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TOP NEWS STORIES |
USPS Lost $658 Million in February
"The US Postal Service losing streak continued in February,
with the agency reporting a loss of $658 million, bringing the
year to date loss for the fiscal year to $1.8 billion. The
agency continued to aggressively cut employee work hours,
which were down 12% from the prior year. That translated to a
7.3% decrease in wages and benefits." -
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Bigger Buyouts = Fewer Employees
"Currently the USPS is trying to lure 140,000 craft employees
(and a smaller group of executives) to take early retirement.
Many readers and listeners have suggested that the USPS could
slim down drastically if would combine early outs with
buyouts. Many retirement-age postal workers are hanging on, in
hopes that the oft-rumored buyout will arrive. It could be a
very, very long wait." -
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Postal chief says post office running out of
money
"The post office will run out of money this year unless it
gets help, Postmaster General John Potter told Congress on
Wednesday as he sought permission to cut delivery to five days
a week. "We are facing losses of historic proportion. Our
situation is critical," Potter told a House panel. The agency
lost $2.8 billion last year and is looking at much larger
losses this year. Reducing mail delivery from six days to five
days a week could save $3.5 billion annually, Potter said."
- Testimony
- Potter Already Discussing Five-Day Delivery
With Stakeholders (PDF) - Chaffetz
Questions Potter's sweet home deal -
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Voluntary Early Retirement Information
"ALL EMPLOYEES except Electronic Technicians (ET); Maintenance
Mechanics, Mail Processing Equipment (MPE); Part-time
Postmasters. This offer is open to employees in those
positions who meet the 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. Please
Note: The age and years of service criteria must be met by the
effective retirement date of this VERA: July 31, 2009." -
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NALC: Early Retirement Offer Will Cover City Carriers
"The timing for VER applications and deadline for action has
not been set, but it will have the same terms as the 2008
"early out" program, Young said. That means there will be no
financial incentives, and annuities will be reduced for those
who take the offer. Other details are pending." -
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Postal Service Closing Administrative Offices, Eliminating
Positions, Offering Early Retirements
"With no signs of economic recovery in sight, the U.S. Postal
Service is taking bold actions in response to its ongoing
financial crisis. Today the Postal Service announced it would
be closing six of its 80 district offices, eliminating
positions across the country and offering another early
retirement opportunity. These actions are expected to save the
Postal Service more than $100 million annually." -
Number of Impacted Employees by District
- APWU: USPS Announces New VER, Management
Reductions - CNN: Postal Service slashing
jobs, offering early retirement -
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Hearing: Restoring the Financial Stability of the USPS
"The hearing will examine the financial stability of the USPS
and discuss the short and long term strategies to reduce costs
and improve efficiency. The witness list includes PMG Potter,
PRC commissioners, and postal labor union presidents." -
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Big Announcement Thursday?
"The USPS has requested that NAPS attend a briefing at
9:00 a.m. on Thursday, March 19th at 9:00 a.m., at USPS
Headquarters. It is expected that the USPS will announce the
changes that they have been planning; including District
consolidations and Plant changes. As soon as information is
provided to NAPS the information will be sent out to the
Executive Board." -
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Post office keeps its workers coming back
"Edwin S. Oliver was 18 when he was hired as a temporary
employee at the Manasquan Post Office, filling in for a letter
carrier who had fallen and broken a rib. That was in 1954.
That year, Dwight D. Eisenhower was president, Elvis Presley
was recording his first records and "The Tonight Show with
Steve Allen" debuted on NBC. Oliver is still on the job,
working as a window clerk in Manasquan. "I'll be 73 in June,"
Oliver said. "I have no plans to retire." -
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USPS Abandons Plans to Outsource; Management to Revamp BMC
Network
"The Postal Service has abandoned plans to outsource the work
performed at 21 Bulk Mail Centers, and instead will revamp the
BMC network, the USPS Senior Vice President for Operations
told the APWU on March 10. The change in strategy was prompted
by the nation's financial crisis and the subsequent drop in
the volume of flats." -
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Mailers Council Defends Compensation for Postmaster General
"We want to state emphatically that Postmaster General Jack
Potter has earned his salary and the incentive pay authorized
by the Board of Governors. He is unquestionably one of the
most successful individuals to hold that office in the
institution's more than 235-year history. His ability to
reduce costs, and eliminate more than 100,000 positions
without laying off a single employee or degrading service, is
both remarkable and unprecedented." -
Fat Paycheck for US Postmaster -
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Confessions of a Former Station Manager Part 3 (PDF)
Guy Nohrenberg has written another article in his series of
Confessions of a Former Station Manager. His latest article
reports on the top ten things for letter carriers to do during
these difficult times. Also, Nohrenberg analyzes USPS finances and finds the
Postal Service is spending lots of
money on technology and hiding it in a tough year. -
Part
1 (PDF)
- Part 2 (PDF) -
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Postal Service Draws Criticism for $1.2 Million Home Buy
"At a time when the U.S. Postal Service says it is
experiencing a financial crisis, it purchased a $1.2 million
home from an employee so he could relocate, a CNN
investigation has found. The 8,400-square-foot, six-bedroom
home on Lake Wateree in South Carolina belonged to Ronald
Hopson, the former postmaster in Lexington, South Carolina,
and his wife, Evelyn. The property includes five acres, four
bathrooms, two half-baths and an indoor swimming pool." -
Cartus (Relocation Firm) Recognized as
Outstanding Supplier Partner by USPS -
Video: Postal Service Buys Mansion -
Post Office bought S.C. mansion so postmaster
could transfer -
Property
Photos From Realtor.com -
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NALC: Budget Won't Raise Carriers' Benefit Contributions
"President Young announced today that the Obama administration
will not pursue a proposal to raise postal employees' benefit
contributions in the 2010 budget. The cost-shift proposal was
conceived by the Office of Management and Budget during the
transition between the Bush and Obama administrations. Once
the NALC and other postal unions pointed out that the proposal
would infringe on the collective bargaining rights of letter
carriers and other postal employees, it was withdrawn from
consideration."
Obama Budget Would Cut Postal Worker Benefits for $9.4 Billion
Savings -
eNAPUS: Obama Blueprint Proposes Postal Employee Benefit Cuts (PDF)
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Tight Budget May Strain Obama, Union
Friendship -
NALC's Young Issues Terse Response -
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