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Gene DelPolito on the Status of Postal Reform Bills

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Del Polito

One of the biggest concerns of readers of this blog is  the long term prospects for the Postal Service.    This and the next few Posts contain an interview with Gene Del Polito, the President of the Association for Postal Commerce and his opinions on: the current status of postal reform bill approved by the responsible committees in the House of Representatives and Senate; potential legislative options other than those currently introduced to date; impact of Congress not acting on decisions of mailers and parcel shippers to use the Postal Service; labor-management relations; problems facing flat-shaped mailers government provided postal services; mail box monopoly; a U.S. approach to privatization; and other topics. [...] Read more »

The Politics of Network Optimization

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USPS logo-Feat. Image

Starting yesterday, information about closures of Postal Service facilities have leaked out one by one.  The Postal Service this morning published the full list of facilities that will be impacted.   The Postal Service states that “264 processing facilities were studied, 6 are on hold for further internal study, 35 will remain open for now and 223 will be consolidated  — all or in part. Looking at the list of facilities that will not be consolidated fully, it is clear that with very few exceptions the evaluation process  and all of the public hearings did not change the likelihood that a facility would be consolidated.  It would appear that the effort that local, sate [...] Read more »

The Washington Post Does Not Understand the Postal Service

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Once again the Washington Post’s editorial board illustrated their ignorance on Postal issues. In an editorial focusing on labor issues, the editorial board illustrated an understanding about labor negotiations that is particularly peculiar given the newspaper industry’s history in reducing labor costs as it faced the threat of e-competition.  The editorial board reinforced the impression that it does not know what it is talking about by confusing retirement with health benefits. By stating that the contract with the APWU is inadequate, they assume that a better contract could have been negotiated or obtained through binding arbitration. The truth is changes in wages in benefits that the Washington Post believes are needed only [...] Read more »

Are 30,000 Enough?

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Over the past several days, there has been some debate about what the 30,000 reduction in Postal Service employees really mean.   Both postalnews.com and the Washington Post have reported that 30,000 represents a combination of regular attrition and the reduction in 7,500 management positions that will be announced on March 25. So how much will the reduction of 30,000 employees save the Postal Service?   The Postal Service’s average monthly compensation cost is $6339.27 per employee.   (This works out to a salary of around $54,000 per year or $4,500 per month with the rest being the cost of employee benefits and employment taxes.)   If one assumes that retiring employees earn 15% above average then the [...] Read more »

Tweets from Congressman Dennis Ross and Possible Implications for Postal Unions

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In the last few days, Representative Dennis Ross has made a number of tweets regarding the conflict between the Governor and the teachers unions in Wisconsin.   While none of the tweets mention postal issues, they may provide a hint to stakeholders and policymakers  regarding the tone on labor issues that the House will take when discussing changes required to return the Postal Service to solvency.    RepDennisRoss Dennis Ross Hypocrisy & big labor are synonymous. RT @Reaganista: RT @JebBush: Must see video. Stay strong @GovWalker. http://bit.ly/dPHMH5 #wiunion RepDennisRoss Dennis Ross Working on that. RT @michellemalkin: Unions get waivers from Obamacare. Why can’t workers get waivers from forced unionism? #wiunion RepDennisRoss Dennis [...] Read more »

What do House Republicans Think About Budget Changes Relating to the Postal Service?

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Now that the President’s 2012 budget is out, both Senator Tom Carper and Senator Susan Collins have already commented on the proposal to provide some modifications to the Postal Service’s retirement obligations.   To date, members of the house who are leading the subcommittee responsible for marking up legislation that would enact the changes that the President proposed have made any public statement about their views on the proposed statements. As both Representatives Dennis Ross (R-FL) and Justin Amash (R-MI) are freshmen,  they have no history with Postal issues and are more than likely coming to the issue with not much more background in the postal market than the average consumer.  [...] Read more »

When is $600,000 more than $6,200,000?

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When the $600,000 involves sex and “waste, fraud, and abuse” of Postal Service funds. The $600,000 is the amount of money that the USPS – Inspector General has indicated that the Postal Service could save over the next two years if it improved training on travel expenses were introduced.   Overspending on travel and abuse of corporate credit cards is nothing new in either the private sector or public sector.   Reports similar to the one issued by the Inspector General probably have been written since at least the times of the Roman Legion.  Given that Postal Service currently spends $97 million on travel expenses annually, the impact of the Inspector [...] Read more »