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Selected News from Postalblog
OPM Submits Proposal
To Create Short-Term Disability Insurance Program
To Err Is Not
Human for Demoted Postal Supervisor
USPS Resolves Dispute With Unions Over
Computer Security Rules
USPS Selects Former Halliburton Executive
As New CIO
Proposed FMLA Rule Changes Would Be
Major Defeat For Workers
APWU: Proposed FMLA Regulations Threaten
Medical Privacy, Other Protections
Bush Administration Seeking Changes To FMLA Regulations
USPS to Add
Surcharge for Express Mail Delivery on Sundays and Holidays
Big
Pay Increases Approved For Top Postal Service Officers
Letter: Expeditor dies after
on the job fall in Denver parking lot
Postal Workforce Stats At A Glance
USPS Retail
Cost Cutting (PDF)
Postal Watchdog Files Complaint
Over USPS Elimination of Bound Printed Matter Rate
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Former Postal
Public Affairs VP Jaffer Starts Own Consulting Business
Former Postmaster Wins Hostile
Workplace Lawsuit - But No Money
USPS Wants To Automate Road
Tests
Postal Service Updates Its
Transformation Plan
EEOC: Postal Worker Has Claim
For One-Time Incident of Discriminatory Harassment
Postal Worker Fails to Convince
Appeals Court to Overturn APWU-USPS Settlement
Appeals Court:
Evidence of Disability for Disability Retirement
NALC’S Young:
Good Cop/Bad Cop - Right Here In The USPS
Rollout of PostalPEOPLE Initiative Completed
Mail Handler Fired After Threatening
Behavior Towards Co-Workers
Court Upholds Postal Supervisor’s
Demotion For Altering Time-Keeping Records
USPS Los Angeles District Gets
Approval From OPM to Offer Early Outs
NALC’s Young
Urges Support For Harkin Amendment to Labor-HHS Bill
APWU: Casual Issues Disputed
At National Level (PDF)
Arbitrator Issues
Award in Rural Carriers Contract Case
click
here to read the award (PDF)
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A Short Comparison of USPS Contracts
With APWU, NPMHU, NALC and NRLCA
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PRC Requests Help In Developing
Report on Universal Postal Service And Postal Monopoly
Postal Service’s Oldest Employee
Still Going Strong At 93
OIG Recommends
USPS Increase Postal Employee's Benefit Costs
Canadian Lottery
Scheme Using Fake USPS Checks
APWU Questions and Answers on USPS Shared Services
Court To USPS: Retire Not Fire Postal Veteran With PTSD
Bogus USPS Early
Out / Buyout Letter Making The Rounds
PMG Potter and USPS Executives
Focus On 2008
USPS Threatening
To Discipline Employees Over Failure to Pay Local Tax ??
Postal Worker Gets 2 Years
for Stealing Over $400,000 In Money Orders
USPS Seeking Info On Automatic
Vending Machine Manufacturing
Veterans Preference and the U.S. Postal Service
Supreme Court to Hear Postal
Worker’s Retaliation Case
USPS Reports $5.4 Billion Deficit
for FY 2007
Appeals Court Overturns Postal
Worker’s Conviction for Theft
Fired Postal Worker Featured
in Push to Expand Reservist Job Rights
USPS Workforce Size and Employment
Categories, 1986-2006
Appeals Court Overturns Postal
Worker’s Conviction for Theft
Fired Postal Worker Featured
in Push to Expand Reservist Job Rights
USPS Responds to APWU Inquiry
Regarding Absences of 3 Days or Less
Letter Carriers Ratify New
5-Year Contract
USPS Offering
Cash Prizes in Automated Postal Center Sweepstakes
Postal Inspectors
Sue USPS for Overtime Pay
APWU Questions
USPS Medical Documentation Requirement for Absences of 3 Days
or Less
Arbitrator Awards
$50,000 for Postal Inspectors Misconduct
USPS, Postmasters
Reach Agreement on Pay Package
Notice: USPS Revised Rule for
Conduct on Postal Property
Mail Handlers
Awarded $13.8 Million for Casuals Violation
Company Tests Popcorn Vending
Machine at NJ Postal Facility
"Kelly Girl" Arbitration Award to Cost USPS Nearly $20 Million
USPS BOG Chairman Gets Blue-Collar Name Tag
Postal Supervisor Fired For Rewarding
Employees Non-Worked OT Loses Appeal
Court Excludes
AMS Specialist Position From APWU Bargaining Unit
Flat
Sequencing System (FSS) Strategy
USPS: Boston District's New Mystery Shopper Board Game
USPS Performance Scores at Record Levels
USPS Seeks Private
Companies For New Priority Mail Care Package Program
Former USPS
Contractor Nabbed in NJ Postmasters Scheme
Postal Employees Cry Foul Over
Alleged USPS Privacy Violations
Photo: Semi-Automated
Postal Robotic Delivery Vehicle
USPS Deployment of Automated
Postal Centers Put On Hold
USPS Seeks Vendors for Postal Package Processing System
Video: USPS
Infomercial
Postal Supervisor’s Retaliation
Lawsuit Dismissed
Video: NALC Branch #709: Reno
Picket Against Contracting Out
New CSRS, FERS
Retirement System Goes Online in 2008
NALC, NRLCA Presidents Debunk
PMG Letter Justifying Contracting Out Mail Delivery
PMG: USPS Strongly
Opposes the 'Mail Delivery and Protection Act'
Photo: Postal
Window Clerk and A Very Strange Mail Package
OSHA partnership helps reduce
ergonomic injuries at USPS
USPS Customer
Satisfaction Questionnaire Website Launched
Court Affirms Enforcement of
Unfair Labor Charges Against USPS
Senator Collins Introduces Postal Resolution Reaffirming Protections
of Sealed Mail
NAPUS: Is Mail Service at Risk?
USPS Awards Contract to Protect
Employee Personnel Records
NALC Young: It’s time to stop
the ‘run amok’ OIG
Postal Service Awards $874.6
Million Contract for Flat Sequencing System
Unofficial Transcript of NALC Rap Session
Recent EEOC
Decisions Involving Postal Employees
Postal Employees Know Your Rights
Postal Worker Fired After Second Violation of USPS Zero Tolerance
Policy
Postal Employees Should Think
Twice Before Appealing Case to MSPB
Kenneth Jones
vs. US Postal Service,
illustrates why postal employees should think twice before
appealing their discipline to the Merit Systems Protection
Board.
New Book: Beware of Cat: And
Other Encounters of a Letter Carrier
Postal Worker Fired After Second
Violation of USPS Zero Tolerance Policy
Bush Plan Would Cut Tax-Free
Employer-Provided Health Insurance
MSPB Overturns Postal Worker’s Removal for $45,000 Stamp Stock
Shortage
Postage Rate Hike in 2008?
Postal Service: ‘Intelligent
Mail’ Fully Operational By 2009
Video:
Signed, Sealed and Delivered- Labor Struggle in the
Post Office
USPS: New Postal
Law-The Financial Impact
Can Bush Open Mail Without
Warrant?
Former
Postal Worker Charged in FEHB Scheme to Defraud USPS and NALC
Un-Merry
Christmas
Postal Service Terminates Disabled Iraq War Veteran for Unacceptable
Attendance
Letter
to the Editor
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Mismanagement at Royal Oak
Carrier Unit
FedEx and DOT at Stalemate in
Dispute Over Disclosure of Postal Contract Data
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USPS, APWU Reach $5.3 Million
Agreement in Anthrax Travel Grievance
Postal
Worker Fired for Refusing to Work on DBCS Machine
Postal Nurse Charged With Defrauding USPS
Five-Year Postal Employees Stats At a Glance
Big Win For APWU in MS-47 Maintenance Case - "Custodial Jobs
Protected"
USPS to Sell Segway Scooters to General Public
Postal Worker Sues USPS – Denied Permission to Work Off-the-Clock?
USPS OIG Paper:
Postal Officers Travel Expense Guidelines
USPS Mail Processing Facility Faces $44,250 in Fines for Safety
Violations
Man Pleads Guilty in Kickback Scheme to Pay Postal OWCP Specialist
APWU Initiates
Dispute Over Changes to USPS Computer Security Rules
Postal Worker Injured in Iraq Wins Job Back Under USERRA
USPS to Conduct Search for Sex
Offenders on Postal Payroll
Postal Supervisor Fired for Rewarding Employees With Non-Worked
Overtime Pay
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April 30, 2008
Letter Carrier Accused
of Warning Customer About 'Mail Cover' Surveillance -
Federal prosecutors in Detroit say letter carrier
Darlene Cry illegally tipped off a postal customer that he was the
subject of a "mail cover" -- a form of warrantless surveillance
in which the envelope information on every card and letter received
is secretly recorded by the Post Office, then passed to federal
law enforcement or intelligence officials.
Archive:
NY Postal Employee Charged With Disclosing Confidential Information
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Postal inspector in Arizona seeks to
boost staff
Texas carrier placed dog in a box on mayor's doorstep
Post Office Won't Let Charity Reuse Boxes
Pushing the Envelope:
Interview with USPS's Paul Vogel
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April 29, 2008
Look For
The Union Label
Mike Causey: "....after
reporting on the NALC-APWU endorsements earlier this month we were
contacted by a dozen or so members of each union who object to endorsements.
As one e-mail said: "...I'm a union member and I can tell you that
no matter what our executive council says we want, I'm telling you
most of the members I know are going to vote for Sen. John McCain
(R-Ariz.)."
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Mail halted by spit
spat
APWU: Six More U.S. Representatives Co-Sponsor Mail Network Protection
Act
Matinicus Post Office flattened by fire
Former Postal Worker
Sentenced for OWCP Fraud
Postal
collection reminds Juan Rodriguez of his years of service
Every Time a Bell
Rings… Another Forever Stamp is Sold
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April 28, 2008
Rally
To Protest Lafayette Post Office Closing
"Up to a few
weeks ago, the only reasons given by United States Postal Service
officials for closing the branch had to do with security concerns,
citing broken security cameras and a broken bulletproof glass door
through which parcels are passed. But earlier this month, Darleen
Reid, a USPS spokeswoman gave Jersey Journal columnist Earl Morgan
an additional reason. "It's not official yet, but the paperwork
is already in the works to permanently close the Lafayette Post
Office because it doesn't make a profit and we are under a congressional
mandate that post offices make a profit," Reid said."
USPS Spokesperson says safety only issue
in post office closing |
Missouri Postmaster Demoted to Supervisor After Investigation
The postmaster of Jackson who was
on administrative leave for more than a month during an
investigation of unspecified rules violations, has been
reassigned to duties in Cape Girardeau, a spokesman for the U.S.
Postal Service said. Heuschober "accepted a reassignment to a
supervisory position."
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Comments (33
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April 27, 2008
USPS Districts Currently Under Phase 2 Of
the National Reassessment Process -
The National Reassessment
Process is a key initiative that reviews the status of those 33,777
employees in rehabilitation and limited duty assignments at the
end of each year.
"The Postal Service continues to implement
Phase 2 of the National Reassessment Process (NRP) in USPS Districts
across the country. There is no set schedule that establishes a
date when a particular District will begin Phase 2." San Francisco,
S.E. New England, Mississippi, Central New Jersey are the latest
districts to begin implementing phase 2 of the National Reassessment
Process
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Neighbors march
in support of injured letter carrier
Retired postal employee runs Internet radio
Post office’s plastic
gear lost to offices, recycler
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April 26, 2008
USPS OIG Recommends Diverting Some Window
Transactions to Alternate Channels (PDF)
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"The Postal Service could divert some non-revenue generating
transactions currently conducted at the retail counter to
alternate channels by promoting the use of USPS.com and the
contact center, expanding automated services available in the
retail lobby, and exploring new channels that its domestic
competitors and foreign postal entities currently use. OIG also
recommends that USPS "Explore adding fee-based premium delivery
options to available services."
Revised Delivery Form 3849
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Comments (46
APWU: Off-Site Safety and Health Inspections
MOU
Postal Debate: Time Inc. vs. The Nation
Cracking the zip code of Atlanta cool
Rural carrier indicted
for mail theft
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April 25, 2008
Ask President
Burrus: Why Are Jobs Going to Mail Handler Craft?
Q: Do you think the new jobs are going to the Mail
Handler craft because we have provisions for penalty overtime pay
and they do not? When APWU can prove that the manual activity is
integral to clerical duties, we have been able to prevail in the
assignment of work. It is regrettable that another union would take
solace in reducing the salary level of the work in question in order
to maintain a membership base.
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Attacker of postal worker
gets 7 years
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April 24, 2008
From Boulder City to Boston, rural
mail carriers across America tell CityLife they're seething over
a "fixed" evaluation system -- called, appropriately enough, the
"mail count." This periodic process (held from late February to
early March of this year) is an official accounting of each carrier's
average mail volume so that post-office managers can reallocate
workers and resources to routes that have grown the most and need
more TLC. In reality, say rural mail carriers, postmasters and post
office managers manipulate the mail count, either by hiding large
volumes of mail until after the evaluation or straight up dumping
tons of letters, bills and catalogs, to make it seem rural carriers
aren't as busy as they've been in the past.
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Sweeping Changes Debated for Landmark Family
and Medical Leave Act
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This
year marks the 15th anniversary of the landmark Family and Medical
Leave Act (FMLA), which made it possible for many workers to take
unpaid job-protected time off to care for their newborn children
or sick relatives. But instead of celebrating, workers' rights advocates
and the Bush administration are battling over what would be the
most sweeping revisions ever to the law. These and other proposed
changes have set off a fierce debate. More than 4,000 comments were
submitted to the Labor Department as of Friday, April 11.The White
House, meanwhile, is intent on putting its stamp on the FMLA. Assistant
Labor Secretary Victoria Lipnic said her goal is to finalize the
new rules during this administration...|
50 Postal Sites On OSHA Highest Injury/Illness
List
Fifty Postal Service facilities were
among more than 13,000 workplaces nationwide that OSHA surveyed
as having high occupational injury and illness rates. Last year
OSHA identified 63 postal facilities out of 14, 000 with the highest
injury/illness rates.
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USPS Cancels Solicitation
Seeking Vendors For Tracking Devices
The USPS
Inspection Service was seeking technology to
Track People, Packages,
Letters and Vehicles -
As stated in the earlier solicitation: "The mission of the
Postal Inspection Service is to protect the assets of the Postal
Service. To do so, it is sometimes required that IS personnel
be able to track people, vehicles and packages. As such, the
IS seeks to determine the devices available in the market place
that fulfill IS requirements. The IS is interested in devices that
utilize GPS, assisted GPS, cell phone, radio frequency and internet
(IP) based technologies."
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Jury Convicts Former Postmaster For Attempted
Murder-For-Hire
A federal jury convicted former Cornelius
postmaster for advancing a scheme to have his ex-wife (a Rural Carrier)
murdered. David Willis, 56, was convicted on two counts of soliciting
to commit a crime of violence and use of interstate commerce facilities
in the commission of murder-for-hire, according to the Department
of Justice. Willis was arrested in December and has been in jail
since that time.
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Postal Worker Finds $2,300 In Envelope
Arizona: Congressman gets more complaints
about post office
California: Mail carrier carjacked
Virginia: Former letter carrier convicted
of stealing mail
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April 23, 2008
NY Congressman Backs Bill to Protect Stamp
Vending Machines
"Congressman Edolphus "Ed" Towns (NY-10) announced his
co-sponsorship of H.R. 5548, the "Postal Service Access
Assurance Act of 2008." This legislation would serve to ensure
the continued availability of automated stamp vending machines
by the United States Postal Service for underserved communities.
USPS announced in October 2006 that it would phase out stamp
vending machines by 2010. Approximately 5,900 vending machines
would be removed each year until nearly 23,000 machines - now in
service - have been withdrawn. USPS points to reasons such as
aging equipment, lack of repair parts, and the high costs of
maintenance."
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USPS Board of Governors to Meet May
6-7, 2008
APWU: Workers Memorial Day April 28
Mail Carrier robbed at knifepoint
in Tipton
Illegal immigrant from Honduras charged in Atlantic City mail
carrier assault
Former postal worker sentenced for theft
Raising the Red Flag
Working Life (High and Low
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April 22, 2008
CRS Report:
USPS Use Of Contractors To Deliver Mail
During the 110th Congress, three
measures, H. Res. 282, S. 1457, and H.R. 4236, have been
introduced to address the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS’s) use of
private contractors to deliver mail. This Congressional
Research Service report provides
information on USPS’s authority to contract and data on USPS’s
use of private contractors to deliver mail. It notes that USPS
has statutory authority to contract, although the extent of that
authority has been contested. It also shows that USPS has
increased its use of contractors in recent years, but that USPS
employees continue to serve more than 98% of all U.S. homes and
businesses. This report will be
updated to reflect major legislative action.
NALC Members Lobby Congress to Keep Close
Watch On USPS Contracting Out |
Private
Contracting Would Help Postal Service, Experts Say
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House Committee Holds Hearing To
Examine Postal Nonmailable Tobacco
Queens
residents protest poor post office service
Thrift Savings Plan's Stock Funds Take a Hit
TSP automatic enrollment, fund transfer restrictions move forward
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April 21, 2008
San Francisco
Postal Workers Plan Picket Against Abusive Supervisor -
Join Branch 214 Carriers in
protesting the continuing abusive and discriminatory behavior by
Bryant Annex Supervisor and calling for the Postmaster to remove
him from supervising carriers. Management allowed this
supervisor to continue his obnoxious behavior at PCA. Carriers
at PCA struggled to stop the abuse including petitioning
Congress people. He was moved to Bryant Annex where he continues
his behavior in violation of The Joint Statement on Violence and
Behavior in the Work Place.
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Postal worker saves infant who
fell from second-floor window
City police said Lisa Harrell was
making a package delivery when she noticed the child in an
upstairs window that was open and did not have the screen pulled
down. Harrell started to walked to the front door when she was
struck in the head, police said. Unsure of what hit her, she put
her arms out and the child fell into her arms, according to
police.
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Raleigh Post Offices Make Up Own Rules
(North Carolina) At least two Raleigh post offices have denied some U.S.
citizens the ability to get a post office box by creating their
own requirements that are more stringent than Postal Service
rules listed on their website. The Raleigh Chronicle looked into
what it takes to get a post office box in Raleigh after a local
university student said they were denied a post office box
despite presenting proper identification.
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Retired postal workers have town to call their own
(Florida) The name of the town is Nalcrest and it is the only official
retirement community for mailmen and mailwomen in the United
States. Located on 300 acres, about 7 miles east of Lake Wales
in Polk County, Nalcrest contains 500 apartments. They are full,
almost exclusively, with former carriers and their spouses. The
village is meant to provide a safe, social and warm retreat for
the mail veterans, most of whom completed their 25 to 30 years
of service."
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Post Office seeking return of white mail tubs
Op/Ed: Contractors Are Antidote to Postal Service's Billion
Dollar Losses
PRC Initiates Public Outreach on Universal Postal Service Study
(PDF)
Smithtown postal worker charged
with credit card theft
Former postal worker sentenced for
money order scam
Postmark Power
eNAPUS: Expanding Competition Risks Universal Service (PDF)
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April 20, 2008
Women Who Collected Tax Returns On April 15th Were
Not Postal Workers
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Two young women wearing flag T-shirts were collecting tax forms
outside of the Laguna Hills and Laguna Woods Village satellite
offices April 15 and telling late filers they would bring their
completed forms to Santa Ana to be postmarked that night. The
women were not from the post office nor were they from the
Internal Revenue Services.
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Bicyclist struck, killed by postal truck
To-die-for ZIP is code for 'made it'
April 19, 2008
APWU: Mail Network Protection Act Gains Eight
More Co-Sponsors
Postal Worker Dies Three After
Crash
Postal carrier returns lost wallet
Two-vehicle accident
claims life of Rural carrier
Mail Carrier May Have Known Man Who Shot Him
Mail carrier climbs on car to fend off dogs
Tallahassee merchants call for later postal pickup
times
'Stamp Out Hunger'
Food Drive is Saturday, May 10
Man in postal uniform
robs Union City bank
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April 18, 2008
APWU Opposes NLRB/USPS Settlement Agreement
Relating To Weingarten Violations
- On February 28, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) notified
the APWU of its decision to implement a settlement agreement with
the U.S. Postal Service establishing a pilot program to address
current and future Weingarten violations by the Postal Service.
A Weingarten violation occurs when the Postal Service fails or refuses
to provide you with a union representative – if you request one
– in any management-conducted interview that you reasonably believe
could lead to discipline. According to the NLRB, t he purpose of
the pilot program is to explore a method of resolving Weingarten
disputes without resorting to litigation and to obtain meaningful
remedies that are not currently available through administrative
proceedings before the NRLB. The APWU disagrees. |
Even Credit Card Offers Are Ebbing
McAllen postal worker charged with stealing from
mail
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April 17, 2008
Regular postal
hours catch last-minute taxpayers off guard
Many West Alabamians became unwitting
late tax-filers Tuesday after they discovered too late that post
offices had closed at their regular times. The U.S. Postal Service
didn’t send notices to the media about post offices closing at their
regular times on tax day, although the agency did distribute notices
about branches that were open late and postmarking mail until midnight.
“We didn’t announce that we would have extended hours, so it shouldn’t
have been presumed that we would have them,” said Joseph Breckenridge,
the U.S. Postal Service’s Alabama spokesman.
Tax Day snafu needs addressing
.... The announcement of the stimulus
(rebate) payments alone should have sent up a red flag for post
office officials that there could be an issue this year.
Tax Day Fiasco as Hundreds Shocked to See Post Office Closed
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Error leads to post-dated tax returns
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OIG Audit: USPS Voyager Card Program (PDF)
At nine of the 10 sites visited, Postal
Service officials did not implement effective controls over the
security and use of Voyager Cards Specifically, we found that officials
did not always implement the Voyager Card controls prescribed in
the Site Fleet Card Guide for the United States Postal Service and
the Voyager Handbook. We identified multiple control weaknesses
affecting the Postal Service's Voyager Card Program.
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Teens accused of shooting
BB gun at mail carrier
Senate Committee
To Hold Hearing on PRC Nominee
Postal Inspectors Return Funds From Nigerian
Internet Scam
Ross-Simons Slams
Proposed USPS Rule Change For ‘Slim-Jim’ Processing
Postal Bulletin 4/17/08 Issue
Grandmother in Shock: Grandson Shot Mail Carrier
Mail carrier accused of vandalizing trees on
route
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April 16, 2008
'Fine' Time for Postal Cop
A former postal police captain was fined $10,000 yesterday for joining
a mobbed-up gambling ring at the Terminal Produce Cooperative Market
and Hunts Point Cooperative Market, both in The Bronx. Ronald Seebeck,
42, of Yonkers, had managed uniformed postal cops in the Postal
Inspection Service's Newark offices before getting booted last year.
Prosecutors said Seebeck's role in the gambling ring included working
side-by-side with a Genovese associate handling sports bets.
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McCausland post office gets reprieve
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April 15, 2008
Postmaster Steals Mail Van To Teach Carrier
A Lesson
(Rhode Island) The police launched
an intensive search for a stolen mail van Friday afternoon, only
to discover that it had actually been “stolen” by the local postmaster
in an attempt to teach a worker not to leave the keys in the van.
Barrington Postmaster Steven Santilli who had taken the truck,
was unapologetic, saying there was no theft because it was his truck,
and this was the policy used to teach employees a lesson.
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Postal worker shoots 2 neighbors, then himself,
in Harlem
A postal worker shot and gravely wounded two neighbors at a Harlem
apartment building today before turning the gun on himself as cops
closed in, police said. One victim was found in the lobby with a
gunshot wound to the head while the other apparently was chased
to the third floor and shot three times in the chest, police sources
said. Both victims were in critical condition at area hospitals.
The gunman, described by neighbors as a mild-mannered postal employee
in his 40's, committed suicide, shooting himself in the head after
cops cornered him at his apartment, the sources said.
Harlem Postal Killer Had Load of Illegal Guns
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One Dead, One Extremely Critical
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Texas Rep. Lamar Smith Wants Post Office Named
After Lobbyist
One of Washington's minor
traditions is to name post offices after heroes, usually recently
deceased. But Rep. Lamar Smith (R-Tex.) has taken a new approach.
He's pushing to name a post office after a prominent, very-much-alive
lobbyist. His legislation started moving through the House on the
same day the lobbyist's employer donated $5,000 to him.
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Texas: Remote post office robbed
Same Uniform: Different Commander in Chief
Mail carrier robber imprisoned
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April 14, 2008
Burrus Asks Bush to Appoint Postal Service
Advisory Council
Under the law,
the postmaster general serves as chairman of the council, the deputy
postmaster general serves as vice-chair, and the president appoints
11 other members, including four nominated by postal labor unions;
four representatives of major mail users; and three representing
the public at large. At this critical juncture in the history of
the Postal Service, the APWU insists that the Advisory Council be
established and consulted, in accordance with the statute,” Burrus
wrote. “Matters of crucial importance to the Postal Service and
its employees, including realignment of the postal mail processing
network, implementation of a major new flat sorting program, establishment
of service standards, and implementation of the new rate-setting
provisions enacted by the PAEA, make consultation with the Advisory
Council more important now than at any time since the passage of
the Postal Reorganization Act.
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Postal Carrier Shot While on the Job
A postal carrier was shot and critically
injured on the job Monday afternoon in South St. Louis.
Arrest made in shooting of mail carrier in
St. Louis |
Mailman
Shot Twice While on Delivery Rounds
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Kodiak postal customers get new bins to dump junk
APWU Members Lead the Charge in Defense of FMLA
USPS snubs Mac users with changes to Click-n-Ship service
Last Minute Post Office Hours, Tax Tips
Postal service truck robbed
USPS Tax Information
Postman is Volcanoes Favorite
Postal rate increase makes business more expensive
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April 13, 2008
Postal Protest: Mansfield Employees Say Move
Is Hurting Service
"Overtime
is an issue. So are contradictory statements about whether delivery
of mail deposited in Mansfield on Saturdays is delayed because it
is sent to Akron or Cleveland for processing. Tillman Franklin believes
work that could be done locally should remain in Mansfield. Franklin,
a member of American Postal Workers Local 903 and chairman of the
Save Our Mail campaign, said the Diamond Street post office stopped
canceling Saturday mail March 15.
The Postal Service was designed to be a service to America, not
a money maker. But now they're all aiming toward money and away
from service -- and that's wrong."
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Postal Worker Saves Woman
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April 12, 2008
City Gets
$30,000 Donation From APWU To Save Post office
(Iowa) The American
Postal Workers Union is offering a big helping hand to the northern
Scott County town as it tries to save its post office from closing.
The union is donating $30,000 to the city’s efforts to buy a building
and outfit it to U.S. Postal Service requirements. Residents are
trying to avoid having mail service suspended and changed to rural
route delivery.
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Former Louisiana Postal Workers Indicted
Two former postal
workers are accused of tossing a combined 150 pieces of mail into
a trash bin and a canal. A contract worker is accused of stealing
$3,400 worth of checks from the mail. Two Baton Rouge women are
accused of submitting false and forged time sheets, claiming they
had worked when they hadn't, while working for the postal service
in 2006. Another ex-postal worker is accused of filing a false claim
for FEMA hurricane relief money . |
PRC okays USPS'
competitive products price increase
Bill the Mailman: A grateful farewell
Letter Carriers
food drive slated for May 10
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April 11, 2008
Former
Letter Carrier Sues Postal Service
A rural letter
carrier who delivered mail locally for 34 years before he retired
last week has a federal lawsuit against the Postal Service, accusing
his former boss of age discrimination and retaliation. Peter J.
Marinelli, 57, of Ashland, claims a postmaster pressured him to
leave during his last six years on the job and retaliated against
him when he complained to superiors that he was being harassed.
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Former Postmaster
Relief given probation in postal scam
A post office in Party Town
Postal Service $13,000 dinner = good PR for Ruth's
Chris
Postal union decries bulk mailing change
Postal Service looking to consolidate Watertown
and Oakville post offices
April 10, 2008
Postal Officials Defend $13,500 Steak Dinner
When the U.S. Postal Service rang up
a $13,500 tab at an Orlando steakhouse, it spared no expense during
a five-hour meal that government investigators are calling "abusive"
in its extravagance. The order -- charged to government credit cards
-- included more than $3,000 for drinks, more than $500 for shrimp
cocktails and almost $900 for mini crab cakes, according to the
Government Accountability Office, the investigate arm of Congress.
Lavish $13,500
Postal Service Dinner Party Held at Orlando Restaurant
|
GAO: $15,700 in USPS Web-Based Awards System
Inconsistent With Published Policy
|
Handbook PO-408 Revision: Area Mail
Processing Guidelines
Postal Bulletin 4/10/08 Issue
Postal worker legs are No. 1 on turkey temptation list
Postal Service Cuts and Runs
The Pro-Junk Mail Lobby
Revised Mailing Standards Effective May 12 |
Pricing Incentives (PDF)
April 9, 2008
APWU Endorses Sen. Barack Obama For President
The National Executive Board of the
American Postal Workers Union has voted unanimously to endorse Sen.
Barack Obama for president. “Sen. Obama’s message is one of hope
and change,” said union President William Burrus. “His message is
special, and the timing is right.”
Burrus: He'll
Take Us in the Right Direction |
Also
Union Members Urged to
Help Save FMLA Protections
|
USPS Inspection Service Seeking Technology
to Track People, Packages, Letters and Vehicles -
"The mission of the Postal Inspection Service is to protect the
assets of the Postal Service. To do so, it is sometimes required
that IS personnel be able to track people, vehicles and packages.
As such, the IS seeks to determine the devices available in the
market place that fulfill IS requirements. The IS is interested
in devices that utilize GPS, assisted GPS, cell phone, radio frequency
and internet (IP) based technologies."
|
NY: Plans for changes in postal facilities
discussed
Post office heist nets $21G; 3 put
in vault
Ex-postmaster pleads guilty to taking
Over $52,000
|
April 8, 2008
GAO: Millions Wasted
on Gov't Credit Cards
"U.S. Postal Service workers separately
billed more than $14,000 to government credit cards for Internet
dating services and a dinner at a Ruth's Chris Steakhouse in Orlando,
Fla., for 81 people at a cost of $160 each for steaks and crab.
The dinner bill also included more than 200 appetizers and more
than $3,000 worth of wine and brand-name liquor such as Courvoisier,
Belvedere and Johnny Walker Gold. In the Internet dating case, a
postmaster charged $1,100 over 15 months for two online services,
including the Ashley Madison Agency. The expenses went unnoticed
for more than a year even though he was under internal investigation
for viewing pornography on a government computer. The postmaster
was eventually told to repay the Internet charges but faced no disciplinary
action." According to the
GAO report:
the Postmaster was "removed from his position in November 2006 after
working out an agreement with USPS in which he was authorized to
remain on sick leave until his retirement date in May 2007."
|
USPS: Lafayette Post Office Not Profitable
for Us
"It's not official
yet, but the paperwork is already in the works to permanently close
the Lafayette Post Office because it doesn't make a profit and we
are under a congressional mandate that post offices make a profit,"
USPS spokeswoman Darleen Reid said last week.
|
Post Office Pricing: Say The Magic
Word "Cheaper"
Maryland: Saturday service at two Cumberland
post offices ending
No Mail For More Than 16 Months for El Paso Man
Postal Service offers outreach to Hispanics
Letter carriers can smoke on breaks
Letter: Postal service in Tradition
unsatisfactory
Mail truck rolls on US 287, killing
driver
Letter carrier finds small token from an anonymous toker
Tossed rock breaks windshield on postal
truck
PRC Unveils
New Website
|
April 7, 2008
EEOC Rules USPS Must
Process Class Action Complaint For Rehab Postal Employees
-
Part II of Glover/Albrecht
Class Action Disability Discrimination Case - Edmond Walker, a Temporary
Rural Carrier Relief, filed a class complaint alleging that discriminatory
acts had been continuing for a class of disabled permanent rehabilitation
employees in the Postal Service. The EEOC Administrative Judge certified
the class. On appeal, the Postal Service argued that the certified
class was poorly defined and the class members were unidentifiable.
The EEOC found that the class was sufficiently defined to enable
the parties to identify potential class members. The EEOC also determined
that the class met all the requirements for certification, and therefore,
ordered the Postal Service on March 18, 2008 to process the class
complaint within 30 days. Walker v. Potter
|
NAACP sides with Richmond-area postal
workers about "unrealistic goals"
The NAACP has asked the
FBI to investigate assertions by several U.S. Postal Service employees
that they were pressured to hide or discard mail to conceal delivery
problems at Richmond-area operations. At an NAACP news conference
today, two employees and a retiree claimed that "unrealistic goals"
for delivering mail had prompted employees to discard bulk business
mail or hide undelivered mail and falsify work-hour reports.
|
U.S. Postal Service
Again Honored as ‘Most Trusted’
More than 86 percent of the 9,000 Americans
surveyed by the Ponemon Institute ranked the Postal Service first
among 74 agencies as the one that is best able to keep their information
safe and secure. The Postal Service has increased its privacy trust
score every year since the survey began four years ago.
|
Postal
Workers Attacked By Wild Turkeys
(Wisconsin) Mara Wilhite, manager of
the Hilldale Station Post Office, said wild turkeys have been pestering
postal delivery workers in Parkwood Hills. Between five and 10 large
male turkeys, or toms -- apparently a little giddy with the onset
of turkey breeding season -- have been bullying postal workers as
they make their rounds, pecking at them and even trying to rough
them up with the sharp spurs on their legs. One of the birds launched
itself through the open door of a mail truck and scratched the driver.
Nervous postal workers have been armed with water pistols. But while
the squirts of water worked for a while, Lobner said the turkeys
now seem accustomed to the spritzing.
|
In the mail soon - a new generation of direct
marketing
"Direct mail
marketing - often derided as advertising's poor relation - is experiencing
a resurgence. In today's marketing climate, direct mail is getting
more creative attention as well as an explosion in alternative delivery
vehicles. A recent survey by the United States Postal Service found
that people look forward to seeing what is in their mailboxes and
they spend an average of 30 minutes reading their daily mail.
|
Frustration increases
over Truckee post office
Lost In The Mail:
Funeral Postponed Until Cremated Remains Are Found
High-tech mailbox
aims to take a bite out of crime
|
April 6, 2008
Postal Service Again Vexes Penny Pinchers
Snail mail makes this columnist positively postal
Snail mail a bother to others
Postman to the Rescue, Saves Family
From Drowning
Postal Worker and Family Shot
Execution-Style In Illinois
|
April 5, 2008
Senator Collins Addresses National Postal
Supervisors
"The entire postal community is very
concerned about proposed “Do Not Mail” legislation. This sounds
good to a lot of legislators, who mistakenly equate this ill-conceived
proposal with the “Do Not Call” registry. In fact, it would have
devastating consequences. Direct mail is an essential part of the
Postal Service’s mail volume. “Do Not Mail” legislation would curb
this growth and place a heavier burden on other classes of mail
to cover the fixed costs of providing postal service, and thus raise
its costs and jeopardize universal, affordable service. "
|
eNAPUS: Moran Introduces Leave Equity Bill (PDF)
Postal Worker Treated for TB
North Side residents want to send gangs a message
Credit Card Companies Cut Back on Direct Mail
Harmony post office suspends
service after 94 years
Alaska: Battle looms
over bypass mail
April 4, 2008
San Antonio Local
APWU Plan Boycott and Picket
Membership vote to boycott and picket
USPS Unity Day - "Management is out there, blatantly and without
repercussion, disrespecting the Craft Members under their charge
and the APWU is sick and tired of having to put up with District
Managers, Plant Managers, Postmasters, Area Managers, and Station
Managers who have given up on the idea of Customer Service and now
only worry about the bottom line and whether they will receive their
next bonus’ or promotion."
The post office in the story below is part of San Antonio APWU.
|
Opinion: Consumers can 'police' their own mailbox
Postal Carrier Honored
Mobile: Postman Robbed at Knifepoint
Ten More U.S. Representatives
Co-Sponsor Mail Network Protection Act
|
April 3, 2008
Postman saves family from watery ditch
Postmaster guilty of throwing out mail
UK: Direct marketers dealt heavy blow
ID theft traced to bogus postal form
April 2, 2008
Postal Employees Speak Out On Hostile Working
Conditions At Texas PO
One
employee called "Joe" says Postmaster Antonio Gracia harassed
an employee for weeks telling her quote 'a monkey would do a better
job than her'. ‘Joe' says that's not the worst. He says the postmaster
reportedly threatened employees. "He was upset that a postal employee
had called in sick. So that day he made a comment that if he had
a gun he'd shoot someone," says Joe. Employees are so scared now.
He says some have even filed reports with the postal inspector but
nothing has been done.
|
See video on KGBT-TV4
home page
|
Postal Service High-Speed Sorters Get Smarter,
Faster
In
a move to enhance mail sorting technology to better serve customers,
the Postal Service Board of Governors today approved funding to
purchase technology to postmark letters faster and sort them smarter.
The 550 Advanced Facer Canceller System (AFCS) machines will replace
existing sorters operating on 1980’s technology. During its meeting
today, the Board also approved funding to purchase 400 computer
systems to replace existing National Directory Support System (NDSS)
and the Integrated Data System (IDS). In other action, the Board
also established the honorary title of chairman pro tempore for
James Miller III, the immediate past chairman.
New equipment
to lower USPS costs as revenue declines
|
Two Postal Workers Recovering After Attacks
Two
letter carriers in Milwaukee are recovering after attacks in their
neighborhoods. One letter carrier was attacked by kids throwing
rocks. Another letter carrier was attacked by a dog. “Carriers are
just out there trying to do their job and they want to deliver their
mail fast an courteously, and they really don't need to be harassed
or insulted by anyone in the neighborhood,” Postal Inspector Lori
Groen said.
|
After 38 Years, No
Sick Days, Pennsylvania Mail Carrier Retires
Through sickness, storms and all sorts
of other issues, customers in Houston, Washington County, could
always count on Frank Schussler to deliver their mail.
|
APWU Board Assails McCain for Crossing Strikers' Picket Line
Federal Court Dismisses APWU Suit
TSP stock funds
post losses in March
Indiana woman, 77,
uses car to save mail carrier from attacking dog
A postage stamp for Wilt the Stilt?
Man Sets California Post Office On Fire
Former mail carrier 'Baby V' still knows how to deliver
Judge rules against political campaigning at Post Office
Rains collapse roof
at Florida Post Office
Former clerk accused of
misappropriating over $13,000.00
April 1, 2008
Postal Workers Test Positive For Exposure
to Tuberculosis
Fairfax County
health officials are investigating why more than 30 employees at
a Chantilly post office have tested positive for exposure to tuberculosis.
A union leader representing Northern Virginia postal workers was
upset about the union not being told about the situation. "I'm outraged,"
said Douglas Sapp of the Northern Virginia area local of the American
Postal Workers Union.
Update:
Chantilly post office knew of TB in January
|
Postal Workers
Are Tested For TB
|
Postal Service offers $50,000 reward in contract worker robbery
How to Outlast the Do-Not-Mail Movement
Businesses waiting on USPS before implementing barcode system
Mailers drive film fans to cars
Reverses Stance on ZIP Code Change
Clerk indicted for theft of mail
|
|