Post Office layoffs are being laid off, mail delays will get worse

Post Office layoffs are being laid off, mail delays are going to get worse (Alberta Times) Before the U.S. Postal Service closed hundreds of processing centers to save money, some businesses complained that the Post Office...

Post Office laid off layoffs, and mail delays were going to get worse (Alberta Times) Before the U.S. Postal Service closed hundreds of processing centers to save money, some businesses were complaining that service quality at the post office had deteriorated. Dozens of area newspapers said paper deliveries were delayed or not delivered at all, costing them advertising and subscribers. Last year, Time Magazine complained to the Post Office that subscribers reported significant delays in receiving their subscriptions to magazines such as Sports Illustrated, People and Time. The Postal Service said several factors contributed to what he called minor delays: Older sorting machines were worn out and needed more time to repair; delivery routes were canceled because of declining mail volume; and workers were learning how to use new equipment to sort catalogs and magazines. Several large delivery customers said they have contacted the Postal Service about machine problems that are causing delays. In May, Northrop Grumman sued the Postal Service, saying it violated an $874 million contract by unduly delaying and disrupting the company's efforts to install 100 machines to sort mail. The Postal Service recently began using a system to track what percentage of standard mail is delivered on time, said Bender, the postal service's manager of processing and delivery. ?#22312;In the first two quarters of this year, the national standard mail delivery rate on time was 93%. ?/FONT> Declining mail volume, especially first-class mail, which accounts for a large portion of revenue, has caused a steady drain on postal business, averaging $1 billion a month in the first half of this fiscal year and forcing the Postal Service to recommend closing half its processing centers and laying off hundreds of thousands of employees.