Written by Faith Manuel. For more, check out Code Green.
(UNITED STATES) - The USPS crisis has become popular in recent news, but this crisis is not new. The Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act passed in 2006 made the USPS pull out retirement and health benefits in advance of needing them. This was expected to last 50 years. Instead, this resulted in the $8.8 billion dollar net loss the USPS announced in November 2019.
In March, Congress gave the USPS a $10 billion dollar loan rather than the $13 billion dollar grant that was originally agreed upon. This is only half of what is going on with the USPS. The Board of Governors appoints the new Postmaster General, not the President. But, the President still has influence by electing the 6 members of the Board of Governors. In June, the Board of Governors new Postmaster General, Louis Dejoy, took office.
On July 10, 2020, a memo was given to every employee of the USPS- no matter what their job is. The memo heavily repeated the cutting of hours, delivery drivers leaving and returning on time from trips, and cutting off taking extra trips in an attempt to save money. While these requests seem reasonable, it will (at least) temporarily delay mail from being delivered on time. Some have denied this, but it is even stated in the memo that this will happen. This raises concern due to many citizens opting for mail-in voting in the election this November.
The decision to remove sorting machines was made before Dejoy was elected. Nonetheless, it is still a major concern amid the election coming up. This is especially notable since the sorting machines could have been turned off when not needed, instead of taken away. Since this has caught the media’s attention, the USPS has stopped removing machines, but has no intention of replacing the ones already taken away. “They’re not needed,” Dejoy stated.
Not only does that raise an eyebrow, but the fact Dejoy is a huge Trump supporter has made people uncomfortable with him being elected and making changes so close to the election. Especially after Trump has spoken very negatively about mail-in voting. He says the election ballots will go out on time and be top priority. Dejoy also stated he himself supports mail-in voting and has done it many times. Whether or not the ballots are sent in a time-effective manner may completely change the results of our upcoming election.
Regardless of its political implications, the USPS still has a financial crisis. Since Congress backed out on the grant and gave the USPS a loan in its place, the USPS is still going to find itself in debt due to the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act.
How and Why You Should Help
With the surge of small online businesses, USPS is the first choice for these owners to deliver their products, as it is the cheapest option to ship packages from. If the USPS were to go under, those small businesses would lose money that the owners and employees need to survive. The USPS is a critical staple in our society today, and many rely on it for their businesses, bills, and much more. This is not only a political matter. For some, it’s a matter of having enough money every week to get by.
Since the USPS receives no funding from tax dollars and relies solely on sale of postage & products, buying a book of stamps or going to the USPS website and shopping on their online store can help tremendously.
Your purchase may seem insignificant, but this is how the USPS makes its money. Just like in anything else, the smallest thing still helps.