USPS -- Plummeting Volume and Revenue?

[moribundman]

If that's true, then why do I wait now on average 30 minutes in line at my local post office? I see more customers with more mail now than I have until recently. A few months ago the average wait was about 5 minutes. The same number of droids still services the customers still at a slug's speed.

As for mail delivery, today the USPS delivered the mail twice to me within one hour. Something is seriously wrong with that outfit.

Looking forward to getting junk mail only 5 times per week!

 

[ZZman]

Yeah...No great loss if they deliver only 5 days a week.

Just means I get my bills a little later.

 

[The Critic]

Originally Posted By: moribundman
Something is seriously wrong with that outfit

That's old news. Where have you been?

 

[Mr Nice]

They should go to 4 days per week and lay off some of the lazy bums (postal empoyess) that just show up for a check and do very little work.

 

[The Critic]

Originally Posted By: LT4 Vette
They should go to 4 days per week and lay off some of the lazy bums (postal employees) that just show up for a check and do very little work.

I'm sure this would benefit nearly all government. Except, that means you'd have to fire 95% of the employees.

 

[Pablo]

Just when I find an outfit that does us good, mori goes and shuts them down.

Shoot.

 

[GROUCHO MARX]

Load up on 'forever' stamps.

 

[hr1940]

I sent my 98 year old mother-in-law a package and the post office attempted to deliver it once. She lives in a town of 600 people and she has lived in the same house since the 30's. She had to walk down a very steep hill to get to the post office. When I called them they gave a lame excuse and said someone had tried once. I mail everything UPS or DHL and they get it there 2 days earlier and make sure she has the package in her hands. I have no use for the post office and their lack of compassion for the elderly. If it was a big town I could understand.

 

[aaxb970]

USPS and Canada Post are prob the same! Slow and lazy! Eventually they will be nearly gone everyting will be electronic and junk mail will be their only work. I know a guy who works at Canada Post he tell me how stress full it can be during the busy Christmas rush! I can just imagine

 

[Steve S]

They may need a taxpayer bailout.

 

[peterdaniel]

HA! My father mailed a "priority mail" package to me from Los Angeles to San Jose.

It took them 10 days to get it here.

Direct from the post master generals mouth and I quote " priority mail is a gimmick. It does not guarantee anything nor does it try. It does NOT go any faster or better or anything different than first class mail. It simply looks good when you are trying to impress someone with how you are mailing something. It gives a false sense of security as well since it is handled in the same batch as regular first class mail. My advice? Stick to regular first class mail and if its books or anything literature in nature, send it parcel post.. its one of the last loop holes in the post office pricing structure."

 

[AcuraTech]

I hate the blatant inefficiency of governmental agencies that deal directly with the public. Standing in line at the post office will test anybody's patience. The DMV is the same. Watching the milquetoast slugs move at a snails pace really trips my trigger.

But man, if you can get a job there in a higher up position, like a supervisor or postmaster, you're all set.

My grandma lived in a small town of about 300 people that only had PO boxes, no home delivery. Basically all that the antique sitting behind the desk did, other than take 20 minutes a day to put the mail in the boxes, was chain smoke and listen to the radio. Maybe 3 people a day would wander in to buy stamps. Now THAT would be a job to have.

 

[moribundman]

Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: moribundman
Something is seriously wrong with that outfit

That's old news. Where have you been?


Until I fired the butler he went to the post office for me.

 

[Gary Allan]

Hmm..I just want to remind people of just what coined the term "going postal". Those supervisors were (and are, AFAIK) brutal. No one is going to get rich as a postal employee.

They have their issues, I'm sure.

I also agree that I find it hard to believe that there's been any reduction in volume of mail. If anything, it's increased every year in our alleged paperless society. I've used the post office more than I ever have in the past decade (as in going there in person). Ebay ..Blackstone ...holiday stuff .. Never did that before ..and there were tons of people right along with me.

 

[Pablo]

Originally Posted By: peterdaniel
HA! My father mailed a "priority mail" package to me from Los Angeles to San Jose.

It took them 10 days to get it here.

Direct from the post master generals mouth and I quote " priority mail is a gimmick. It does not guarantee anything nor does it try. It does NOT go any faster or better or anything different than first class mail. It simply looks good when you are trying to impress someone with how you are mailing something. It gives a false sense of security as well since it is handled in the same batch as regular first class mail. My advice? Stick to regular first class mail and if its books or anything literature in nature, send it parcel post.. its one of the last loop holes in the post office pricing structure."


Actually he doesn't know exactly what he is talking about. Imagine that from a postal "worker".

I won't defend the USPS too deeply, but Priority Mail is not such a bad deal. For $9.85 (just went up from $9.70), I get a free Priority Mail flat rate box, I can send it all states, also PR, any weight. My boxes weigh around 15#'s. Some go up toward 20#'s. Please price that out with UPS/Fled-Ex (Fed-Up). They can't touch it. I use the Priority Mail flat rate mailers as well. Sweet deal. As far as time: Not sure how, but they are faster than Parcel Post, and about the same as First Class. From WA to FL in 4 days. Customers love it.

So Priority Mail is one of the good things they have going. Since it actually works, we can bank on them killing it!

 

[GROUCHO MARX]

Pablo is right about priority mail. It's one thing the USPS does right.

Going 'postal' is a direct result of the promotion/management path the USPS uses. It's difficult to assign management status based on testing outcomes. Management/leadership is still a skill which is crafted over a period of time. In some USPS corners, a military management style is assumed. This will not work with postal workers. They're unionized!

Postal work is boring and redundant. I can imagine it is one of the least satisfying careers one may pursue.

 

[eljefino]

We had an awesome mailman when I was young. He had a brilliant mind, very philosophical, that he turned off when he delivered mail. Real brain to talk to. I am sure they were allowed breaks during their eight hour day... but my Dad was PO'd to see him napping in his jeep parked somewhere.

Now my mail is delivered by a rural contractor who skips my dead-end street if he has too much mail... if Monday's a holiday, Tuesday he's overloaded... go Sat-Wed w/o mail.

As a nonprofit, USPS is hobbled by the leftovers that would lose Fedex and UPS money. Ordered some lead wheel weights off ebay, they came in a flat rate box.

Media Mail is a great example too, I sold books on half.com when it was getting popular and they became very suspicious of this increase in volume... had a "subject to inspection" stamp, and a scowl to go with.

 

[brianl703]

Originally Posted By: peterdaniel
Stick to regular first class mail and if its books or anything literature in nature, send it parcel post.. its one of the last loop holes in the post office pricing structure."


Media mail, not parcel post.

Priority mail is generally faster than UPS, in my experience.

 

[XS650]

Originally Posted By: brianl703
Originally Posted By: peterdaniel
Stick to regular first class mail and if its books or anything literature in nature, send it parcel post.. its one of the last loop holes in the post office pricing structure."


Media mail, not parcel post.

Priority mail is generally faster than UPS, in my experience.


That's my experience with priority mail too.

Media mail, OTOH can be really slow. I normally send books parcel post unless I really don't care when they get there.

 

[Drew99GT]

Originally Posted By: GROUCHO MARX
In some USPS corners, a military management style is assumed. This will not work with postal workers. They're unionized!


UPS workers are unionized and managed the same. How come they don't go "parcel"?