U.S. Postal Service is Running Out of Money - Maybe R.I.P. before July 2020.

Friday, April 3, 2020

As state governors began issuing "stay at home" orders to citizens, and closing "non-essential" businesses, the U.S. economic engine quickly slowed.

The U.S. Postal Service thrives on business-generated shipping and mailing, and to a lesser extent on consumer mailings.

The shut-down of state after state has sharply reduced both business and consumer use of the U.S. Postal service. As a result, it's estimated that the USPS may itself have to shut-down in a few months, unless the Federal Government bails them out.

Throughout the coronavirus pandemic, postal workers have been on the front lines, considered "essential workers" who must continue to do their jobs as usual while others stay home.

But some lawmakers are warning that without more support, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) could completely shut down in the next few months, threatening the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of Americans.

Last week, Representatives Carolyn B. Maloney, the chair of the Committee on Oversight and Reform, and Gerry Connolly, chair of the Subcommittee on Government Operations, said in a letter to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that the COVID-19 crisis is threatening the future of mail service in the U.S.

"The Postal Service is in need of urgent help as a direct result of the coronavirus crisis," they said. "Based on a number of briefings and warnings this week about a critical fall-off in mail across the country, it has become clear that the Postal Service will not survive the summer without immediate help from Congress and the White House.

Every community in America relies on the Postal Service to deliver vital goods and services, including life-saving medications."

More at: www.cbsnews.com...

If the United States Postal Service plans on shutting down, I hope they give enough notice to their regular business customers...particularly those that provide medications and important medical products. Those providers will need time to transfer their contracts to Federal Express, or United Parcel Service.

-CareWeMust

Surely it was in the new Bill that was just past. I mean 25 million for that building of the Arts. Maybe that was more important.
If they didn't include money for the Postal System, I've always said, don't trust the politician unless you are in their back pockets.

a reply to: carewemust

Plz not before they get me my Miqro vape! It's almost here....

USPS has been bleeding for yrs...after all it is a Gov agency.. a reply to: carewemust

Aren’t they getting anything from that $2 trillion stimulus?

And if not, why not? Seems like the post office shouldn’t even be able to go out of business.

a reply to: musicismagic
You can bet that the USPS will be included in Stimulus Bill #4.

originally posted by: ErEhWoN
a reply to: carewemust

Plz not before they get me my Miqro vape! It's almost here....

Unless it's being shipped by SNAIL mail, you'll get it before July.

originally posted by: Bigbrooklyn
USPS has been bleeding for yrs...after all it is a Gov agency.. a reply to: carewemust

It's now bleeding profusely. Employees got a lucrative new contract in 2018.

www.apwu.org...

Nothing is going to happen. USPS is mandated by the Federal Government. It will not shutdown. It could be the biggest waste of money of all time but it will not be shutting down.

Their problems have nothing to do with the virus either. They did not adapt to the internet and refuse to get rid of bulk mail. If they get rid of bulk mail they would stop bleeding. If they really want to win don't let UPS, Fedex or any mail shop build within a 10 mile radius of a post office. These companies and businesses are not doing any market research. All they do is build right next to a post office. Push them out and the USPS could easily be self sustainable.

originally posted by: Ohanka
Aren’t they getting anything from that $2 trillion stimulus?

And if not, why not? Seems like the post office shouldn’t even be able to go out of business.

Post office if required constitutionally. The problem is private businesses do it better and cheaper. Technology has made 1st class mail basically obsolete at this point. The bulk of mail delivery is actually junk mail.

a reply to: Stupidsecrets

I work for the USPS as a mail carrier.
If it wasn’t for “bulk” mail as you call it, I call it bullsh!t garbage, we might only deliver 100-200 1st class letters for an entire route which might consist of 400-500 houses or residential customers. With anywhere from 75 to 150 parcels as well.
Management, who rely on numbers and $ bonuses for large numbers of deliveries, would never allow that to happen.
Bullsh!t garbage makes up 85-90% of what we deliver.
I would love to see the bulk mail gone and shift to more of a parcel delivery model with mail a secondary priority.
The USPS is the last living dinosaur on earth, the system is completely broken and they will never change.
Nepotism, favoritism, the archaic seniority system are all problems along with many more problems, there is more problems than a math book.
And don’t even get me going on what’s going on there with this Covid-19 sh!t.
Yeah long story short.....they have been in trouble long before this virus.

a reply to: carewemust FACT: An enormous impact in the USPS is the law the GOP passed in the lame duck session of 2006. It requires the USPS to pre-fund their retirement plan, way beyond any requirement that any private retirement fund has had to make. 75 years!? They have a limited number of years to do this. The donations to this fund have been crippling.

OPINION: These funds are in excess and can be used to tide them over.
Personally I think they want to kill the USPS, and have us send Xmas cards by Fedex for $5, and raid the pension fund.

a reply to: Stupidsecrets
Isn't the US Post Office something like Amtrak in the eyes of the Federal Government? A public-private hybrid, that's too Important to the country to let fail?

originally posted by: TheBoomersRBusted
a reply to: carewemust FACT: An enormous impact in the USPS is the law the GOP passed in the lame duck session of 2006. It requires the USPS to pre-fund their retirement plan, way beyond any requirement that any private retirement fund has had to make. 75 years!? They have a limited number of years to do this. The donations to this fund have been crippling.

OPINION: These funds are in excess and can be used to tide them over.
Personally I think they want to kill the USPS, and have us send Xmas cards by Fedex for $5, and raid the pension fund.

They have been defaulting on those payments for some time now.

Sounds like a business opportunity... I could do it cheaper....

originally posted by: Edumakated

originally posted by: Ohanka
Aren’t they getting anything from that $2 trillion stimulus?

And if not, why not? Seems like the post office shouldn’t even be able to go out of business.

Post office if required constitutionally. The problem is private businesses do it better and cheaper. Technology has made 1st class mail basically obsolete at this point. The bulk of mail delivery is actually junk mail.

Is there another way to mail a real birthday card for only 60 cents?

a reply to: Stupidsecrets

Nothing is going to happen. USPS is mandated by the Federal Government. It will not shutdown.

Of course it won't shut down.

They will be the banks for the new gold/silver backed currency.

originally posted by: RazorV66

originally posted by: TheBoomersRBusted
a reply to: carewemust FACT: An enormous impact in the USPS is the law the GOP passed in the lame duck session of 2006. It requires the USPS to pre-fund their retirement plan, way beyond any requirement that any private retirement fund has had to make. 75 years!? They have a limited number of years to do this. The donations to this fund have been crippling.

OPINION: These funds are in excess and can be used to tide them over.
Personally I think they want to kill the USPS, and have us send Xmas cards by Fedex for $5, and raid the pension fund.

They have been defaulting on those payments for some time now.

Then how was this new and improved contract for USPS workers put in effect last month (March 2020)?

www.apwu.org...

a reply to: carewemust

Hopefully Amazon will buy them on the cheap, kick out the union, and the mail will be 10x faster at half the cost.

originally posted by: carewemust

originally posted by: RazorV66

originally posted by: TheBoomersRBusted
a reply to: carewemust FACT: An enormous impact in the USPS is the law the GOP passed in the lame duck session of 2006. It requires the USPS to pre-fund their retirement plan, way beyond any requirement that any private retirement fund has had to make. 75 years!? They have a limited number of years to do this. The donations to this fund have been crippling.

OPINION: These funds are in excess and can be used to tide them over.
Personally I think they want to kill the USPS, and have us send Xmas cards by Fedex for $5, and raid the pension fund.

They have been defaulting on those payments for some time now.

Then how was this new and improved contract for USPS workers put in effect last month (March 2020)?

www.apwu.org...

I don’t know, that’s not my union.
I belong to the NALC, which is the letter carriers union.
APWU is the union for clerks, maintenance etc......everyone except the letter carriers.