U.S. Postal Service debuts Civil War stamps in Galena – April 17

special pictorial postmark

From the article: "...Attention Civil War buffs! The Galena Post Office will be dedicating the new Civil War 1865 Forever Stamps at the Galena & U.S. Grant Museum. In addition, officials also plan to dedicate a special pictorial postmark designed by the museum...."

Article Reference: kwqc.com
Stamp Collecting, Stamps, Civil War Stamps, Collectible Stamps,

Postal People

15 Minutes with Paul Stineman

From the article: "... Then the post office job opened up and I applied and I got that and I was there 24 years. ... When I went in there was approximately 250 people in town and when I left there was over 600. So we'd seen good growth in those 20-some years. ..."

Article Reference: muscatinejournal.com

Is the Postal Service Shortchanging Priority Mail Shippers?

Is USPS Shortchanging Priority Mail Shippers?

From the article: "... A website called Save the Post Office posted an article yesterday about the USPS, how it treats workers, and its deals with Amazon.com. And it raises an interesting issue about whether the Postal Service is giving priority to Amazon packages over its own Priority Mail customers. ..."

Article Reference: www.ecommercebytes.com
Priority Mail, Universal Service, destruction of the postal service,

Postal Service change leads to delays in Fayetteville area Netflix service

Postal Service change leads to delays in video disc mailings

From the article: "... "First and foremost," she said in an email, "the Fayetteville Processing and Distribution Center has not closed, so I regret the customer was given incorrect information. I will, however, say that the employee who told him that was likely referring to the change in Service Standard that was first announced in 2012, at the same time as the announcement of the decision to consolidate Fayetteville." ..."

Article Reference: www.fayobserver.com
Fayetteville Processing and Distribution Center, Netflix, Service Standard Change (First Class Mail),

Postal Service is doing great! Posted a $1.325 billion profit in Controllable Operating Income

Things are looking up: The Postal Service's financial report for January 2015

From the article: "...the Postal Service posted a $1.325 billion profit in Controllable Operating Income. That’s compared to a $912 million profit for the same period last year (SPYL). ..."

Article Reference: www.savethepostoffice.com
Controllable Operating Income

Congress can keep Postal Service more than a name (Commentary)

From the article: "...USPS service standard changes due to its “Network Rationalization Plan” have been in effect since phase 1 started on July 1st 2012, now phase 2 has started on Jan. 5th of this year. These changes are a result of the previous postmaster general’s efforts to close mail processing centers, reduce hours at post offices, eliminate a day of mail delivery, and take away door-to-door delivery. The idea is that reducing services will help USPS’s financial problems, when instead this will more likely drive people away from using first class mail. ..."

Article Reference: journaltimes.com

Two postal workers robbed at a United States Postal Service Mail Processing Facility in Boca Raton

Two postal workers robbed in Boca Raton

From the article: "...Two postal workers say they were robbed early Wednesday morning at a United States Postal Service processing center at 2800 N. Military Trail....."

Article Reference: www.wptv.com

First-Class Mail Standards Slowed By USPS, Just Wait Until 82 More Processing Plants Close

House Dem seeks to save overnight delivery

From the article: "...given that the USPS is in the process of shuttering 82 mail processing centers. The Postal Service lowered delivery standards for letters and first-class mail earlier this year ..."

Article Reference: thehill.com
First-Class Mail Standard, Mail Processing Plant Closures 2015,

Mail delays detrimental, Tucson business leaders say

From the article: "...Tucson business leaders said they are experiencing significant delays in mail delivery since the U.S. Postal Service changed its service standards Jan. 5. ..."

Article Reference: tucson.com

Statement by Mark Dimondstein President, American Postal Workers Union, on New Postmaster General Megan Brennan

From the article: "...Sadly, the previous Postmaster General chose a path of that undermined the USPS – closing post offices, slashing hours of operations, virtually eliminating overnight delivery of first-class mail, and outsourcing key functions to unqualified private companies...."

Article Reference: www.apwu.org

More complaints about Postal Service: misplaced packages, poorly serviced routes and late deliveries

Nyack residents say post office has been mailing it in

From the article: "...chronicle dozens of complaints over misplaced packages, poorly serviced routes and late deliveries. A few residents claim to be so fed up they drive to the post office in West Nyack or at the Palisades Center mall. "There are many issues," Carlin said. ..."

Article Reference: www.lohud.com

UPS Puts Customer Service Over Profits

Seasonal Expenses Dent UPS Results

From the article: "...United Parcel Service Inc. said higher-than-expected seasonal expenses dragged down its earnings in the fourth quarter as the shipping giant took steps to avoid a repeat of the holiday shipping snafus that plagued its network in 2013. ..."

Article Reference: www.wsj.com

'We’re becoming slaves' Postal workers speak out against plant closures and speed-up

From the article: "...reporters spoke to postal workers at a post office in Davis, California. “We’re becoming slaves,” said Sharon, a letter carrier. “This used to be a good job, but they’re trying to claw us back to working at the minimum wage, while taking away our already meager pensions and benefits. With these most recent cutbacks that are supposed to start within days, they’re barely telling us anything. Everyone is interested and wants to know more, but they’ve barely said anything about it.”..."

Article Reference: www.wsws.org

Letter Carrier Delivers on the River (with video)

Mail by Boat: Calif. Carrier Delivers on the River

From the article: "...Rick Stelzriede, 61, of Tracy is the only postal carrier with a river route in California, according to the U.S. Postal Service. Still, he downplays his unusual role...."

Article Reference: www.nbcsandiego.com

‘Substantial Amount’ Of Mail Damaged In USPS Truck Fire While En Route From San Francisco To Los Angeles

From the article: "...mail was damaged during a vehicle fire involving a United States Postal Service tractor-trailer Sunday morning, according to a USPS spokesman...."

Article Reference: http://sanfrancisco.cbslocal.com/2014/12/07/substantial-amount-of-mail-damaged-in-usps-truck-fire-while-en-route-from-san-francisco-to-los-angeles/
Fire

Postal worker unions helping Walmart employees fight for better pay

Coming to a Walmart Near You: The Fight for Better Pay

From the article: "...APWU has vowed to join Black Friday protests at Walmart stores around the country if the company refuses to give their workers full-time jobs with decent wages. “We’re urging union members to join in,” said APWU President Mark Dimondstein. The Walton family, which owns Wal-Mart, controls a fortune equal to the wealth of the bottom 42 percent of Americans combined, but they are notorious for paying their employees low wages. Walmart workers are fighting for $15 per hour pay and the right to form a union...."

Article Reference: www.apwu.org
Walmart, Wal-Mart, WMT Stock,

Megan J. Brennan appointed as next Postmaster General

Postal Service Board of Governors Selects Megan Brennan as 74th Postmaster General and CEO of the United States Postal Service

From the article: "...U.S. Postal Service Board of Governors today announced the appointment of Megan J. Brennan, the current chief operating officer of the Postal Service, as the 74th Postmaster General and CEO...."

Article Reference: globenewswire.com

Harvard University President Drew Gilpin Faust is Not Supporting America's Working Class

Postal Workers Take on Harvard President

From the article: "...The American Postal Workers Union is calling for President Drew Gilpin Faust to resign her seat on office supply store Staples’ board of directors if she won’t criticize the company...."

Article Reference: www.insidehighered.com

‘Walking Dead’ Actress Shannon Richardson Sentenced to 18 Years in Prison for Mailing Ricin Letters

From the article: "...Richardson reportedly mailed the letters and then went to police to claim that her estranged husband, Nathan Richardson, was responsible for mailing them. Read More: Actress Sentenced to 18 Years in Prison for Ricin Letters | http://popcrush.com/shannon-richardson-walking-dead-actress-prison-ricin-letters/?trackback=tsmclip..."

Article Reference: popcrush.com

Mail Processing Facility Closures and the Destruction of the Postal Service Network, is Congress Going to Let This Happen?

Consolidation Battle Takes Shape

From the article: "...Despite management’s false claims, the consolidations will end overnight delivery of single-piece first-class mail – even mail sent from one address to another within the same city or town, and even in areas where plants are not being closed or consolidated. “We must make sure the American people understand this fact, and we must mobilize them to work with us,” said Executive Vice President Debby Szeredy. “The USPS is relying on obsolete studies to justify the consolidations and refusing to hold new public meetings to solicit input from residents and businesses,” she said. “We must demand that management conducts new studies and holds new public meetings. If they refuse, locals should organize meetings themselves,” Szeredy said. “There is no distinction between ‘gaining facilities’ and ‘losing facilities’ in this fight,” said President Mark Dimondstein. “If overnight delivery is eliminated, America loses. Customers will leave the Postal Service in droves and the downward spiral of the USPS will continue. We will all feel the effect. - See more at: http://www.apwu.org/news/news-bulletin/consolidation-battle-takes-shape#sthash.Cfa63Lv4.dpuf..."

Article Reference: www.apwu.org

The mission of the Postal Service is set by legislation

Legislative oversight

From the article: "...The mission of the Postal Service is set by legislation. Our broad framework, or business model, is established by the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970 and the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006...."

Article Reference: USPS @ http://about.usps.com/publications/annual-report-comprehensive-statement-2011/html/ar2011_comp_002.htm

Female postal carrier paves way

From the article: "... Sharon Monahan, 18 years old and not sure what she wanted to do with her life, figured delivering the mail for awhile might not be too bad. Thirty-five years later, Monahan..."

Article Reference: standardspeaker.com

APWU COLA Increase of 33 Cents Per Hour Effective September 6, 2014

From the article: "...In July 2014, the Consumer Price Index (CPI-W) fell slightly to 698.580. The sixth COLA adjustment under the 2010 National Agreement is: Per Annum: $686.00; Per Pay Period: $26.40; Cents Per Hour: 33¢...effective September 6, 2014, (pay period 20-2014, pay date September 26, 2014)."

Article Reference: www.apwu.org

'Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe has lied repeatedly', says patron

Privatization delivers poor services for many, enriches a few

From the article: "...Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe has lied repeatedly, not only to the media and postal employees but under oath to Congress. He has claimed he is only trying to make the Postal Service financially healthy and does not believe in privatization—is against it, in fact. While stating these things, he attempted to outsource to the private sector every postal trucking job in the state of California. My union had to go to federal court to force the issue into binding arbitration as our contract requires, and we have stopped it for now...."

Article Reference: www.rbj.net