Postal Early Retirement Buyout Incentives Coming?

USPS shrinks workforce, changes pension

"...If the goal of 7,500 jobs is not reached through voluntary retirements, Donahoe might look at financial incentives for retirement. "We'll just have to work through it and see," he said. ..."    

This Article is From: www.federalnewsradio.com Read our latest posts! .

Follow the Early Out Conversation..

Make a click and jump over to the FederalSoup community and join in on the USPS Voluntary Early Retirement conversation. There is a lot of good information that might answer some of your questions or calm some of your fears on accepting the early out offer. Be careful to take what is said as fact unless it is backed up with a cited reference from a valid source. In other words, some of the participants may unknowingly pass on information that is not factual or gossip while others cite solid references to support their comments.    

This Article is From: Federal Soup

Read our latest posts!

.

VER Letter / Early Retirement Discussion Board

If you are one of the many people trying to get information on the upcoming Voluntary Early Retirement, the following source is a great place to stop by and get a feeling for what others are thinking and what is going on at different facilities across the country. Here is a snippet of one post. Click the link to read more.

"...I have no doubt that if I sign the dotted line and mail it in, I will be accepted. KCMO is doing a lot of abolishing of Tour 2 jobs, jobs around our area are being abolished and those employees excessed to our plant, also casuals are being fired left and right..."    
Please post to the link to let us know what is taking place in your area! Help keep others informed.

Source: community.federalsoup.com

Read our latest posts!

.

USPS Network Plan and the Impact on the Postal Employee

The following are excerpts from the June 2008 USPS Network Plan relative to employee impact. Again, these are only excerpts, you must read the plan in its entirety to fully understand the excerpts in their proper context. However, it is obvious that the USPS workforce is in for substantial changes:

"...By measuring local mail processing equipment performance against national
benchmarks, Machine Performance Scorecards give local managers a
convenient metric against which to analyze machine and operator performance..."

"...the Postal Service is evaluating the relocation of various mail
processing operations..."

"...assuming the removal of existing
equipment in Bulk Mail Centers, the availability of BMC floorspace for other
operations may affect surrounding Processing & Distribution Centers. If Flats
Sequencing Systems and bundle sortation equipment are deployed to BMCs, the
P&DCs will experience a reduction in flat and bundle processing..."

"...Should the implementation of the Network Plan
make it necessary to apply these processes, all Postal Service career employee
personnel actions will follow a general sequential escalation of impact and will
comply with applicable rules and regulations, including Veterans’ Preference
laws..."

"...d. Voluntary Early Retirement Provisions
Under these provisions, the Postal Service requests authority from the
Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to offer eligible impacted
employees opportunities to apply for voluntary early retirement. It is the
Postal Service’s policy to request such voluntary early retirement authority
from OPM even for impacted employees covered by collective bargaining
agreements that do not contain voluntary early retirement provisions..."

"...Qualified employees who are involuntarily separated due to organizational
changes, and who are not eligible to apply for discontinued service retirement or
optional retirement, receive severance pay..."

"...The Area Mail Processing consolidations and proposed Bulk Mail Center network
reconfiguration will involve numerous site-specific employee impact
determinations which cannot be quantified until the changes proposed for
particular facilities have been identified and thoroughly analyzed. The Postal
Service considers that, for purposes of its Network Plan, it has sufficient flexibility
with which to make the workforce changes that may be necessary. To the extent
that implementation of the plan requires the accomplishment of workforce
reductions more expeditiously than can be achieved through attrition..."

Source: The above information is taken from the USPS POSTAL ACCOUNTABILITY AND ENHANCEMENT ACT § 302 NETWORK PLAN, June 2008 as found in the public domain on the world wide web from the APWU union website. NOTE: We would like to thank President Burrus of the APWU for his continued informative articles in keeping us all informed of relative postal related issues. Keep up the good work Mr. Burrus. Your union members should be proud to to have elected such a dedicated President. Job well done!

Read our latest posts!

.

Does the USPS provide information on early retirement or do I have to get my information from the OPM site?

The USPS has a link for information about early retirement

"...Questions and Answers on Benefits, Pay and Leave Under Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (06/28/04)... Summary of Benefits and Leave Provisions Under Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (06/28/04) ..."    

Source: www.usps.com

.

Voluntary Early Retirement Authority

OPM Reduction in Force Portal

"...Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA) allows agencies that are undergoing substantial restructuring, reshaping, downsizing, transfer of function, or reorganization to temporarily lower the age and service requirements in order to increase the number of employees who are eligible for retirement. The authority encourages more voluntary separations and helps the agency complete the needed organizational change with minimal disruption to the work force. By offering these short term opportunities, an agency can make it possible for employees to receive an immediate annuity years before they would otherwise be eligible..."    

Tags: VERA, RIF, Early Retirement

Source: www.opm.gov

.