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Postal News- September 2004

TheSmokingGun.com : Fun With USPS PhotoStamps-Rosenbergs, Milosevic, Lewinsky dress now on official U.S. postage-The folks at The Smoking Gun decided to have some fun with the U.S. Postal Service's new personalized PhotoStamps. They discovered that, although some high-profile criminals like Lee Harvey Oswald and Salvatore "Sammy Bull" Gravano aren't acceptable subjects for stamps, they will let you get away with foreign war criminals, convicted spies, Monica Lewinsky's infamous stained dress and Jimmy Hoffa. Even the Unabomber's high school photo slipped through, although more recent pics were rejected. |

Face it: USPS has strange stamp standards | PhotoStamps options.

 USPS Asks Stamps.com to Cease Taking Orders for PhotoStamps  -Stamps.com was asked today by USPS to conclude its market test and to cease taking customer orders for PhotoStamps(TM) as of October 1, 2004 "We are disappointed with this outcome as it puts the PhotoStamps program into a state of limbo as it puts the PhotoStamps program into a state of limbo as the holiday season approaches, however we acknowledge the Postal Service's request to evaluate the program before additional orders are taken," said Stamps.com president and CEO Ken McBride.  |

Postmaster General Warns of Rate Hike if Reform Bill Stalls
"The U.S. Postal Service will be forced to seek a double-digit rate increase if overhaul legislation is not passed soon, Postmaster General Jack Potter said Monday at the National Postal Forum (NPF)." (9/20)  |

- Republican Study Committee" report on HR 4341 (doc)

- Mailers Call Lack of CSRS Legislation a 'Stamp Tax'

- Mailers Should Take USPS Concerns to Congress: PMG (Direct)

- Postal Forum Opens With Upbeat Mood (DMNews)
- Remarks by PMG Potter at the National Postal Forum (USPS)
- Potter Tells Forum Goers: Bold Action Builds Business (USPS)
- Direct Marketing Leader Identifies Three Universal Truths About Direct Mail

USPS Financial Plan for 2005-The Postal Service's Financial Plan for fiscal year 2005 (beginning Oct. 1) was presented at the National Postal Forum. The report outlined in part, 

Cumulative Workhour Reductions for : FY 2004 est. minus 25 million workhours,  FY2005: projected  minus 23 million workhours; cost of COLAs and Health Benefits, Salaries and more..(9/21)|

Marina P & DC To Be Sold- Over 1200 Postal Employees affected- There are discussions in progress on selling Marina P&DC (located in Marina Del Rey CA) property to private interests with an expected closure date of January 2005. Plans are in place for the relocation of Marina P & DC within the Los Angeles, CA.  General Mail Facility (GMF) . USPS installed the "country’s largest federal grid-connected solar photovoltaic system in a few years ago in the Marina facility. |

Marina del Rey (Calif.) Postal Center Closure Likely-But the American Postal Workers Union has rallied against the idea of shutting down the Marina del Rey center. It has claimed the move to South Los Angeles will delay the mail for some customers.. The closure would re-route billions of letters a year through another center in South Los Angeles. Postal workers warned that it could slow mail delivery from Beverly Hills to Rancho Palos Verdes. The idea of shutting down the processing center has gone to USPS's headquarters for final approval. At the earliest, the center would close in the first few months of next year.|

Postal Workers' Health Plan Betters Other Feds'-"When it comes to pay and glamour, workers in the largest federal agency — the U.S. Postal Service — often take a back seat to their colleagues with the U.S. Secret Service, Foreign Service officers or air traffic controllers. But when it comes time to pick and pay for their all-important health insurance, postal workers laugh all the way to the bank." (9/21) |

- 2005 FEHB Rates Info

Opinion: Pushing the Postal Envelope: Union Wins, You Lose -"APWU President William Burrus sent a threatening letter to Hallmark President Don Hall last May promising a boycott of the greeting card giant by postal employees should it participate in the test program. And lo and behold, four months later USPS officially informed Burrus via letter (not sure, but I think it may have been faxed!) that it was driving a stake through the heart of the pilot program with Hallmark. The union wins...again."  |

 IG Questions Workers on Postal Service VP’s involvement in contract-The U.S. Postal Service’s inspector general has questioned witnesses about whether an agency vice president improperly aided a company bidding on a $635 million contract to manage seven call centers. |

Potter Reiterates Pledge to Hold Rates Until 2006-Postmaster General John E. Potter said that aggressive cost cutting has resulted in $8.3 billion in expense savings over the last three years, enabling him to reiterate his commitment to maintain current postage rates until 2006. Chief Financial Officer Richard J. Strasser Jr. said next year's financial plan requires continuing cost reductions of $1.4 billion, which include a reduction of 23 million work hours, and a sixth straight year of increased productivity. "Since 1999," Strasser said, "the Postal Service has reduced total work hours by a cumulative 728 million." Career postal employment today is virtually at the same level it was in 1984, just over 700,000, while mail volume has increased by 65 billion more pieces to an additional 48 million new addresses.. |

- USPS Tops $100M in Revenue From Mover's Guide Program

 What's Getting Lost in the Mail -" Unless Congress acts on proposals to allow the Postal Service to adjust its prices and products more rapidly, the bipartisan commission warned President Bush, the service faces three possible fates: It will have to "dramatically roll back service, seek a rate increase of unprecedented scale, or fall even further into debt, potentially requiring a significant taxpayer bailout." No one is talking about closing down the U.S. mail, although a number of foreign countries have privatized their postal operations."|

- Paper Report: As postal rates soar, job numbers sink

Delivery Point Packaging: Yea or Nay? Delivery Point Packaging was of keen interest to USPS and those attending the spring Mailers Technical Advisory Committee meeting. Since then, the silence on the subject has been deafening. The idea behind the DPP concept is to have all mail going to a given location delivered in one banded or packaged ensemble. Letter carriers would be freed of this time-consuming pre-delivery process. Less time spent in the post office means more time for delivery. "With labor representing more than 75% of the postal service’s operating expense, this leap in efficiency would make headway into its ongoing cost-containment goal." |

USPS to Train Employees on Marketing its Products- Postal Service employees soon will get a refresher course on what types of mail and services the agency offers and how they can better promote postal products.  |

- USPS July 2004 Financial & Operating Statements (PDF)-Upon ratification by union members, the agreement affects approximately 112,000 employees represented by the union. The tentative agreement provides for a 1.3% wage increase effective Nov. 27, 2004, and a 1.3% increase effective Nov. 26, 2005. The tentative contract extension covers the period from Nov. 20, 2004, and continues through Nov. 20, 2006.

Is Enough Being Done to Protect the Mail?  We're still exposed,” said William Burrus, president of APWU. “We were exposed before the attack, we are exposed after deployment of the equipment." |

- 3 Years After Anthrax, Postal Response System Very Different (9/10)

USPS July 2004 Financial & Operating Statements (PDF)-"Total workhours for July, 2004 YTD are 24.3 million hours or 2.0% below SPLY. This reduction in workhours reflects the continuation of cost containment activities through the installation of more efficient mail processing equipment and other productivity enhancements. To date, Mail Processing workhours have been reduced 10.7 million hours or 3.6% below SPLY. Other Workhours, relating to Limited Duty, Rehabilitation and Headquarters General Management hours also played a major role by using 12.9 million hours less than SPLY." |

Letter Carriers Play a Starring Role in New Postal Service Ads Beginning Sept. 7th -It all begins Tuesday with a series of television and print advertising and in-store promotions. Later this year, these Letter Carrier "postal ambassadors" will be joined by postmasters from around the country selected through a similar process and representatives of other employee groups will join in the campaign in 2005.  The Letter Carriers will also be featured on he cover of a national emergency preparedness book. You’ll also get a glimpse of a Harbor City, CA, Sales and Services Associate |

Providence, RI  Letter Carrier To Be Part Of Advertising Campaign -- It's going to be a big day for a Providence, RI Letter Carrier. Postal officials announced that letter carrier Michael Cardarelli is one of just nine selected to take part in USPS' fall advertising campaign focusing on the latest internet based services. Cardarelli says he's proud to represent the new services that his 300-thousand fellow letter carriers across the nation will provide. The 18-year postal service veteran will be featured in a TV commercial as well as the cover of a national emergency preparedness book. Cardarelli says because he lives on his route he fully expects to get some good natured razzing from friends and neighbors over his new found fame. 

Texas Gay Postal Employee Continues Quest for Equality -When the postal employee was given permission by management to put up a Pride Bulletin board at his job he didn’t think it would be a big deal. But Management decided that the bulletin board was not appropriate. Now the postal employee is fighting for the right to put up his display honoring famous Gay People  by filing a complaint with EEOC. The postal employee is convinced that even if the EEOC finds in his favor, the Postal center would rather have everything removed from all employee bulletin boards than to display GLBT positive info.  |

Op/Ed: Stamping out the Post-Office Monopoly Seems Past Due-"We've deregulated airlines, trucking, long-distance phone service and many more industries in the past quarter-century. But one big monopoly isn't simply tolerated by the government; it's owned by the government. I'm talking about the U.S. Postal Service. It has so much monopoly power that it can accuse you of a federal crime just for slipping a note into a neighbor's mailbox ." The columnist suggests: "Privatize the Postal Service and let other companies compete in delivering first-class mail." |

California Mailman Lashes Out at Postal Officials - A postal carrier hit by a pellet isn't satisfied charges haven't been filed. The mailman says a failure to quickly investigate an incident earlier this year in which he was shot by a pellet left him emotionally scarred and reluctant to resume delivering mail to the home where it occurred. Fred Phaire said his bosses dropped the ball after the March 8th incident by simply advising police that it had happened and not seeking a rapid investigation that might have led to the arrest of the shooter. Phaire questions whether the nine days that passed between the initial report of the shooting and his request for a thorough investigation possibly allowed the men involved to take steps aimed at lessening the seriousness of the incident and reducing their chances of arrest.  |

USPS Shortchanged by $800 million, Potter says-Congress is shortchanging the U.S. Postal Service under planned fiscal 2005 appropriations and should restore more than $800 million in funding, Postmaster General John Potter said Aug. 31. In a letter to Rep. Ernest Istook, R-Okla., chairman of the House Appropriations subcommittee on Transportation, Treasury and independent agencies, Potter said programs to provide free mail for the blind and overseas voters and to secure postal facilities against future bioterror attacks are jeopardized by the lack of appropriations. The Postal Service wants nearly $76 million to subsidize free mail services; the House spending bill would provide almost $62 million. Potter said that Congress’ refusal to provide $779 million to pay for machines to detect biological weapons sent through the mail and filter biohazards from the air at postal facilities makes the Postal Service “very concerned that payment for the equipment to [make mail safer is] not considered a priority.” Congress also has not budgeted for a $29 million debt repayment, which would be the 12th of 42 payments on a more than $1.2 billion dollar debt owed to the Postal Service. Nearly $900 million remains, and the Postal Service could be forced to write the whole debt off if Congress reneges on this payment. |

- Potter Urges Postal Funding in Appropriations Bill

- President's budget proposed only $37 million for USPS --and not  the $779 million as requested (article from Feb. 2004)

Storm Suspends Mail Delivery In Florida -Postal officials in Central Florida announced the temporary suspension of delivery and retail services at post offices in the predicted path of Hurricane Frances. All carriers that deliver to the barrier islands were told to complete their routes by 2 p.m. today

- Post Offices Prepare as Hurricane Threatens Coast-USPS Service Updates

15 Postal Workers Treated for Mysterious Illness -Facility Evacuated-Fifteen Los Gatos postal workers, complaining of blistering skin, sore throats and a metallic taste in their mouths are being treated and the mail facility has been evacuated, a county official said

The Check is No Longer in the Mail-New law will make checks clear faster, forcing some ‘floaters’ to change their habits -A new law (passed October 28, 2003) designed to expedite check processing will eliminate “float” days, and local bank officials are warning customers that they no longer will have a few days to beat a check to the bank. The Check Clearing for the 21st Century Act PL 108-100, also known as Check 21, goes into effect on Oct. 28, 2004. It was designed to enhance the efficiency of check writing by allowing banks to process a new negotiable instrument known as a “substitute check.”  In the short run, and on its own, Check 21 might not prove a direct threat to mail volumes--many people have been predicting the end of paper checks for years. But in the longer run, add it to the list of things that make it hard to confidently predict growth in First Class Mail volume. |

Jury to Decide Letter Carrier's Lawsuit on Co-Workers' Creating Hostile Workplace-

a 20-year Fargo, North Dakota letter carrier  filed a lawsuit against USPS and four fellow letter carriers in 2000 claiming the co-workers (2 of the carriers are NALC stewards) harassed and discriminated against her based on sex and religious beliefs. The letter carrier further alleged that USPS managers led an ineffective investigation and failed to stop the workplace abuse despite her repeated complaints. The court dismissed claims in 2001 against all four letter carriers which left USPS as the only defendant in lawsuit (9/19) |

- Letter Carrier lawsuit headed for federal court in December

NAPUS Convention Highlights (Denver, CO Aug. 28 - Sept. 3- 2004  NAPUS-League possible merger, Postal Reform, VERA, Postmasters having to deliver routes because they're not allowed to hire,  Postmasters, Customer Service employees and delivery personnel will receive training on new marketing program and more.. (9/4)|

Press Release: Going Postal II...Still fighting For Dignity in the Workplace-The second book in the series describing the working conditions of postal employees. Featured stories are a Nebraska APWU steward fired for taking my first book to work, a picket in Texas protesting working conditions, stonewalling a disabled workers rights, good supervisor pushed out the door, documenting an abusive manager and a collection of short stories in "The daily grind." The book is self-published by retired letter carrier Al Ainsworth (9/3) |

Delaware Postal Manager/Reservist's duty is collecting Army history-When soldiers are called to duty, it doesn't always mean they're going to Iraq or Afghanistan. For Chief Warrant Officer Michael Werner, it sometimes means collecting history. Werner, the manager of the Postal Service's Transportation & Networks Division in Delaware, has spent almost 27 of the past 36 months on duty with the Army, but has not been assigned to either of the primary combat zones. Instead, the Army historian spent about a year chronicling the response of Army Reservists to the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, in New York City. His work was included in a December 2003 Army publication that included many interviews with those reservists.

Despite Flat Tire, Team Brewco Driver Green Scores a Top-Ten Finish for USPS-Despite a flat tire on the #37 United States Postal Service Chevrolet late in the race, David Green managed to salvage a top-ten finish in the Stacker 200 at Dover Downs International Speedway. The finish marked Green’s sixteenth top-ten finish of the season. Team Brewco remains fifth in NASCAR Busch Series standings; they trail leader Martin Truex Jr. by six hundred and seventy-three points.

Commentary: Delivery Point Packaging: Yea or Nay? Delivery Point Packaging was of keen interest to USPS and those attending the spring Mailers Technical Advisory Committee meeting. Since then, the silence on the subject has been deafening. The idea behind the DPP concept is to have all mail going to a given location delivered in one banded or packaged ensemble. New packaging equipment the USPS wants to install in postal facilities nationwide will assemble the mail automatically. Letter carriers would be freed of this time-consuming pre-delivery process. Less time spent in the post office back room means more time for delivery. With labor representing more than 75% of the postal service’s operating expense, this leap in efficiency would make headway into its ongoing cost-containment goal. |

No More Social Security Numbers for PostalEASE-"Beginning Sept. 29, you no longer will use your Social Security number to access PostalEASE, the employee self-service benefits system. You’ll use your eight-digit employee ID — found at the top of your earnings statement — and your USPS PIN to log on to PostalEASE on the Web or when you call the toll-free number. This change helps safeguard your Social Security number by reducing its exposure on printed documents and other media, and this helps protect your privacy. Look for more information in a letter from Human Resources sent to all employees." USPS Newslink |

- APWU: USPS replaces SSN with 8-digit employee identification numbers-pdf (2003)

APWU Endorses the Million Worker March-Thousands of Americans are expected to gather at the Lincoln Memorial Oct. 17 for the Million Worker March, mobilizing union workers and anti-war demonstrators in a show of election-related concerns. Sponsors of the march include APWU; NALC Branch 3825 and  Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Calif. Million Worker March website  |

Sweeping Postal Service Reform Measure Advances in House -The first sweeping restructuring of the U.S. postal system in a generation took another step closer to approval in the House Wednesday. TThe first sweeping restructuring of the postal system in a generation took another step closer to approval in the House Wednesday. The House Judiciary Committee approved the legislation (H.R. 4341) on a voice vote Senate Version  |

Postal workers question spending-Almost 200 postal workers in Royal Oak and Madison Heights (MI) have signed a petition saying they don't have all the tools they need to do their jobs because of cost cuts, yet a district manager got a new office |

Calif. Family sues USPS Over Allegations of Biohazard Container in the Mail-The civil complaint alleges negligence on the part of the postal service for allowing a cylinder of a devastating disease to be shipped without the proper packaging

DMA Chief says Postal Reform resolution unlikely this Congressional term-"After meeting Wednesday morning with legislators in Washington, Direct Marketing Association President-CEO John A. Greco Jr. said he doesn’t expect postal reform legislation to pass this autumn. "It’s unlikely," Greco . Greco said neither the House nor Senate versions of the reform bill is perfect, and that it is more important at this point to pass something that will help meet all the reform objectives backed by the DMA, including controlling rate increases. "I’d rather do it right than rush something through," he said. |

The Kerry-Edwards Postal Plan Won't Deliver -"In an effort to win the support of America's Postal workers, John Edwards recently announced that if elected, he would "never privatize the U.S. Postal Service." He further declared that he and John Kerry would defend the current "no-layoff status" of America's Postal employees. Although the Kerry-Edwards stance may score points with the Postal Service's entrenched unions, it completely ignores the reality of USPS ledgers."-Editorial by Lexington Institute's Sam Ryan |

Bush Administration to Oppose House Postal Reform Bill-According to Postcom.org, "Word has it that the Administration has told the House government reform committee chairman that it would strongly oppose his postal reform bill - that it does not provide enough reform to justify the budget cost." |

Car thief who ran over postal supervisor gets 16 yr. prison term--A 21-year-old Corona, Calif.  woman has been sentenced to in prison for stealing a postal worker's car and running him over with it as he was delivering mail. Alex Moisa described the impossible battle to regain his old life after spending more than a month in a coma because of the incident. Moisa has lost half of his hearing and the simple pleasure of tasting food. He told the courtroom the head trauma has made it difficult for him to recognize old friends and that many friends, in turn, barely recognize him. He can no longer hold his former position as a supervisor with USPS |

NALC asks members to "Unblock" Postal Reform -"The Bush White House has told the key committee chairs in Congress not to schedule a vote on postal reform."  |

Embattled Postmaster Transferred, Mail Processor Cleared -- After Nantucket Mass. Postmaster and mail processor clerk were placed on leave in June, an investigation by postal inspectors was conducted which cleared the clerk of any wrongdoing. Postal employees said that the entire saga started with a confrontation between the postmaster and clerk in a mailroom, a conflict which escalated to the point where Davis filed a no-trespass order against the clerk. |

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