When the Postal Service presented its case to the Postal Regulatory Commission in December, they said it would save $2.1 billion.  Now that we can see the final AMP studies for more than half the facilities, it looks like the Postal Service may not save anything at all. |

Murphy, DeLauro Call for Vote on Bill to Cut Wasteful Spending, Not Jobs from USPS - In response to a final notice that t USPS will close mail processing facilities in Wallingford and Stamford, Congressman Chris Murphy and Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro today called on Speaker of the House John Boehner to immediately schedule a vote on legislation to reform the postal service by cutting wasteful spending without cutting jobs or critical services.  |

Postal worker hospitalized after pit bull attack

Job Opening: Special Assistant to a Postal Regulatory Commissioner (PDF)

Ex-Somerville Postal Worker Pleads Guilty to Cocaine Trafficking

Post office clerk arrested in Connecticut
Elderly driver crashes into Arizona post office

March 06, 2012

USPS sues APWU To Vacate Arb  Award over the size of employee lockers
St. Paul Business Journal- The U.S. Postal Service is in a court fight with one of its unions over the size employee lockers. That might sound like a petty fight on the surface, but the expense of giving workers larger lockers at the St. Paul Processing and Distribution Center in Eagan would cost the Postal Service $200,000.  |

Burrus: There Are Differences Between Ratified and Final USPS, APWU Contract - The new 2011 national agreement has been printed and circulated, but it is surprising that the differences between the contract that was ratified and the final signed agreement have not been identified and explained.   |

Texas Congressman Steps Up Efforts To Save Contract Post Offices Around The Country - U.S. Rep. John Carter, R-Round Rock, said Monday he is reaching out to other congressional offices around the country in an effort to build a coalition to save the South Temple Post Office and other similar privately owned contract facilities slated for closure under a collective bargaining agreement between the USPS and the APWU. .|

Phony Postal Inspector Busted For Swiping Pot Shipments

Smoking Gun - On the hunt for illegal narcotics being shipped via Express Mail, a Michigan man allegedly repeatedly entered a sorting facility, claimed to be a postal inspector, and walked out with dozens of parcels, many of which contained marijuana, investigators charge. According to a criminal complaint filed yesterday in U.S. District Court in Detroit, Calvin Coolidge Wiggins, 31, said, “You got me” when questioned Saturday morning by federal agents who had arrested him outside the Priority Mail Center in Romulus.. |

Ohio Letter Carrier Admits To Trashing Mail
Gay postal worker sues over alleged discrimination

March 05, 2012

USPS Excessing Information for California Mail Processing Facilities

Excessing Information for USPS Mail Processing Centers in California. USPS is also waiving the drivering test: "As a matter of general interest, the Postal Service is immediately waiving the following driver testing for externally hired bargaining unit employees.  |

Postal Service may RIF up to 2,000; buyouts, early outs also expected

Federal Times - Those affected would generally be white-collar executives, supervisors and administrators who lack union representation. The jobs involved would be among 30,000 career positions the Postal Service plans to eliminate through the downsizing by late next year. ...Louis Atkins, president of the National Association of Postal Supervisors, said Friday that he expected the agency to offer buyouts and early retirements within the next month to bargaining unit and white-collar employees.   |

Questions for Mr. Hammond: The Senate considers a nomination to the PRC

Save The Post Office - Tomorrow the Senate’s Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs will hold a hearing on the nomination of Tony Hammond as a Commissioner on the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC).  The senators are likely to use the opportunity not only to explore Hammond’s positions on a number of key issues but also to express their own views, as Senators are wont to do.  If they can overcome their penchant for posturing and stay focused on the issues, perhaps the committee will pose some tough questions and have a serious conversation with Hammond about the future of the Postal Service. |

Local leaders demand to see postal facility study

Dayton Daily News- Closing facility will impact 432 local jobs -The U.S. Postal Service’s announcement last week that it plans to close the Dayton Processing and Distribution Facility created an uproar among local business leaders and lawmakers, and they are now demanding the agency release the report it used to make its decision. |

MSPB Issues Precedent-Setting Decision in NRP Cases

DOL Releases New Online Tool For Workers’ Compensation Claims

Postal carriers brave the darkness
Postal worker: 'They're tearing apart my business'
Youngstown's Postal Service: From Boom to Bust

Postal Service resorts to silliness to save funds

Postal Service needs to brake for democracy

Hearing: Nomination of Tony Hammond to PRC

March 04, 2012

Rep. Dennis Ross: I'm Not an Idiot

Govexec.com - Do you get the feeling politicians aren't paying attention to what federal employees have to say about how things are being run in Washington? You may be wrong. My colleague Charlie Clark elicited a response from Rep. Dennis Ross, R-Fla., who has called for legislation to trim federal employee benefits and cut the size of the workforce. Several people who commented on the story didn't take kindly to Ross's remarks, and one went so far as to say he was "either an idiot or a zealot who is so intent on driving home his message that he pushes misleading data while ignoring any balanced analysis of the facts." |

The numbers on Network Rationalization just don't add up

Save the Post Office - The Postal Service says closing about 250 processing facilities will eliminate 34,000 positions and save $2.1 billion a year.  But the numbers on cost savings and affected positions that postal managers presented at the public meetings for each facility don't add up to anything like that.  The estimates provided at those meetings appear to have downplayed how many jobs would be lost, and they also raise the question, Will the Network Rationalization initiative really save as much as the Postal Service says? |

Who gets the blame for postal service problems?

 Tulsa World - It's easy to blame the postal service. Maybe it deserves some. But next time you're complaining, remember that Congress, which has a habit of ignoring pressing problems, especially during election years, shares a lot of that blame.  |

Going Postal: More Stories from the CPU Hit List

Senate contenders want postal reforms

Postal closures are needed; but a sign of a weakened nation

Ex-post office worker facing charges of theft

March 03, 2012

Scores remember retiring Oceanville postmaster as helpful friend

Kalaupapa post office is saved from closure

Congressman Connolly Defends Chairman Goldway as Advocate of Innovation

March 02, 2012

USPS, Postal Supervisors Fail To Reach Pay Agreement

The National Association of Postal Supervisors and the United States Postal Service concluded Pay Consultations on February 29, 2012 without reaching an agreement. |

Postal workers vote “no confidence” on VOE survey, but who's listening?
Save the Post Office - The results of the Voice of the Employee (VOE) survey for FY 2011 were made public this week, and there's some bad news for postal headquarters.  Two-thirds of the employees responding to the survey could not say they trusted senior management to ensure the success of the Postal Service.  That’s a loud vote of “no confidence,” and it’s probably just the tip of the iceberg.  |

Congressman Announces OIG Review of USPS Decision To Consolidate SE Pennsylvania Mail Center

USPS Looks to Hire Hundreds of Rural Carriers in Pennsylvania

USPS Central Repair Facility to Remain in Topeka, Expand

Former Alabama Postal Employee Indicted For Attempted Murder, Delay of mail

Postal Workers Need Support from the 99% - Labor Notes

Wisconsin postal carrier pleads guilty to stealing 9,000 pieces of mail

Buffalo plant study spurs questions

March 01, 2012

Postal chief's $384, 000 pay sparks call for cut

Last year, the U.S. Postal Service Board agreed to forgo most bonuses to top executives. Yet, Chief Operating Officer Megan Brennan and Chief Information Officer Ellis Burgoyne both got $25,000 recruiting bonuses when they were promoted to new jobs in 2011.Donahoe's compensation in 2011 was less than half what his predecessor as postmaster general, John Potter, made in 2010 -- $798,418. Potter retired last year. During a committee debate over a Senate bill to save the postal service last fall, Tester tried and failed to cap senior executive pay at the service to the same pay that senators make: $174,000. It's Galling: Postal Service's Top Executives Get Big Salaries | Sen. Tester questions Postal executive salaries as USPS considers drastic cuts  |

Rep. Markey calls on USPS to delay closures until Congress can act on postal legislation - It’s no secret that the postal service is facing considerable fiscal challenges, but cutting jobs and creating a poorer service standard is not the way to fix it,”wrote Rep. Markey in the letter to the USPS. Rep. Markey continued, AMP closures will result in slower delivery time for USPS customers.  Lawmakers Fight Postal Service Closures | Sen. Franken goes to bat for Postal Service  | There is time, and there are ways to save postal centers |

Postal Cuts a Dead Letter in Congress

Congress says it is trying to find ways to get the U.S. Postal Service out of the red. But some lawmakers have also become an obstacle in this cost-cutting effort as they resist the agency's plan to close post offices and mail-sorting hubs.Elected officials from West Virginia to New York to Missouri publicly say they will fight the shutdown of a mail plant in their districts after the agency last week named 223 it intends to close. .  |

How Many Postal Workers Will Consolidations Affect?

The Postal Service’s recent announcement that it has approved 223 mail processing facilities for consolidation has prompted questions about how many employees in the various crafts and areas will be affected. The chart below shows the numbers — based on current complements. .|

California postal worker dies after legs are severed in freak accident

A postal worker whose legs were severed when he was pinned between his van and another vehicle in Boyle Heights died early today in a hospital. Earl Anthony Dunn was standing near the rear of his van when he was struck by another vehicle and pinned, Los Angeles Police Department Officer Karen Rayner said. NALC: LA Letter Carrier dies after car hits him |

Editorial: Is USPS A Public Service Or Business Delivery System?

The USPS states that first class (your and my) mail is down 25%, however it doesn't specify what specific areas of the country are experiencing these reductions to justify the processing center closures. Take for example Springfield, MO mail processing center. It is in a part of the state that is the fastest growing area according to the census and it is scheduled for closure. The mail will be sent to Kansas City some 180 miles away and cause a delay of overnight delivery for the local area which has over 200 outlying community's it serves. One can surmise that this is not a downsizing of the Post Office to serve the people, but instead is a way of justifying big operations in big cities for big business. |

Minnesota man gets prison for manufacturing fake postage meter stamps