US Postmaster General tells postal workers to leave mail behind if it slows down their route

[pounur_0]

• The US Postal Service's new Postmaster General has established new cost-saving policies that could slow down mail service.

• Mail carriers are being told to leave mail behind at distribution centers rather than taking late trips, taking extra trips, or logging overtime, according to memos first reported on by The Washington Post and subsequently reviewed by Business Insider. 

• The Postal Service is on financially shaky ground due to the coronavirus pandemic, with Business Insider previously reporting that it may run out of cash by the end of September. 

[richard1rst]

My first comment would be that the Washington Post is owned by Jeff Bezos who is the middle of a blood feud with President Trump and the post office.

The USPS has just issued a 44 page document laying out a 5 year plan/prediction of mail service. (Google it - USPS five year plan). It does discuss some of the problems they are having along with proposed remedies.

With 44 pages of dry technical stuff to plow through there is no doubt that someone with an axe to grind could easily "interpret" the information to sustain whatever point of view they want to foist on the world.

Caveat Emptor

[lja440]

First off, I expected such was going to happen. The new Postmaster General is NOT a postal worker. Previous Postmaster Generals have worked their way up inside the Post Office. The new one was appointed after he gave millions to tRumps campain. 

Second there has always been some roll over of 3rd class mail (aka junk mail and catalogs). 

With todays high package volume it is not uncommon for carriers to have to leave some PACKAGES at the Post Office and return for a second load.  I have posted pics of my Jeep leaving the Post Office for my route before. With my route I can't often return and then continue (route is 97 miles long and at the edge of our delivery area). I either leave some larger packages and deliver notices or sometimes if I can swing it deliver packages on my way home after work.

[lja440]

 

 

[soh.maryl]

Just want to thank you for your responses here as an experienced postal worker.  It really helps to have someone on board who understands the USPS as well as you do.  And, for the OP, if delivering those items would result in overtime, thus higher costs to the post office, I don't see the problem of something maybe delivered a day or two later.  Most of what we buy by mail is not an emergency purchase.  If it were, we surely would find a way to get it locally, right? 

[zcmi11]

Since all this started my USPS orders now can take up to 2-3 delivery days longer and only one delay with UPS (customer provided wrong address).  Our home USPS mail deliverer comes later in the afternoon now and goes out of his way to ensure deliveries. We've had the same folks for years. But ugh - has anyone had to physically go to the PO & make a huge USPS drop off lately? Ugh - that's what made me get more organized!

[sandtrap14]

From the Chicago Suburbs my packages are taking 2-3 weeks to be delivered. It often takes 10 days from when it leaves my PO until it is unloaded at the next station 20 miles away.

With this delay, buyers are putting in not received claims and the BETRAY is issuing refunds.

When it does deliver, how am I to get a refund or the item back?

[pizazznscents]

This looks like plenty of Amazon to me.

[pounur_0]

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@soh.maryl wrote:

Just want to thank you for your responses here as an experienced postal worker.  It really helps to have someone on board who understands the USPS as well as you do.  And, for the OP, if delivering those items would result in overtime, thus higher costs to the post office, I don't see the problem of something maybe delivered a day or two later.  Most of what we buy by mail is not an emergency purchase.  If it were, we surely would find a way to get it locally, right? 

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Thank you for your thoughtful response, please understand the media likes to scare us readers, when I first saw that article I figured the worst scenario.

[richard1rst]

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@zcmi11 wrote:

 - has anyone had to physically go to the PO & make a huge USPS drop off lately?

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I do it every day - by choice. Looking at the pics supplied above it is clear that my daily pickups would overwhelm that little jeep - still half full of packages to be yet delivered. I'm guessing most of the time my packages would not (could not?) be picked up due to a lack of room.

[richard1rst]

And yet the Amazon ads your see on TV makes it look like they have their own trucks and delivery drivers.

[yuzuha]

They do in some places.  Around here, Amazon has its own fleet of vans and drivers that handle all of the Amazon deliveries. The USPS hasn't delivered Amazon packages in my area for quite a while now.

[ctmss4284 · Accepted solution]

Just to add our local perspective -

At our post office, volume is up. The post master says that regular mail numbers are down but parcel numbers have gone through the roof since the pandemic started. Also that the overall volume the past few weeks has eclipsed Christmas. 

We have not had any delays in our shipments arriving to the customer.

Amazon's reach into delivery isn't working out smoothly. There are many cases of drivers quitting mid route. They park the delivery trucks wherever and have someone pick them up.

There's a perpetual "the post office is going under" year after year. I've heard it my entire life and they're still kicking. 

[7198dave]

The mailman who comes late at night, he must be filling in or what, but twice he didn't even take my packages. They were small packages. The third time, he lost my package. he took it, didn't even scan it. Now it looks like I never shipped the item.

[buyselljack2016]

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@ric   wrote:

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@zc  wrote:

 - has anyone had to physically go to the PO & make a huge USPS drop off lately?

---

I do it every day - by choice. Looking at the pics supplied above it is clear that my daily pickups would overwhelm that little jeep - still half full of packages to be yet delivered. I'm guessing most of the time my packages would not (could not?) be picked up due to a lack of room.

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I am far enough along on the route that the carrier has room on even the best of my selling days, but  when I am going someplace, passing near an open PO, I try to take packages to drop them off to give the carrier a break from the daily scanning at my mailbox.

They do a great job, don't complain, know that the scans are important to me, and know they are appreciated, but seeing the red flag in the down position probably comes as a bit of relief some days.