Paul Young’s Post

The U.S. Postal Service is pausing a key piece of its network overhaul amid scrutiny from Congress and service issues. The agency will put the transfer of some mail processing operations at local plants throughout the country to larger regional hubs on hold until January 2025 (and potentially for longer), Postmaster General Louis DeJoy told Michigan Sen. Gary Peters. Aggregating mail processing to fewer hubs has been an important component of DeJoy's vision for the Postal Service's future. But markets in the thick of changes like Atlanta, Richmond and Houston have seen on-time delivery performance falter, putting the Postal Service in the crosshairs of U.S. lawmakers. DeJoy said he hopes the pause “will work to restore confidence in the desired positive outcomes of our modernization actions are meant to achieve from both a service excellence and cost savings perspective, and at a pace of network change that is acceptable.” Do you think DeJoy's network overhaul will eventually put the Postal Service on the right path? Let me hear you! https://lnkd.in/edVP-4Ax #supplychain #logistics #lastmiledelivery

Rep. Budzinski Introduces Bipartisan Bill to Halt U.S. Postal Service Processing Facility Consolidations WASHINGTON, D.C. — Today, U.S. Representatives Nikki Budzinski (D-IL-13) and Jack Bergman (R-MI-01) introduced the Protect Postal Performance Act – bipartisan legislation to halt plans to consolidate U.S. Postal Service (USPS) Processing and Distribution Centers (P&DCs) if they are located in underperforming postal districts. Facilities in Champaign and Springfield have been recommended for downsizing despite the region’s dismal on-time-delivery rates. https://lnkd.in/gbZmEJWy

“In the pilot phase of the initiative, which affected 15 regions across the country, transportation costs actually increased by $7 million, the IG found.”

USPS Update: On August 22, the USPS announced a pre-filing conference to discuss proposed changes aimed at improving operational efficiency under its 10-year Delivering for America plan. A virtual conference was held last week. One key change would add an additional delivery day for First Class Mail traveling over 50 miles from a Regional Processing Center. The USPS also plans to transition from 3-digit to more precise 5-digit ZIP Code standards and adjust pick-up and drop-off times for mail between post offices and processing plants in remote areas. These modifications are expected to save the USPS approximately $3 billion annually and make its network more efficient for both packages and mail. More details on the proposed changes can be found here: https://bit.ly/47r2oaw. The next step is for the proposal to be submitted to the PRC. Additionally, the USPS proposed temporary rate changes for the 2024 holiday season. These changes, already filed with the PRC, would affect prices on Priority Mail Express, Priority Mail, and USPS Ground Advantage, pending approval. The temporary rates would be effective from Oct. 6 to Jan. 19, 2025. The planned price changes are detailed here: https://bit.ly/4d1alnZ #USPSUpdate #USPS10YearPlan #MailDelivery #PostalRates #DirectMail #RWTProduction

How to cut postal delivery routes by half and still deliver next day service? Royal Mail published proposals to cut services, including changing the delivery of all non-first-class letters to every other weekday, though first-class letters would continue to be delivered six days a week. The plans are aimed at saving up to £300 million a year. If approved, the changes would reduce daily delivery routes by 7,000 to 9,000 within two years. From my experience, just changing the product definition can be a big risk. A lot more engineering is needed on the level of real efficiency of delivery in regions and cut-off times. Everything is clear on paper, but it's good to experience the real operations in mail centres after this bold move. Changes in Universal Service are a must, but how will they be implemented in roulette. What's your opinion Arkadiusz Kawa Slawomir Zurawski, EMBA Rafał Pietrwalski Mateusz Chołodecki Radoslaw Malkiewicz Sebastian Mikosz Last Mile Experts Mirek Gral Marek Rozycki Detlef Symanski Jacek Powalka Tony Jasinski Greg Krupa https://lnkd.in/dVX54YSQ

Subject: Send a letter: Say no to the Postal Slowdown! Body: Friend, I wrote a letter for the Action Network letter campaign: Say no to the Postal Slowdown!. Postal workers all across the country are proud to provide an essential service to our communities. We know that our work “binds the Nation together” in a way that no other institution in the country can. That’s why the public regularly ranks us as among the most trusted and needed services in the country. But once again, postal management and the Board of Governors have proposed a mail slowdown plan that threatens our bond with the people and will have serious impacts on postal customers all across the country. Every postal worker is also a postal customer, so we’re joining with postal users in urging USPS to abandon its plan to change service standards and slow down the mail. The public relies on the Postal Service to be reliable and on time. While other delivery companies are promising same-day and next-day delivery, USPS is slowing down the mail for much of the country. This is no way to save money. It’s a way to drive customers away and out of the mail all together. Time and time again, postal workers have stood up to demand not just the good jobs that we’ve earned, but to provide the good service that the people deserve. Tell the Postal Service why speedy mail delivery matters to you: Can you join me and write a letter? Click here: https://lnkd.in/grB9VM9C Thanks!

USPS makes its pitch to again slow delivery for some mail The Postal Service is promising significant savings and to protect most mail from slowdowns, but the plan is facing some resistance. *** The existing delivery model, postal management said, in which mail is collected at every post office both in the mornings and in the evenings, is based on a “bygone era of significant single-piece letter mail volumes.” While the system may have made sense in that reality, USPS said, it has “engendered costs impossible to justify in today’s environment.” *** “While we understand the need for modernization and financial changes across the Postal Service, these changes cannot come at the expense of rural residents who rely on the USPS," the 18 House members said. “For many families that we represent, a one-day delivery delay could mean late fees on a bill, a held-up paycheck creating financial stress and increased health risks awaiting critical medication.” *** “At the conclusion of an absolutely dismal year of service performance, it is disappointing that the USPS response seems most focused on changing how performance gets measured and reported than on improving the experience of actual customers,” said Mike Plunkett, president of the Association for Postal Commerce, which represents large-scale mailers. He added the potential cost savings are significant, but the agency has a weak track record in meeting its ambitious accounting goals. https://lnkd.in/eraE9Fff

New bill would place restrictions on DeJoy’s USPS reform efforts USPS is stripping rural America of reliable service without "legitimate justification," senator says. The U.S. Postal Service would face new restrictions in implementing the reforms it says are necessary to save the mailing agency from financial ruin under a bill that adds to the mounting pressure on United States Postal Service management. The Protecting Access to Rural Carriers for Every Location (PARCEL) Act, introduced by Sen. Jon Tester, D-Mont., would prohibit the consolidation of mail processing operations unless the Postal Service met certain conditions. Under Postmaster General Louis DeJoy's 10-year Delivering for America plan, USPS is in the midst of consolidating mail sorting away from individual post offices in favor of centralized centers and moving processing operations away from hundreds of cities and towns in favor of 60 mega-centers throughout the country. In some cases, such as Tester’s home state of Montana, those changes will move major elements of mail processing out of a state entirely. Several lawmakers have voiced concern with that approach, citing the potential for increased delays as traffic and weather disrupt mail transportation.

Postal Regulator Releases Report Evaluating USPS FY 2023 Performance Report and FY 2024 Performance Plan https://lnkd.in/eKMNN_uP

Exciting developments: A challenge to DeJoy’s USPS reform! Last week Senator Jon Tester (D-Mont) introduced the PARCEL Act (Protecting Access to Rural Carriers for Every Location), aiming to place restrictions on DeJoy’s USPS reform efforts. The bill seeks to maintain local mail processing facilities and prevent rural service disruption. “USPS leadership has failed to listen to the people of Montana time and time again, and it’s time to put a stop to their attack on service in rural America,” Tester said. He added his bill would “bring full operations back to Missoula and ensure that Postmaster DeJoy won’t be able to strip rural America of reliable service without public approval and legitimate justification ever again.” The bill demands geographical reviews and public input on USPS changes, with a particular focus on concerns raised by lawmakers in states like Montana, Colorado and Nevada. Despite DeJoy’s defense of his restructuring plan, concerns persist over mail delays and service declines as highlighted in the recent IG report. This bill represents a new push to limit USPS management and safeguard postal service in rural America, echoing sentiments from Sen. Tester and others advocating for community-centered postal operations. Read more about the specifics of the bill here, courtesy of Government Executive: https://bit.ly/3Wocc1r #USPSreform #PARCELAct #USPSrestructuring #DeliveringForAmerica #RWTProduction