Yes, Virginia, There Is A Postal Reform Bill
December 15, 2006
It took twelve years, but postal reform legislation is only a Presidential signature away from becoming law. In the late hours of Saturday, December 9, the 109th Congress was able to finally complete and pass H.R. 6407. This is an historic event, and an amazing effort by all those involved. I personally thought this would not happen during this “lame duck” session of Congress. Perhaps we’re witnessing another Festivus miracle, despite all the airing of grievances!
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Podcasts and CASS™ Cycle L
November 17, 2006
This morning, I had the wonderful opportunity to record my first podcast with Gene DelPolito, the President of the Association for Postal Commerce. During the podcast, Gene and I talked about CASS™ Cycle L and the aggressive approach to UAA mail. I wrote about this before in some earlier blog entries as well as some published articles. However, I wanted to also use this blog entry to provide an update on what this cycle is about and some recent clarifications.
Tightening the Timeline
September 24, 2006
A very important date was announced at the National PCC Day event in Dallas, Texas on September 20. Postmaster General Jack Potter stated that the USPS was preparing for a Rate Case implementation date of May 6, 2007. If he is correct, that means the timeline just got much, much tighter.
The END as We Know It
September 15, 2006
It’s the END of the network as we know it
It’s the END of the network as we know it
It’s the END of the network as we know it
And I feel fine……
Okay, maybe not everyone feels fine about END. I just couldn’t resist using that R.E.M. song! END stands for Evolutionary Network Design and represents the latest initiative by the USPS® to restructure their delivery network to reflect current demographics, transportation changes, and the deployment of postal automation equipment. This is a massive project, and like many other major initiatives in this industry, this one also has a lot of people concerned.
Some Assembly Optional
There have been a lot of comments lately on postal worksharing discounts leveraged by “big mailers” and potential changes to the postal delivery network. Postal commentator Gene Del Polito and the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) president William Burrus recently exchanged their views on heated topics such as Evolutionary Network Design (END) as well as their positions on worksharing discounts for bulk mailers. And just the other day, Brian Sheehan, editor of PostalNews.com, posted his views and posed the question “Do postal employees hate their customers?”
Since not everyone is familiar with the details in such hotly debated topics as Postal Reform, END, and the pending Rate Case, I thought I’d take a moment to perhaps explain what one of these contentious issues is all about: worksharing discounts. And fortunately, I stumbled upon an example earlier this summer while shopping at a local retail store.