PostalReporter.com Blog

 OPM wants about $27 million to fund a retirement modernization project. (Wash. Post registration required)

“The president’s chief civil service adviser appeared before a House subcommittee yesterday with a file cabinet drawer. It was stuffed with paperwork — a symbol of the rising number of retirement requests from federal employees.

In 2003, the Office of Personnel Management received 90,000 retirement claims to process, and in 2004 and 2005, about 100,000 each year. The claims are filed on behalf of employees from all three branches of government.

OPM urged the subcommittee to support a fiscal 2007 budget proposal that would provide $26.7 million for OPM to undertake a “retirement systems modernization project”

Last Year, NALC reported that the Postal Service was looking to make some changes in the way it handles individual retirement counseling for employees (news, 8/22/05). Now, according to APWU:  “It appears that the Postal Service’s decision to consolidate personnel functions, including retirement counseling, into a Share Service will eliminate individual and/or group counseling.”

Sharing Shared Services — part of the PostalPEOPLE strategy
Employee Resource Management Vice President Debbie Jackson recently talked to Human Resource managers from around the country in Greensboro, NC, about how the move to Shared Services will impact their districts.

The new Shared Services Center in Greensboro is part of the overall PostalPEOPLE strategy - the ultimate in employee self-service - making it quick, easy and convenient to access personal information 24/7. Employees in 28 districts use the center to get help with retirement and separation, compensation and benefit changes as well as executive and administrative schedule selection.

By Sept. 1, all 80 districts will be on the new system

source: Postal Bulletin 3/30/06 issue

(Boston Herald)   ”Human resources departments everywhere should study the DNA of mail carrier Bob “Iron Man” Bearor. The media went nuts a few years ago when the similarly nicknamed Cal Ripken Jr. played nearly 17 consecutive baseball seasons without missing a game. Not a bad work ethic. But it pales in comparison to the still active record of Bearor: 51 years without a sick day. The 69-year-old Bearor has not called in sick since sitting behind the wheel of his first mail truck at age 18. People like this simply do not exist.”

 Bearor’s career is real, however. The Rutland (Vermont) Post Office last year honored their workhorse with a commemorative plaque and an embroidered U.S. Postal Service jacket affectionately identifying him as their Iron Man. If the ceremony was meant as a prelude to retirement, the rugged senior citizen isn’t taking the hint.

 The following excerpts are taken from  ”A recent exchange of correspondence between the APWU and the USPS OIG Inspector General. Some highlights of the correspondence addresses, “issues confronting employees, the Union and the Postal Service in the transition of workplace investigations from the Postal Inspection Service to the USPS Office of Inspector General.”

Pay close attention to the OIG’s view on Miranda Rights and APWU’s emphasis on Weingarten Rights.   

David Williams, OIG: We would like to address some of the concerns raised in your article in the November/December 2005 issue of The American Postal Worker Magazine, “What’s Behind Changes in Internal Investigations?” ….. as you note in the magazine article, the OIG is voluntarily adhering to pertinent collective bargaining agreement provisions, and allows employees who are interviewed to have representatives with them during the interviews. However, the article overlooks some nuances of the law and provides some advice that may unintentionally cause an employee to violate Postal Service policy:

Greg Bell, APWU: You made reference that my “article overlooks some nuances of law and provides some advice that may unintentionally cause an employee to violate Postal Service policy” and stated that “Postal Service employees are required to ‘cooperate in any postal investigation, including Office of Inspector general investigations’ according to the Postal Service Employee and Labor Relations Manual (ELM), Section 665.3.” However, there is no violation of any Postal Service policy orregulation, including Section 665.3 of the ELM, if an employee who is being subject to an interrogation by law enforcement agents ofthe Postal Service chooses to remain silent pending consultation with a Union representative and/lor legal counsel. Moreover, there is no such violation if an employee chooses not to sign any forms or statements during an interrogation. I have been unable to find any authority to the contrary.

OIG: The Right to Remain Silent
I am concerned that the article incorrectly states that APWU members have an unequivoca! right to remain silent during an interview by the Office of the Inspector General by virtue of Miranda v. Arizona. The article suggests that OIG agents must provide Miranda warnings to all employees prior to their interview, and that the employee may always refuse to answer questions absent a grant of immunity. This is incorrect.

 Although Miranda rights apply to civil investigations which may result in criminal prosecutions, they are limited to custodial interrogations While custody is subjective, an OIG agent will always make clear at the beginning of an interview whether the interviewee is under arrest (in custody) or is free to go.

Postal Service employees are required to “cooperate in any postal investigation, including Office of Inspector General investigations” according to the Postal Service Employee and Labor Relations Manual (ELM), Section 665.3. While noting an employee’s right to remain silent in criminal cases, the General Counsel reminded officers that once “use immunity” has been provided to an employee, typically through the use of a Kalkines warning, he or she no longer enjoys the right to remain silent. An employee may be disciplined for refusal to cooperate or for providing false statements if he or she does submit to questioning.

APWU: Regarding your comments concerning the applicability of Miranda rights. Your assumption that OIG agents “will always make clear at the beginning of an interview whether the interviewee is under arrest (in custody) or is free to go” may be a factor in any misunderstanding about my guidance to employees.

Since the OIG has undertaken investigating internal crimes, local reports from across the country suggest that your agents rarely give such an explicit explanation at the outset of an interview. To the contrary, I have received reports that, in some cases, Union representatives who have sought clarity on these points during an employee’s investigatory interview have been treated with hostility and even expelled from the interview by your agents. Therefore, it may not be as clear as you suggest whether an employee is being subjected to a custodial interrogation. In fact, I am concerned that your reference to OIG “ voluntarily adhering to pertinent collective bargaining agreement provisions” and “allow[ing] employees who are interviewed to have representatives with them during the interviews” may lead your field OIG agents to incorrectly believe that they have an option, as opposed to an obligation, to grant an employee’s request that a Union representative be present during the course of an interrogation. Such misconceptions may be a factor related to the above-referenced reports. As you know, a 1975 United States Supreme Court decision (NLRB v. Weingarten) provides that a union-represented employee has the right to assistance from a union steward when facing an investigatory interview. The employee has the right to request union representation before or at any time during the interview.

OIG: Advice of Rights Forms
The article questioned OIG use of new advice of rights forms. The forms were designed to be consistent with the guidance provided in Garrity and Kalkines. The Department of Justice has recommended the use of these types of advice of rights forms in order to ensure that employees are fully informed of their rights. The OIG has long used similar forms.The Assistant Attorney General has encouraged OIGs to utilize the forms to ensure employees are advised of their rights; to safeguard Department of Justice interests in the cases; and to achieve uniformity. We use these forms to accomplish these goals.

APWU: In regard to what OIG refers to as “new advice of rights forms,” the APWU has several concerns with these forms and intends to pursue our concerns further. Ultimately, however, I must reiterate that postal employees always have the option to remain silent, and the option not to sign any forms or statements. Whether couched as a right or a choice, an employee can always decide whether to answer questions or not to answer questions. In regard to the Kalkines warning, for example, if an employee is actually provided “use immunity” from prosecution, the employee nonetheless may choose not to answer questions and instead deal with the consequences ofbeing disciplined. Any discipline would, of course, be subject to the grievance procedure pursuant to the collective bargaining agreement.

Although, the Postal Service may have changed the face ofthe law enforcement agency conducting investigations ofcertain internal criminal matters, the rights of employees and the American Postal Workers Union during investigatory interviews has not changed.

**links added by PostalReporter.com

Click here for complete copy of APWU-OIG Exchange

On March 17, 2006 APWU filed an objection  (errata filed on March 20th) to the Postal Service’s  request for an expedited schedule for PRC’s “review of the Evolutionary Network Development (END) plan for consolidation of postal facilities”. 

According to the American Postal Workers Union:

The Postal Rate Commission (PRC) has rejected a USPS motion for expedited Rate Commission review of the Evolutionary Network Development (END) plan for consolidation of postal facilities. The ruling is a victory for the APWU, which opposed the fast-track timetable, and for citizens whose postal services will be negatively affected by changes to the USPS network.

The expedited schedule proposed by the USPS would have prevented a meaningful examination of the effect of END on service, the APWU contended. Adherence to the Postal Service calendar also would have forced the commission to issue an advisory opinion on the consolidation plan based on an incomplete record. The Postal Service is required by law to seek an advisory opinion from the commission when it proposes to make changes in service that are national in scope.

Commissioner Dawn Tisdale denied the USPS request on March 24, during a pre-hearing conference on the proposed schedule, noting that the USPS itself had failed to adhere to the timelines proposed in the expedited schedule. He also indicated he would order the parties to submit briefs addressing the proper scope of the commission’s authority regarding the consolidation plan.

The Postal Service’s proposal would have required all information about the consolidation plan to be submitted to the commission by April 21, 2006, and would have required the commission to issue its advisory opinion on the plan no later than May 5.”

 Full Story

According to USPS Newslink :

USPS revenues of $5.64 billion for February were 2.2% or $121 million over plan and $292 million or 5.5% more than February 2005. Expenses were over plan by $117 million or 2.1%, producing a net income of $95 million before the escrow allocation.

Contributing to this month’s performance were the new postage rates implemented Jan. 8, which provided a 5.4% revenue increase needed to fulfill the requirement of Public Law 108-18, The Postal Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) Funding Act, enacted in 2003. This law requires the Postal Service to place $3.1 billion in an escrow account by Sept. 30, 2006, to cover the difference between the CSRS retirement costs before and after the law’s implementation. We are allocating $250 million a month for purposes of assessing our financial position. After the escrow allocation, our financial position for February shifts to a net deficiency of $155 million.

February’s total mail volume was 0.2% more than last year. Mail volumes in all of the major mail categories except First-Class Mail, Periodicals and International Mail were above their February 2005 levels.

Year-to-date, net income before escrow allocation is $1.3 billion — $20 million under plan. Year-to-date, the net gain after escrow allocation is $48 million.

Year-to-date, revenue is 2.1% over the same period last year and expenses are 4% above February 2005 postings. Revenues, year-to-date, are $97 million over plan. Expenses, year-to-date, are $117 million above plan due to personnel compensation plan overruns. The compensation plan overrun is driven by workhours that are 9.6 million hours, or 1.6%, above plan.

Year-to-date, total mail volume is 62 million pieces more than the same period last year. Year-to-date, First-Class Mail revenue is below last year by $4 million. Standard Mail revenue is up 2.9% or $230 million over last year. Priority Mail revenue is up 9.6% or $194 million over last year.

Full results are posted on USPS.com at usps.com/financials/_pdf/FY2006_February.pdf

(Washington Technology) The U.S. Postal Service is looking for track-and-trace scanner solutions for mail-processing, barcode-reading technology.

The postal service is adding en-route visibility to components of its distribution network. The track-and-trace scanner will be mounted to the small parcel bundle sorter, a legacy mail-processing sorting system. The scanner will read and report value-added service barcode scans from mail that the small parcel bundle sorter separates. Responses are due by March 31. Contact John Saldivar at john.d.saldivar@usps.gov.
Description from Federal Business Opportunities

The USPS is adding enroute visibility to components of its distribution network. One strategy in this overarching initiative is collecting enroute barcode scans from mail bar-coded with USPS value added services such as Delivery Confirmation? and Signature Confirmation?. The Small Parcel Bundle Sorter (SPBS) is legacy mail processing equipment technology used for sorting small parcels and bundles. SPBS transport Parcels on Carrier Cells. The Track & Trace Scanner (TATS) solution will be mounted to the SPBS equipment in the ?recentering area? of the SPBS sorter and will read and report value-added service barcode scans from mail sorted by the SPBS. The technology source must not only be capable of meeting the barcode reading technology requirements described herein but must also be capable of designing the complete TATS mounting solution assembly equipped with status indicator lights for the SPBS application, assembling and distributing complete TATS installation kits to USPS locations with SPBS, and producing a Technical Data Package, solution handbook, and instructional DVD

 U.S.P.S to exhibit new mail sorting, tracking technology to benefit advertisers, mailers

(USPS Press Release) Postal officials said today that the next generation of the organization’s barcode technology used to sort and track mail will be featured at the mailing industry’s leading trade show, National Postal Forum, in Orlando, Fla., April 2-5.   

Generically known as a four-state barcode (as shown above headline), this development in technology will enable business mailers to sort and track up to a billion pieces of mail at a time as well as to more easily request special services, such as address correction and confirmation of delivery. The new technology will also enable the Postal Service to process and deliver mail more efficiently.

“Right now, a piece of mail can have up to four or five barcodes on the envelope,” said Charlie Bravo, the Postal Service’s senior vice president of intelligent mail and address quality. “But because the four-state barcode can hold up to three times more information than other kinds of postal barcodes, only one barcode will be needed on a mail piece,” added Bravo. “This will make it easier for our customers to do business with us as well as make the mail a more valuable business tool by freeing up space on the envelope for marketing messages.”

Postal Service representatives will highlight the features of the four-state barcode prominently at the National Postal Forum – to be held at Orlando’s Gaylord Palms Resort and Convention Center – through exhibits, consultation, and business sessions. These sessions include “Using Intelligent Mail Services to Drive Business Results” and “Confirm Service: Using Barcode Technology to Maximize Effectiveness and Minimize Cost.” Dates, times, and room numbers of these and other National Postal Forum business sessions can be found at www.npf.org.

 Below readers will find excerpts of minutes from the Mailers’ Technical Advisory Committee (MTAC) meeting held February 22-23, 2006.  Paul Vogel, USPS VP Network Operations Management discussed the new network system, Area Mail Processing guidelines, new Area Distribution Centers (ADCs) and BMC modernization:

Summary

The new network system [PDF]* is well under way, starting with regular briefings of the Board of Governors, the Congress and local legislators and other interested groups.  Area Mail Processing guidelines, described below, insure a rational consolidation process. 

Regional distribution centers are being ramped up, rapidly for some large facilities that have already installed the heavy duty equipment, like the APPS*.  Older facilities with outdated infrastructure will be completely overhauled – plant renovations and new equipment – a process less costly than building a new facility.

Originating mail is declining and destinating mail (the kind prepared by MTAC members) is increasing.  That is driving consolidation plans*.  Facilities that primarily handle originating mail are subject to partial or full consolidation.  The process that effects the consolidation is Area Mail Processing (AMP), an information gathering and dissemination process. Taking up to a year to complete, it starts with feasibility studies, review of proposals by the Board of Governors, interested parties and the Postal Rate Commission, and concludes with the actual transition that may take up to six months.  Ten facilities have gone through AMP and forty more are in line for transition. 

New Regional Distribution Center Activations will enhance the surface transportation network.  The new network of ADCs will allow the Postal Service to move mail out of the air and onto ground transport, which is less costly and more reliable. 

BMC modernization will replace many of the old facilities built about 30 years ago. Rather than abandon the old buildings, they will be completely renovated and new equipment will be installed.  There may be some temporary changes for employees and mailers during this process. 

Minutes

He (Vogel) discussed some of the ramifications of the new network.  First, there will be fewer local  and destinating processing centers required.  The Area Mail Processing guidelines will continue to be used, a long and rational process that guides consolidation of operations to locations best suited to process specific types of mail.  The consolidation is based on mail shape and will result in fewer and more efficient and effective facilities.

Another part of the new network will involve ramping up the regional distribution centers.  That transition is rapid for some centers, large facilities that have already installed the heavy duty equipment, like the APPS.  For some older facilities, some of which had equipment and internal structures installed thirty years ago, there will be complete renovations, new physical structure and new equipment – a process that is less costly than staring anew with a new facility.

Originating mail, which is collected, cancelled and processed at most Postal Offices and other facilities, is declining whereas destinating mail, the kind prepared by MTAC members, is increasing.  Therefore, facilities which primarily handle originating mail are subject to partial or full consolidation.  The process by which a facility undergoes full (closing) or partial (transfer of certain functions to another facility), is Area Mail Processing (AMP), which is mainly an information gathering and dissemination process.  It is time-tested and effective, beginning with a period of time for feasibility studies, a shorter time for review of the reports and proposals generated by Headquarters, the Board of Governors and the Postal Rate Commission and other affected groups, and a final period during which the actual transition takes place.  The process can take up to a year.  Mr. Vogel stated that ten facilities had completed or nearly completed the process.  An additional forty are now in line for transition. 

Mr. Vogel described another program which will impact Regional Distribution Center Activations which will enhance the surface transportation network.  The new Area Distribution Centers (ADCs) will mainly be in the middle of the country and will allow the Postal Service to move a lot more mail out of the air and onto ground transport, which is less costly and more reliable. 

Finally, Mr. Vogel discussed the BMC modernization, which is driven by the fact that most of the current facilities were built and equipped thirty years ago.  Although it is a major project to convert and equip the old buildings, it is far more rational than building all new facilities.  Admittedly there will be some operational and personal dislocations, and there will be some changes in the way mailers submit mail to some facilities.

* links added by Postal Reporter

Also: Excerpts of MTAC meeting minutes describing the Automated Package Processing System (APPS)

Automated Package Processing System (APPS)
Scott Bombaugh, Mgr.
Material Handling USPS Engineering

Mr. Bombaugh described the APPS,* a modular system that can be configured in a number of different ways – closed or open loop, single and dual induction, and automated singulation.  The single induction volume is 5,500 pieces per hour, double is 9,500 per hour.  The equipment can handle a wide variety of shapes, although there are challenges related to frictional characteristics of packages and bundles, and the mechanical singulation process sometimes causes bundle breakage.  There is also a challenge with image – optical interpretation of the address label.  The equipment must read the label through the materials used to hold the bundle together (shrinkwrap and banding) and must be able to read the additional information that mailers add, such as endorsements.  The equipment is able to read various sides of a package in line, and handle sizes from 3” x 3.5” for those packages letter thin up to 15” x 18” x 25” and weights up to 25 pounds.

Phase I deployment is expected to extend through August 2006, with 74 machines at 64 sites (55 are currently in operation).  The reader is optical character recognition and the current successful read rate is 80%.  The objective is to get a clear view of the label and other data – the kind of view that the human can see and interpret.  If that fails, the mail piece is sent to a video code environment and a human tries to interpret the address.  Failing that the piece is rejected.  Therefore, mailers need to make sure that the polywrap is clear, that seams do not obstruct the address and that banding does not interfere with the optical scan.  In simple terms, if a human eye can read the entire address, so can the APPS.  To that end, a DMM change becomes effective on April 30 that reads: “address must be visible and readable to the naked eye”.

Mr. Bombaugh said that the next challenge is bundle integrity.  The equipment is designed to accept a wide variety of shapes and sizes, but the singulation process that sorts all the various sizes involves the mixed mail moving through a series of separations, some of which may cause bundles to tumble.  If the bundle is not secure, it may come apart in that process. 

Mr. McCrery mentioned the ongoing eMIR program (Electronic Mail Improvement Report), noting that since the program was begun there have been improvements – decreases in strapping and poor polywrap mishaps, and there have been reports from the field that the situation is improving.

He announced a new approach to evaluating bundle integrity, a joint effort with major printers and the Postal Service to design and develop a measurement for bundle integrity.  The objective is to identify the best methods to create a secure bundle.  Finally, Mr. Bombaugh announced a study to identify the problems related to the APPS equipment design and mainly the singulation process, because of the tumbling and consequent bundle breakage.  He was confident that the equipment could be adapted to handle the process more effectively.

*link added by PostalReporter.com

Also see: USPS Discuss Network Realignment, APPS at MTAC Meeting