Oversight Committee to Scrutinize Postal Workforce Costs
WASHINGTON- Rep. Darrell Issa (CA-R), Chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, today announced a full committee hearing on United States Postal Service (USPS) pay and benefits on April 5th. The Committee expects to hear from the Postal Service on their tentative agreement offered to their largest union, the American Postal Worker Union (APWU), last week. The agreement has yet to be signed.
Issa expressed serious doubt that the APWU contract agreement would improve the fiscal situation that threatens USPS’ future.
“Eighty percent of the Postal Service’s operating expenses are workforce-related. Costs must be reduced to align them with falling mail volume and declining revenue projections. The union contract renewals are the best chance to find new savings,” said Issa. “Unfortunately, this looks like a missed opportunity. The Postal Service must show Congress and the American people that it can pay its own way, because the numbers do not seem to add up.”
Rep. Dennis Ross (FL-R), chairman of the Postal Service Subcommittee, expressed serious concerns about postal service pay.
“The Postal Service cannot afford to continue to pay, as their own numbers have estimated, a 34.2% wage premium over comparable private sector labor,” said Ross, referring to information presented by economist Michael Wachter in 2003 testimony to the President’s Commission on the Postal Service. USPS has hired Wachter to study pay and benefits multiple times since 1980, but USPS does not release the reports citing propriety information concerns.
Issa continued: “This hearing will establish an important baseline for Congress’ upcoming work on the Postal Service’s structure, fiscal health and self-governance.”
I am a postal clerk of 39 years. I was a steward at one time and got stabbed in the back by my own union, so I choose not to give the backstabbers any more of my money. I’ts my choice. I don’t have a problem with anyone who pays dues. Give your money to whoever you see fit to give it to. I guess we could all be expected to do the same if we lived in Syria. This ain’t Syria . The apwu knows this contract offer is a pile of horse shit, but they want it ratified so they can get the 270 million dollars to pre-fund the apwu health plan. Yup, it’s all about the money, not the members, and they will go to any means to get it. I’ll tell you this much, If they ratify it, you wont be working 40 hour weeks, and your seniority will be worthless. Better read the fine print. I have. Oh, and if you want to find out about the REAL Issa asshole, just go to youtube and type “Issa grand theft ” in the searchbox..
We need a third party of woking class people. The politicians are selling us down the drain. All the current politicians are wealthy and passing laws that just benefit themselves. Have you watched the news? Lowering taxes on wealthy from 35% to 25%. With all their tax write offs, they already pay less than the working class (percentage wise)Down with Republicans and Democrats both. They are all a bunch of crooks and liars. Trying to blame unions for the problems when it is corporate greed that is the problem.
Vote no for APWU contract. Let it go to arbitration. it does’nt matter how much USPS saves by not giving us a decent contract they will do nothing but waste it.
Wow !!!!!!!!!!!
It seems like screwing the blue collar worker is the only solution to our country’s problems.
According to http://www.thedailybeast.com which references The New York Times, General Electric in 2010 reported global profits of $14.2 BILLION, $5.1 BILLION of which came from the U.S.
General Electric managed to not only pay no U.S. taxes , but got a benefit of $3.2 BILLION.
The article goes on to state that in the United States the corporate share of the nation’s tax receipts went from 30 percent in the 1950’s to 6.6 percent in 2009.
The main problem with the post office is the ridiculously low rates that corporations pay for standard and non-profit mail.
The U.S. Government is broken and the working class in this country better wake up before we all go down the tubes.
again the comment of someone who does not know what a postal worker actually does for a living. The “clerk” retirement buyout of two years ago was $15,000.00.
The “insight of buying equipment that is never used” and extremely expensive must stop. Yes a machine can work faster, but breaking down is expensive to fix, and a human hand does not shred the piece of mail. Closing all the districts or revamping the buildings is another bogus expense. Most of those buildings have leases that must still be paid even if they close them or move them. Giving away the mail by allowing bulk mailing as it stand today is also not cost effective as brought out by the APWU numerous times. All companies should pay for the service, by piece or weight and at a rate that is affordable for a business, yet gets it delivered for a portion of the delivery cost, not for free. Lots of ideas to fix the Post office, yet they don’t listen to the actual people doing the work.
STOP ELECTING PEOPLE THAT DON’T THINK OR LOOK LIKE YOU..DON’T YOU ALL REALIZE DEM’S AND REP’S ALL GO TO THE SAME IVY LEAGUE SCHOOLS..WAKE UP PEOPLE START PROTESTING LIKE PEOPLE IN OTHER NATION’S..THE UNION’S DON’T CARE THEY ARE IN BED WITH THE ENEMIES..LOOK AROUND AND SEE WHAT IS GOING ON..ON THE STATE AND LOCAL LEVEL..DO YOU REALLY THINK YOUR ARE EXEMPT…
A LONG TIME AGO BAD UNION REPRESENTATION SHOULD HAVE BEEN FORCED TO GO..BUT YOU EITHER DON’T VOTE OR KEEP VOTING FOR THE SAME CLOWNS..THE ROOSTER HAS FINALLY COME TO ROOST!
I say again— rise up middle class and take your country back. The corporate elite have shown you their agenda. If we don’t do this then we have ouselves to blame!!
Thanks for your insightful comments, racist a**hole. Obviously a very intelligent person.
Spent better than 15 years doing union and politics before my po career. Im sick and tried of you crybaby scabs and well read & informed repub’s but you think know the facts. You don’t your are scum. Pay your fucking dues like the rest of us. Why is it that most non-union usps employees, are the worst. Sorry had say that. As far as you asshole reps, read a paper, watch real news and fuck fox and its pay fucking dues so we can keep a union.
PS To all you of non-due paying ps employees, fuck you you scab som-of bitches.
The Republicans will save the USPS. 25% of mgmt and 55% of union slugs are not needed. All are overpaid by 33% to 50%. Get rid of 15,000 POs that are not needed, just political shit left over from 150 years ago. Those left and willing to finally produce will have a job, the rest on welfare with the rest of the hope & change assholes and niggers.
VOTE NO! They are just trying to scare you into voting YES. The Tentative Agreement is a tragic JOKE! Dont be a Lemming!
It’s sad that Issa and the House Republican planners pretends not to know/ understand the post office recieves no tax dollars from the American public. Issa and his group work hard to take what they can from working people. Those of you who placed these unethical people in office. Get out there and work to help fix this mess. This attack on the Postal Service is only because it pays a decent wage to its employees. Wake up American they will come for you next if they haven’t already. Stand up and fight, These are the people who send others to the gas chambers, place people in concentration camps or hang people of color from trees. Don’t wait until its to LATE! The fight begins now! Someone may need to start the process of RECALL around the country.
You get what you voted for……we need someone who has the intelligence to get on television at prime time and talk about the salaries our wonderful politicians in Washington are making AND their benefits. Get it out there every day-what they AND their spouse’s benefits are!
This is a very good example of why we need to get those ballots now and vote yes before anyone like this jackass can influence anything. Does anybody think an arbitrator wouldn’t be under scrutiny from such dumb ass politicians? Get those ballots out NOW so we can get our contract ratified NOW! VOTE YES!!!…before it’s too late!
screw ross and issa. lets review their pay and benefits. are they worth what they are getting?? hell no.
Here we are trillions of dollars in debt, so why doesn’t Congress take a pay cut and have to have at least 20 years service before they get a retirement check?
Why don’t they have Social Security like the rest of the tax payers? It seems to be OK to take from others but not look at the real problems of why we are so far in debt with this country..It’s time Congress took pay ,and benefits cuts like the rest of America.
KEEP CHASING THE MIDDLE CLASS,JUST REMEMBER IN 14 MONTHS NONE OF THESE REPUBLICANS WILL HAVE JOBS,THE MIDDLE CLASS HAVE VERY GOOD MEMORYS..
Dear Rep. Issa,
With all the fucking problems you idiot congressmen created in this nation… From Medicare and Medicaid fraud, VA fraud, Dept of Trans and the million other federal agency… Take care of this country first!!!!! Don’t fucking worry about the Post Office… Lower the damn cost of gas in my car first!!!! Earn your damn paycheck for once!!!! Republicans make me SICK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Elect me and I will quit mid-term and then become a billionaire before the next election!
If I were still in charge, I would have cut salaries 50% across the board
If a Republican is elected President in 2012 we will become a 3rd world country, the elite rich and the poor – will not be a middle class, I can’t believe republicans are using Christianity to do this to the American peoplef
Crooked bastard Issa should be in jail.
You people kill me with your party insults. What did Obama do- NOTHING. Thats the problem with the union now, its got its nose shoved up the Democrats butts so far that its not even enforcing the contract we have now. Loosing thousands of dollars in overtime opportunities due to mismanagement and the union fails to even care so might as well not even have a contract then we can get these dead beat union presidents and these national buisness agents back to work instead of wasting time trying to kiss some politicians butt to keep their union job.
We {[management /labor] were to be in this together. Why does Top management still get free health care and bonuses? Why no pay cut for new hires in management? Someone need to total up all the money on bonuses given to management. Looks like labor takes another hit,and no change for management.
So how many of you scab postal workers voted for the republicans? As for any union members that voted republican-you are a traitor to you class.
I thought these politicians ran on the premise that governent needed to stay out of business, that they don’t want “Big Government.” So since these guys have been elected, stay out of our business!
CAN YOU HEAR ME NOW???
This is who they are….this is what they do….
These people are out to step on every wage earner in America in order to reduce their benefits and annual pay to nearly nothing in order to provide THEIR BILLIONAIRE FRIENDS AND CORPORATE BENEFACTORS THE PERMANENT LOW WAGE WORK FORCE THAT THEY WANT AND NEED TO MAXIMIZE THEIR PROFIT MARGINS AND STUFF THEIR CORPORATE CASH LARDER.
IF THERE IS ANY WORKING MAN OR WOMAN OUT THERE WHO CAN’T SEE WHAT
THESE CRETINS ARE ABOUT BY NOW, I WOULD SUGGEST A NEW PAIR OF GLASSES.
Republicans derive their power from the wealthy and business people. They really do not care about the middle or lower class other than lip service to make us think that we too could become one of the elite.
Americans, are you listening and reading how much these Republicans really care about the working class? Not much. It took over four months for Management and the Union to come up with a feasible contract to keep American people working and with some kind of common decency. The American people need to vote these Republicans right back out of office, because they care about no one but themselves. This contract have notheing to do with Congress. If Postal Management and APWU agree on a contract, it should be a done deal. Do Congress want all of us in the poor house and on Welfare? Some of us want to make a decent living and be continue to be taxpayers in this great country!!
The Republicans are waging warfare against the middle class. If they were moral and honest instead of being hypocrits, they would direct OPM to return the roughly $75 billion in retirement funding the USPS overpaid through no fault of its own. That would resolve the USPS’ financial problems and correct a grave injustice. The USPS should not be used to balance the Federal budget as the wealthy seem to think.
There is NO COMPARABLE PRIVATE SECTOR JOB…….UPS AND FEDEX have a couple of “similarities” but are not “comparable”….a 34.2% premium? I live in Mr Ross’s Florida district and I did NOT vote for him but I will just bet a ton from the Postal Service here DID…..cut their own throats but unfortunately will take me and my family with them. Dumbasses the lot…..
Republicans SUCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1
So you’re very concerned about the wages and benefits package for the APWU Republican Dan Issa and Republican Dennis Ross? Then hurry up and nullify the latest buyout out offer of $20,000 to the mostly Republican white collar postal employees right now!! Now how concerned would you be? Aren’t you fellow Republican Governors from Wisconsin and Ohio with their anti-Union rhetoric on board too?