The Postal Service will resume sales of the Alzheimer’s semipostal fundraising stamp Oct. 5 following a rule change announced last week. The Semipostal Authorization Act grants the Postal Service authority to issue and sell semipostal fundraising stamps to advance causes deemed to be “in the national public interest and appropriate.” Before the rule change, the […]
The Postal Service has introduced an updated training course required for all business system owners. The course is intended for employees who are functional coordinators for various USPS systems, such as the Time and Attendance Collection System and VPN Access, and will show participants how to protect these resources from cyberthreats. The System Owner Essentials […]
Do you know about survivor benefits and how they work? You can make one of the following survivor benefit elections to occur in the event of your death: No survivor benefits Full or partial annuity for spouse Full or partial annuity for former spouse Combination of full or partial annuity for a spouse and former […]
A snapshot of Postal Service scanning data shows the national rating was 96.85 percent during the week ending Sept. 4, down two-tenths of a point from one week earlier. The data was collected Sept. 9. Western-Pacific led the four areas with a rating of 97.03 percent, followed by Central (97.02 percent), Southern (96.71 percent) and […]
USPS is offering a promotion on greeting cards at select Post Office locations. Customers and employees will save $1 when they purchase two Hallmark cards. Available wherever Hallmark greeting cards are sold, the promotion began Aug. 24 and will continue through Sept. 27. The promotion, part of a Postal Service awareness campaign, is also intended […]
“Paying benefits,” the article advising employees to update their life insurance beneficiary forms, hit home. Since March, our family has buried several loved ones. Those whose insurance records were in order allowed grieving to be peaceful. Those who didn’t left additional challenges for their families. […]
The Postal Service’s Business Connect program has surpassed $4 billion in total revenue since its creation, the fourth sales milestone the organization has achieved this year. Business Connect, which began in 2005, is the Postal Service’s lead-sharing program for Postmasters, managers and supervisors. A recent example of a Business Connect sales lead: Aline Conrad, officer […]
The Postal Service is offering PO Box customers an opportunity to sign up online for Informed Delivery, the free USPS feature that allows users to digitally preview their mail and manage their incoming packages. When customers purchase a new PO Box or renew one using the Post Office Box online tool, they’ll have an option […]
The Postal Service’s HERO platform has added a wide selection of self-development courses to help employees sharpen their professional skills or develop personally. Approximately 3,200 self-development courses are offered through the learning portal at no cost. Covering everything from self-improvement to technical applications, each course allows employees to learn at their own pace. To find […]
The Postal Service’s national scanning rating was 96.8 percent during the week ending Aug. 28, down about one-third of 1 percent from one week earlier. The data, collected Sept. 2, also shows the scanning ratings for the organization’s newly created geographic areas. Under an internal restructuring announced last month, USPS consolidated its seven areas to […]
The Aug. 17 “Best Practices” column was a good reminder to start hydrating early to avoid heat-related illnesses. When I was in the military, soldiers were routinely instructed to do this. Heat casualties affect the mission, whether it’s defending the country or delivering mail. […]
The coronavirus pandemic has cast postal workers as heroes in the eyes of the American people, who have expressed appreciation for their service during the public health crisis. These workers have heroes, too: the custodians who toil behind the scenes to keep Post Offices, processing plants and other facilities clean and safe. “People don’t want […]
The Postal Service honored several industry leaders with awards during a series of National Postal Forum webinars this month. The Informed Innovation Award recognizes companies that create compelling Informed Delivery campaigns. Winners of this award — State Farm Insurance, Citibank and Macy’s — used new technology to drive growth and proved that mail combined with […]
The Postal Service wants employees to have up-to-date beneficiary forms for life insurance and other benefits. While completing a beneficiary form is not mandatory, doing so allows an employee to choose who will receive payment. If an employee does not name a beneficiary, payment will be made to the next of kin according to a […]
USPS is offering more savings on gift card purchases. At select Post Office locations from Aug. 22-Sept. 4, customers and employees will receive $3.95 off the purchase fee of Visa gift cards valued at $100. Variable load gift cards are excluded. No coupon is needed. […]
The Postal Service’s national scanning rating was 96.62 percent during the week ending Aug. 21, down slightly from one week earlier. Among the seven areas, Western ranked first with a 97.04 percent rating, while Capital Metro finished last with a 96.27 percent score. Western Pennsylvania (98.43 percent) led the 67 districts, with Caribbean (86.52 percent) […]
Letter Carrier Susan Pineault was recently delivering mail at an apartment complex in Keene, NH, when she heard someone yelling for help. Pineault spotted an older woman who had fallen inside her unit and managed to crawl to a sliding glass door and open it slightly in hopes of getting assistance. The Postal Service employee […]
The Postal Service has introduced an Election Mail website, part of the organization’s ongoing effort to ensure that voters and election officials have the information they need to successfully use the U.S. Mail to vote in this year’s general elections. Many states are expanding mail-in voting options this year, and there will likely be a […]
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy testified before the U.S. Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee on Aug. 21. The title of the hearing was “Examining the Finances and Operations of the U.S. Postal Service During COVID-19 and Upcoming Elections.” You can read the Postmaster General’s opening statement and full testimony on the USPS Newsroom website. […]
A Wisconsin Postmaster’s visit to a new business in his community has resulted in $1.4 million in new revenue for the Postal Service. After a company that specializes in making stuffed marshmallows opened a factory in Delafield, WI, Joe Rohan stopped by to talk about USPS products and services. “I was at the right place, […]
The Postal Service will honor the suffrage movement and the people who carried it to fruition when it releases its 19th Amendment: Women Vote stamp on Saturday, Aug. 22. The Forever stamp commemorates the centennial of the ratification of the constitutional amendment that guarantees women the right to vote. In 1848, the U.S. women’s suffrage […]
My name is Vickie Weber and I’m a letter carrier in St. Petersburg, FL. I work at Open Air Station, where I’m one of 14 letter carriers who deliver letters and parcels by bike. Our unit is one of four in the entire country that use bicycles for mail delivery. The others are located in […]
Bartonville, IL, Letter Carrier Jamie Layman, featured in a recent “Heroes’ Corner” column, took immediate action to stop two dogs from attacking a girl as she walked home from school. He was in the right place at the right time. […]
Exhibiting at trade shows is an important way for the Postal Service to connect with customers, but the coronavirus pandemic has put a stop to that practice for now. USPS typically exhibits at 30-45 trade shows a year, but 27 of them have been canceled so far. “Each trade show generates 300-plus sales leads for […]
The Postal Service will celebrate the ingenuity that drives advances in science, engineering and technology when it releases its Innovation stamps Aug. 20. The stamps feature five designs that represent the fields of computing, biomedicine, genome sequencing, robotics and solar technology. The word “innovation” overlays each stamp in chrome foil. Here’s an overview of each […]
Scanning snapshot. The Postal Service’s national scanning rating was 96.77 percent during the week ending Aug. 14, a slight uptick from one week earlier. Among the seven areas, Western led with a rating of 97.01 percent, while Capital Metro ranked seventh with a 96.48 percent score. Among the 67 districts, Dakotas (98.43 percent) ranked first […]
The Postal Service has declared victory in its Race for a $Billion campaign — with seven weeks remaining. The initiative began last October with the goal of raising $1 billion through employee-generated sales leads by the end of the fiscal year on Sept. 30. As of Aug. 12, the campaign’s total stands at $1.01 billion. […]
The Postal Service has made changes to the Customer 360 platform in order to help employees handle customer inquiries about cremated remains. When a customer contacts USPS about an issue with cremated remains, the inquiry now will be sent to the most appropriate office to provide a timely resolution. The Customer 360 platform, called C360, […]
The Postal Service will release stamps honoring Japanese American artist Ruth Asawa — best known for her abstract wire sculptures — Thursday, Aug. 13. Asawa (1926-2013) began making single-layered sculptures in the 1940s, but soon discovered an ability to create intricate works with intersecting, multilayered surfaces. Inspired by natural elements such as plants, snail shells, […]
Scanning snapshot. The Postal Service’s national scanning rating was 96.75 percent during the week ending Aug. 7, a slight decline from one week earlier. Western led the seven areas with a 97.06 percent rating, while Capital Metro brought up the rear with a 96.48 percent score. Among the 67 districts, Dakotas (98.37 percent) ranked first […]