Obama Proposes 2-Year Pay Freeze For All Civilian Federal Employees

The White House has issued the following “Fact Sheet: Cutting the Deficit by Freezing Federal Employee Pay” Because of the irresponsibility of the past decade, the President inherited a $1.3 trillion projected deficit upon taking office and an economic crisis that threatened to put the nation into a second Great Depression. He moved quickly to […]

Editorial: The real facts and figures behind the Postal Service

Editorial in Federal Times by Mark Strong, President, National League of Postmasters Myths about the U.S. Postal Service fly fast and far these days. For instance, you have may have heard that there are 36,000 post offices in the U.S., which is more retail outlets than Wal-Mart, Starbucks and McDonald’s combined. In addition, many of […]

Post Office Cuts Cause Economic, Emotional Blow

Faced with an $8.5 billion loss, the U.S. Postal Service has been cutting back: slashing hours, combining routes and closing offices. In East Cleveland, Ohio, the city’s only post office has been downsized from nearly 100 employees to just one. The cutback is deeply troubling for the hard-pressed urban community and came as a punch […]

NAPS Members Unhappy With USPS Reduction Of Management Positions During Holiday Season

From the National Association of Postal Supervisors  letter To Deputy Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe: We continue to receive negative feedback from the field concerning the continuation of reductions to the number of EAS field positions during the heart of the 2010 Holiday Season. While we are cognizant of the current financial and structural challenges facing […]

USPS Starts Fiscal Year 2011 With $283 Million Net Profit

The US Postal Service yesterday filed its first month of the 2011 fiscal year (unaudited) preliminary financial report with the Postal Regulatory Commission. USPS reported a net profit of $283 million. This same period last year saw a $221 million net loss. Total Mail Services Volume was up 5.0%, revenue down 1.7% Total Shipping Services […]

PMG Potter Honored With Lifetime Membership In Mailers Group

Postmaster General Jack Potter is an official lifetime member of the Mailers’ Technical Advisory Committee (MTAC). The group — which includes representatives of more than 100 commercial mailers and mailing associations — extended that honor to Potter at its quarterly meeting this week, as members recognized the PMG for his career-long support and dedication to […]

USPS Entry Exams Now Online

NO PENCILS NEEDED Paper-and-pencil selection tests for entry-level jobs, Maintenance, and new supervisors are a thing of the past. These tests now are taken online, initiated when applicants apply for jobs at eCareer. To date, job applicants have completed more than 100,000 assessments online. Performance tests that cannot be computerized — including the initial road […]

USPS To Begin Bargaining With Postmasters After Settlement With APWU

Postal Headquarters Announces Expiration of EAS Pay Package (2007-2010). Attached is a copy of a letter from the USPS Vice President of Labor Relations concerning the expiration of the EAS Pay Package (FY-2007-2010). The FY-2010 NPA/PFP payout will be awarded as scheduled in January, 2011. Certain leave provisions for Bereavement, Bone marrow, Stem Cells and […]

After Losing Billions, Retiring With Incentives, Potter Tells Other Execs Bonuses To Be Tied To USPS Finances

Outgoing U.S. Postmaster John E. “Jack” Potter, who earned nearly a quarter million dollars in incentive pay in 2010 on top of a $273,000 salary, is telling fellow Postal Service executives that from now on bonuses and salary increases will be tied to the agency’s financial condition.Mr. Potter said in a memo obtained by The […]