June 30, 2010

PRC Report Finds $50 Billion Discrepancy In USPS Payment Of Retirement Benefits - The Commission report finds that an adjustment of $50-$55 billion in favor of the Postal Service would be equitable. Is the Postal Service owed $50B or $75B? .| Sen. Carper Welcomes News of PRC Discovering $50 Billion USPS Overpayment |

204B Supervisor Terminated For Falsifying Timecard But Not His Female Boss

Charles Wilcher, a 204B  from the letter carrier craft, claimed he was "working" on July 5, 2006 when he spent the day with his Postmaster [Margie Flores-Jones].  She was also accused of getting paid for July 5, 2006 even though it was alleged that she did not actually work that day.  She was initially demoted to the position of Supervisor of Customer Service, but was subsequently returned to her position as Vineland Postmaster.  Eight months after the incident he was issued a Notice of Removal. .  |

APWU: Unemployment Compensation And The National Reassessment Process - Injured employees who undergo the National Reassessment Process (NRP) and are told by the Postal Service either that there is only partial day work available or that there is no work available, should consider filing for unemployment compensation. This temporary financial assistance can serve as an important monetary bridge during the time that an employee is waiting for his or her OWCP compensation to be processed.  |

Alabama USPS District Manager killed in murder/attempted suicide

Walls said Sherwin Wigley was a retired postal worker. According to a postal service website, Lori Wigley was recently named as the postal service's district manager for Alabama.  |

APWU: OSHA Slams USPS for Safety Violations

Inspectors found serious safety violations at the facilities: Untrained or unqualified workers were performing tests on live electrical equipment, and personal protective equipment, work practices, and warning signs were inadequate, OSHA said. Employees were working on live electrical machinery without being provided non-conductive head protection, voltage-rated gloves, flame resistant clothing, or face shields to prevent injury from “electric arcs,” the agency said. More citations are expected in the coming months.  |

• Former mailman pleads guilty to stealing $20,000 from PO to feed gambling addiction

• U.S. Postal Service Named ‘Most Trusted Government Agency’

• Hayward Letter Carriers Met, Married and Retire While Working at Same Post Office

• Alabama postal worker indicted for stealing mail
• Virginia post office tangles with stamp snafu

• Feasibility Study Considers Raleigh County Postal Facility

• Former Ohio Letter Carrier Charged with Theft

June 29, 2010

USPS OIG: Former Postal Marketing Exec Robert Bernstock misused staff, contractors -The U.S. Postal Service's former top marketing executive repeatedly used government staff — and at least two business associates he hired with sole-source contracts — to manage his personal finances and outside business interests, according to a new report. Robert Bernstock, who resigned June 4, admitted to Office of Inspector General investigators that he had used postal resources and staff to handle his personal business while on the agency's time. The report, released today, said his use of Postal Service employees and property to conduct personal business was improper. The report also raises questions about Postal Service general counsel Mary Anne Gibbons' apparent failure to report Bernstock's improper use of postal staff. PMG  Gave Okay for Bernstock to transfer personal emails to USPS email account | Bernstock update: Postal sole-source contracting rules tightened || Read the full report  |

• Postal workers busted for buying and selling drugs

• USPS Officer Appointments: Haney, Small, Williams, and Sigmon Named to New Positions

• Retiring Warners postmaster was a pioneer

• Police say W. Pa. man flashed mail carrier

• CA: Richmond USPS Workers Forced To Transfer Or Quit
• US Postal Service: Huntington Mail Operations Could Move to Charleston
• Union: Postal facility could lose 55 jobs

• Funding retiree healthcare in the Private Sector -Courier, Express, and Postal Observer

• ABM Position on USPS' Elimination of Saturday Delivery
• OIG Blog: Stamp Vending Machines

• New Postal Service boss for D.C. region named
• Post Office Asks Buffalo If Saturday Service Should Be Eliminated
• Triathlete Drowned in Schuylkill Was Mail Carrier
• Sparkler bomb found in mailbox

• Will mural set sail after post office sale?
• Opinions voiced at Buffalo hearing on Saturday mail delivery

June 28, 2010

USPS Reports $642 Million Loss for Month Of May

June 27, 2010

• SEC halts alleged $34M Ponzi scheme that targeted federal employees

• Saturday Mail Fever

• Alertness of mail carrier saves life of Harrison County official

• Kordie installed as postmaster in Mt. Pleasant

June 26, 2010

Postal Service's History of Seeking Five-Day Delivery to Cure Financial Woes

1977 House Report on Saturday Mail Delivery:... the Commission on Postal Service, a special study commission created by Public Law 94-421 to study the public service aspects of the Postal Service and other subjects, issued a report recommending that Saturday mal delivery be discontinuance of Saturday delivery service would reduce postal costs by $412 million annually. Through attrition, approximately 18,000 full-time positions would be eliminated. 1980: then-Postmaster General William F. Bolger stated that eliminating Saturday delivery was one option the Postal Service was considering to ensure its economic stability in the face of the budget cuts. Bolger estimated the service reduction could result in the elimination of 15,000 to 20,000 Postal Service jobs, but would save the Service about $588 million. |

Postal Service Proposes Mobile Fueling of its Vehicles

The Postal Service proposes to utilize mobile fueling contractors to fuel vehicles on site at selected postal facilities located throughout the United States. The program would focus on, but not be limited to, city and rural delivery units with 30 or more routes using vehicles owned by the Postal Service.  |

• Postal Worker Picks up Suspected Pipe Bomb
• Ohio Postman loses shirt, then finds thief

• USPS Sends Your Package 5,586 Miles To Travel 120
• Postmasters Call For Pension and Health Care Funding Accurac (PDF) - eNAPUS Legislative & Political Bulletin

• A bias for scamminess at Stamps.com?
• Postal Worker Picks up Suspected Pipe Bomb

June 25, 2010

U.S. Postal Service Or U.S. Postal Business

Confessions of a Former Station Manager - A business can pick and choose. A business exists solely to produce profit. If a business fails, the business folds and all walk away, shoulders bent over, looking at the ground. A public service is there for everyone. A public service cannot pick and choose who their customers might be, based on where they live or how much they make. A public service exists to meet the needs of those in a society. A public service cannot fold. The US Postal Service is unique because it has an income other than taxes. Do not be fooled. It is not a business. It is clearly a public service. We exist to serve everyone. |

West Jersey P&DC will be closed; 345 Postal Employees To Be Reassigned
The change will require the transfer of more than 300 people who work in Whippany, said George Flood, a spokesman for the post office. The closure will shift their responsibilities to the postal service’s Northern New Jersey Metro center in Teterboro, as well as the Kilmer plant. some mail processing handled at the Edison branch will also be moved elsewhere, creating a net loss of 45 employees there.-  |

• USPS Extending the Life of Its Delivery Vehicles

• Postal Worker Stole 150 Credit Cards From Mail

• USPS shouldn't be forced to pre-fund retiree benefits
• Michigan Postal Workers Picket
• Mailers plan coalition to fight postal rate increase

June 24, 2010

APWU: Sen. Coburn Tries to Pull a Fast One

Conservative Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK) tried to pull a fast one at a joint hearing sponsored by Senate and House postal subcommittees on Wednesday. Coburn, who authored the anti-labor amendment to a Senate bill (S. 1507) to require arbitrators to consider the financial health of the Postal Service when ruling on collective bargaining agreements, remarked that arbitrators are currently prohibited from considering USPS’ economic circumstances. Of course, that is patently false.   |

A chance for Congress to acknowledge its role in postal crisis
.. as Congress looks for ways to pull the USPS from its financial sinkhole, lawmakers also should look in the mirror. Programs approved by this august body have helped push the Postal Service to the brink of financial disaster. Although Congress wants the USPS to run like a business -- it is funded through the sale of products and services, not tax dollars -- the legislators don't allow it to function as a business. |

Man who oversaw postal plant where 2 workers died of anthrax may run D.C. region - The former manager of a U.S. Postal Service plant that employed two workers who died during the 2001 anthrax attacks is under consideration to serve as vice president of agency operations for the District, Maryland and Virginia, sources familiar with the selection process said. But such a move would upset workers who said he assured them of their safety just days before the two workers died of anthrax exposure, union leaders said. Timothy C. Haney (currently) oversees postal operations in most of New York, New Jersey and New England. Potential new Postal Service boss tied to anthrax scare worries workers  (6/24) |

USPS Fined $77,500 For Electrical Hazards At Portland, OR Mail Facility

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited the U.S. Postal Service for alleged willful and serious violations of safety standards at the Portland, Ore., Processing and Distribution Center, located at 715 N.W. Hoyt St. An OSHA inspection conducted in response to employee complaints resulted in a total of $77,500 in fines for electrical hazards and a failure to adequately lock out machines' power sources to prevent unexpected startups.   |

• APWU, NALC Officers Indicted, Sentenced For Embezzlement

• Postal unions offer alternative to five-day schedule
• Rural mail customers decry potential loss of Saturday mail delivery
• Illinois Congressman Pushes to Save Aurora Postal

• USPS will see pushback from industry, unions on delivery day reduction
• How you can help save Saturday delivery

• Burrus Testimony: USPS Can and Must Expand the Services It Offers
• NYC Postal Workers Rally to Keep Saturday Mail Service
• Election probe: Feds visit post office

June 23, 2010

The New Class Warfare: Conservatives War On Federal Workers Pay and Benefits - Conservatives have declared a new class war, but it's not on bankers earning seven-figure bonuses. Instead, as Indiana Governor Mitch Daniels told Politico recently, the "new privileged class in America" is government employees, who "are better paid than the people who pay their salaries." We have to escape "public sector unions' stranglehold on state and local governments," agreed Mort Zuckerman, billionaire editor of U.S. News & World Report, "or it will crush us." Meanwhile, the Wall Street Journal's Paul Gigot ominously predicts "a showdown looming across the country between taxpayers and public employee unions over pay and pensions," while the Heritage Foundation warns that "the more the government taxes, the more it can pay its unionized workers.    |

Richmond BMC: 85 postal workers forced to choose between relocation and losing jobs - Postal Workers receive 40-day notice they are being excessed over 600 miles from San Francisco Bay Area to Southern California.    |

• OIG: Give Customers What They Really Want

June 22, 2010

House and Senate Joint Hearing to Discuss USPS Future Financial Viability

the hearing will examine various mailer, union, and management association views on improving the financial condition of the Postal Service in response to recent reports on the short- and long-term strategies for a viable and financially sound United States Postal Service. Burrus to Testify on Future of Postal Service |  Postal Service desperate for good ideas to end run of bad news  |

OIG Report: CSRS Overpayment by the Postal Service (PDF)
The return of the overpayment or a combination of actions to realize the benefit of the $75 billion overpayment to the Postal Service would fully fund the pension and health retiree plans. The Postal Service's more than $7 billion annual payments for retiree health care prefunding and retiree health care premiums would no longer be needed, because the pension and health retiree plans would be fully funded and interest income from the fully funded retiree health benefit fund could pay annual premiums.   |

FMLA Leave Expanded to More Parents And Children

 The Administrator has determined that additional clarification is needed on the definition of “son or daughter” as it applies to an employee taking FMLA-protected leave for the birth or placement of a child, to care for a newborn or newly placed child, or to care for a child with a serious health condition.   |

•  Owners of Three Mailing Companies Indicted In Postage Meter Scam Resulting In More Than $14 Million Lost To USPS

• Postal worker injured in crash, ejected from LLV

• Chicago Field Hearing: Businesses plead for Saturday mail service

• Funeral begins with long line of mail trucks | Postal workers say goodbye to mail carrier killed by lightning strike

• 2010 APWU National Elections

 • Man kills dog that attacked mailman
• Businesses plead for Saturday mail service
• Wildfire hampering some Flagstaff mail deliveries
• Yuba County mulls appeal on postal move
• Postal truck fleet takes a hit from Wisconsin storm

June 21, 2010

Why the First Mile Matters

Courier, Express, and Postal Observer- Many postal commentators have suggested that the Postal Service take a last mile strategy, focusing on the advantages that the delivery network offers shippers and advertisers for a low cost solution.   What these commentators miss is that a last mile strategy results in an enterprise that has little control over what it handles and little understanding as to what the mailer or shipper really needs for service.   |

Court: Postal Worker’s Vulgar Language is Sufficient Grounds for Removal

by Don Cheney: The U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit, issued a startling decision on June 16, 2010, in Jeunes v. Potter.  The Court upheld the removal of a postal employee (rural carrier) who “admits that he used profanity during a verbal altercation with a co-worker, conduct clearly proscribed by the zero tolerance policy. |

• Judge denies California county's bid to halt mail facility closure
• Postal “Storm” Ahead For Catalogers?

• USPS to improve competitive position for some PO boxes
• Postal union leader questions 'company' motive for consolidation

• CVS, Medco Oppose Postal Cuts, Citing Drug Delays, Higher Costs

June 20, 2010

Bernstock Gone But Not, Um, Quite Gone

Dead Tree Edition - More than two weeks after Robert F. Bernstock left the U.S. Postal Service under a cloud of scandal, a USPS Web site still lists him as a key executive. Note: Capitol Metro Area VP Jerry Lane's bio was removed almost immediately.  |

D.C. Postal Exec Shares Sales Strategies

Post office boxes may help drive sales for the ailing U.S. Postal Service if the service can get a regulatory nod to move P.O. boxes to its competitive product list, a Postal Service executive told an industry trade group Thursday. Services would include P.O. boxes that receive six-day delivery, even if Saturday home deliveries are discontinued; e-mail notification for P.O. boxes. Even vanity addresses for P.O. boxes.   |

June 19, 2010

Editorial: Congress needs to let the Postal Service reduce its costs

As collective bargaining begins this fall for major portions of the USPS's 500,000-strong career workforce, Congress and the Postal Regulatory Commission must also require that arbitrators take the Postal Service's finances into account, allowing room for reasonable cuts in hiring and benefits rather than assuming that employee costs can simply be passed along to taxpayers.  |

Letter-writer criticizes proposal to cut Saturday mail delivery

In a country whose economy is on life support, the proposal by Postmaster General John Potter to do away with Saturday mail delivery is quite possibly the most ill-conceived idea by anyone in charge of anything in my lifetime. According to a news report, Potter emailed his proposal to Congress. There is a guy I want working for me. He does not even have the good sense to promote his own product. To quote Andy Rooney “ I would rather have one piece of junk mail in my mail box than 100 emails.”|

Senators ask for field hearings in Hawaii and Alaska on Postal Service proposal to reduce mail delivery to five days a week - The senators said the information gleaned from hearings on the mainland "will bear little relevance to the concerns of the people of Alaska and Hawaii. Such concerns include the likely degradation of efficient and timely delivery of medication, food, water and other necessities."  |

• Mail carrier's family wants answers in fatal dog attack

• Postal union leader questions ‘company’ motive for consolidation

 • Woman arrested for DUI after crashing into postal truck

• Fund set up to help family of postal worker killed during dog attack
 • Mail carrier's family wants answers in fatal dog attack
 • Postal workers to protest cuts in service

June 18, 2010

Postal Worker Charged With Stabbing Supervisor At JFK Mail Facility

An enraged postal worker snapped and stabbed his supervisor  with a pair of scissors at Kennedy Airport on Thursday, sources said. David Barnett, a mail handler with the U.S. Postal Service, flew into a rage after having words with Doris Lloyd at the airport about 4 p.m. He allegedly told police he was tired of her busting his chops and he decided he was not going to take it anymore. Postal Worker Planned Attack Against Supervisor: Cops | Postal Service worker stabs boss with scissors at Kennedy Airport   |

 "Having their say: customer and employee views on the future of the US Postal Service" - Congressional hearing set for Wednesday, June 23 -  the upcoming joint hearing is intended to provide customer and employee stakeholders an opportunity to discuss the economic difficulties currently facing the Postal Service and to respond to plans postal management and GAO have put forth to address them. House and Senate Subcommittees |

Former USPS Area VP Assault Case Continued Until August 26

The Loudoun County District Court for the Commonwealth of Virginia heard misdemeanor assault charges against former Capitol Metro Area Vice President Jerry D. Lane yesterday, and continued the case until August 26 at 10: a.m..  |

Burrus: 'This will not be a giveback contract'

 APWU President Burrus told members of the union’s Rank and File Bargaining Advisory Committee at their first meeting on June 16. “Negotiations may be difficult,” he said, “but it is our job to find a way around the obstacles we face.” Contract negotiations are scheduled to begin on Sept. 1; the current Collective Bargaining Agreement expires Nov. 20.  |

• Yuba County Will Seek Injunction To Stop USPS From Closing Postal Facility

• Yuba County says it will sue USPS over postal facility closure

• The Smartest Fed Investors.. Letter Carriers?

 • Ex-postmaster pleads not guilty to stealing

 • Acting Postmaster Charged With Obstructing The Passage Of Mail

• Snake Skin Found By Chapel Postal Worker| Postman finds 4-foot snakeskin on route

June 17, 2010

OIG Audit: USPS could save $342 million By Replacing Some Vehicles Instead of Repairing Them - The Postal Service has successfully maintained its LLV delivery vehicle fleet in safe, working condition for over 20 years. However, analysis of delivery vehicle costs shows that this strategy would not be cost-effective for fleet vehicles the Postal Service will have to replace soon. These vehicles consist of 19,257 LLVs, with an average annual maintenance cost in excess of $5,600 for FYs 2008 and 2009. Incurring maintenance costs at this rate, the “fix as fails” strategy costs $342 million1 more than it would cost to purchase. We recommend the vice president, Engineering: 1. Replace maintenance intensive vehicles beginning in fiscal year 2011.  Broken mail trucks cost the Postal Service millions (Washington Post  |

USPS: New Mailing Rules for Tobacco Products Set for Summer

To comply with legislation passed by Congress and signed into law by the President, cigarettes and smokeless tobacco products will be subject to new mailing regulations effective June 29, 2010.  |

GAO: USPS Mail Processing Network Initiatives Progressing

On the basis of GAO’s analysis of 32 AMP proposals that were implemented, approved, or not approved since the beginning of fiscal year 2009, USPS has followed its realignment guidance by completing each step of the process and consistently applying its criteria in its reviews. USPS officials noted the importance of the AMP decisions and the need to sometimes take longer than what the guidance suggests to ensure the correct decision. GAO also found that USPS consistently notified stakeholders when key steps of the AMP process were completed, such as when an AMP proposal was initiated, or public meetings were held.   |

• Supreme Court Rules More Than 500 NLRB Cases Will Have To Be Reopened

• Louisiana: 7 Postal Workers Charged With Mail Crimes p

• USPS: New Mailing Rules for Tobacco Products Set for Summer

 • Purple Heart stolen by burglars back with Connecticut family thanks to postal worker
 • Florida couple who worked for USPS found dead in suspected double-suicide
 • Woman pleads guilty to taking money from Duluth post office

 • How Smart Post Makes FedEx More Profitable
• Missing Mail Adds Up to Big Problems for Dozens of People

• USPS to Give Publishers a Break on Ride-Alongs

• Old Glory not so at Texas PO

June 16, 2010

• Hundreds speak out on Easton post office plan
• Former Forksville, PA postmaster pleads guilty to stealing money

• PRC Prehearing Conference on exigent rate increase set for 10 AM EDT today -Live audio stream will be available at the PRC web site

June 15, 2010

Maryland Postmaster Targeted By Complaints

A Postal Service survey conducted in response to the complaints found that 90 percent of the 37 employees at the Mountain Road Post Office say have witnessed workplace harassment. Others called working there "hell" and "a nightmare," She is your classic bully, using intimidating tactics to put fear in workers, degrading them in front of coworkers, threatening their jobs and creating a miserable workplace," one employee wrote in statement to Greenfield. A spokeswoman for USPS defended Griffin as an "excellent manager."   |

Donahoe: USPS Focus Remains On Reducing Workhours

With the Postal Service facing another challenging year, employees must continue to focus on reducing workhours and operating expenses, according to DPMG and COO Pat Donahoe. And to help USPS achieve its FY 2010 budget, one of the primary goals is to cut 93 million workhours.  |

OIG Report: Postal Service’s Progress In Reducing Workhours

The Postal Service could improve operational efficiency by reducing over 16.2 million workhours by the end of FY 2012. This would allow the Postal Service to achieve at least median productivity levels in the network and avoid costs of almost $744 million based on workhour savings for 1 year. |

OSHA cites postal service in Baton Rouge

 proposed penalties totaling $97,500 - The OSHA investigation found that employees involved in maintenance activities were exposed to energized electrical circuits without personal protective gear and could have been electrocuted or struck by equipment that suddenly became energized due to inadequate control procedures.  |

USPS POS Cash Drawer Flaw

It has come to the APWU’s attention that there are some problems with the POS system that we believe could seriously beach the security of window clerks.   |

• Letter carrier killed by lightning

• Businesses prepare to respond to five-day mailing schedule

• Postal worker admits stealing money, lying about robbery

• First All-Electric Delivery Truck in NYC Unveiled in The Bronx

• Million mile postal carriers awarded

• 2 Alabama postal workers get probation for stealing mail, 3rd pleads guilty to taking cash

• National Newspaper Association Continues Support For Six-Day Mail Delivery

• Miscommunication with post office cited for 12,500 late ballots
• Westport, CT post office for sale

• Gonzales serves Coolidge postal customers for 35 years

• USPS To Hold Public Meeting On Consolidating Easton, MD Mail Operations

June 14, 2010

Hayward Postal Worker Found in Trash a Homicide

Nancy Rogers was an opening clerk who regularly arrived at the post office in Hayward, CA. early in the morning to prepare mail for carriers to deliver later in the day, Rickher said. On Monday, Rogers came to work at 1 a.m. Several hours later, the small group of employees who worked with her that day noticed that she was missing and called their supervisor, Rickher said. The supervisor then called police.  Missing California Postal Worker's Body Found At Dump   |

Appeals Court Uphold Removal of Postal Manager For Falsifying Timecard

White was promoted to supervisor in 1998 and in 1999 to Manager of CFS unit within the South Suburban P & DC in Bedford Park, Illinois. In mid-2006, the commenced an investigation into allegations that employees at the South Suburban P&DC were entering inaccurate information into TACS. A review of time records from January through June 2006 led OIG to further investigate three CFS unit supervisors, including White, who had received an inordinate amount of overtime compensation due to TACS entries in excess of their daily authorized eight-hour schedule. The court upheld White's removal for 8 separate incidents of accepting pay for time not worked.

USPS OIG Auditing Early Distribution of Employee Paychecks

The objective of the audit is to evaluate the process for issuing salary checks early and determine the impact for cashing the salary checks prior to the pay date.   |

Commentary: Postal Service needs makeover, not to be shunted aside as obsolete - The problem is that the Postal Service isn’t profitable, largely because past legislative reforms have forced it to run like a business. But, in this case, the “public good” is far more important than any bottom line. Downsizing the Postal Service – eliminating six-day delivery, closing thousands of local post offices nationwide and cutting an estimated 26,000 full-time and 13,000 part-time jobs through attrition and layoffs – could eventually put it out of business entirely. Our postal system should stay true to its original mission and remain a public utility, and our government should work toward maintaining it as a job creator by maximizing its substantial potential.  |

Board Of Governors Chairman Remarks On USPS Need To Act Like A Business - We also propose expanding access to our customers by serving them where they already shop. That means expanding automated and online options and partnering more with retailers, while having greater leeway to close or consolidate Postal facilities that are redundant. Our plan also requires significant changes regarding flexibility in assignments for all of our employees. If we are to handle the rapid fluctuations in business activity, workforce flexibility is absolutely critical. This year we begin labor negotiations with our major unions and we will try to adjust the contract to reflect market demands and the Postal Service’s financial condition.   |

• Fort Worth postal worker gets surprise delivery from stork

• PRC: Witness List For Hearings In Chicago To Consider USPS 5-Day Mail Delivery

• Post office murals open to the public again after years in hiding

June 13, 2010

• Benefits Payable on Death of a Federal Employee

• Delivery to continue at 100-year-old Kaweah Post Office
• With days, jobs are numbered: Rural carriers say they depend on Saturday delivery

• Stamped-product hub in Binghamton helps replace jobs void left by other post office consolidations

June 12, 2010

• Oregon:  Postal Worker injured when truck is struck, knocked over along route
• Neighbor, postal worker help catch burglary suspect

• Postal Blues: Suspension leaves Long Lake residents feeling railroaded

• Goldway Requests Additional Information About Six-Day to Five-Day Delivery (PDF)

• OIG: Northland District was not properly color-coding or reporting delayed mail (PDF)

June 11, 2010

Postman, Convicted Child Molester Resigns

A convicted child molester, who was working as a postman in King City and had a route that included elementary schools, has resigned. Gus Ruiz, a spokesman for the postal service, said the 51-year-old Mark Lamberson wasn't truthful on his application and the agency didn't know he was a convicted child molester until told by Action News. |

• Stolen mailbox lands Ohio man court
• USPS Board Of Governors Agenda Set For Closed Meeting June 21 and 22

• Former Postal Employee Pleads Guilty To Theft, Agrees To Repay $134,416

• Former letter carrier gets probation for mail theft

June 9, 2010

OSHA fines US Postal Service nearly $300,000 for exposing workers to electrical hazards - Pittsburgh, PA -The Postal Service's blatant disregard for workplace safety standards has left workers at this facility exposed to unnecessary risk of serious injury," said Assistant Secretary of Labor for OSHA Dr. David Michaels. OSHA fines USPS nearly $500,000 At 2 Philadelphia Facilities   |Comments

June 8, 2010

Postal worker shot; suspect dead after chase

A postal worker was chased and shot in the downtown area of Monroe near Miro and South Grand Street this afternoon reportedly by a suspect who caused a wreck, fired at police and later died in a ditch off U.S. 165 North.   |Comments

USPS Announces Acting VP For Sales

Acting President, Mailing and Shipping Services, Susan Plonkey has announced Steven Hernandez will become acting vice president, Sales. Hernandez most recently served as Postmaster in San Antonio and Austin. Previously, he was manager, Marketing Strategy and Support, reporting directly to the chief marketing officer.   |Comments

OIG Says Workshare Audit Will Include Union’s Views
The USPS Office of Inspector General (OIG) has assured the APWU that the union’s views on “workshare discounts” will be considered in an upcoming examination of the controversial practice. Inspector General David C. Williams offered the commitment after President William Burrus criticized the OIG for excluding postal unions from providing input for the report.   |Comments

• Stamps.com Announces USPS Shipping Integration With Popular Zen Cart Shopping Cart

• Tampa tops in donations during Postal Service food drive
• Orrtanna PA Post Office to close

• Dallas Field Hearing Transcript (PDF) -

• OIG Blog: Scaling Back Hours, Not Post Offices

June 7, 2010

• Memphian hopes to deliver message to USPS
• Postal plan could bring overflow crowd to Bloomfield Hills meeting
• Postal Service newcomers feel pain of racial slurs in Iowa
• Pharmacy Owner Pleads Guilty To Submitting Phony Postal Employee Prescriptions

• Former Postal Service Employee Pleads Guilty to Mail Theft

June 6, 2010

Arbitrator Limits Abusive Postal Supervisor’s Contact With Carriers

Among the problems identified with the charged supervisor was his inability to ascertain the facts before placing blame. After a careful analysis of the facts, the arbitrator found that management did, in fact, violate the Joint Statement. As a remedy, the arbitrator ordered that the supervisor involved do no more than two street observations per carrier per calendar year; that during those observations, the supervisor remains at least 15 feet from the carrier at all times;    |Comments

NALC: Stop USPS from Making ‘Big Mistake’

“This fight cannot be won in Washington alone,” Rolando said. “We need every member to help us prevail – giving up Saturday delivery to competitors is the most short-sighted idea imaginable. We must stop the Postal Service from making such a big mistake.”    |Comments

Ex-postal worker goes on highway rampage, Polk sheriff says
"An Auburndale man went on a bizarre alcohol-induced shooting rampage from his car early this morning on U.S. Highway 92, firing randomly at three vehicles. One of the people shot was a man who had just graduated from Auburndale High School; he was struck in the posterior while riding as a passenger with his family. A second victim, a woman at the wheel of the second car, was shot in the face. Also, a male at the wheel of the third vehicle was run off the road after the shooter yelled a racial epithet at him. Parks, who was laid off from the U.S. Postal Service recently, and who had a blood-alcohol percent of .22, claimed he was merely trying to protect himself as his alleged victims were shooting at him." Maintenance Mech, 26 yr. employee | News Video | Fla. Man Arrested After 5-Mile Shooting Spree    |Comments

• Postal Service Chooses "Un-Intelligent" Mail -   Why do Postal Service officials sing the praises of the Intelligent Mail barcode and then not use it on their own mailings?

• PRC Seeks Senior Auditor (PDF)

June 5, 2010

• eNAPUS: Postmasters Call Upon Congress to Pass Postal Retirement Accuracy Bill (PDF)

• Woman Gets Trapped Inside Willis Post Office

• Merchants prepare for possible postal cuts

• Osceola post office loses carriers, patronage slips

• Theft case against Massachusetts mailman is continued
• Postal Service set to enforce tobacco ban

• Cedar Rapids Swears in New Postmaster

June 4, 2010

USPS Cited for Fourth Set of Safety Violations
Fines Now Exceed One Million Dollars - The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) charged the Postal Service with five “willful” safety violations at the Philadelphia Bulk Mail Center on June 3, and fined the USPS $210,000. The latest citations bring the Postal Service’s total OSHA fines to more than $1 million. USPS Cited For Safety Violations At 2nd Philadelphia Mail Facility |Comments

The Postal Limbo Rock

The reality of the financial situation facing the Postal Service exists whether or not the $238 billion is an accurate forecast.  The Postal Service is hemorrhaging money with a projected FY 2010 year-to-date loss of $2.26 billion and no end in sight. Even though critics want to question the Postal Service's antics in how it spins its plan to media outlets and the general public, the issue still remains that the Postal Service will lose billions.  In trying to "go under limbo stick," the USPS has been cutting costs through workhour reductions and asking mailers to absorb more and more of its costs through rule and regulation changes. The question remains how can this go on before the Postal Service's greatest limbo challenge will be avoiding its own self-inflicted wounds?   |Comments

• Direct mail volume up 16% in Q1 as insurance leads comeback
• Postal Service set to enforce tobacco ban

• Easton: Single mail hub hearing planned  |  PMG Denies Additional Meetings
• Investigators: Post Office robber ‘armed and dangerous’

June 3, 2010

Fight to Save Saturday Service Approaches Important Milestone

Postal employees and customers are approaching an important milestone in the fight to save Saturday service, as a House resolution supporting six-day mail delivery continues to gain momentum. Close to 200 U.S. Representatives have signed on to co-sponsor House Resolution 173, which says “the U.S. Postal Service should take all appropriate measures to ensure the continuation of its six-day mail delivery service.” A total of 218 votes are needed to adopt the “sense of the House resolution.” |Comments

We also find it unacceptable that, despite assurances that a final decision had not been made and that public input is desired through June 30, the U.S. Postal Service has informed the workers at the Easton facility of its closure. This is a violation of the public trust.  |Comments