The National Office of the NPMHU recently signed a settlement with USPS management concerning the National Reassessment Program (NRP), which is being used by the Postal Service to re-evaluate all limited duty and rehabilitation positions held by mail handlers and other postal employees who have been injured on the job.

Throughout the negotiations, the NPMHU has held the position that the Postal Service’s use of the term “necessary work” in the NRP unduly and unreasonably restricts the types of duties and assignments that must be made available to mail handlers and other employees injured on the job. We are pleased to report that the settlement reached by the National parties deals directly with this
issue. In particular, the settlement has three major components: First, the settlement addresses the NPMHU’s contention that the Postal Service has been using the NRP to implement a new “necessary work” standard for the creation and continuation of limited duty and rehabilitation assignments. The parties have agreed that “[t]he NRP has not redefined or changed the Postal Service’s obligation to provide limited duty or rehabilitation assignments for injured employees.” The parties also have agreed that ELM Section 546 “has not been amended and remains applicable to all pending grievances.” It is important to note that ELM Section 546.142 refers repeatedly to “adequate work” and “adequate work available” as the governing standard.

Second, the settlement deals with the Union’s contention that the Postal Service was using the NRP to develop new criteria for assigning limited duty. Again, the parties agreed that “[t]he Postal Service has not developed new criteria for assigning limited duty,” and that “[i]njured employees will continue to be assigned limited duty, in accordance with the requirements of ELM 546 and 5
C.F.R, Part 353.”

Third, the settlement specifically addresses the potential impact of the NRP on employees assigned light duty under Article 13 of the National Agreement. On this issue, the parties agreed that “[e]mployees on existing non-workers’ compensation light duty assignments made pursuant to Article 13 . . . will not normally be displaced solely to make new limited duty or rehabilitation assignments unless required by law or regulation.”

The parties further agreed that all grievances concerning the NRP, which have been held pending the outcome of this National-level dispute, will be processed through the appropriate grievance and arbitration procedure. If you have a question about NRP implementation, you should contact your Local Union representatives.

The US Postal Service posted a net loss of $255 million for the month of November, bringing the fiscal year to date loss to $476 million after the first two months of FY 2010. Total mail volumes were down by 4%, or about 600 million fewer pieces than a year ago. First class mail volume was actually up from the prior year, by 3.3% The increase, however, is mostly due to the fact that there was one more business day this year compared with November 2008. Standard mail volumes were down 4.6% from the prior year, which is still an improvement over October’s performance. For the fiscal year to date, first class mail volume is down 7.8%, standard is down 14.5%.

Revenue was up slightly for the month, thanks to the rate increases implemented earlier this year. Year to date revenue, however, is still down 5.6% from the prior year.

On the expense side, year to date salaries and benefits are down 4.9%, or about $400 million from last year. The reduction reflects the continued sharp drop in work hours. City delivery hours are down 6.3% YTD, mail processing down 15.5%, customer service is down 13.3%.

Full details are available on the Postal Regulatory Commission web site.

The Connecticut Law Tribune reports that the Federal District Court for Connecticut has dismissed a North Stonington, CT postal clerk’s suit alleging discrimination on the basis of his sexual orientation and gender. Guy Johnson accused supervisor Kay Lautenheiser of harassment, and claimed that another supervisor, William Boordsen, not only refused to help him, but “changed Johnson’s work hours and issued a reprimand, because Johnson requested help from the Equal Employment Office”. Johnson claimed that other employees harassed him, hid his mail, and spread false rumors about him.

The court found that Johnson had not exhausted all of the administrative remedies available to him prior to filing his suit. Specifically, it held that he should have sought assistance from EEO, and that he should have filed a tort claim for damages.

Nora R. Dannehy, United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut, announced that Luis H. Servan, 44, of High View Avenue, Stamford, pleaded guilty today before United States Magistrate Judge Joan G. Margolis in New Haven to one count of obstruction of the United States Mail.

According to court documents and statements made in court, between July 2009 and September 2009, Servan, while employed by the United States Postal Service in Stamford, removed various items from mail that came across his mail station, including a Mercedes Benz key, a Spirit of ‘76 coin with a chain, and a 1976 Nevada American Revolution Bicentennial Medallion. The total value of the items taken was approximately $280.

Judge Margolis has scheduled sentencing for March 8, 2010, at which time Servan faces a maximum term of imprisonment of six months and a fine of up to $5,000.

Servan is no longer employed by the United States Postal Service.

This case was investigated by the United States Postal Service, Office of Inspector General. The case is being prosecuted by Senior Litigation Counsel Richard J. Schechter with the assistance of law student intern Alex Tausanovitch.

WASHINGTON — All Post Offices nationwide will be open Christmas Eve, Thursday, Dec. 24 and New Year’s Eve, Thursday, Dec. 31, but most will shorten retail lobby hours and close at noon. Mail delivery for Dec. 24 and Dec. 31 is not affected by the change.

Revised hours will be posted at each Post Office and commercial customers are asked to check with their Bulk Mail Acceptance Unit for Dec. 24 and Dec. 31 hours of operation.

Customers may call 1-800-ASK-USPS for information about specific Post Offices. In addition, mail should be deposited into blue collection mailboxes before noon for early pick-up on Dec. 24 and Dec. 31. Customers requiring postal services later that day are encouraged to contact their local Postmaster.

Post Offices will be closed Friday, Dec. 25, and Friday, Jan. 1. Express Mail only will be delivered on Christmas Day and New Year’s Day in most major metro areas. Post Offices will be open regular hours on Saturday, Dec. 26 and Jan. 2.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses, and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

More Than 830 Million Pieces of Mail Expected Today

WASHINGTON—Today marks the Postal Service’s busiest mailing day of the year, with more than 830 million pieces of mail entering the system. This represents an increase of more than 40 percent in the average daily volume of 583 million pieces of mail.

“Bring on the rush – we are ready to deliver,” said Patrick R. Donahoe, Deputy Postmaster General and Chief Operating Officer. “This isn’t just our busiest time of year – it’s our best time of year. Americans can count on the Postal Service to deliver their holiday gifts in time for Christmas as we have for the past 234 years.”

The Postal Service uses 192,000 vehicles to transport holiday mail, including 142,000 half-ton trucks. To help navigate mail movement around the world, staff at the National Operations Center are on “24-7” duty today and throughout the year.

Holiday shoppers have until Dec. 21 for First-Class Mail and Priority Mail items. For those last-minute shoppers, the Postal Service recommends Dec.23 as the last day to mail Express Mail packages.

One way customers can save time during the holiday shipping rush is by using Automated Postal Centers (APCs). Just as an ATM is a virtual bank, the APC is a virtual, stand-alone Post Office. The APC does everything short of face-to-face transactions ― dispensing stamps, weighing packages and calculating postage for Express Mail, Priority Mail, First-Class Mail and Parcel Post items. There are 2,500 APCs in Post Office lobbies across the country.

“APCs make visiting a Post Office easier,” Donahoe said. “It’s one more way we’re trying to save customers time waiting in line and offering another alternative to meet their mailing needs.”

Customers can also skip the trip to the Post Office completely and ship online using the Postal Service’s website, usps.com. Customers can print shipping labels, pay for postage and order free shipping supplies, including the popular Priority Mail Flat Rate Boxes, virtually eliminating the need to weigh.

“Flat Rate Boxes are the ultimate gift box,” said Donahoe. “No matter what the gift, if it fits, it ships, for one low rate to any state in the country. We’ll even pick up your packages for free.”

Customers can request free package pickup online at usps.com. The Postal Service will pick up packages during regular mail delivery the next business day – and, unlike with other shipping companies, there is no fee for this service.

The Postal Service receives no tax dollars for operating expenses, and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.

We’ve been using Haloscan.com for several years now to provide the comment feature on postalnews.com. Haloscan is being phased out by its parent company, JS-Kit. The replacement is a system called Echo, which looks like it has some pretty neat features. Beginning with today’s link to Alan Robinson’s “Congress and the Postal Service”, all future comment links will use the new system. Older comment threads will be converted over the next few days.

It may take us a while to customize everything so it runs smoothly with our particular site, so please be patient! And don’t forget you also have the option of posting comments on our facebook wall at fb.postalnews.com.

Upcoming “Green Monday” (Dec. 14) Represents Best Chance for an Individual Day to Reach $900 Million in Spending this Season

RESTON, VA, December 13, 2009 – comScore (NASDAQ : SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today reported holiday season retail e-commerce spending for the first 41 days of the November – December 2009 holiday season. For the holiday season-to-date, $19.9 billion has been spent online, marking a 3-percent increase versus the corresponding days last year. The most recent week saw above average online spending growth of 4 percent versus year ago, as two individual days surpassed $800 million in spending, led by Thursday, Dec. 10, with $852 million.

*Corresponding days based on corresponding shopping days (November 2 thru December 12, 2008)

“Although this most recent week of holiday shopping did not produce the first $900 million spending day, we saw above average growth rates including a strong end to the week,” said comScore chairman Gian Fulgoni. “Monday, December 14 – otherwise known as Green Monday – is likely to produce our heaviest online spending total for the season and represents our best opportunity to finally surpass that elusive $900 million spending threshold. The early part of this upcoming week should bring us the heaviest online spending days of the season before consumers refocus their attention on brick-and-mortar retail locations to finish up their holiday shopping.”

Ten Heaviest Online Spending Days on Record

Since comScore began tracking e-commerce spending in 2001, it has witnessed thirteen individual spending days eclipse $800 million, each of which has occurred during the past three holiday seasons. The heaviest online spending day on record was Wednesday, Dec. 9, 2008 with $887 million, which squeaked by Monday, Nov. 30, 2009 (Cyber Monday) by a mere rounding error. Tuesday, Dec. 1, 2009 was on a par with those totals with $886 million in spending. Of the top ten spending days on record, four have occurred in 2009, four in 2008, and two in 2007.

*Green Monday occurs on the Monday with at least 10 days prior to Christmas and tends to be the heaviest online spending day of the season. In 2008, it was the second heaviest day of the season.

United States Postal Service Statement regarding the Proposal to Consolidate Mail Processing from Elmira to Rochester

The turbulent economy has resulted in a substantial decrease in mail volume in the past two years, significantly affecting the Postal Service’s revenue. For FY 2008, these factors resulted in a mail volume loss of 9.5 billion pieces, or 4.5 percent. In FY 2009, mail volume losses accelerated to 25 billion pieces. The Postal Service has also projected an additional 10 billion piece loss in FY 2010 which began October 1. The three year volume decline of 22% exceeds that of losses seen during the Great Depression.

The Postal Service is looking to react appropriately to mail volume declines while improving service and efficiencies. One of the initiatives under consideration is the consolidation of automated mail processing from Elmira to Rochester.

Though the plan has not been finalized, here are a few key points:

• Mail service to the Elmira area and other 148 ZIP Codes will not deteriorate.
• The delivery standard is one day (overnight) for mail originating in Rochester or Elmira, for delivery in the greater Elmira area; the standard will remain the same.
• The proposal would not be under consideration if service was at risk.
• Mail collected from the greater Elmira area is currently transported to Rochester for initial sort, consolidated with mail coming from other parts of the country, and then brought back to Elmira for final sort.

Under the proposal:

• Mail would be finalized in Rochester and then brought to Elmira and other hubs in the 148 ZIP Code area for delivery.
• The consolidation of mail processing and reconfiguration of transportation routes would result in transportation, processing and administrative cost savings for the Postal Service. Until the plan is finalized, exact savings cannot be calculated.
• In addition, many Post Offices in the greater 148 ZIP Code area would get their mail earlier in the day. Thus, time of delivery would be earlier in those locations.
• The Postal Service will work within the framework of contractual union agreements to provide information and notification to labor organizations and employees.
• Finally, no employee will be removed from Postal Service employment as a result of this proposal.

It is important to note that the Postal Service is a self supporting agency that receives no tax dollars, but depends upon revenue from postage sales to pay operational costs. Due to the mail volume decreases, revenue is down while expenses like utilities and gasoline are up. Cost-cutting initiatives are being implemented around the country, including mail processing, retail and delivery route consolidations in order to bridge a $7 billion financial gap. We continue to look for ways to reduce costs and maintain the efficiency of mailing operations to keep universal mail service viable.

The Postal Service in Seneca Falls NY joins this weekend’s celebration of the 62nd anniversary of the film, It’s A Wonderful Life, with a keepsake picture postmark — also known as a pictorial cancellation in collectors’ circles — to be offered at a special postal booth at the “Real Bedford Falls” program this weekend.

Seneca Falls Postmaster Dawn Waldron said the picture postmark is free.

“We will apply the postmark on any envelope that has proper postage, making it a first class souvenir of the day,” the postmaster added. The postmark bears an image of the fabled bridge where George Bailey was given a chance to review his good life by the angel Clarence. Such a bridge is also found in Seneca Falls.

“It’s a postmark that is more than circles and bars,” added Mrs. Waldron. “It is a picture that explains why we believe that Seneca Falls is the real inspiration for Frank Capra’s magical Bedford Falls.”

Stamp and card enthusiasts at the weekend events might also enjoy free Christmas Card Printing at the Women’s Rights National Historical Park, 116 Fall St., with the Park Rangers at the Print Shop. County Historian Walter Gable also presents “Christmas Past through Historical Christmas Cards.”

If you miss the special postmark during the celebration, but wish to obtain the postmark, you may submit a mail order request. Pictorial postmarks are available only with the dates indicated, and requests must be postmarked no later than 30 days following the requested pictorial postmark date.

Customers wishing to obtain a postmark should affix First-Class Mail postage to any envelope or postcard, address the envelope or postcard and tuck in the flap. Place the envelope or postcard in a larger envelope and address it to Postmaster, followed by Bedford Falls Station, Postmaster PO Box 9998 Seneca Falls, NY 13148-9998.

The Real Bedford Falls celebration in Seneca Falls – drawing several parallels to the historic community along the Erie Canal and the fictional Bedford Falls of film — was the subject of lengthy holiday feature in Sunday’s New York Daily News (December 6).