eBay

richard454 · ‎06-22-2022

I'm in metro Atlanta- the past few months the post Office I use ( Chamble GA) had been closed at random times. The last several weeks- at least three times a week they were closed at lunch time. The past two weeks - at about 2PM or so- they had put up a sign saying they were closed for the rest of the day - "Sorry!" and had a list of the two nearby Post Offices. However, this past Friday they were closed (3 PM) and one of the other nearby locations was as well. Lots of nasty comments from customers walking in...

I get Monday being closed- however my mail was delivered to my house on a Federal Holiday? Had several packages I dropped off before lunch Tuesday (yesterday) the employees don't want to scan the item and yell at you if you don't put it in the drop box. Tracking usually shows up that evening. BUT today- all four of my packages that have been sitting at the post office for a day and a half + are STILL not scanned.

Has this become normal operating procedure? What are your seeing at your USPS? This can't be approved behavior.

Richard

ebooksdiva · ‎06-22-2022

I utilize 3 different PO in my area..The only issue I have is they don't always scan packages. They are all pleasant and helpful when I have questions.

The issues you are experiencing are not the norm that's for sure. You should report them to the Post Master regarding them.

Edited to say they don't always scan when they pick up packages.

fab_finds4u · ‎06-22-2022

Monday through Friday my PO closes for lunch from 12-1. They open at 9:30 and close at 4:30. They scan anything you plop on the counter. Service with a smile. Like in the old days.

lja440 · ‎06-23-2022

Your packages are not sitting at the Post Office because all mail needs to be dispatched. Tuesday due to the holiday we were swamped and I didn't make it back for dispatch. It is picked up at my office at 5 I had to scramble and get it to the county's main office for their 6pm dispatch.

As to the random closing. USPS is EXTREMELY understaffed. We have 1 sub for our 7 routes (each one should have a sub) Our sub is also playing Postmaster in the morning opening the office and sorting mail to the routes as the Postmaster is dealing with a family emergency. We have one clerk where pre covid we had 3. We had our one city carrier go down with heat stroke last week and couldn't find anyone to finish the route and the Postmaster (before his fathers' stroke) had to close the office and carry the rest. The next day the carrier was back under light-duty and cased the route and everyone took a small part of his route leaving him in the AC to answer phones while the Postmaster did a couple hours of it and we did the rest. The girl that came to finish the week on his route commuted TWO hours but she was the only one available.

I am totally shocked that my vacation was approved 29th through the 4th. It will be my first vacation in 20 years if you don't count chaperoning the marching band trips and of course the 10 quarantine for covid last October. And I couldn't do it without 2 other carriers giving up their days off so Rachel can cover my route.

richard454 · ‎06-23-2022

I get the understaffed part- but other Federal government offices are not randomly closing. There needs to be a better system in place. I'm self employed- and quite often having to work when I am sick and there is no such thing as a "paid" vacation.

There is already a self serve Kiosk- why not have a self serve scanner? I mean mailing letters is not where the Post Office business is headed.

I dropped off the packages before lunchtime on Tuesday- looks to me that have been sitting for over a day?

pickermall · ‎06-23-2022

This sounds like a local post office issue... you should talk to your local post master or someone higher up the chain.

BUT the understaffing seems to be systemwide. The postmaster in my local office covers down routes while trying to take care of managing the post office. You are probably getting the brunt of employee frustration, which is unprofessional!

shipscript · ‎06-23-2022

I like the "self scanning" aspect. Retail and grocery stores now have self service checkout scanners. Why not USPS? It just needs to be incorporated into a one way drop box to avoid scams.

ShipScript has been an eBay Community volunteer since 2003, specializing in HTML, CSS, Scripts, Photos, Active Content, Technical Solutions, and online Seller Tools.

lja440 · ‎06-26-2022

@shipscript wrote:
I like the "self scanning" aspect. Retail and grocery stores now have self service checkout scanners. Why not USPS? It just needs to be incorporated into a one way drop box to avoid scams.

They probably will at some point but self-serve registers reduce staff and USPS has several unions to go through whereas retail and grocery stores just have the owners to go through. Even then those self-serve registers have one employee standing there making sure everything is scanned.

fab_finds4u · ‎06-26-2022

.

lja440 · ‎06-26-2022

We got an update ( well kinda)on our Post Office. The carrier with sunstroke may or may not be back. He has to go in for testing as he keeps going down in the heat he has passed out twice since getting the squad called on him. (scary as this carrier is 20 years younger than I am)

The new acting Postmaster that had the 2 hour commute lost his father who was a caregiver for another family member and has to go back to his carrier position in his local office.

They actually offered our sub the PMR (postmaster relief) position but that would suck for her. PMR's are salaried at 40 hours a week. BUT management if they can't find a replacement have to work the vacant route (which currently our city 2 routes carrier is out till he gets his health cleared), even if they have to close the office to do so. She currently is doing the job at her hourly rate and carrying a route and sometimes more per day, as with two people down her overtime is approved per the contract. The only benefit is she is guaranteed 40 hours to which in the past week she is over 70 hours, checking in the mail and Amazon to our office at 5am and finishing the paperwork after the 5pm outgoing dispatch 6 days a week.

Yesterday I gave up my one day of vacation (the 29th) as I wanted to mow and get a tune-up on my Jeep before we head to Chicago for vacation on the 30th. Instead, I am going to leave my Jeep at the shop before we leave and buzz a couple of paths around the yard if I can't get to it today. One of the benefits of living way out of town, no one complains if you don't mow. If this keeps up I'm considering goats.

a_c_green · ‎06-26-2022

@richard454 wrote:
There is already a self serve Kiosk- why not have a self serve scanner?

The current Self Serve Kiosk does indeed have a scanner for providing a provisional Acceptance scan on your package before you drop it in the chute. Your PO might have the older model, which did not. Hopefully they will be updating to the newer model soon.

It's called a "provisional" scan because the package isn't officially considered to be in the mailstream until it receives an in-network scan by the USPS, such as (ideally) via a hand scanner when the drop chute is emptied, or by an automated scanner somewhere further down the line. Nevertheless, eBay accepts the provisional scan as proof of mailing within your Handling time.

sprinkles91 · ‎06-26-2022

@lja440 wrote:
"if is keeps up I'm considering goats."

i will joke & tell you that my elderly mother replaced all of her children with goats. im not joking when i tell you shes a an esa petagree pigmy, her name is fiona, & she owns a bigger scarf collection than me. bounces around her home in a diaper, & is fed from a bottle. the others keep the grass down quite well in their pin! but we also, live waaay out in the middle of nowhere, where all of our neighbors have cattle & dont care. lol only thing my father complains about, is the feed bill! i enjoyed your statement, & i hope things get better for you sooner rather than later.🤗💖

oldwestgold · ‎06-26-2022

Sounds like you need to communicate with someone at that office and not here first. This may be a situation where a Postmaster or Manager is responsible for multiple offices so if it is a small office it may only have clerks and carriers and no Mgr or PM. Go up the food chain but follow the USPS procedures if you have an issue. START FIRST by going to USPS.COM and opening a ticket for that office. That creates a record of the problem and requires a PM or MGR to respond to the issue. PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE - follow the procedures as with any company, when you have a problem. Good luck!

yuzuha · ‎06-26-2022

@richard454 wrote:
There is already a self serve Kiosk- why not have a self serve scanner? I mean mailing letters is not where the Post Office business is headed.

Some post offices do have those. Mine does. It has two self serve kiosks and then a self serve scanner up at the counter where you can drop your packages.

yuzuha · ‎06-26-2022

@a_c_green wrote:
The current Self Serve Kiosk does indeed have a scanner for providing a provisional Acceptance scan on your package before you drop it in the chute. Your PO might have the older model, which did not. Hopefully they will be updating to the newer model soon.

Yep, this is how I get all my Acceptance scans. There's never a line for the kiosk, so I just walk up to it, scan them, and then drop them into the chute that goes into the back room. Saves me tons of time that way.