Another government failure: "U.S. Postal Service losing $25 million a day".

USPS losing $25 million daily with ‘broken business model’.

The U.S. Postal Service could become “a significant burden to the taxpayer” if it does not get needed flexibility to change its business operations, Postmaster General Patrick R. Donahoe told Congress Wednesday.

“We are losing $25 million dollars every day and we are on an unsustainable path,” he added.

Well, here is yet another service or program which has been ruined, bankrupted or destroyed by the federal government.

Lets compare this to the private sector.

FedEx made $1.4 billion in profit.

UPS, $3.8 billion.

Now, there are some obvious differences.

The USPS serves every home but regardless, how many examples do we need?

Now for the rant:

Every program from social security to student loans to the housing bubble, government destroys everything it touches.

They cant even get the fugging mail right!

When will people stop advocating that we give these incompetent buffoons (at best) or evil maniacs (at worst) more of our money and power?

They are failures!!!

They start out at like $18.00 an hour. They top out at like $25 or $30 an hour.


There is no way in hell that a business can stay in business paying 30 people $18 to $30 an hour to deliver a. 48 cents piece of mail.

The mailman drives frigging Corvette for crying out loud.

I mean the mailman alone has to deliver to 60 or 70 houses an hour just to pay his wage, not to mention the ten other sorters at the post office. Then you have the desk clerks.

There is like two or three supervisors on duty at our post office.

It is destined for failure. There is no hope for the mail. But I vet they get gazillions of dollars to "fix" the problem.

The only problem is that it will not fix it.

So what is your point? We know the Post Office is losing money because it has fund all of its future pensions right now. We also know the Post Office is not paid for with taxes. We also know the Post Office is public service like the Police, Fire Department the people who build highways. How much profit are the last 3 making? No company is going to take over the duties of the Post Office without cutting off service to every small town in America and maybe even the medium size ones. That is why it is a public service, we have just been lucky enough taxes have never had to support it.

A solution would be that EVERYONE use email for everything (sending letters and bills) and phone/internet payment methods. It would save us $25 million per day.

But, then there's massive job loss in the process!

I know that I use the post office to send mail only about 4 times per year! I use UPS because it's cheaper than the post office. I make phone/internet payments because it saves me money.

I know someone who works for the post office. He is VERY worried about the future of it all.

Before we blame the postal service for the problems that it is having there are a few things that should be noted.

The first is that of all of the things that make money in this country, the only one that has a pension that is fully funded, and it is done in a way where it is ahead of the curve is the US Postal Service. It prefunds all of its pension obligations several years before such is due.

But there is one reason why it is in trouble, and that lies in the US Congress. It can not change to cut costs without actually getting permission from congress to make those cuts. And every time they try to make changes it is a fight and half on those who see those cuts as necessary to remain solvent, and those who do not believe that such is required. Ultimately if the USPS is losing money, it has to go to Congress to actually get a bit of common sense and do what the experts are saying to make it solvent again.

What MsSpad says is true however, if we increased the price up to $2 a small letter how long would it take for the National Association of letter carriers, AFL-CIO to finagle a contract that would put them right back into a money losing situation?

I am all for anyone making as much as they can and I too have belonged to a Union "ALPA" which has also put airlines out of business with their demands...Unions do good but there is also allot of feather bedding and pushing until they put a company (or service in this case) out of business. Everyone using email when they can and only Documents and junk mail being sent has killed their chance of being profitable with their current pricing and labor obligations.

reply to post by tinker9917


You go ahead and do "on-line" everything. I'll stick with my snail mail.

And don't worry about all those agencies that are building massive data centers. It couldn't possibly be for all the electronic goodies they harvest from everyone too cheap to buy a stamp.

reply to post by gladtobehere


Are you sure the USPS isn't going obsolete due to email and businesses using printable downloads instead of snail mail?

If people are looking for ways to firm up the USPS, I have to ask, are we really supposed to? The post office is being hit by progress. There used to be little print shops, but home printers took them out and the world didn't fall apart. Maybe it's time to let this old dog die.

reply to post by sdcigarpig


Thank you for your post. I just learned about that a few years ago and was shocked.

Here is an informative link directly from the USPS:
about.usps.com...

This is mostly Congress' fault. Not to mention the post office has already suggested the smart business decision of stopping Saturday delivery--it's Congress that has held up that money-saving move!

reply to post by Lukku


I've never understood why the USPS was singled out for the stuff with the pensions. Mind you, I think all Government entities should do that, but it doesn't seem fair to do that just to the Post office. Anyone have the reason for this.

FedEx and other private companies get to cherry pick the services they offer - so they only offer those they make can money on - and they chop and change those services as required to keep making profit, dropping some, picking up others. They have no requirement to provide the same service from one day to the next if they don't want to.

As a "public good" a postal service doesn't get to do that.

reply to post by sdcigarpig



Hello sdcigarpig, I was reading your reply and I agree with you.

I have to say that as my post above states I believe that postal employees are overpaid for the services they render. I do not blame the persons, or employees. I have a few friends that work for the post office. One is my mail carrier. Known him for years. It is the way the system is setup.

With that being said, I am a union sheet metal worker. I am employed with a mechanical contractor. Some might say that I am overpaid.

Does the Afl-cio(I think..LOL) make postal employees attend school? I am just curious because our union requires us to take courses at a college(taught at the hall) and maintain a GPA of 80%.

I feel that if your job requires someone to know trig and have advanced classes to do your job then I believe someone should get paid for it, whoever it should be. I am not in any way saying I am better than everybody because I am not. You should have seen me trying to cut ductwork liner to fit some of these fittings, LOL.

I feel that it isn't that difficult to walk around and put an envelope in a metal box.

Anyways I am rambling again. I just wanted to reply about the union thing.

We were supposed to become a paperless society years ago. We should make that a true reality. Certainly, I feel horrible about job loses if we ever shut down the USPS. But do we really need them?

Let the other non government services provide and let the majority of us rely on email. Jobs can be absorbed from USPS to the other carriers and create more jobs in I.T. to create secure e-mail for all mail.

reply to post by Lukku


Nice of you! I'm "not too cheap to buy a stamp". Its called trying to feed my kids, have enough gas to get to work till payday, keep the electricity on etc.
I cut back on EVERYTHING I can, just to make it to payday.

Nice, man.

reply to post by tinker9917


I should have quoted you:
"A solution would be that EVERYONE use email for everything (sending letters and bills) and phone/internet payment methods."

I wasn't being mean. Simply offering you the opportunity for YOU to do what YOU want and I'LL do what *I* want.

I don't think that FREE email and bill-pay today will be that way in the future. When they offer cheap, free and convenient, surely you realize you are giving up some privacy? When the time is right, expect an email fee!

reply to post by Aloysius the Gaul


The Postal Service also is required to deliver in places UPS and FedEx do not because there is no profit in delivering there. And while it might be a nice idea to just make mail electronic delivery only, it is impractical. Just what happens the next time an entire coast loses power? It may not seem so vital now to figure out how to keep it running, but it is better than ending up in a situation where we need it and don't have it.

You really can't get rid of the USPS unless you're also willing to have a public email address (that is so that anyone can send you electronic documents) as well as take and make all payments via bank transfers, wire, ACH etc.

On top of that, there are certified receipts so that would also have to be built into your new public email. And since everything is electronic that would require an internet connection as well.

USPS is one of the few things the government did right (except when they lose your mail). Trying to replace them would be a huge and costly undertaking.

Originally posted by jiggerj
reply to post by gladtobehere

 

Are you sure the USPS isn't going obsolete due to email and businesses using printable downloads instead of snail mail?

If people are looking for ways to firm up the USPS, I have to ask, are we really supposed to? The post office is being hit by progress. There used to be little print shops, but home printers took them out and the world didn't fall apart. Maybe it's time to let this old dog die.

Well said. Steps could certainly be taken to make their operation much more money efficient, including better customer service. Considering how much they get paid, they should be the nicest service personnel you run into.

.... that's besides the point. Really the core of their decline IMO is because we have better options for the transfer of goods and information. The USPS is really kind of a dinosaur whose only specialties seem to be delivering junk mail and bills.

Originally posted by Lukku
reply to post by tinker9917

 

I should have quoted you:
"A solution would be that EVERYONE use email for everything (sending letters and bills) and phone/internet payment methods."

I wasn't being mean. Simply offering you the opportunity for YOU to do what YOU want and I'LL do what *I* want.

I don't think that FREE email and bill-pay today will be that way in the future. When they offer cheap, free and convenient, surely you realize you are giving up some privacy? When the time is right, expect an email fee!

Sorry, I was a bit grumpy wasn't I?

You are right though. If the US mail is no longer, an email fee and an online payment fee could be charged.