Word Nerd Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Our small town already has no service on Saturday, and limited hours during the rest of the week. They also have a limited delivery area - we are 10 mins from town and we do not receive home delivery. If the PO makes drastic cutbacks I doubt that we would notice anything different. Other even smaller surrounding towns are on the "potential shutdown" list and those residents would have to drive about 25 miles to the nearest PO. Our small town doesn't have home delivery; we have to rent a PO box. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathleen in VA Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Mail delivery on Saturday seems so strange to me… it's the weekend! You get flyers (delivered by the newspaper boy/girl) on Saturdays, not mail. :tongue_smilie: Not sure what you mean by getting flyers delivered by a newspaper boy/girl. It's against the law for anyone other than a letter carrier to place anything in your mailbox - it's a federal offense. If your newspaper carrier or Tupperware lady or homeowner's association puts anything in your mailbox they could get arrested. The same mail that comes during the week comes on Saturday. They don't withhold 1st class or priority mail just because it's the weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 I guess I'm not worthy of an answer. It's always nice to start a Sunday with a popular girl smackdown. ??? I realize I'm not Kathleen, but I did explain? Maybe she thought if you wanted a different answer that you would clarify what you didn't understand? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ColoNative Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 I think there may be waste in the postal system - most agencies (govt. or not) have waste and have never really "had" to work within a budget. For example, it is a complete waste of time to pay someone to open media mail just to make sure it complies. If they are concerned about it, either do away with media mail and come up with some kind of parcel post that is not so expensive or just live with the fact that some people "cheat". I don't have statistics, so I don't know how many people do this, but I do think it's an utter waste of time for them to be opening media mail and then sometimes taping it back - or sometimes not. It's almost as if they want people to not use media mail. Don't play games with the mail....just get rid of it as an option if it is such a bother.....it's just bad business! And not all post offices are the same. Our mail service stinks. We don't get our mail half the time, but we sure get a lot of our neighbors mail. Netflix DVDS have been broken in 1/2 more then a few times. So, we choose to get our mail elsewhere. It's just not worth the risk. Melody Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathleen in VA Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 I guess I'm not worthy of an answer. It's always nice to start a Sunday with a popular girl smackdown. I noticed Mrs. Mungo already answered your question so figured you were ok. No smackdown intended. Are you still unsure about what I meant? I don't know what else to say except what Mrs. Mungo already said. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathleen in VA Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 I think there may be waste in the postal system - most agencies (govt. or not) have waste and have never really "had" to work within a budget. For example, it is a complete waste of time to pay someone to open media mail just to make sure it complies. If they are concerned about it, either do away with media mail and come up with some kind of parcel post that is not so expensive or just live with the fact that some people "cheat". I don't have statistics, so I don't know how many people do this, but I do think it's an utter waste of time for them to be opening media mail and then sometimes taping it back - or sometimes not. It's almost as if they want people to not use media mail. Don't play games with the mail....just get rid of it as an option if it is such a bother.....it's just bad business! And not all post offices are the same. Our mail service stinks. We don't get our mail half the time, but we sure get a lot of our neighbors mail. Netflix DVDS have been broken in 1/2 more then a few times. So, we choose to get our mail elsewhere. It's just not worth the risk. Melody The USPS is not a federal agency - it receives no funds from the US govt. Please go back and read my other posts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 I now always choose UPS or FedEx, when available, even if it means paying more for shipping. :iagree: Plus, the UPS employees are so much nicer and seem to care about the customer. And the USPS vehicle has knocked down my mailbox 3 times. :001_huh: I told DH that if it happens again, we are building a big stone mailbox. I figure I get what I pay for so I do my best to use UPS whenever possible because I have never had a problem with packages arriving in less than perfect condition. And then there's the thrill of seeing the UPS truck come down my driveway! It's one of the reasons I maintain an Amazon Prime account. I can order a $5.00 book and have it at my house in 2 business days. Woo! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Going to five days a week would not hurt the bottom line. The problem is that most people think (people in charge) that skipping Saturday delivery is the answer since many businesses are not open on Sat. Most letter carriers know that's insane. Although there is no delivery on Sundays, the mail still moves through the system. Monday mail is usually very high volume compared to other days because of that. If there is a Monday holiday, that transfers to even more mail on Tuesday. That means that if the mail was not delivered on Sat. there would be an even bigger pile of mail waiting at the po for the carriers to deliver on Mon or Tue. They have to sort all that before they take it on the street. It's a nutsy idea. We have only had M-F delivery in Canada. They still go in and sort on Saturdays but no delivery on the weekends, the exception is over christmas you can still get parcels delivered on Saturday. Where i live now there is no door to door delivery, we all have PO boxes. But even when I lived in the big city the PO workers never seemed to have difficulty with large bundles to deliver on Mondays, or on Tuesdays following a holiday Monday. Those working in Sorting work more days than the carriers but only delivering 5 days a week does not create a hardship for them as far as amount to deliver the next day. It would save some $$ not paying X number of employees nationwide for that 6th day, but from the sounds of it the biggest savings/profit would come fromnot prepaying those pensions and increasing postage. I know you guys have a lot lower rates than we do. If congress has to make those changes how does that happen? Is there a way for the general public to get the ball rolling? Can the Postal services itself request such changes to happen? I don't know enough about the system there to know how things work. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
celticmom Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Everyone I know, myself included, has chosen to save money by using the internet, whether by sending emails, paying bills online, browsing online catalogs, etc. It doesn't surprise me that they are hurting :/ :iagree:But I suspect everyone fled to the Internet and other carriers more quickly than they would have if the post office performed exceptionally well and provided excellent customer service. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Not sure what you mean by getting flyers delivered by a newspaper boy/girl. It's against the law for anyone other than a letter carrier to place anything in your mailbox - it's a federal offense. If your newspaper carrier or Tupperware lady or homeowner's association puts anything in your mailbox they could get arrested. The same mail that comes during the week comes on Saturday. They don't withhold 1st class or priority mail just because it's the weekend. That seems so strange to me. Flyers here are delivered in the newspaper or as a separate delivery. I have made extra money by being the one to deliver the flyers. It is contracted work just like newspaper delivery. In my tiny town the flyers go into our PO boxes but that is because no one has a mailbox. But the next town over I have delivered the communtity paper and flyers, in the big city I lived in I had 5 routes per week just delivering flyers door to door. It would seem to bizarre to have the PO carrier deliver them. No wonder their bundles there would be so big. That is a lot of bulk our postal carriers do not ever need to carry. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Night Elf Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Not sure what you mean by getting flyers delivered by a newspaper boy/girl. It's against the law for anyone other than a letter carrier to place anything in your mailbox - it's a federal offense. If your newspaper carrier or Tupperware lady or homeowner's association puts anything in your mailbox they could get arrested. Yeah, I either get flyers taped to the side of my mailbox or stuffed in a ziploc baggie with some rocks in it so they can throw it out the window, have it land in the driveway and not blow away with the wind. I hate having to stop my car to get that stuff out of my driveway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathleen in VA Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 We have only had M-F delivery in Canada. They still go in and sort on Saturdays but no delivery on the weekends, the exception is over christmas you can still get parcels delivered on Saturday. Where i live now there is no door to door delivery, we all have PO boxes. But even when I lived in the big city the PO workers never seemed to have difficulty with large bundles to deliver on Mondays, or on Tuesdays following a holiday Monday. Those working in Sorting work more days than the carriers but only delivering 5 days a week does not create a hardship for them as far as amount to deliver the next day. It would save some $$ not paying X number of employees nationwide for that 6th day, but from the sounds of it the biggest savings/profit would come fromnot prepaying those pensions and increasing postage. I know you guys have a lot lower rates than we do. If congress has to make those changes how does that happen? Is there a way for the general public to get the ball rolling? Can the Postal services itself request such changes to happen? I don't know enough about the system there to know how things work. Are you sure those who sort work more days? Just asking because here in the US you are limited to 40 hours a week before overtime kicks in. Perhaps they are hiring a lot of part-timers to do that sorting. I know my dh hates it when someone else sorts his mail for him because he has his own system coordinated with how he delivers. I couldn't possibly explain it - but I know it just slows him down to have someone else mess with his system.:D As far as fixing things goes. Well, I would have said that the bill that got passed in 2006 was insane and wonder how that ever came to be. How to get rid of it now that it's here? Wow - getting rid of anything the government initiates once it's here is next to impossible. I know I read about all this stuff in dh's union magazine - they are big time lobbyists and if anything can be done I'm pretty sure they're working on it. The thing is, I think there must be some political motivation behind the 2006 law and I'm just not that savvy about politics to figure out what they stand to gain by it. From my perspective (admittedly very limited) it just looks like they want to do away with the post office but they don't want to be blamed for it. The media keeps pointing out how badly the post office manages its money but never mentions the 2006 law or the fact that the feds don't pay anything into the system, so most folks are ignorant and blame the po for being inept (which they are in many ways, but that's another topic). It appears as if the media and the feds are in cahoots - could that possibly be???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4everHis Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Our small town already has no service on Saturday, and limited hours during the rest of the week. They also have a limited delivery area - we are 10 mins from town and we do not receive home delivery. If the PO makes drastic cutbacks I doubt that we would notice anything different. Other even smaller surrounding towns are on the "potential shutdown" list and those residents would have to drive about 25 miles to the nearest PO. I see that as potentially very damaging to the USPS. Instead of driving 25 miles won't people find other services? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathleen in VA Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 That seems so strange to me. Flyers here are delivered in the newspaper or as a separate delivery. I have made extra money by being the one to deliver the flyers. It is contracted work just like newspaper delivery. In my tiny town the flyers go into our PO boxes but that is because no one has a mailbox. But the next town over I have delivered the communtity paper and flyers, in the big city I lived in I had 5 routes per week just delivering flyers door to door. It would seem to bizarre to have the PO carrier deliver them. No wonder their bundles there would be so big. That is a lot of bulk our postal carriers do not ever need to carry. Not sure what you mean. The PO does not deliver all the flyers here - I only meant that no one else besides a USPS carrier is allowed to place anything in a mailbox. If you want to put a flyer on someone's door with tape or put it in a bag and hang it on the doorknob or throw it in the driveway that's fine. I get all kinds of junk like that. It is a federal offense to put anything in a mailbox though. This keeps pranksters to a minimum - or at least I think it's supposed to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Are you sure those who sort work more days? Just asking because here in the US you are limited to 40 hours a week before overtime kicks in. Perhaps they are hiring a lot of part-timers to do that sorting. I know my dh hates it when someone else sorts his mail for him because he has his own system coordinated with how he delivers. I couldn't possibly explain it - but I know it just slows him down to have someone else mess with his system.:D It is possible that they work staggered days or have part timers. My aunt sister works as a sorter, in the larger city I used to live in. I do not know how things are for the carriers, but I know that she works in one of the main distribution centersin the city. She sorts mail there and then it goes out to the various small post offices or into the bins along the way that holds sorted mail for the carriers. THe carriers go to the first bin at the start of their route, unlock it and get out the bundles for that portion of the route, and deliver it. At the end of that portion of the route (size depends on area of city), there is another bin and they get the next set of bundles and carry on. I do not know if there is a step inbetween what she does at the sorting center, and the mail bundles being put in the bins on the route, but that is the general jist of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kathleen in VA Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 I see that as potentially very damaging to the USPS. Instead of driving 25 miles won't people find other services? Seems highly likely. So let's see. In 2006 Congress mandates a fully funded retirement program in one decade. The feds offer no funds to the po - they rely completely on postage for their revenue. They are consequently going bankrupt and having to shut down low volume mail facilities to scrape by sending potential customers to other carriers. Hmmm....I wonder why Congress did that???? :bigear: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swellmomma Posted August 14, 2011 Share Posted August 14, 2011 Not sure what you mean. The PO does not deliver all the flyers here - I only meant that no one else besides a USPS carrier is allowed to place anything in a mailbox. If you want to put a flyer on someone's door with tape or put it in a bag and hang it on the doorknob or throw it in the driveway that's fine. I get all kinds of junk like that. It is a federal offense to put anything in a mailbox though. This keeps pranksters to a minimum - or at least I think it's supposed to. Ah, I see. Definitly not a federal offense here. You are bound to get fired from flyer delievery if you do not put them in the mailbox, as people call in and complain about it if you don't. The tupperware lady, avon lady etc all put their booklets, samples etc right into the mailbox. Heck my neighbors and I used to pop little notes of encouragement etc into each others mailboxes when we noticed them going through a rough patch and vice versa. I can't imagine it being technically illegal. It's actually pretty cool to see the difference in how the systems are. I never knew before that the US gov't only regulated but did not fund your PO. I always assumed since you hear about touching someone else's mail being a federal offense that it was not only regulated but completely run/funded by the gov't Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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