"...USPS rate increases were approved in November, but they don't take effect until January 27..."
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Postal news for those interested in the mailing industry, postal employees, stamp collecting, etc...
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"...USPS rate increases were approved in November, but they don't take effect until January 27..."
"...A postal worker was ejected from his truck during his route, Wednesday afternoon. According to police, 59-year-old..."
"...we were unable to reach any changes or new agreements with the Postal Service. The APWU and USPS are now at “impasse.” Next Steps Interest Arbitration will now be the next major step. Our future wages, benefits and working conditions will be determined by an outside arbitrator. During this period both sides can continue discussions and, if possible, reach new tentative agreements. The APWU National leadership is committed to the goal of reaching a voluntary agreement that addresses the Rank and File Bargaining Advisory Committee’s concerns and can be put before the membership for a ratification vote. The APWU will be fully prepared to present a solid case in interest arbitration to back up our demands and protect the many gains of the past..."
"...indicted the four Mobile workers on federal charges in November. Thirty-three-year-old Unterria J. Rogers, 26-year-old Devon Donald, 26-year-old Sade Martin and 25-year-old Shambria Hill were each indicted on charges including stealing mail ..."
"...the national union leadership will make an announcement on Friday December 21, 2018 ..."
"...Unfortunately, the Task Force also issued some very detrimental recommendations which, if implemented, would cut services to the American public, raise postal rates to major mailers, and reduce the wages, benefits and collective bargaining rights of all postal employees. The Task Force’s recommendations include..."
"...Treasury on Tuesday is expected to finally release a report ordered by Trump looking into U.S. Postal Service pricing..."
"...The security hole allowed anyone with an account to find the following account details of other users: email addresses, user IDs, phone numbers and more. The USPS says that it has no data that suggests that any customer records were accessed as a result of the flaw..."
"...Fox News reports that Robert Bailey, a retired postal worker, won with perseverance and the lucky combination of 8-12-13-19-27-4 on Oct. 27, The New York Times reported. On Wednesday, he collected his check at the Resort World Casino in Queens. He opted for the lump-sum payout of $125,396,690, after taxes..."
Did you realize as a postal worker you will pay more in retirement for your FEHB health insurance than you do now? As a postal worker, your unions have negotiated a lower cost for your share of the FEHB premium, but when you retire you pay what other federal employees do in retirement. Reg Jones over at FEDweek gives the best explanation I have found. He explains it in a very informative article entitled, 'Health Insurance in Retirement'.
"...'There was stuff falling everywhere, you could see the walls were caving in,' one employee said..."
"...The demand for centralized delivery as the only acceptable option came directly from the postal service, Sanderson said. “They’ve mailed us, emailed us and called us,” he said. “It wasn’t a friendly conversation by any means..."
"...One owner, Dr. James Frackelton (who would eventually become another member of the RIC), established his own post office there, under a little-known federal law that allows privately run posts where the government does not provide regular service. Frackelton's stamps are must-haves for collectors. The current owners are secret investors who bought the island for $4.6 million in 1998..."
"...Authorities have a person in custody in connection with the 12 packages containing suspected explosive devices sent to prominent Democrats and outspoken critics of President Trump this week, according to a law-enforcement official. The arrest was made in Miami, the official said..."
"...package found in the CNN mailroom appears to be a pipe bomb and police do not know yet if it is connected to the intercepted packages sent to Soros, Obama, or Clinton. A bomb squad was on the scene and the investigation is ongoing. Police Commissioner James O’Neill confirmed that the bomb squad removed the explosive device and that an envelope containing white powder was..."
"...The UPU treaty gives lower mailing rates to poorer countries, including China, which Trump and other critics say has let China flood the U.S. with dirt-cheap electronics and other goods, often sold online for rock-bottom prices with shipping included. About 60% of packages shipped into the U.S. come from China, the New York Times reports. That lets Chinese vendors unfairly compete with U.S. vendors..."
"...Postal Inspection Service is offering a $25,000 reward for information on the whereabouts of a pregnant mail carrier who has not been seen in two weeks. Kierra Coles, 26, was last seen Oct. 2 near her home on the south side of Chicago..."
"...The arrest came one day after Pentagon officials said two envelopes that tested positive for ricin were isolated at a Pentagon mail screening facility and sent to the FBI. The envelopes were addressed to Defense Secretary Jim Mattis and the chief of the Navy, Adm. John Richardson..."
"...at its root, the $15-an-hour minimum pay is an incentive for people to come work for Amazon -- rather than Walmart or Target -- as the retail industry gears up for the holiday shopping season amid historically low U.S. unemployment. Amazon plans to hire 100,000 temporary warehouse workers this year to help fulfill orders during the gift-giving crush, when it needs people most and when the job market offers many other opportunities..."
"...Two pieces of mail delivered to the Pentagon mail facility on Monday have initially tested positive for ricin, according to a US defense official..."
"...Wood fired a 12-gauge shotgun from near the roof of the Minneapolis Central Post Office across Hennepin Avenue and into the Federal Reserve Ban between 10 and 11:15 p.m. July 21, charges say..."
"...City mail carrier refused to be a victim Wednesday. While walking her route on Sept. 19 at 12:10 p.m. in the area of New and Rutgers avenues, a mail carrier was accosted by a woman who took from packages from her satchel and then walked away..."
"...CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. - Police continue to search for a stolen United States Postal Service master key and one of the three suspects still on the run. Officials say Clarksville Montgomery county residents are still at risk of becoming victims but police are hoping someone knows where 29-year-old Katlin Paterson is hiding..."
"...The U.S. Postal Service, with more than 100,000 former military men and women on the payroll, ranks among the nation's largest employers of veterans, along with Wal-Mart and the Department of Defense. Veterans and disabled veterans collectively make up over 24 percent of the USPS workforce..."
"...Trump had issued an executive order on the night of April 12, calling for an evaluation of the USPS’s finances, after some analysts, a former Postmaster General and some news-service reports said Trump’s claim that the USPS lost $1.50 on every package it delivered for Amazon was not accurate. The due date for the task force’s report was Aug. 10. The fact that Trump has stayed “uncharacteristically quiet” on the post office since that date “suggests the recommendations were unsatisfactory to the administration..."
"...Two Federal Reserve officers say they heard three loud blasts coming near the top of the Minneapolis Central Post Office parking ramp the night of July 21. Investigators later discovered Wood, who's an employee of the post office, had..."
"...HONOLULU (KHON2) - In anticipation of the impact of Hurricane Lane, the U.S. Postal Service announced the following adjustments to its operations for Thursday, Aug. 23..."
"...Millennials get a bad rap for destroying everything from homeownership rates to fabric softener sales, but there's one important traditional industry they're enthusiastic about: the U.S. Postal Service. According to CityLab, a new USPS report (PDF) finds that..."
"...closed until further notice pending “an assessment of possible health and safety issues with the building,” according to a news release from the USPS. Details about the issues were not specified..."
"...The executive order that created the task force, which Trump signed in April, gave the group four months to deliver its recommendations. That deadline was set for Aug. 10. The task force plans to deliver the report to the White House this week, a Treasury Department spokesperson told Government Executive, and will provide the president with a briefing next week when he is expected to return from New Jersey..."
"...How is the USPS doing here in Houston? So far, 2018's been a tricky year. Houston is the third-worst area in the country for package delivery..."
"...Amazon.com Inc (AMZN.O) and other retail and logistics companies said on Wednesday they had started a new group to lobby to keep the U.S. Postal Service’s (USPS) package delivery services 'reliable and affordable...presidential task force, McHugh said. With the task force’s Aug. 10 report deadline looming..."
"...Caulfield asked around and learned Gathman worked at the Elgin Post Office from 1940 to 1973. Caulfield and his wife then used Facebook to track down Gathman’s son, Bruce, who lives in South Carolina. Caulfield sent him the letter via priority mail..."
"...The investigation began when U.S. Postal inspectors and SBI agents began investigating mailings of dozens of packages from Phoenix, Arizona to the Birmingham area in December 2016, according to court documents. The investigation began after postal inspectors in Arizona contacted inspectors in Alabama about a package they had intercepted and found to contain more than three pounds of methamphetamine. The package was addressed to a Birmingham-area home...the person who mailed that package as Deron Lee Green, a former Alabama resident with family in Birmingham..."
"...A dedicated employee with 28 years of service, and close to retirement, Peggy Frank had just returned to work from medical leave...Tragedy struck Friday, her first day of work in months after suffering a broken ankle, according to family. The 63-year-old was found unresponsive in her mail delivery truck as temperatures topped more than 115 degrees"
"...Dimondstein discussed the union’s general goals for bargaining: fair compensation, safe workplaces free of harassment, job security and opportunity to enjoy secure and dignified retirements. “Our members want an end to the divisive unfair three-tier wage and benefit structure,” he said. “We want an end to the situation where new hires do not, or barely make, a living wage, and where full-time career work has been undermined..."
"...Amazon today announced a new program designed to encourage entrepreneurs to enter into an agreement with Amazon to open their own Amazon-backed delivery service. In exchange for a $10,000 investment, Amazon will provide up to 40 vans and allow drivers to wear Amazon-branded uniforms. Entrepreneurs can earn up to $300,000 annually according to Amazon..."
"...Amazon says it has to build out its own services simply to handle the surging number of online orders that UPS, FedEx and the U.S. Postal Service can’t. More than $4 of every $10 spent online in the U.S. is on Amazon.com, and the number of its deliveries topped more than a billion last year, according to analyst estimates..."
"...The Trump administration’s blueprint for reorganizing a host of federal agencies and programs, released Thursday, contains no specific projections on the impact of federal employees working in them, although if carried out the plans could result in the loss of many federal jobs and the relocation of others. The “Delivering Government Solutions in the 21st Century” document..."
"...the nation’s largest strike in decades. On Tuesday, the union announced members voted more than 90% in favor of going on strike...One proposal on the negotiating table is to create a two-tier wage system that would take part-time workers who earn $15 an hour and make them full-time at the same wage. Existing full-time drivers now earn an average of $36 an hour, or roughly $75,000 a year. The Teamsters are divided on this proposal, which makes it harder to reach a deal and avoid a strike..."
"...William Burrus served as elected National President of the American Postal Workers Union, AFL-CIO from 2001-2010. He was the first African-American to be elected president of any national union in direct balloting by the membership. Prior to his assuming the presidency, William Burrus served as APWU Executive Vice-President for 21 years, from 1980 to 2001, working alongside APWU President Moe Biller. As a top national APWU officer, Brother Burrus helped negotiate substantial gains for the members with improved wages, and benefits, rightfully earning his reputation as a skilled negotiator and powerful advocate for postal workers..."
"...front lobby and postal box area of the post office remain closed as agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (ATF) continue to..."
"...The Executive Order calls for a full report within 120 days to provide a “thorough evaluation of the operations and finance” of the USPS to include:
"...A retiree may have to pay another $1,600 or more per year in Medicare premiums, according to Thissen. “A Postal Service Medicare eligible annuitant subject to this section may not continue coverage under the Postal Service Health Benefits Program unless the Postal Service Medicare eligible annuitant enrolls in Medicare part A, Medicare part B and Medicare part D,” the bill said..."
"...The United States Postal Service (USPS) had filed a patent last September for a system with public and private keys and a “block chain [sic] component” for authenticating user information, according to a patent filing released yesterday, March 22, by the US Patent and Trademark Office. The patent, titled “Methods and Systems for a Digital Trust Architecture..."
"...A package bomb blew up at a FedEx Corp distribution center near San Antonio on Tuesday, officials said, and the FBI was investigating whether it was linked to a series of four homemade bombs that hit the Texas capital of Austin this month..."
"...Authorities say they've arrested the man who sent an envelope of white powder to the Manhattan apartment of Donald Trump Jr. and his wife Vanessa last month. Federal prosecutors in Boston said Thursday morning the 24-year-old man, Daniel Frisiello, mailed five envelopes filled with powder to..."
"...at least 11 people fell ill because of a letter containing suspicious material. Five people reportedly suffered nose bleeds and burning sensations said to have been caused by an unidentified substance..."
"...A U.S. Postal Service worker was found fatally shot inside a mail truck along a busy highway in Dallas on Monday, and investigators are treating the case as a homicide, according to police. Officers found the worker’s body inside the government..."
"...This COLA increase is based on the upward change in the relevant Consumer Price Index (CPI) following release of the January 2018 Index, and provides an annual increase of $520 for all Steps in..."
"...Vanessa Trump, daughter-in-law to US President Donald Trump called 911 on Monday morning (NZT Tuesday) after opening a letter addressed to her husband, at their midtown Manhattan apartment. Police say she said she was coughing and felt nauseous afterwards..."
"...Authorities say a man and a woman took a personal vehicle belonging to a mail carrier, who was delivering mail at the apartment complex at the time of the theft..."
"...AP reporters found multiple sellers willing to ship carfentanil – an opioid used as an elephant tranquilizer that is so potent it has been considered a chemical weapon. The sellers also offered advice on how to evade screening by U.S. authorities..."
"...Through wiretapping, DEA agents say they listened to calls and read texts between Garcia and Cruz where they arranged for deliveries. Cruz lives in Worcester, and neighbors say they are shocked to hear the quiet postal worker was involved in such an elaborate scheme. "I knew he was a postal worker..."
"...suspicion of trafficking methamphetamine on their mail routes. Lake County Sheriff Don Bell says 62-year-old..."
"...took mail from his rural postal route in Louisiana to his home in Pitkin, where from Dec. 1, 2016 to May 1, 2017, he burned at least 20 tubs of mail..."
"...According to charging documents filed with the Circuit Court in Riverton, the United States Customs and Border Protection (CBP) International Mail Facility at LAX Airport in Los Angeles, California intercepted a mail parcel declared as “beauty products” on December 23, 2017. A “more intrusive examination” was then performed and resulted in the discovery of bottles marked as Proviron, Dianabol, and 16 vials marked as Tren-Mix 200. All items are known to be Anabolic Steroids..."
The Postal Service is making a Voluntary Retirement Offer to eligible mail handler and clerk employees. However, much to the chagrin of workers, there are no incentives to entice employees to make a move in that direction. This has left employees questioning the move as they see their federal employee brothers and sisters last year being approved by congress for a pilot program that increased Voluntary Separation Incentive Pay (VSIP) for DoD civilian workers to $40,000 for one year. The typical VSIP is maxed out at $25,000. However the Postal Service has consistently offered much less in their last three offers and now an offer of no incentive.
The current USPS offer begins Jan. 8. There will be three (3) effective dates in which eligible employees may choose in the Vonluntary Early Retirement offer. Those dates are: Jan. 31, Feb. 28 and March 31. Eligible employees should receive letters making the offer soon. To read more on the offer go to the following URL: https://link.usps.com/2018/01/04/voluntary-early-retirements/
The Voluntary Early Retirement offer with no incentive leaves one to question the intent of an offer that will most likely only derive a very small number of takers. Some may question whether this is simply an offer that is made to satisfy union obligations to reduce numbers with the least disruption to employees in the event of more consolidations/closures should something like that take place in the future. However, it is highly unlikely a no-incentivized offer would satisfy any union requirements with an offer that would seem unrealistic in generating much movement out the door. If you would like to follow the conversation or join the conversation, Federal Soup offers a great forum for doing so at: https://forum.federalsoup.com/default.aspx?g=posts&t=79888
"...At the time, pay raises for postal workers were almost unheard of: After 21 years on the job, noted The New York Times, a letter carrier would only earn $2,266 more than their starting salary. Though unionized, postal workers were forbidden from negotiating for pay raises due to cost of living. There was no chance to earn overtime, and many workers had to find a second job to make ends meet..."