Last year was the worst year ever for USPS - the organization realized a net loss of $8.5 billion as a result of declining revenue and rising operating expenses. For the first time the agency will not be able to meet its mandated $5.5 billion payment to the future employees health care fund.
The organization's first target is to eliminate 7,500 administrative and line supervisors and postmaster positions. Approximately 2,000 of those will be local postmasters. As more and more post offices close or consolidate, these positions are no longer necessary.
In many rural communities, Donahoe said the agency is looking at contracting postal duties out to a general store or gas station. He said that strategy saves USPS money but also helps the small business remain viable.
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They deserve what is happening cause they priced themselves right out of business. Kept raising the prices till more and more went to the internet.
ReplyDeleteHow many "local" communities even have General Stores or gas stations anymore?
ReplyDeleteI sure don't fell sorry. there service stinks.I know last year after shovleing out my mailbox the first day it snowed I still didn't get mail for a week. Then they wanted me to pick it up.
ReplyDeleteOne of the problems that I've known about in the last 25 years is medical retirement. Just in my town 3 that I know of retired early due to job related injury. The first one really had back problems, only she forgot to tell them she had them most of her adult life, long before she started at the post office. Full retirement after a few years service, 20+ years already on disability. The secound one just retired, don't know her length of service, just her badge of honor, that material arm cast thing for carple tunnel syndrome. Don't know the end of that story, but the most flagrant one was in the early eighties. Full medical for a young over sexed divorcee, doing the bump with the married post master. After she got her ticket, she hit the bricks. She was far healthier then myself and many others at the time of her departure. There's some of the post office waste. I see them work, and they work a whole lot harder then most do at their jobs. I've shipped about 1000-1200 packages in the last 10 years and the post office is the only one that consistently doesn't damage the item and if they do they don't fudge on the insurance. Fedex and UPS, don't waste your time with insurance they lie, change packing material when it's returned to cover themselves saying yours was inadequate and both refuse to pay anything. Fedex even admitting delivery to wrong door in NYC, was fully insured, never paid. Post office overseas ONLY, and otherwise 95% of the time. Fedex for large U.S.continental shipping. UPS NEVER!
ReplyDelete"They" didn't do a thing to put them in the situation the USPS is in now. The market changed with the advent of internet. The USPS was designed to deliver 1st Class letters and an occasional package but the electronic age brought email, ecards, cyber stores, and to bridge the gap with the not so computer savvy, QVS. USPS responded by getting into the advertisement delivery business (junk mail) but even that is coming to you electronically these days. The Government mail vehicles are too small to handle a large expansion into the parcel business and some rural carriers are already "stretched" being forced to drive a standard vehicle from the wrong side (no wonder they have back problems). In the southern part of DE, Selbyville, Millville, and Franford (there may be others) have combined delivery operations into a single rented building. Their brick and mortar post offices sit mostly empty with a single clerk. I can see closing these old building and relocating some functions into rented space like a store but you would still need an employee to accept packages, etc.
ReplyDeleteStop mail delivery on Saturdays. That would save a lot of money!
ReplyDeleteThey are over paid because of the Union and priced themselves out of a job. Pure greed !
ReplyDelete1149-Then who would still use the USPS on a 5 day schedule, only grandma's, no business who still does biz with the USPS would put up with that. We live in a 24/7/365 world, going to a 5 day delivery run is a short term answer that'll only quell the ever deepening shortfalls. In the long run, it'll just speed up the end of the usps(although I'm for elimating the USPS). Many countries in europe are getting rid of the archaic gov't post offices. It's more efficient to go with a private courier.
ReplyDeleteSo we can blame most of this on Al Gore, the inventor of the Internet.
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