how to save the post office
Attachment 3709
Printable View
how to save the post office
Attachment 3709
Don't laugh, it may come to that.
gonna cost me more than that--my beverage just sprayed all over the keyboard...:-(
Just think what a tank of gas will cost when stamps reach that point???
Casey, thats why I don't bring a beverage near the computer. The computer is only 3 years old, the beverage is usually 12! 8-)
For that I expect delivery on Saturday.
Start with removing the restrictions and let UPS & FedEx compete for letter delivery and raising junk mail rates.
I can understand the problem USPS is having. As for myself, I purchased a book of the "foreve"r stamps last October (?) and haven't used a ONE yet. I do all my correspondence via e-mail or telephone and pay all my bills via my bank e-bills, e-pay. Prior to getting "smart" i was paying over $50 per month on postage . BUT, I know it's coming, a tax on e-correspondence. AND, how can you fix an instutution that allows sick days to accumulate for years. A postal worker can retire earlier using his/her accumulated sick days to discount their retirement date. GREAT deal if you can get it. Whatever happened to common sense ?
Mark
PS: And that being said, in addition to my "signature" I best get my a$$ to work. Short day today, like yesterday, 16 hours.Gotta finish the job before the per diem non completion penalty kicks in.
The Other Side of the CoinQuote:
Originally Posted by Marco
How about rolling over vacation days? If I don't use my vacation this year, is it wrong to expect that benefit in the future? I have PTO. All time off comes from one pool regardless of whether it is called vacation or sick time. If I get close to retirement, am I not allowed to take time off. If I have enough accrued days to take off and still to get paid until my retirement date, should I not be allowed that benefit. If I work without the rewards at the time, am I to be denied the reward in the future? The harder you work, the less you get. There's an incentive for you.
One last thought about that. If I don't take sick days and they don't have to bring in a replacement worker to cover for me, then they have fewer days with a (in theory) less efficient worker. That means that the general day-to-day productivity should be higher.
How can we fix organizations like that?
I think the best way to fix the post office is to let it DIE. Open up competition as someone else mentioned. The USPS is dying because it is an institution that enjoyed a monopoly for so long that when technology made them mostly irrelevant they couldn't even adapt themselves to the changing world around them in time to avert disaster. Not all "institutions" should be saved. Slavery is a good example. Feudalism, the monarchy, ...oh heck...I can think of a bunch of them! LOL
We use about 2-3 stamps per month when averaged out over the course of a year. Most of that is for greeting cards for birthdays, holidays, etc. Everything else we "mail" we ship UPS or FedEx because we already can't count on USPS to get the job done right, or because UPS/FedEx can do it cheaper. Personally, I'm a fan of the UPS Store business model. I walk in with a bunch of items and a list of addresses. I tell them where I want them sent and by what method from their "menu." They help me fill out the forms. They package everything if I want them to. If they do it, the contents are insured against damage during transit. If I do it, I have to pay extra for insurance. I swipe my credit/debit card, write a check, or pay cash and get a receipt with tracking #'s. Oh, need a money order? I can get one of those, too. I can also buy cards, stamps, wrapping paper, stationery, packing materials, and a host of other things while I'm there and make some photocopies. When traveling for extended periods, I can go rent a mailbox there at the same location. I list their street address as my "ship to" address and such so that nobody hits me with that "can't be a PO box" stuff. I can leave instructions to contact me if certain types of things arrive for me and they actually DO it. I can call in from the road and have them go through my mail with me on the phone, then tell them whether or not to forward stuff to me and give them the address I want it sent to this time. I can have faxes sent there/send faxes from there. I can keep track of and manage a lot of this stuff from my laptop and even mobile phone. And as a small business, I can even have all of my billing done on a 30-day credit account. They'll pick stuff up where I want them to and deliver it where I want them to. Or I can go pick it up at their nearest location. And I can ship anything from a postcard to an automobile. They even do APO/FPO...which FedEx does not. Special delivery instructions like "if I'm not home, leave it with the lady next door in the pink house?" Not at any price with the USPS!
EdD,
I'm a small business employer. In my business model I decided to provide 5 paid sick days per year ( additional non paid- per my discretion). They are just THAT, SICK DAYS to be used fro the obvious. Vacation days vary with time of employment by me. First full year, 1 week. Second and subsequent years, 2 weeks. Paid in both instances. I REQUIRE the employee to take that vacation for two major reasons. One, it improves morale and TWO, I schedule my projects around the absence of that employee in my plans for any project etc. I may ask an employee to take early or delay a scheduled vacation but try to adhere to my original plan. In my model, it's "use it or lose it". My business model would collapse if I had an employee who accumulated both sick days and vacation days and presented me with a one ore two month absent request. I can live through the absence of an employee for a day, a week or two weeks, but a month would be a problem. Granted, that scenario would be as a result of an agreement between me and that employee but I could not possibly sustain the policy for long.
As I said before " Great if you can get it". I don't begrudge the employee bargaining for such a good deal. I DO however question the business model that agrees to that deal. Another GREAT example is the retirement health care provided through UAW bargaining with GM.
The USPS is still a government entity in disguise and as such is insulated from using common sense or logic.
THis is NOT a subject for debate between you and me. You deserve everything you and your employer agreed to. I, on the other hand deserve the right to make rules that fit my situation.
Having said all that, while writing this , my bobber went under and I missed the fish. DRAT!
Mark:
PS: flyguy, you have a lady in a "PINK" house NEXT DOOR ????
What amazes me is how some people try to use the USPS for something that it is not designed for like large parcel/bulk parcel/ heavy or oversize freight and then complain about it. Think about it people. Even in the days of the pony express if you wanted something large/heavy or etc sent long distances you sent it via rail not via USPS.
You have one of the cheapest, most efficient small parcel delivery systems in the world and still the complaints roll on.
Everyone also needs to think about how vital that "another government agency" like the USPS is to our military. Just try sending a parcel via FEDEX/UPS/DHL/MENLO to anyplace in the gulf for the same rate and as quickly as the USPS does. As long as you aren't shipping contraband, have the customs form filled out correctly, the USPS will get that parcel to any military personnel around the globe as quickly as possible, cheaper and provide free mail to service members in the gulf. When the Big 4 step up to the plate and offer free mail service to military personnel then I will cut them a little more slack.
I use the Big 4 and the USPS. All of them are important and vital to our nation. All of them have things that they do better and things that they do worse than the other agencies/companies. That is life. If you really want to see those delivery rates skyrocket then go ahead and eliminate the USPS. I suggest you all read this article:
http://marketplace.publicradio.org/d.../upsusps_deal/
Now who do you want to blame for the shortcomings and rate hikes? Plenty of blame to go around for all of them!
marco,
we ALL have ladies in pink houses next door. haven't you ever listened to john mellencamp?
rodney,
i just said bust the monopoly. deregulate. if the usps survives that, then i'd be really happy. but i wouldn't bet on them surviving. they make very poor decisions. and the reason the usps is in a death spiral is because of that "cheap, efficient small parcel delivery" model you seem so impressed with. it isn't viable anymore. hasn't been for over a decade. one only has to look at the deficits they rack up year after year to realize that. something that broken isn't something you praise as a good thing and tell folks they should be thankful for. it's a fairy tale.
There is no monopoly here. No one in the USPS is stopping the big 4 from delivering an type of parcel to any address. There is no price regulation by the federal government on what any delivery system charges you so please stop blaming the USPS for the rates of the big 4. No one is holding a gun to your head nor conspiring to force you to use only the USPS. It is your choice which service you use. However, consider that if not for the USPS that you despise so badly you quite probably would not have the nation you have today or at least it would be very different and not in a good way. There are those of us in the know on some stuff. Your beloved big 4 stick it to the military and that means you too every chance they get. That is corporate America for you. They are every bit as dirty and perhaps dirtier than our government.Quote:
Originally Posted by flyguy66
100 years from now if our nation still exists the USPS, in some form, will still be here. You and I won't. My dad is pushing 80 and he will tell you that several times every decade there is always someone singing the doom and gloom of the USPS.
You don't get mail on Saturday? We don't get it on Sunday but it still comes to Wis on Sat.Quote:
Originally Posted by ducksterman
Too many folks want to take the Post Office and look at it as a separate entity.
It really isn't.
It's part of the government, whatever they may claim. WE all subsidize it with our taxes. The 'rates' they charge don't cover their expenses. It's not a 'business', it's a government service that we pay for.
But I'm perfectly okay with that. Lots of parts of our government don't make a profit. Well, actually, no part of our government makes a profit. At least the Post office brings in something....
Think about it. The Federal Government gives money away to hundreds of thousands of people, businesses, and institutions without any expectation of recompense. Since, 'we' are the government, we are the ones doing all of this. Of all the things we throw money at, getting the benefits of inexpensive efficient postal services is one that I can support.
It's all connected. If you want the post office to 'compete', then how about Social Security, AFDC, Farm Subsidies, Federal Retirement Systems, etc? We could privatize the Federal Highway System and OSHA too. FEMA? Customs? Border Patrol? Congress, (please?)
Buddy
Clay..we get it but is being strongly considered to save some bucks
Marco,
I understand what you are saying and I have no problem with it. One of the reasons for rolling over PTO is the fact that more than once I have had vacation bumped by my employer. I have even had scheduled holidays cancelled. Given that, we argued long and hard to get 1 year of PTO rolled over.
I certainly understand that different business models work for different organizations. I also strongly support your right to institute one that works for your business. But I can certainly see rolling-over sick days to protect workers from longer periods of disablility, such as recovering from surgery.
In some cases, organizations will pay a set fee for cashed-in sick days. I think that this is a good idea too. In the cases that I am familiar with the rate of conversion is usually less than the cost of a temp replacement. In this situation an incentive is provided to keep the more skilled employee working with an incentive which ends up being cheaper to the employer. For example, if an employee is paid $200 a day and a skilled replacement costs $150/day, then an employee taking a sick day costs $350/day instead of $200. (Obviously I'm not bringing in taxes, etc...) If the employer offers a bonus of $100 for each sick day not used before retirement, then that employer is to the good $50/day in straight costs as well as the added efficiency of having the usual worker doing the usual job. It also is an incentive for employees to remain with their employer.
I think that we both are expressing different ideas but in a friendly manner.
My lunch break is ending. I hope your strike indicator is moving erratically.
:)
Ed
Quote:
Originally Posted by Buddy Sanders
Buddy,
We don't provide much subsidy. I used to work for the USPS. Up until the time that I left, it had never failed to pay a PROFIT back into the US government of AT LEAST a billion $ a year. Since then there have been leaner times, but I think that, overall, it has been a friend to the taxpayer and not a drain.
Ed
What other business entity, when faced with high maintainance employees, and a rapidly declining bottom line, decides, "I know. I'll just raise the prices, and cut customer service! That'll bring them flocking in."
Sell it!!! It takes the USPS 6 days to do what the others can do in 5. I say sell it and hire a bunch of former McDonalds crew chiefs to run the counters.
Recently I went into the PO to pick up a package. It was suppose to be available for a 7:30 am pick up. So there I was with another person who was there to pick up their company mail. Well guess what, nobody would take care of us!!! Even a supervisor refused to help us. They did say that they are open for as 7:30am pick up, but refused to assist us. Her excuse was that she was too busy with her paper work. In the real world this type of service would lead to failure. Oh well I guess what it has!!! I say sell it to a private interprize or close it. Somebody else will come along and make a good profit.
A lot of the problem with USPS is the cost of labor including retirement and benefits. The average federal employee now make considerably more than the average private sector employee. People used to go to work for the government for job security, now it’s job security, pay and benefits. They don’t necessarily hire the most qualified people either.
Then there are services they lose money on. If you lose money on a service raise the cost or discontinue the service. I will not miss the junk mail.
Like someone said earlier sell it or contract it out, UPS, FedEx, Halliburton can all do a better job. I know FedEx hauls a lot of USPS freight now, UPS probably does also.
This post amazes me. You all complain about the high cost of postage yet you berate the cheapest delivery system available to you. You complain about not having a choice but yet that choice has been there all along for those who have the courage to use it. You all think the other 3 are solid gold yet you let them jack the members of our Armed Forces every chance they get. A G.I. writes a letter in the war zone writes a letter, hands it to the mail clerk and the rotten old USPS delivers it to his/her/family/friends postage free (how dare they do that!). Meanwhile should that G.I. try to use one of the other 3 they carry on in "the great American way" by sticking their hands in his/her pockets. Ah those saintly types of corporate America. Always looking out for the common slob because it is easier to take his money when you see him coming.
Oh I quite forgot those rotten, overpaid, over compenasted, no good, lazy federal employees like me. Why we should not be getting paid that whole $35,000-$45,000 (that is what most federal employees make) per year to maintain the system that keeps you free. Free to moan and complain about us as well as blame us for everything that goes wrong in the world. Oh yeah and your federal government can eliminate your position or move you to a different part of the globe anytime via something called a R.I.F. (reduction in force) or re-alignment. Then again I am a D.o.D. employee that works in a very loud, hot, cold, dusty warehouse while packing heavy freight on to pallets and then on to trucks for the military. Yeah when I am packing freight that goes out via UPS, Fed-Ex, Dhl, MENLO (owned by UPS) and USPS I check the cost. Just another overpaid, lazy federal employee sounding off here.
I am beginning to understand why Nighthawk has decided not to come back to this site. Used to be a good site about fly fishing.
Muskrat makes some telling points. I remember being told that any military personnel who get deployed could send a letter home for free. We were told that we could write it on a piece of cardboard from a C-ration box and, as long as the address was legible, it WOULD be delivered. The US has one of the cheapest postal rates in the country. The USPS moves mail across half a continent as well as international mail, which the USPS pre-sorts for many countries. It really isn't that bad.
There ARE bad post offices. If you have problems with one, report it. Postmasters are held accountable if there are enough complaints. If you don't believe me then consider this, if you are defrauded on a mail order, who would you expect to pursue the issue more vigorously, the USPS or the local police. If the USPS is aware of problems, they will clean their own house. As with anoy complaint, making your statements in a clear, calm, rational manner is much more effective than ranting. Problem reports should contain all of the relevant info but not how annoyed you are because the baby was screaming and traffic was awful. Time and similiar details is very useful. Did you get treated rudely by one clerk? Did you get the clerks name? If you can't, get the time off of the clock in the PO and note which lane or station they are manning.
Regards,
Ed
The Post Office is a money looser because it has unlimited money resourses-the tax payer- I still say restructure it like a private business or sell it. Their will always be a delivery souce for the military personnel and others.
went to the us post office today to cash a us postal service money order i got in the mail. they didn't have enough money to cash it.
Anecdotal to be sure: I use one of the BEST Post Offices in the nation. They are the warmest, friendliest, bend-over-backward-anything-I-can-do-to-help-you people I have ever met. I have seen people come into the building frazzled and leave smiling and even laughing. They are congenial and competent. I look forward to visiting them. Good people all at 49127.
Be careful what you wish for; you may just get it.
mcsteff
Just curious, not trying to pick on you, but what would possess you to go to the Post Office to cash a money order before your bank? It's not their area of expertise. My bank will send mail out for me, but I would never expect them to deliver it. It's not their area of expertise. I pass several stores that will sell/make/offer money orders on my way to work (must be at least 30, I have a 50 mile drive), but I would NEVER expect them to cash the darn things. Again, not trying to defend the USPS, or start a flame war with you, but I can't understand the purpose, unless to avoid a service fee of some sort? Peace.Quote:
Originally Posted by flyguy66
97495 is a great PO too.
Cheers,
MontanaMoose
I worked for the federal government for 33 1/2 years. We got 21 sick days per year. You were supposed to be sick to use them. Many folks used them frivolously which caused the government to have to pay out overtime. Our sick leave was cumulative. In 33 1/2 years I took only 20 days total sick leave. All of the younger generation thought I was being stupid for not burning off all my sick leave each year. When I retired I had almost 700 sick day credits. I got nothing for them not a big deal because I never expected to get anything for them. Now the new contract which came out about 5 years after I retired, gives you 50% of the cash value for your unused sick leave. It makes sense for the employer because 50% payout of sick leave credits is much cheaper than paying someone 150% for overtime. My timing was bad and I lost out on about $44,000. They claim that this policy has cut way back on the misuse of sick leave.
Soup,
That is another advantage of the post office; they will cash a USPS money order. On the subject of who is cheaper, I received a small package from a business who sent it by UPS at a cost of about $12. The next time I ordered the same thing, from the same company, they sent it by USPS (without me asking) and it cost about $5. With the computer it is easy to check the USPS, FEDEX, UPS, etc and see who is the cheapest. The only package I have ever had lost, was shipped by UPS. In fairness, I once received a rod, in a metal tube, packed inside a long cardboard box, shipped by the USPS arrive in a L shape.
Standard disclosure, I am not employed by the USPS, FEDEX, UPS, etc.
Well, to quote TWO VP's of TWO highly respected banks with whom I spoke about exactly this:Quote:
Originally Posted by Soup
Banks do not cash US Postal Service Money Orders anymore for 2 reasons. First, there are scads upon scads of fraudulent ones floating around and the banks have all been burned by them too many times. Second, they're afraid that if they take real ones, the USPS won't be able to pay them.
One of those bank VP's told me, "Tell everyone you know never to send Post Office money orders. Use a bank cashier's check or even take a personal check from someone before accepting a Post Office money order. You can cash a third party check easier than you can one of those money orders."
This was after I had taken it to the THIRD post office and tried about five banks just to make sure. Finally, I took it to a bank where I had worked as a teenager in the town where I grew up and where my mother still lives. That bank VP is one of my best school friend's mom and a friend of my mother's. And she cashed it for me while lecturing me on the subject in great detail.
So...believe or think what you will. Make excuses for the USPS all you want to. But the bottom line is that the old red-white-and-blue eagle that once stood for the full faith of credit of the US gov't and the ultimate in convenient, reliable service is now a far riskier way to transact business than by taking a stranger's personal check. FACT.
Wow trusting a banker who's institution probably took tarp money, that is tax payer dollars, over the USPS. Now that is the pot calling the kettle black! Banking must be really tough in your area. I can take a USPS Money Order to any bank, credit union I belong to and several retailers in our state and get it cashed with no problem. Quite possibly your trusted banker friend was trying to get your money and really played to your dislike of the USPS. By the way I have a lot of retail management experience. Want to loose your shirt? Just keep trusting those bankers and taking third party checks. Most bankers are just like most salesmen. They are great at telling what you want to hear.
Muskrat,
I doubt very seriously that the First National Bank of Mineola, Texas was offered TARP money. LMAO The First Mineola Corp is one of the most conservative lenders in the country and has always had a very high reserve ratio. If you know anything at all about banking and what led to the financial crisis we are currently in, you will realize that 1) small independent local banks that make only prime loans aren't in trouble, and 2) banks that small weren't offered TARP money. Furthermore, why don't you try the USPS money order thing and get back to us...not just any money order, a US Postal money order. This lady had no idea that I had an issue with this. I haven't seen or spoken to her in a decade or more. And I just walked in and told her the local post office couldn't cash it and asked if she would.
Like I said before: keep drinking the Koolaid if you want to. I don't care.
flgy,
You may want to be very careful in your assumptions pertaining to those banks, money orders, and banking personnel. You may want to quit while your at least even, though not ahead. Just sayin'
It is, after all, your Koolaid.
..... and friendly employees at 83442 and 59847, too !!Quote:
Originally Posted by MontanaMoose
Maybe its a small town thing ??
John
flyguy66,
Yeah I am just a dumb bumpkin from Pennsylvania so I don't know nothing about nothing. Except that I don't drink Koolaid. Koolaid is for kids. BTW who holds the bonds and notes for any of our little financial institutions? Be careful, that is a rhetorical question. I already know the answer. So if you think the post office is so bad why don't you put your hat in the ring for Post Master General of the United states of America and fix it. Perhaps it is just easier to criticize and be bossy than it is to be the boss.
Don't get the mistaken idea in your head that you can lecture me. Lets just say that you and I will never agree on this and let it drop.
Excellent service at 17045, 17020, 17070, 16127!
If you get something from me, it comes to you via USPS. Who can beat the rates and free boxes for 'most anything including many 4pc rods? That is HUGE for someone like me right now. They will even pick it up next day with a phone call, FREE. If you are paying the freight, I don't care how you spend your money.
I will not take a Postal Money Order, however. There has been too much fraud with them. If you are too stuck in the past to use PayPal, which I prefer, I may take your check, but I won't take a PO Money Order. If your check is bad, I can send it to the sheriff in the county you live in and he will come to your door and tell you to pay it or go to jail in many parts of the country.
Over the last 25 years, the post office at 80123 has been both surly and friendly depending on how the current Postmaster treated his/her team.
All in all, I wish the rest of the Federal Government was run like the Post Office. We wouldn't be in as much of a hole as we are now.
You are mistaken. Yes postal workers can accumulate sick leave. No, it does not discount their retirement date. Some will use up whatever they have on the books if they can find a doctor to write them a long term illness note. Otherwise the accumulated sick leave will just be added to the total service time when they retire. My wife added 18 months to her time in service and I added 9 months with accumulated sick leave.Quote:
Originally Posted by Marco
As for common sense, what do you think it costs to pay someone to stay home and burn up their sick leave while you pay someone else time and a half to cover that vacant position? Compare that with the extra .02% for each year of a accumulated leave. Before federal employees retirement system got wise and changed from use it or lose it sick leave, everyone was calling in sick just for a play day.
Time to wake up. Your taxes have not supported the Postal Service since 1971.Quote:
Originally Posted by hardhat
1971 - United States Postal Service began operations. Prior to that it was subsidized by taxes.