In response to a motion filed by the APWU, the Postal Service admitted March 9 that it has not considered the combined effect of several of its major proposals, including plans to:
- Degrade service standards; end overnight delivery for first-class mail and periodicals, and slow mail delivery in general;
- Consolidate more than 220 mail processing facilities;
- Close 3,600 post offices;
- Eliminate Saturday mail delivery, and
- Raise postage rates.
In a document [PDF] filed with the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC), the Postal Service declared that it “has conducted no ‘combined impact’ analysis” of the proposals. The USPS filed the document in response to an APWU motion that sought to compel the Postal Service to provide testimony about how it weighed the cumulative effect of the pending changes.
The APWU motion [PDF] to the PRC asserted that the combined effect of the changes will be greater than the sum of their parts. Together they will de-value postal products, undermine customer loyalty, reduce demand for postal services, and increase USPS financial problems.
‘Gross Negligence’
APWU President Cliff Guffey expressed shock and outrage at the USPS admission. “This is gross negligence,” he said. “The PRC — and Congress — should demand an explanation from postal management about why such a vital analysis has not been done.
“Congress must act now to stop the Postal Service from implementing massive service cuts that will delay mail, kill jobs, and hurt the economy.”
“I encourage locals facing consolidations and closures to make sure their legislators are aware of the Postal Service’s outrageous failure to consider the combined effects of USPS plans to impose drastic cuts in service,” Guffey said.
Relevant to PRC Proceedings
In its March 2 motion, the APWU said the combined impact is relevant to the PRC’s evaluation of the Postal Service’s proposal to degrade service standards. The commission is currently considering the proposal, which would eliminate overnight delivery, extend two-day delivery to three days, and generally delay mail delivery.
The union provided a hypothetical example: Assume a first-class letter is mailed on a Thursday to a destination with an overnight service standard. If no changes are made to the present processing network or service standards, the letter would arrive at its destination on Friday, the next day. If overnight delivery is eliminated, the letter may not arrive until Saturday, two days later. If Saturday delivery is eliminated as well, then the letter would not arrive until Monday, four days later, at the earliest. “In this simple example, the combined influence of the two initiatives would create a larger negative impact on service than either initiative would cause in isolation,” the union wrote.
The USPS reply reveals that in 2011, “the Postal Service initiated — but abandoned without completing — a market research project intended to evaluate customer response, thus impacts upon volume” of “a grand amalgam of service change concepts and financial challenges.”
The PRC is expected to issue a non-binding advisory opinion in August, but a moratorium on the consolidation of 223 mail processing centers and the closure of 3,600 post offices expires on May 15. The moratorium is intended to give Congress time to address the USPS crisis without drastic cuts in service or the elimination of tens of thousands of jobs.
You might want to learn to spell it Democratic first, if you are attempting to persuade anyone to your socialist idealogy. The rich fund both parties. Obama’s Chief of Staff worked at Bain Capitol just like Mitt Romney. Don’t be a fool.
Not only would overnight service mail be delayed two or three days possibly, but two day and three day delivery will be affected greatly also! This definitely affect americans paying their credit cards payments and other bills that go out of their state also, not just the city and overnight mail delivery within ones city. Also Congress need to defintely vote no on Federal employees paying more on the retirement pension fund! Let the agencies do their part! We are doing the work and should be compensated for it! Thanks for all the democrats congressmen and women who are still fighting to keep the Postal Service opened, and thousands of americans working! Shame on the one’s like Issa, Carper and other idiots’s like them that are trying to destroy the postal service, so they can get their filty hands on it to privitize !! George Bush will probably get his hand on some of the profits from it; he is the one who created tthis problem in the first place! His daddy ought to be ashame of him!!
What’s so stunning about it? I’ve worked for the USPS for 29 years…it’s true to form.
Its only a STUNNING admission in that it serves to take the focus off of APWU’s dismal failure with the ever changing contract. But…by all means, keep paying dem dues bruthas and sistas and we’ll see you all at the hospitality room this summer in LA!
We the people of the United States need the Postal Service to remain a vital intergal of the Federal government and the United States! Therefore we the people need congress to get off of their dussed and pass legislation, mainly H.R. Bill 1351 to return the retiree pre-fund overpayment of $50 billion dollars back to the Postal Service! This is the one and only bill that will keep the Postal Service not only solvent, but stop proposed changes to close hundreds of Postal processing and retail facilities! Congress, you need to act now! Time is of the essence!
if our postal closed, what do with 18 trucks.. drivers will drive over tampa bay bridge back and forth, back and forth also south skyway bridge … what if impact bad storms some day or tomorrow will not delivery for carrier.. my experience I working this building for 40 years… it is busy… But I know Goverment need fuel and oil… they need $$$$$$$ that why…. they dont pay attenton about jobs ….
Congress must act now to stop the Postal Service from implementing massive service cuts that will force union stewards all over this great land to actually work for a living by going out to the workroom floor. Cuts, that may endanger my lifestyle and salary not to mention the future of hospitality rooms at national conventions.
What am I supposed to do when they close my office,
I guess I’ll sit on the park bench and cry,
but im too old for that, i’ll sit on the bench anyway and look at the pretty birds.
37 years is enough
Perhaps an analogy would help make this clearer. Johnny own a gun but he has to ask dad if he can shoot it. So he goes and asks dad. Meanwhile his brother wants him to tell dad where he is going to shoot the gun. Johnny says that is not important, he just needs dad’s permission to fire his gun.
The act of firing a gun has consequences which must be explored. Johnny ( the postal service management) are taking a gun into a crowded arena with no thought that they might hit someone when they shoot. The posibility exists that they would actually shoot themselves in the foot.
“Failure to plan ensures a plan’s failure”
“The postal service’s response while couched in the appropriate obfuscating verbiage is childlike in its innocence in regards to reality.”
“Ben waters” needs to find a nice “right to work for less” state so that he can realize his “full value” on his own “merit”….away from all those BAD BAD UNIONS that he complains about. Of course he’ll have to continue to bring in an apple every day to the boss he has a “tookus liplock” on….
So APWU is leading the charge, to what?, more years of indignity, millions of grievances?, go home 3 paycheck Guffey and NALC Rolando !, we want out, the Nationals will feel the fallout from the members, especially when these Unions seek like Congress just to preserve themselves.
as the postal story unfolds I’m sure there will be many more instances of gross negligence made public………stay tuned
It shouldn’t be any surprise to anyone anymore… Donahue is a Republican. He went crying to ISSA/ROSS weeks after they agreed on a new contract with the APWU… Donahue has no vision or interested in expanding business for us workers or for the American people at the USPS!!!! Remember this my union brothers and sisters…. Most of management is or was worthless piece of shit craft workers… They can’t even manage their own checkbook and personal finances!!!! That’s why every union has a zillion grievances withstanding.. Cause these ignorant stupidvisors and MDO’s don’t follow nor know how to read a contract… They were all SCABS anyway!!!! If you continue to vote Republicans into office. You will definitely see middle class sink into the poverty class.. Some Democrats are bad but at least they are not ruthless or just care about the rich like Republicans… VOTE DEMOCRACTIC!!!!!!