POSTAL NEWS FROM PEN
June 2010
June 30, 2010
PRC: USPS
Overcharged by $50 Billion Plus for CSRS
Benefits -
Helping
out a Postal employee in a time of need
Federal News Radio -
Double
shooting kills U.S. Postal Service district
manager for Alabama - Also
see
1 dead in
domestic dispute -
Taking
“Stock” of Bernstock
Big Fat Marketing Blog -
USPS
launches online change of address campaign
-
U.S.
Postal Service Named Most Trusted Government
Agency - Also see
U.S.
Postal Service Tops Ponemon Institute List of
Most Trusted Federal Agencies -
Bernstock
update: Postal sole-source contracting rules
tightened - Federal Times
Blog - Also see
Ex-Postal
Service official violated policies
- Federal Eye -
Judge
Stops Cigarette Mail Ban
Federal District Judge Richard Arcara
temporarily ordered a new law that disallows
cigarettes to be shipped via the mail to be
placed on hold, the Associated Press reports. -
Former
Letter Carrier Charged with Theft
-
Ex-postal
worker pleads to fraud -
April Post
Office 'robbery' didn't happen
-
June 29, 2010
OIG:
Former postal marketing exec, R. Bernstock,
misused staff, contractors
- Federal Times
The U.S. Postal Service's former top marketing
executive repeatedly used government staff --
and at least two business associates he hired
with sole-source contracts -- to manage his
personal finances and outside business
interests, according to a new report.
Read
report on Bernstock -
OSHA Fines USPS for Safety
Violations at Eagan, MN P&DC - Total 2010 OSHA fines
now exceed $2.6 million. -
Postal workers busted for buying and
selling drugs -
Richmond
USPS Workers Forced To Transfer Or Quit
"We're very different than other businesses. We
don't fire people," said USPS spokesperson
Augustine Ruiz. "We don't lay people off. What
we do is move them where there is work available
and find a position for them." -
Year
later, postal workers are still using
Porta-Johns
The toilets work properly except when it rains,
said Carl Walton, spokesman for the Greensboro
district of the U.S. Postal Service. -
Union:
Postal facility could lose 55 jobs
-
Working
For USPS May Be Dangerous To Your Health
-
OSHA
proposes $430,000 in fines against US Postal
Service for electrical hazards at Scarborough,
Maine, mail processing facility
-
OSHA proposes $77,500 in fines
against US Postal Service for electrical hazards at Portland, Ore., mail
processing facility -
Funding retiree healthcare in the
Private Sector
Courier, Express, and Postal Observer -
ABM Position on USPS' Elimination of
Saturday Delivery
American Business Media's final position on the elimination of Saturday
delivery, in answer, expresses concern that the proposal could be the
first of several such service reductions, if sweeping changes to the
Postal Service’s basic operations are not made. -
OIG Blog: Stamp Vending Machines
-
Nation’s Oldest Postal Employee
Retires June 30
95 year–old mail handler has not missed a day of work in 37 years -
New Postal Service boss for D.C.
region named
Timothy C. Haney, former manager of a U.S. Postal Service facility in the
District where two workers died during the 2001 anthrax attacks, will
become head of mail operations for the national capital region. -
WBEN asks its readers "Should The
Post Office Stamp Out Saturday Delivery?"
Article provides two audio interviews. -
June 28, 2010
Postal
Service finds $75 B dollar overpayment
Michael Thompson, Director of Capital
Investments for the Postal Service Office of
Inspector General, joins Federal Drive with
details about how that money adds up, and the
impact it will have on their bottom line. -
Local NALC
Officers Investigated For Possible Embezzlement
-
Post
office protesters hit the street
The battle to save the Bloomfield Hills post
office branch spilled onto the street Thursday
afternoon. Postal employees carried signs
protesting the closing as passing cars on Long
Lake Road honked their horns in support. -
OSHA fines
USPS nearly $800,000 for exposing workers to
electrical hazards at three facilities
-
Outgoing
postal sorting ships to Memphis this week
-
Buffalo:
Saturday mail delivery topic of public hearing
today
- Also see -
Save our
Postal Service! -- Southern Oregon 5-Day, No Way
Picket July 1st -
June 27, 2010
Postal
employee is 1 of 40 charged during major drug
sweep -
Postal
theft just might prove profitable
-
SEC halts
alleged $34M Ponzi scheme targeting federal
employees -
June 26, 2010
Former
Marysville, CA Postal Supervisor Pleads Guilty
To Thefts -
SEN.
THOMAS R. CARPER AND REP. STEPHEN F. LYNCH HOLD
A JOINT HEARING ON THE FUTURE OF THE U.S. POSTAL
SERVICE - Part 4 -
Postmasters Call For Pension and Health Care
Funding Accuracy - NAPUS
Newsletter -
Former
Dallas Mail Handler Sentenced to 5 Years In
Prison -
Should we
be self sustaining?
Your Postal Blog -
USPS
Preliminary Financial Information - May 2010
PRC: Net Loss $642 Million -
GAO
Report: Mail Processing Network Initiatives
Progressing, and Guidance for Consolidating Area
Mail Processing Operations Being Followed
-
Rep
Michael Honda Calls for More Asian
American-Themed Stamps -
June 25, 2010
USPS
shouldn't be forced to pre-fund retiree benefits
Letter to the Editor of the Washington Post by
Tom Kiley: senior adviser at the Economic Policy
Institute. -
Mailers
plan coalition to fight postal rate increase
DM News -
Local APWU
Officers Investigated by DOL for Possible
Embezzlement
-
NALC:
Cutting Saturdays would be a 'blunder'
-
US Postal
Service or US Postal Business?
Guy Nohrenberg -
Post
Offices Deliver Internet in Remote Areas
-
June 24, 2010
Postal
unions offer alternative to five-day schedule
Federal News Radio -
APWU: Sen.
Coburn Tries to Pull a Fast One
-
OSHA
proposes $77,500 in fines against US Postal
Service for electrical hazards at Portland, OR
-
TX Postal
Worker Stole 150 Credit Cards From Mail
-
A chance
for Congress to acknowledge its role in postal
crisis - Washington Post -
...as Congress looks for ways to pull the USPS
from its financial sinkhole, lawmakers also
should look in the mirror. Programs approved by
this august body have helped push the Postal
Service to the brink of financial disaster. -
Carper
recommends "major changes" for Postal Service
-
Man who
oversaw postal plant where 2 workers died of
anthrax may run D.C. region
and
Potential
new Postal Service boss tied to anthrax scare
worries workers -
Washington Post -
85 SF
Employees Forced to Choose Between Relocation
and Losing Their Jobs (video)
-
NYC Postal
Workers Rally to Keep Saturday Mail Service
-
Rural mail
customers decry potential loss of Saturday mail
delivery -
Amazon
opposes plan to end Saturday U.S. mail delivery
-
Burrus: USPS Can and Must Expand the
Services It Offers -
Burrus Capital Hill Comments (PDF)
-
Rolando Capital Hill Comments (PDF)
-
$14 MILLION IN POSTAGE REVENUE LOSS
TO U.S. POSTAL SERVICE - Postage Meter Fraud -
June 23, 2010
USPS will
see pushback from industry, unions on delivery
day reduction - GovExec.com -
Having
Their Say: Customer and Employee Views on the
Future of the U.S. Postal Service
Read testimony from Senator Thomas R. Carper and
two panels consisting of 14 panelist...including
APWU and NALC Presidents. -
Postcom
has posted a summary of the
comments made. -
Major
online retailers split on plan to cut Saturday
mail
Washington Post -
Netflix
Backs U.S. Postal Service Saturday Delivery Cut
-
Postal
service five-day mail plan: “Recipe for business
failure” -
Nat. Newspaper Assoc. - Also see
SD
residents testify against cutting Saturday mail
and
PCMA:
Disrupting Mail Delivery Schedule Could
Negatively Impact Consumers Relying on Home
Delivery of Prescription Drugs -
Rural
carriers gain automated bidding
-
Postal
Service Employee Abuse Spur Call for Citizen
Action Group -
Six
accused of stealing $18.6 million from postal
service -
Postal
Service desperate for good ideas to end run of
bad news -
June 22, 2010
Funeral
for carrier killed by lightning begins with long
line of mail trucks - Also
see
Postal
workers say goodbye to mail carrier killed by
lightning strike -
OIG:
Management Advisory Report – Civil Service
Retirement System Overpayment by the Postal
Service (PDF) -
House and
Senate Joint Hearing to Discuss USPS Future
Financial Viability -
PRC Job
Open - Salary $95,000 - $140,000
-
Click-N-Ship Labels: Is USPS alienating
customers, just to keep delivery scores up?
-
Chrysler
lobbied members of Congress on a measure that
would REQUIRE the US Postal Service to buy
electric vehicles -
Neighbor
shoots police officer’s dog after it attacks
Jacksonville, FL mailman -
Springfield postal worker arrested for stealing
money from greeting cards -
More To
Paper Mail Than Discount Promotion
-
Businesses
plead for Saturday mail service
-
Over 2,800
mailmen bitten by dogs in US
-
June 21, 2010
APWU:
Burrus to Testify On Future of Postal Service
-
JOSIER F.
JEUNES v. JOHN E. POTTER
Court says Jeunes use of profanity is a
violation of the USPS zero tolerance policy. -
Why the
First Mile Matters
Courier, Express, and Postal Observer -
OIG blog:
Give Customers What They Really Want
-
Postal
“Storm” Ahead For Catalogers?
-
Nominees
for Top 5 Worst Government Services
PEN Ed: I just happened across this article and
thought I would share it with you. The author
seems to know absolutely nothing about what the
postal service does or how it operates. -
CVS, Medco
Oppose Postal Cuts, Citing Drug Delays, Higher
Costs -
Bernstock
Gone But Not, Um, Quite Gone
Dead Tree Edition -
More than two weeks after Robert F. Bernstock
left the U.S. Postal Service under a cloud of
scandal, a USPS Web site still lists him as a
key executive. - Update:
That Was
Quick! -
June 20, 2010
D.C.
postal exec, Susan Plonkey, shares sales
strategies -
Senators
ask for field hearings in Hawaii and Alaska on
proposal to reduce mail delivery to five days a
week -
June 19, 2010
Postal
Worker Planned Attack Against Supervisor: Cops
NBC - New York - Also see
NY Daily
News - Discussions -
Congress
needs to let the Postal Service reduce its costs
Washington Post -
Today on
Blog Talk Radio: USA Postal workers are getting
sick. Why ? The Health risk of the job...
LET'S TALK RADIO - SATURDAY, June 19, 2010, 8:30
AM: Clifton Bradley, Underground Railroad TV and
Sandra Sutton talk about the health risk and
working at the United States Post Office - An
in-depth interview dealing with the cause and
effect of workplace safety. Come and join us on
Let's Talk Radio !!! (347) 215 8679. Call in and
voice your opinion !!! 6/19/2010 - 8:30 AM -
Postmaster
Relief and Rural Carrier Associate Positions
Available in Green Bay, WI -
Mail
carrier's family wants answers in fatal dog
attack -
Postal
union leader questions ‘company’ motive for
consolidation -
June 18, 2010
Smartest
Postal TSP Investors Are Letter Carriers
-
Mail
handler stabs boss with scissors at Kennedy
Airport
An enraged postal worker snapped and stabbed his
boss with a pair of scissors at Kennedy Airport
on Thursday, sources said. Also see:
Mail
Sorter Charged With Stabbing Supervisor At JFK
Mail Facility (photo) -
JFK Postal
Worker Plays Into Stereotypes -
Cost-effectiveness an issue for Postal Service
vehicle repairs -
Full
Service IMb and Piece Tracking-False Claims and
Confusion - Postal Affairs
Blog
New
Orleans Carrier Honored -
Having
Their Say: Customer and Employee Views on the
Future of the U.S. Postal Service
"This Week
In Postal" - New Podcast
June 17, 2010
Seven
Louisiana Postal Workers Charged With Mail
Crimes -
Ex-postmaster pleads not guilty to stealing
-
How Smart
Post Makes FedEx More Profitable
Courier, Express, and Postal Observer -
Two postal
employees found dead of gunshot wounds in Port
Charlotte home -
Judge sets
bail for letter carrier accused of fatally
shooting wife -
USPS To
Give Publishers a Break on Ride-Alongs
Dead Tree Edition -
Broken
mail trucks cost the Postal Service millions
The wheels are literally falling off at the
Postal Service and it's getting more expensive
to fix them, according to a new report by the
agency's auditors. - See OIG Audit
Delivery
Vehicle Replacement Strategy -
Missing
Mail Adds Up to Big Problems for Dozens of
People -
APWU:
Preparation for Contract Negotiations - Rank &
File Bargaining Panel Meets -
June 16, 2010
GAO: Mail
Processing Network Initiatives Progressing, and
Guidance for Consolidating Area Mail Processing
Operations Being Followed -
Read
Full Report (PDF) -
Read
Highlights Page
(PDF) -
Maryland
Postmaster targeted by complaints
-
Keep the
promise of six-day mail delivery
By: Stephanie Herseth Sandlin, U.S. House of
Representatives -
Duluth
postal station worker pleads guilty
-
Former
Forksville, PA postmaster pleads guilty to
stealing money -
Letter
carrier killed by lightning in Ferguson
- Also see
Only other
mail carrier to be struck by lightning talks to
News Channel 5
-
2 Alabama
postal workers get probation for stealing mail,
3rd pleads guilty to taking cash
-
Postal
carrier in Fruitport Township discovers homemade
bottle bomb in mailbox -
June 15, 2010
USPS COO
Pat Donahoe Says Employees Should Focus On
Reducing Workhours - PEN
Editor: I believe he is incorrect -
USPS
employee charged with delay of newspapers by a
postal employee -
Postal
worker admits stealing money, lying about
robbery -
Mail-Stealing Mail Worker Sent to Jail
-
Postal
supervisor falsified Time and Attendance (TACs)
Records
A review of time records led OIG to further
investigate three CFS unit supervisors,
including Jerry White, who had received an
inordinate amount of overtime compensation due
to TACS entries in excess of their daily
authorized eight-hour schedule. -
OSHA cites
another postal facility - this time Baton Rouge,
LA -
Update:
Body found at trash center identified as that of
female clerk -
Body Of
Hayward Postal Worker Found In Trash
- Also see video
Missing
Postal Worker's Body Found At Dump
-
Postal
Employee Death Ruled Homicide
-
OIG: Audit
Project: Early Distribution of Employee
Paychecks -
Federal
government to phase out paper checks by 2013
-
Time is
Running Out for FEHBP Dependents
-
APWU:
Members Participate in National AFL-CIO Young
Workers Summit -
OIG Blog:
Reducing the Number of Prices
-
June 14, 2010
Witness
List Scheduled to Testify at the Chicago Field
Hearing on Five Day Delivery
-
Postal
Service needs makeover, not to be shunted aside
as obsolete -
USPS Board
of Governors Chairman Stresses Need for
Flexibility and Speed -
June 13, 2010
Mail it
in, post office tells 9 - Labor dispute allowed
employees to get paid for doing nothing
A group of Postal Service employees in Columbus
spent five days in late May and early June being
paid to do no work. A supervisor told them to
stay in an area of the processing and
distribution center near Port Columbus. The nine
men played cards and took naps. One of them
brought in coloring books, and they had a
contest to see who could make the prettiest
picture. -
With days,
jobs are numbered: Rural carriers say they
depend on Saturday mail -
June 12, 2010
Mail
Carrier Dies After Dog Attack
- Also see
Oceanside
Mail Carrier Killed In Possible Dog Attack
-
USPS’s
Susan Plonkey on Fixing the Postal Service
-
Whitehouse
Withdraws Nomination of Paul S. Miller to USPS
Board of Governors -
June 11, 2010
PostCom
states:
H. Res.
173, a resolution that expresses
"the sense of the House of Representatives that
the United States Postal Service should take all
appropriate measures to ensure the continuation
of its 6-day mail delivery service" now has 209
co-sponsors. This is a clear sign that the
Postal Service will not win congressional
approval for reducing the number of days of mail
service from six to five. [And that's the name
of that tune.] -
Dangerous
Territory
Postal Affairs Blog -
USPS Board
of Governors To Hold Closed Meeting
-
Capital
area chief Lane leaves Postal Service after
assault allegation
The top U.S. Postal Service official for the
Washington region is out of a job after an
incident last week in Sterling involving a
postal worker. - Also see
Washington
region Postal Service boss out of a job after
incident in Sterling -
Former
Postal Employee Pleads Guilty to Theft - Must
Pay $134,416.27 In Restitution
-
Postman,
Convicted Child Molester Resigns
-
Former
Maine Mailman Gets Probation In Mail Thefts
-
June 10, 2010
Comments
To PRC Favors 5 Day or LESS Delivery
Rick Owens - PEN -
Mr.
President: How About a Little of that Change We
Can Believe in? - Eric L.
Wattree -
OSHA fines
US Postal Service nearly $300,000
-
Comments
to PRC Favor 5-Day Delivery
Dead Tree Edition -
June 09, 2010
OSHA fines
US Postal Service nearly $500,000
-
Minneapolis Post Office Workers Want AEDs
-
Postal
worker shot; suspect dead after chase
A postal worker was chased and shot in the
downtown area of Monroe, LA near Miro and South
Grand Street Tuesday afternoon reportedly by a
suspect who caused a wreck, fired at police and
later died in a ditch off U.S. 165 North. -
APWU: OIG Says Workshare Audit Will
Include Union’s Views -
OSHA cites
2 Philadelphia Postal Service sites
-
Philadelphia man arrested for Limerick Post
Office and two Turkey Hill robberies
-
June 08, 2010
Dallas
Field Hearing Transcript
(PDF) -
CATO Still
Believes Your Pay Is Too High and That USPS
Should Be Privatized -
OIG Audit:
Audit Report – Facilities Optimization: Controls
Over the Selling of Assets
(PDF) -
June 07, 2010
OIG Blog:
Scaling Back Hours, Not Post Offices
-
Arbitrator
Jacobs: Carrier Supervisor and USPS Violate
Joint Statement on Violence - Supervisor Handed
Strict Limitations (PDF) -
NALC: Stop
USPS from Making Big Mistake
-
Memphis
Congressman Says He Will Fight To Save 6 Day
Delivery -
Also see:
Memphian
hopes to deliver message to U.S. Postal Service
-
Postal
Service newcomers feel pain of racial slurs in
Iowa -
June 06, 2010
Postal
Service Chooses "Un-Intelligent" Mail
Dead Tree Edition -
FORMER
POSTAL EMPLOYEE PLEADS GUILTY TO MAIL THEFT
-
Tina
Hollins, a postal worker in the Chicago area,
pleads guilty to being a courier for drug dealer
-
Postal
Employee Wrongfully Convicted Gets Record Payout
From City -
Laid Off
Postal Employee Arrested After 5-Mile Shooting
Spree - Also see
Going
postal -- the violence continues -
June 05, 2010
Postmasters Call Upon Congress to Pass Postal
Retirement Accuracy Bill -
NAPUS -
The
Tea-Bagging Cracker at the Post Office
-
June 04, 2010
USPS Cited
for Fourth Set of Safety Violations
Fines Now Exceed One Million Dollars -
The Postal
Limbo Rock
Rag Content - "Jack be nimble, Jack be quick,
Jack go under limbo stick" - Jack, as in Jack
Potter -
Case
against ex-mailman from Weymouth is continued
-
PRC:
SEMIANNUAL REPORT TO CONGRESS FROM THE INSPECTOR
GENERAL -
FMLA:
Incomplete Certification is not a "Negative
Certification" -
Jury
awards letter carrier $224,000 in slip and fall
accident -
Direct
mail volume up 16% in Q1 as insurance leads
comeback -
June 03, 2010
Fight to
Save Saturday Service Approaches Important
Milestone -
Worker
Arrested in Robbery of Northeast Houston Post
Office -
Also see
Letter carrier accused
of stealing $15,000 -
Ex-mail
carrier gets probation for embezzlement
"You served this country with four years in the
military," Judge Blackburn said. "It's your
'get-out-of-jail-free' card — you only get to
play it once." -
PMR pleads
guilty to cashing more than $41,000 worth of
money orders -
2010
Census: Will the Post Office Deliver?
-
Houston
mailman faces prison for stealing hundreds of
Netflix movies -
USPS,
postal workers, happy medication and absolute
craziness – its a wonder that anyone actually
receives their mail! - Report
Your Complaint -
THROUGH A
GLASS DARKLY
by postal commentator Gene Del Polito -
June 02, 2010
OIG: Audit
Project Pages? - You CANNOT Be Serious!
-
Physical
Mail Still Preferred by Many
-
No adverse
action in postal worker’s case
-
Congress
members protest mail facility closure
-
Postal
Service charges are absolute disgrace
The public has grown accustomed to charges of
unethical business practices against Wall
Street, but not the U.S. Postal Service. -
Same-sex
partners of federal workers (including postal
employees) can start applying for benefits next
month -
June 01, 2010
The
People, the Scam, and the Mainstream Media
Beneath The Spin - Eric L. Wattree
First, let's dispose of the myth. The postal
service isn't failing due to competition; the
postal service has competition due to its
managerial failures. FedEx and UPS owe their
very existence to post office incompetence. -
APWU:
Decision of Federal District Court on AMS Work
Click here
for a copy of the decision -
Advent of
the iPad: Apple will take a bite out of direct
mail volumes -
OIG Blog:
Looking at the Bigger Picture
-
Pay Freeze
as Union Recruiting Tool
Federal News Radio -
Sick leave
is a job benefit not a privilege
-
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