Postal
The term going postal became popularized after a series of incidents in the 1980s when postal workers shot their managers, co-workers, police officers and members of the community at large to express disdain with their work environments.
Recently, though, the tables may have turned and it’s the public’s chance to be angry with the U.S. Postal Service. Earlier this month, the post office renewed threats of service cutbacks. The changes the post office is now suggesting include:
- Cutting costs
- Closing post offices
- Raising rates
- Eliminating some services, including Saturday mail delivery
Without these drastic changes, the post office suggests it could run a deficit of almost $240 billion over the next decade. Of course, unions representing letter carriers and other postal workers object strongly to these service cuts.
Oh, how this reeks of the Chicago Transit Authority. Both are broken systems that refuse to acknowledge that a major internal overhaul is needed. Instead, they expect the public to get used to a new way of business. And you know what? It stinks!
Look, I get that the postal system is in financial trouble. I get that fuel prices have increased dramatically, affecting all industries that rely on it for their livelihood. I even agree that the postal system *should* raise rates to reflect overall increasing costs across the nation and around the globe. I’m all for a little change here.
But, the reality is the post office needs to make major service cuts because it’s an old, antiquated system. It thinks making little changes here and there is actually going to solve the problem. The reality is, I can guarantee, the post office will come back to us in another year or two. Crying again for higher rates, additional service cuts, etc.
A long time ago, a boss once told me that it’s okay to disagree with how something is done so long as you come to the table with a suggestion for how to make it better. Here are my top 10 ideas I think could help the postal system resolve some of its more public issues …
- Raise rates annually to reflect rising costs (not because the USPS can’t get it’s shit together and comes crawling to us for more money). However, rates should have a flat increase each year (at 3%, the increase for mailing a letter will average 1-2¢ per year) and the new rates should go into effect the same time each year, so customers are not surprised.
- Eliminate Forever stamps. That’s just ridiculous that I can mail something 5 years from now for the same price as it costs today just because I bought an armful of stamps. Cute marketing gimmick, bad financial decision. Delete.
- Eliminate bulk mailing rates. It doesn’t cost the post office less money to process hundreds of items and ship them. Therefore, businesses and non-profits should not get a break on the cost to ship them. Period.
- Eliminate Saturday delivery for residences only. Many businesses rely on Saturday deliveries and should not be punished as a result. However, most residential customers will not be hurt waiting a few days for an armload of junk mail.
- In the most rural areas, do not deliver to residences at all. Instead, residents can pick up their mail at a local, centralized post office box. It will require less time from postal workers and less money for maintenance and fuel of vehicles.
- Re-evaluate the pay scale and benefits of postal employees. Yes, this stinks to high heaven with the unions. But, you know what? If private businesses are cutting back, making employees shoulder more of the burden, etc., then so should the postal service and its employees.
- Consider layoffs. If less mail is being delivered as a result of the internet and competition (UPS, FedEx, DSL), then that suggests you should need fewer postal service employees to complete the work. Quit letting the unions bully you into keeping their workers.
- Get rid of the bottom dwellers. Some postal workers go above and beyond the call of duty. However, their images are tarnished by the all too many public-facing postal workers who are rude, grouchy, indignant and downright unhelpful. And you know what? With the postal service mail carriers starting salary at $40,000, there are plenty of currently unemployed people who would be more than happy to take the place of those negative workers – and they’d do so with a smile.
- Pay for performance. If a postal worker saves the organization money, pay that postal worker a percentage of the savings. Encourage postal workers to make suggestions for how to improve business. Winning ideas are paid a bonus. Offer incentives to the highest producers each month, encouraging everyone to improve performance.
- Add coupons. You think I’m kidding, but I’m not. It could help manage costs. For example, if post office locations are most heavily used on Fridays or the last day of the month, offer coupons for people who can come to the post office during the middle of the week or the middle of the month. December is clearly a crazy month at the post office. Offer discounts to those who mail packages before December 1. Coupons just might help control the ebbs and flows of the business!
I’m quite certain my ideas hit just the tip of the iceberg. And you must have a few of your own. Care to share them? Or are you completely satisfied with your service?
{Note: some ideas gleaned from here.}
March 17th, 2010 at 7:43 am
As completely ridiculous as this is and feel free to laugh, I’d miss Saturday mail solelyl because I often get new Netflix movies, though I suppose I could learn to live without it.
That grouchy postal worker you describe? Yeah, we have one of those (not all the time, just sometimes) here at work. Never a nice word to say about his employer, bitching that he’s going to lose his job and his route, and while i feel bad for him, his attitude suuuccckkks.
I definitely think I like the coupon idea! Not something I would have thought of before :)
I say take your ideas to the top!
March 17th, 2010 at 8:06 am
Some great ideas, Nilsa. Our mail carrier sits in his truck at the bottom of our hill for someimes an hour. No joke. We live in a small town and in all honestly have more mail carriers than we need. I can drive all around town and see mail carriers sitting in their trucks during the day because they can’t head back to the post office too early.
March 17th, 2010 at 8:33 am
The Postal System is in dire need of an overhaul. It seems like a scale-down of some kind is in order. I hope they can figure out a way to maybe work with less employees while still giving them the same benefits. Benefit cuts make me squirmy. (Admittedly, I don’t know a lot about their benefits.)
Mail carriers can be unhelpful, condescending and lazy, and they just need to go. At the same time I know that a lot of them work their tails off. I was visiting my mom in my hometown during both of the big snowstorms, and the mail carrier showed up with chains on his tires, hefting his mailbag through the not-yet-shoveled snow. I’m sure it took him hours longer than usual. They have talked about shutting down the post office there for years, but I’m not sure how they would do that considering the next large-ish town is more than an hour away.
And I’m with you on eliminating Saturday home delivery. That seems like a no-brainer. I remember one of the clerks in Vegas telling me that they were considering doing away with Tuesday delivery because it was the least busiest day in terms of amount of mail to be delivered, but I think cutting Saturday delivery would fit better.
March 17th, 2010 at 8:42 am
We have great postal service here so I can’t complain about that (for now). It’s FedEx that keeps delivering my neighbors’ packages to our house. Here’s another idea, bring back the Pony Express. Or are horses just as expensive as gas? Seriously though, there are some houses here that have walk up mail boxes. I wonder if it would be cheaper to require everyone (in the suburbs) to have standing mailboxes by the street. I would think they must pay workers more to walk around neighborhoods in the elements. But I don’t really know that for a fact. On the flip side, it would probably use more gas that way. Carrier pigeon?
March 17th, 2010 at 9:35 am
I had no idea that that’s where the term going postal came from. I like learning little things like this! And I think your ideas are great!
March 17th, 2010 at 9:39 am
One thing that you have considered is inventory. The USPS does not keep track of inventory such as plastic mail tubs, plastic skids, mail bags etc. They lose millions each year because these items go missing. In reality many businesses borrow them. But there is no accountability and so these items are considered losses.
the USPS needs to be run like a business rather than a government agency. They need to cut the fat buy getting rid of low performance employees (via layoffs and performance evaluations and un-profitable services).
There is a few things more that I can mention but can’t get into details….
they need to
March 17th, 2010 at 9:54 am
I like how thoughtful and smart you are about these sorts of issues.
Though I did balk at cutting the bulk mail rate. That would cost my work SO MUCH MONEY. Eek. Selfish, but true.
March 17th, 2010 at 9:56 am
I would also add that they should mandate roadside mailboxes for houses. Our neighborhood has mail slots next to the front door of every house. It’s lovely that my mail is actually delivered inside my house without me having to do anything, but it means our mail carrier has to park his truck and walk up and down all the streets in our neighborhood, walking up to everyone’s front door and delivering their mail, and then coming back with packages that he couldn’t carry as he did his route. It is highly inefficient and an incredible waste of time. In my parents’ town roadside mailboxes are mandated, meaning that the mail carrier drives from house to house and quickly delivers the mail without having to get out of the truck. Mandating this nationwide would allow much higher volume per mail carrier and reduce the overall number of mail carriers required to deliver the same amount of mail.
March 17th, 2010 at 9:57 am
I honestly use the post office so rarely for personal mail that I don’t see problems. Pretty much I only send my netflix back, Christmas cards and maybe 3 bday cards a year. I email a lot and do my bills online.
About a year ago they eliminate all mailboxes for outgoing mail in my city. I am pretty sure it was pilot program to eliminate the cost of having an employee go around and collect for 100 boxes around town. We are encouraged to leave outgoing mail in our mail box for letter carrier to pick up when he delivers to us. I generally do that, but I don’t think my mailman likes it very much. The only deposit boxes are located in front of the post office branches. It caused an uproar mainly with older folk who may not drive and don’t like change. I am interested to see how it turns out in the long run.
March 17th, 2010 at 10:01 am
I’m with Sizzle. I think getting rid of Saturday deliveries is a terrific idea, and I also think that some communities used to have community mailboxes for all the houses on one street with a lockbox for each house -- much like an apartment building. That might fare better for townhouses and condominiums that don’t have the land to have their own mailbox.
However, the rural aspect is the only bit I disagree with: namely, because being able to retrieve mail from a personal mailbox is something that everyone should be able to do from their own home. And frankly, in those rural areas, it does help keep people in business. In a suburban area where there are far too many postal workers for each development, that might be feasible to do away with staff.
March 17th, 2010 at 10:03 am
Oh and also I’d suggest doing the exact opposite of what they did in Karen’s town. We should not be able to send outgoing mail from our homes. This requires huge organizational headaches for mail carriers in terms of picking up mail, checking mailboxes even when they have nothing to deliver, sorting the mail that they pick up, and then making sure it goes to the right place when they get back to the post office. It makes much more sense to have a few central mailboxes where everyone drops their outgoing mail and it can all be collected and managed at once by someone who specializes in doing exactly that.
In France and Germany they don’t pick up mail from residences. In fact, most of them don’t know what those little flags on American mailboxes mean. I have been asked by foreign people several times why our mailboxes have flags (I think they see the flags in movies?) and every time I explain I’m greeted with complete shock. I’m wondering, are the postal services in other countries struggling as much as ours is? If not, we should look to them for examples of things we can be doing better.
March 17th, 2010 at 10:03 am
You have Saturday delivery? Oh wow! We don’t have residential delivery over the weekend and it doesn’t impact us at all. Also? If I could steal anything from you guys it would be your flat rate shipping!! I would love to have access to timely, less expensive shipping. /sigh =)
March 17th, 2010 at 10:06 am
You mean that residential areas don’t have a walking mail carrier? Everything is in a truck? …. wow.
(We have a truck because we live in a highrise, but residential routes definitely use their own two feet as power)
March 17th, 2010 at 10:11 am
After working for broken churches for years and years, I’m ALL for major overhaul of deadweight and bad ideas that have stood the test of time because, “That’s the way we’ve always done it.” If I ever hear that uttered out of someone’s mouth again, I will probably punch them in the neck. That would be why church work is no longer an option for me. MWhahahha!
March 17th, 2010 at 11:24 am
I can’t even believe that the forever stamp is in existence. Ridiculous.
March 17th, 2010 at 11:47 am
So why aren’t you on the task board for USPS? Dang girl, you are full of good ideas!
March 17th, 2010 at 1:09 pm
When I lived in England I got used to having Saturday delivery. It was a shock to the system when I moved back to Canada and didn’t receive mail on the weekends anymore.
I’m not entirely clear on how the system works but in England they have different “classes” of mail. You can buy a first class or a second class stamp (playing more for first class, obviously) and your delivery time is dependent on which you choose. It seemed to work over there but I’m not sure that it could work in countries that are so much larger (geographically speaking.)
March 17th, 2010 at 1:14 pm
I really like your idea about getting rid of the rude workers. They seem to think that just because it’s a government job, they can be as rude as they want and not worry about the consequences, which is pretty true at this point. I had a postal worker who wasn’t delivering my packages. It had been like three weeks and I was in business for myself and received packages (usually more than one) every day. After weeks of no mail, I called and complained and magically the next day, my packages started arriving. And, she’s always yelling at me about where I park my car and sometimes just won’t deliver the mail.
I just don’t like my mail woman. I don’t have any suggestions. If I’m sitting on my porch and I see the mail truck coming, I go inside and wait for her to pass. She is that unpleasant.
March 17th, 2010 at 1:37 pm
Do you get mail delivered on Saturdays every where in the U.S. or just big cities? I’ve lived in three different medium-small (by USA standards) cities in Canada and have NEVER heard of the mailman coming on Saturdays! Mon-Fri only!!
March 17th, 2010 at 1:48 pm
The Canadian postal service has implemented at least # 1,2,4,and 5, that I know of. Our postal service is actually pretty fast and reliable, and I haven’t heard that it’s in any danger of crumbling away.
March 17th, 2010 at 2:49 pm
oh man, hear hear!! i am so sick of the USPS, i try to use UPS more often now, regardless of the rates. the people are friendlier, i don’t have to worry about where my package is, and i can walk away confident that everything will be alright. i love all of your ideas, and i’m surprised by that because i usually get all up in arms about things like #5. if you’re going to live in the middle of nowhere, that’s your problem, not everyone elses.
March 17th, 2010 at 3:01 pm
Oh Nilsa -- this is a touchy subject for some. Me. :)
1) Great idea. I do agree with this idea totally. Previously when it was a government agency, they could not raise rates without congress approval. Some maybe part of the problems they got into to start with was not being allowed to raise rates for so many years.
2)Who actually are buying those stamps?? oh wait probably my mom.
3) Actually it may cost them less to process bulk mail vs regular mail. The machines that scan the mail do it at a faster rate when the letter is printed in uniform vs a hand written letter you may right. Plus the carrier that is sorting that mail everyday takes less time to process bulk mail vs a birthday card you receive.
4) Great Idea also!
5) Rural areas -- I do beleive it’s in the constitution (or something) that all residents are entitled to home mail service. Yes this can be changed. :)
6)This one I do have a problem with. Both my parents work for the post office -- for over 20 years each. And do not receive raises. They are capped in the pay scale and recieve a small, small cost of living increase. In fact, they made more in the 90′s when overtime was a factor then they do now. Why no overtime now? Cause the amount of mail has decreased.
7) Layoffs have occured. At both of my parents offices, they have reviewed and eliminated routes by combining them into other routes. As they should have to reduce the amount of time carriers are sitting in their truck killing time. So the folks with the lowest senority are let go.
The rest of your points I do agree with. Why isn’t this as easy as big corportations are?
Some other notes….did you know my Dad’s truck he drives to deliver the mail in does not have AC? And most of the time the heat is not up to par either? He has also only once been told to get off the street and not deliver the mail due to weather. And that was when a tornado hit near by. But they don’t have radios and only recently with the use of cell phones is that even possible.
So yes I agree with some of your points. They need to do soemthing now. And something bigger then they have.
To the comment above about inventory…..great idea! I have grown up with those mail bins used as toy storage.
March 17th, 2010 at 3:02 pm
the post office by me closes down in the middle of the day. it’s weird, and i NEVER remember it, so whenever i have a package to mail and show up after lunch i am DENIED. i sure hope they’re saving money this way!
March 17th, 2010 at 6:37 pm
I love this post.
I have a love-hate relationship with the Postal Service:
LOVE -- because I use it frequently, because yes, I still write and send a lot of hand-written cards and letters!
HATE -- because I am so dissatisfied with their service. I wouldn’t mind paying a little more, if not half of my mailings would get lost, returned or whatnot.
USPS really needs a complete overhaul. No question.
March 17th, 2010 at 7:22 pm
Dang woman! You need to run for city counsel or something. Problem Solverington.
March 17th, 2010 at 8:53 pm
Ugh! The post office… where do I begin?
As a small business owner, I would suffer greatly from lack of Saturday delivery. I really hope it doesn’t come to that.
Also, about the Forever Stamps. I think they were a good idea. You rush out to the post office the day before the price goes up and by 100 stamps. Then 2 months later, you forgot where you put them, so you go buy 100 more. Genius! As one of the very few personal letter-writers left on the planet, I always have a book of stamps lying around and am probably one of 18 people in the USA that always knows where her stamp stash is. LOL!
And for rural delivery, I think it would be awful for people with farms and other such rural home businesses. My great-grandparents were farmers and only had time to go “in to town” once a week due to the demands of growing food and meat for the rest of the country. I can’t imagine only getting my mail once a week!
March 18th, 2010 at 12:49 am
rawr. i have to mail something (blog giveaway prize) tomorrow and absolutely despise the post office
March 18th, 2010 at 9:17 pm
Nilsa for President! :)