POSTAL NEWS

...from various sources.

4.01.2009

Suspicious Package Injures Postal Worker


"... Genesee County say a postal worker experienced eye irritation ..."  
Source: wsgw.com




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consolidation of mail processing operations in its Wilkes-Barre

Update: Postal Service reschedules public hearing on potential consolidation


"... potential consolidation of mail processing operations in its Wilkes-Barre facility into similar facilities in Allentown and Scranton...."  
Source: www.citizensvoice.com




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Postal Service to shift mail processing to Tampa; 59 jobs affected


"... U.S. Postal Service announced today it will be shifting originating mail processing and distribution operations from the Manasota Process and Distribution Center in Tallevast to a facility in Tampa..."  
Source: www.bradenton.com




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Postal Service Confirms Closure of Lakeland Mail Center

39 employees affected


"...The Postal Service is closing its Lakeland Processing and Distribution Center in the post office on Lakeland Hills Boulevard and consolidating it with one in Tampa. ..."  
Source: www.theledger.com




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3.29.2009

New Postal Voluntary Retirement VER for July 31, 2009

Postal News


Read it here: New Postal Voluntary Retirement VER for July 31, 2009

ALL EMPLOYEES except Electronic Technicians (ET); Maintenance Mechanics, Mail Processing Equipment (MPE); Part-time Postmasters.


"... Please Note: The age and years of service criteria must be met by the effective retirement date of this VERA: July 31, 2009. If you don’t meet the criteria by July 31, 2009, you are not eligible for voluntary early retirement...."  
Source: The Postal Newsgroup




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3.25.2009

U.S. Postal Service plans deep cuts


"... The U.S. Postal Service said March 20 it will cut jobs, offer early retirement to tens of thousands of employees and close administrative offices, the latest round of cutbacks in the last year...."  
Source: www.bizjournals.com




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3.24.2009

Downfall of the Postal Service?

Will "DoNotMail" kill the Postal Service?


American mailboxes are inundated with junk mail. More than 100,000,000,000 pieces of junk mail are delivered each year—that’s more than 800 pieces per household. In fact, junk mail in the United States accounts for one-third of all the mail delivered in the world. Even though 44% of that mail goes to the landfill unopened, we still spend 8 months of our lives dealing with it all.
Source: www.donotmail.org


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3.23.2009

USPS District Closings, VER...


On March 20, the US Postal Service announced District Closings, Voluntary Early Retirement, and Reductions. The announcement reads as follows:



USPS ANNOUNCES ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICE CLOSINGS, EARLY RETIREMENT OFFER AND
STAFFING REDUCTIONS


Today the Postal Service has announced it will close six of its 80 district offices. USPS is also
eliminating positions across the country and offering another round of voluntary early retirements.
These actions are expected to save the Postal Service more than $100 million annually.
The six offices closing — located in Florida, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey,
Pennsylvania and Washington State — house administrative functions and will not adversely affect
customer service, mail delivery, Post Office operations or ZIP Codes. The functions of these offices will
be assumed by 10 surrounding districts.
The Postal Service’s districts are being re-aligned as follows:
�� The Boston and Connecticut districts will assume the operations of the Massachusetts District.
�� The Northern New England (formerly Maine) District will assume the operations of the New
Hampshire/Vermont District.
�� The Western Pennsylvania (formerly Pittsburgh) District will assume the operations of the Erie
District.
�� The South Florida and Suncoast districts will assume the operations of the Central Florida
District.
�� The Seattle and Salt Lake City districts will assume the operations of the Spokane District.
�� The Northern New Jersey and Southern New Jersey districts will assume the operations of the
Central Jersey District.
USPS will reduce administrative staff positions at the district level nationwide by 15 percent. In addition,
more than 1,400 mail processing supervisor and management positions at nearly 400 facilities around
the country will be eliminated, and nearly 150,000 employees nationwide are being given the...

The Mandatory Stand-Up Talk reads as follows:

Mandatory Stand-Up Talk
District Closings, Staffing Reductions and VER Announced

With the economic recession resulting in the Postal Service ending fiscal year 2008 with a loss of nearly $3 billion, we
are facing an extremely difficult financial challenge.
Streamlining operations and improving efficiency throughout the Postal Service is a constant, ongoing process. Over
the past year, we have refined this process by modifying networks, consolidating functions, adjusting delivery routes
and restructuring administrative and processing operations. Today, Postmaster General Jack Potter announced new
steps to further our efforts. These actions are expected to save the Postal Service more than $100 million annually.
First, the Postal Service is closing six district offices.
These six administrative district offices were chosen based on their proximity to other districts that could absorb the
additional workload without compromising the delivery, retail and mail processing functions of the Postal Service.
Today, more than 500 employees were notified by their area vice president and/or district manager that their district
offices were closing.
An opportunity for voluntary early retirement (VER) also is being offered.
This nationwide offer is open to nearly 150,000 employees who meet the Office of Personnel Management (OPM)
conditions, and who are at least 50 years of age with 20 years of creditable federal service, or any age with 25 years
of creditable federal service. An annuity estimate will be mailed to all VER-eligible employees starting April 6, 2009.
Another step being taken is instituting a 15% administrative staffing reduction of positions in all remaining 74
district offices.
Postal headquarters already has reduced its employee complement by approximately 15% and the area offices are in
the process of a similar staffing reduction.
At nearly 400 of our mail processing facilities around the country, more than 1,400 supervisor and
management positions are being eliminated.
Reduction in force (RIF) avoidance strategies will be in place for employees impacted by district closings and staffing
reductions.
There are no signs of an early economic recovery. Financial projections call for a continued decline in mail volume and
revenue.
Now, more than ever, we all must look for ways to do our jobs more efficiently and help to continue the service
performance and customer satisfaction improvements we have gained in recent years.
By doing so, we can help ensure that the Postal Service will continue to deliver for America now and in the future.
Additional information — and questions and answers — about all of these new changes can be found under the Hot
Topics section on Blue. VER information can be found under the Hot Topics section on LiteBlue.

3.22.2009

Postal service to trim 3,000 workersS


"... More than 3,000 U.S. Postal Service jobs will be cut and one-quarter of the USPS workforce offered early retirement, postal officials say...."  
Source: www.marketwatch.com




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U.S. Postal Service offering early retirement to 150,000 workers


"... would reduce management staff by 15%, which would eliminate more than 1,400 processing, supervisor and management posts at nearly 400 facilities...."    



This Article is From: www.latimes.com
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3.17.2009

Trimming shipping costs with the Postal Service


"... Commercial shippers can now take advantage of new volume price incentives with Commercial Plus, an up-front price incentive for qualifying shippers using domestic Express Mail and Priority Mail, who meet established volume requirements. On average, Commercial Plus prices for Express Mail are 14.5 percent less than USPS retail prices and Priority Mail prices are 7 percent less...."  
Source: www.fedsmith.com




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Early outs, again?


"...There is a strong rumor out there that there will be another VER coming soon. At this point it is just that, a rumor, but I wouldn’t be surprised if the Postal Service, in an effort to continue downsizing in response to reduced volumes, announces another VER...."    



This Article is From: www.postmasters.org

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3.09.2009

Postal Service closes West Springfield annex


"... The move, made effective on Feb. 7, means that letter carriers from West Springfield and Springfield who started and ended their days at the so-called Riverdale Station will work out of the Agawam and Springfield Post Offices..."  
Source: www.masslive.com




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U.S. Postal Service and rising cost of stamps

Letters to the editor of the Seattle Times


"... The U.S. Postal Service just paid $1.2 million for the postmaster's 8,400 square-foot house, so he can relocate to Texas. Isn't this nice of them to do in this spiraling economy? I think most consumers are fed up with the rise in cost and the decrease in service we have seen the past few years at most post offices...."  
Source: blog.seattletimes.nwsource.com




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3.03.2009

USPS sales campaign blitz


"... Only one week old, the sales campaign — during which the USPS sales team will spend the next 90 days and 90 percent of its time with customers — is intended to generate as much revenue over the next three months as possible. The Postal Service is moving forward with integrated sales and service teams to focus on serving the needs of its customers to grow the Postal Service’s business...."  
Source: liteblue.usps.gov




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2.26.2009

USPS March 2009 COLA - Postal Cost of Living Adjustment

Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) Update

"...After the final month of the six-month measuring period, the fifth COLA under the 2006 National Agreement and the Operating Services Agreement will be zero. ..."    



This Article is From: www.apwu.org


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2.24.2009

Charlotte Post Offices cut evening hours


"... USPS says it's cutting hours to save money as it faces a record declines in business. But local union president Leroy Moyer says the shorter hours will save little..."  
Source: www.wfae.org




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2.23.2009

USPS Delivers High School Graduation Invitation...22 Years Late


"... The letter, which had been opened, carried 22 cents in postage and a June 2, 1987, postmark...."  
Source: www.ktvl.com




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2.21.2009

SLIDESHOW: Mail must get through


"... Two decades ago this month, the United States Postal System opened its 72-acre National Center for Employee Development east of 24th Avenue SE on SH 9 in Norman. It's grown to about 500,000 square feet of office and training space in addition to a 445,000-square-foot housing facility -- and with close to 1,000 smoke-free guest rooms is the largest hotel in Oklahoma...."  
Source: www.normantranscript.com




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2.20.2009

Postmaster General Gets Pay Bonus as Agency Falters


"... In all his total compensation -- salary, bonuses, retirement benefits and other perks -- topped $850,000, a spokesman with the U.S. Postal Service told FOXNews.com on Wednesday. At the same time, the Postal Service, an independent federal agency, is crumbling..."  
Source: www.foxnews.com




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2.15.2009

A Postal Employee Retirement Community - Nalcrest, Florida 33856


"... Where does a postal employee go to retire? Some postal retirement seekers look to Florida for retirement living ...and where better to live than in a postal retirement community with nothing but other retired postal workers living next to you? No dogs allowed! ..."  
Source: postal-newsgroup.blogspot.com




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Postal workers seek help to keep work


"... stop the U.S. Postal Service from deciding to move postal cancellation and some mail processing to Akron. Such a move would affect outgoing mail processed by Mansfield from the 448 and 449 ZIP codes. "It would delay all our mail," said Wendy Hammon, president of the American Postal Workers Union Local 903...."  
Source: www.mansfieldnewsjournal.com




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Rare misprint US airmail stamp to be auctioned in Warwickshire


"... The 1918 US airmail stamp depicts the Curtiss JN-4 Jenny aeroplane flying upside down...."  
Source: www.birminghampost.net


Visit Warwick and Warwick Auction House for more collectibles.


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2.13.2009

Laid off postal hero gets new job offer


"... Isaac Fish, 21, of Coeur d'Alene, says he has agreed to come back to work for the postal service, but at half the pay with no vacation time and benefits...."  
Source: www.msnbc.msn.com




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APWU Denounces USPS Rate Proposal


"... “The USPS response to its financial crisis has been to cut work hours and consolidate postal facilities,” Burrus said, “and service has suffered. But management has refused to take any steps to reduce the loss of revenue from ‘worksharing’ discounts or from subcontracting.” “As a result, postal managers have no reason to expect understanding from employees — who have been asked to sacrifice time and again because of the financial crisis...."  
Source: www.apwu.org




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2.12.2009

Spiraling down, 2 cents at a time


"... First class postage stamps will go up another 2 cents in May, the Postal Service said Tuesday... ...stock up on Forever stamps. ..."  
Source: kitchentablenomics.blogspot.com




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FERS Sick-Leave Bill Introduced


"...The “FERS Sick Leave Equity Act” (H.R. 958), introduced by Rep. Jim Moran (D) and Frank Wolf (R), provides Federal Employees Retirement System employees a sick-leave benefit equal to that received by employees under the Civil Service Retirement System. For the purposes of determining an annuity during retirement, the benefit adds unused sick leave to the number of years an employee has worked. ..."    



This Article is From: www.apwu.org,


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2.11.2009

Postal Service to conduct area mail processing study


"... consolidating some operations of the processing and distribution facilities in Utica and..."  
Source: www.wktv.com




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Post office to remove several collection boxes


"... Indianapolis - The United States Postal Service is removing 55 mailboxes on streets across the city..."  
Source: www.msnbc.msn.com




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2.10.2009

USPS EXPANDS ITS POSTAL HISTORY WEBSITE


"... USPS just launched its “new and improved” Postal History website, featuring more than 100 papers on postal history, historic images and photos, and resources..."  
Source: liteblue.usps.gov
Visit the website HERE




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2.09.2009

USPS Rolls Out Abraham Lincoln Stamps


"... His image has appeared on more than 50 U.S. postage stamps..."  
Source: www.ktnv.com




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FedEx Freight Lays Off 900


"... The cuts were made at 150 of the company's 475 terminals and represent roughly 2.6 percent of approximately 34,500 employees...."  
Source: www.trafficworld.com




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Return to sender


"... Privatization is not the answer, nor is five-day delivery, but listening to USPS and Postal Union Officials’ proposals may be a good starting point...."  
Source: news.bostonherald.com




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Three Pulaski County Men Arrested in 2008 Postal Truck Robbery


"... a three-count indictment charging them with violations of Robbery of a Post Office/Postal Employee, Receipt of Stolen Property, and Aiding and Abetting. The indictment was returned by a grand jury in the Eastern District of Arkansas...."  
Source: arkansasmatters.com




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USPS workers on the picket line to fight for their jobs


"... a three-year USPS mail processor whose position could be on the chopping block. "From work and to travel and taking care of my family, that's going to be really really hard for me," Crosier said. The issue is about the USPS proposal: ..."  
Source: www.abcactionnews.com




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Postal workers rally to keep Industry facility open


"... Postal workers kicked off a campaign Saturday to prevent the US Postal Service from taking steps they fear will lead to the closure of the Industry Processing and Distribution Center on Gale Avenue. Dozens of workers and American Postal Workers Union leaders gathered at the Ontario ..."  
Source: www.sgvtribune.com




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2.02.2009

USPS 5-Day Delivery Week Could Hurt E-Commerce


"... Now that e-mail has taken the place of snail mail for many personal and business communications, the U.S. Postal Service is swimming in red ink. The solution? Cut deliveries to five days a week. That's what Postmaster General John Potter proposed to Congress earlier this week. That could mean trouble for e-commerce companies like Netflix, which depends on speedy delivery...."  
Source: www.ecommercetimes.com




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1.30.2009

Obama Moves to Reverse Bush’s Labor Policies


Article Title: Obama Moves to Reverse Bush’s Labor Policies
Snippet from Article: "...The orders he signed, which union officials say will undo Bush administration policies that tilted toward employers, would require federal contractors to offer jobs to current workers when contracts change, and would make it more difficult for federal contractors to discourage union activities...."
Source: www.nytimes.com

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1.28.2009

Postal Hearing Results

The following links relate to today's Hearing and the future of the Postal Service. You must read carefully and completely to understand the dynamics of the situation in full.

  • STATEMENT OF POSTMASTER GENERAL/CEO JOHN E. POTTER BEFORE THE SUBCOMMITTEE ON FEDERAL FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT, GOVERNMENT INFORMATION, FEDERAL SERVICES AND INTERNATIONAL SECURITY OF THE COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS UNITED STATES SENATE JANUARY 28, 2009
    "...Contracts with the two unions that alone represent almost 75 percent of our 652,000 career employees – the American Postal Workers Union and the National Association of Letter Carriers – do not expire until late 2010 and late 2011. We cannot wait until then to address what are pressing needs today. So I am proposing to union leadership that we begin talks now to create needed levels of workforce flexibility. ..."
    Article Reference Source: www.intelisent.com

  • Key Points Made By Witnesses before the
    Senate Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services and International Security
    "... Senator Susan Collins:

    * Enactment of PAEA was an arduous process.
    * We need to continue the nation's universal postal services. Mail is still a key part of the nation's economic infrastructure.
    * The current recession has placed the Postal Service back on the congressional agenda.
    * The question has been raised as to whether the Postal Service is trying to use this crisis as a way of pulling away from PAEA.
    * The PAEA retiree payments were a key part of the negotiating to make PAEA possible.
    * A rwo-year reprieve is doable. Beyond two years make take too much pressure off the USPS to respond to its other challenges.
    * GAO has been disappointed with the USPS' responses. GAO expressed frustration with the USPS' lack of transparency.
    * Very disappointed that the proposed solution is the elimination of the six-day a week delivery requirement. Service cutbacks also can impact mail volume adversely.
    * Already received many complaints from publishers in Maine. Service has been compromised.
    * I don't know how you can ask for relief while proposing cutbacks in service that could precipitate further losses.
    * I'm very concerned about the lack of the Postal Service's financial transparency. You're coming to Congress for relief with the needed transparency. This is unacceptable.
    ..."
    Article Reference Source: www.postcom.org

  • Video: Title: The Impact of the Economic Crisis on the U.S. Postal Service
    "... U.S. Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs
    Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management, Government Information, Federal Services, and International Security
    ..."
    Article Reference Source: hsgac.senate.gov

  • Area offices to reduce staffing levels
    "... With this action, complement at Area Offices has been reduced – some vacant positions have been eliminated, while other occupied positions are impacted. Starting this week, employees occupying impacted positions will be notified and given information and guidance...."
    Article Reference Source: www.postalnewsblog.com
  • Postal Announcement, Big Meeting ...No, it's a Hearing on the Impact of the Economic Crisis on the U.S. Postal Service


    "... The hearing is set to examine how the current financial crisis is hurting business at the U.S. Postal Service, Sen. Tom Carper (D-Del.) will hold the hearing at 2:30 p.m. today, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2009, in his Subcommittee on Federal Financial Management..."  
    Source: postal-edaily.blogspot.com




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