THE BULLETIN BOARD
February 2009
[February 6th]Lawmaker To Reintroduce FERS Sick Leave Bill
by Rebecca Neal, FederalTimes.com
Rep. Jim Moran, D-Va., is preparing to reintroduce a bill that would allow employees under the Federal Employees Retirement System to count unused sick leave as time toward their annuities. Moran spokesman Austin Durrer said the bill could be reintroduced as early as next week.
[February 6th]Labor-Friendly Congressman Selected as Chair of Oversight Committee
Rep. Stephen Lynch (D-Mass.) has been selected as chairman of the Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, Postal Service and District of Columbia, replacing Rep. Danny Davis (D-Ill.). Davis had to give up the chair when he was appointed to the Ways and Means Committee in December.
Lynch was president of the Iron Workers Union and worked as a labor and employment attorney before being elected to Congress. He is also a co-founder of the Congressional Labor and Working Families Caucus, which was formed to protect workers' rights.
[February 5th]Sen. Susan Collins: Abandoning six-day mail delivery is unacceptable
by Senator Susan Collins (R)Maine, excerpted from Fosters.com
The United States Postal Service (USPS) has traditionally prided itself on the fact that "neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night" can keep its carriers from the "swift completion of their appointed rounds." That is why I was astonished to hear that the USPS is considering reducing mail delivery from six days a week to just five.
The troubled economy has certainly also affected the U.S. Postal Service, which is expected to post billions of dollars in losses in this current fiscal year. Nevertheless, I am extremely disappointed that the Postmaster General would advocate the elimination of the requirement for six-day-a-week delivery as a potential solution to the postal service's budget woes. Such a reduction in service would hurt businesses and families that pay their bills, ship and receive goods, communicate with loved ones, and receive prescription drugs through the mail. And, I would argue, it would worsen the postal service's financial problems by driving away customers.
I believe that the proposed cuts in service would force many businesses, printers, newspaper publishers, and other customers with time-sensitive mail to look to other means, such as the Internet, for delivery options that would cause an even bigger drop in volume. Rather than helping it recover, I believe cutting services could ultimately trigger a death spiral for the U.S. Postal Service.
The USPS must be more proactive in addressing its long-term fiscal challenges, looking beyond short-term fixes, to address its budget shortfall. It must also provide more detailed financial information regarding the actions it plans to take to stabilize its budget. Eliminating six-day-a-week delivery should not be its first option but rather the last resort.
Read the entire article online at fosters.com
[February 5th]USPS Debuts New Service Standards Rating Process
WASHINGTON, D.C. — National on-time performance scores for the delivery of First-Class Mail reached 96 percent and 93 percent of customers gave the U.S. Postal Service highest satisfaction marks as the Postal Service debuted a new, national standards rating process.
For almost 20 years, the Postal Service has contracted with an outside entity to measure First-Class Mail service performance independently and objectively. USPS is the only shipping or mailing company that measures and reports its service and delivery standards.
The fiscal year first quarter, ending Dec. 31, marks the first time the Postal Service is piloting a new ratings system, a system that is tougher on the Postal Service, includes more than 850, three-digit ZIP Codes and, for the first time, includes delivery tests and standards for International mail and the classification of mail that large, commercial mailers routinely use.
The service standards were set in consultation with business and residential customers and the Postal Regulatory Commission, as required by the Postal Act of 2006. The results announced today acknowledge a more competitive business environment and increased customer demands. The results also reflect pressures from costs and the time needed to deliver to 1.2 million new addresses each year.
The first set of service standard scores measured during the pilot test period are:
* Customer Satisfaction is 93%
* Overnight delivery is 96%
* Two-day delivery service is 92%
* Three-day delivery service is 86%
* International (single piece) First Class Mail is 86%
[February 4th]UPS Picks Up DHL Business, Cuts 401(k) Match
excerpted from Courier-Journal.com, Louisville, KY
UPS gained significant new business at the end of last year from competitor DHL's announced withdrawal from the U.S. domestic shipping market, but that wasn't enough to offset a drop in package volume caused by the sagging economy.
To save money, the company said it is freezing management salaries and suspending its match for its employee 401(k) plans.
The steps to reduce expenses were apparently well-received on Wall Street, where UPS shares rallied 6 percent.
UPS said its October-December profit was $254 million, or 25 cents a share, compared to a loss of $2.6 billion, or $2.52 a share, for the same period a year earlier. The year-ago figures included a big charge related to a shift to a new pension plan for some employees.
Not counting one-time charges for both periods, UPS fell short of Wall Street expectations by earning 83 cents per share in the most recent quarter, down from $1.07 per share in the fourth quarter of 2007.
Despite the economy's tailspin, UPS moved about the same volume of packages during December's holiday season as it did the year before.
Rival FedEx and the U.S. Postal Service have been hit hard as well. Recently, the U.S. Postal Service suggested it may need to cut one day of service because of hard financial times.
Read the entire article online at courier-journal.com
[February 2nd]Congratulations to the Super Steelers, Pittsburgh Wins Sixth Super Bowl!
Our team represents so much that is the best of Pittsburgh, including its famous "blue collar work ethic."
The Super Bowl Parade for the Steelers is expected to be held either Tuesday or Wednesday, and details should be announced later today by the Mayor.
[February 1st]Postmaster General's Testimony Offers Little Insight
excerpted from Burrus Update #03-09
The long-awaited announcement about the Postal Service's plans regarding the dramatic decline in mail volume and revenue was presented on Jan. 28 to the Senate subcommittee with jurisdiction over postal affairs, when Postmaster General John E. Potter explained the crisis facing the USPS, and outlined management's proposed response.
As previously reported to the APWU membership, postal volume has dropped precipitously, and, unless Congress provides legislative relief and the economy recovers, the Postal Service will become unsustainable in the near future.
In testimony before the Federal Workforce, Postal Service and the District of Columbia Subcommittee, the PMG once again cited electronic communications as a central factor in the decline of mail volume — an excuse that has run its course: Postal officials should be prohibited from offering this lame explanation ever again.
Let the record show that mail volume has not declined primarily because of electronic communication. In the 235-year history of the Postal Service, the years with the highest volume were 2005, 2006, and 2007, with 2006 being the highest. Didn't the Internet and e-mail communication exist during those years? The facts indicate that they are not the principal causes of the steep decline of mail volume at this time.
The cause of the Postal Service's current crisis is simple: "It's the economy, stupid."
Continue reading President Burrus' entire article at www.apwu.org
[February 1st]Scholarship Available to PMAPWU Members
Vocational Scholarship
- Applicants must be a senior attending high school or other corresponding secondary school. Applicants must be a child or grandchild, including stepchild or legally adopted child of an active member, Retiree's Department member, or deceased member of the American Postal Workers Union.
- Type: Vocational Scholarship
- $1,000.00 for nine months each year, up to three consecutive years of school, with total not exceeding $3,000.00..
- Application is to be received no later than March 16, 2009.
- You can download an application at the APWU's scholarship information page.
The E.C. Hallbeck Memorial Scholarship
- Type: Academic Scholarship
- $1,000.00 for each of four consecutive years of college
- Applicants must be a senior attending high school or other corresponding secondary school. Applicants must be a child or grandchild, including stepchild or legally adopted child of an active member, Retiree's Department member, or deceased member of the American Postal Workers Union.
- Applications are to be received no later than March 15, 2007.
- You can download an application at the APWU's scholarship information page.
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