The reimbursement rate for travel related to medical care for participants in the Federal Flexible Spending Account Program will continue to be 22 cents a mile in 2023. The FSAFEDS rate was increased to 22 cents last year on July 1. From Jan. 1-June 30, 2022, the rate was 18 cents a mile. The deadline […]
When World War II separated Farm Credit Administration (FCA) employees-turned-soldiers from their colleagues back home, the mail kept them together. The FCA is an independent federal agency that regulates the financial institutions of the Farm Credit System, which serves the credit needs of the nation’s farmers, ranchers and agricultural cooperatives. Last Veterans Day, the agency […]
The Postal Service wants employees to always choose regular unleaded fuel when purchasing gas for vehicles in the USPS fleet. Using premium fuel is against postal policy. To ensure accuracy, review the receipt after each transaction and report discrepancies in fuel type to the merchant and your manager. An account dispute form is available on […]
Editor’s note: This story has been revised since it was first published. The Skype for Business application will be turned off and removed from all ACE workstations on Feb. 27. As a replacement for Skype, USPS is offering Zoom Team Chat. The application allows users to switch from chat messaging to an instant Zoom meeting. […]
Tawanda Robbins knows a little card can make a big difference. Robbins is the founder of the Love in Action Project, a Charlotte, NC-based nonprofit that aids older people across the nation. February is the group’s busiest time of the year, when volunteers make valentines to send to senior communities to combat the effects of […]
The man living with a traumatic brain injury thought he’d driven from New York. But as he wandered around the parking lot at the Animas, NM, Post Office on a September morning last year — disoriented, distressed, his dog Maggie by his side, no vehicle in sight — Retail Associate Mary McCarty wasn’t sure what […]
The Postal Service has reported its financial results for the first quarter of fiscal year 2023 (Oct. 1-Dec. 31, 2022). Here are some highlights: • Revenue. Operating revenue was $21.5 billion, an increase of 1 percent compared with the same quarter last fiscal year. Shipping and packages revenue increased 2.4 percent, and First-Class Mail revenue […]
A new Postal Service video highlights the Ernest J. Gaines stamp release. The critically acclaimed author is the 46th honoree in the Postal Service’s Black Heritage stamp series. The stamp features an oil painting of Gaines based on a 2001 photograph. USPS recently dedicated the stamp at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, where Gaines […]
The Postal Service is reminding employees to follow the proper procedures for the handling, storage and disposal of used batteries. Most used batteries contain hazardous components and cannot be tossed in the trash. These batteries are typically regulated as universal waste and include inoperable batteries from mobile scanners, phones, laptops and other electronic equipment. USPS […]
The Postal Service wants employees and contractors to remain vigilant against malware, malicious software specifically designed to compromise computer systems or devices. Malware can be delivered in several ways, including through websites, apps and unsolicited tech support. However, approximately 94 percent of all malware arrives as email attachments. Online criminals often target organizations with phishing […]
Postal Service facilities that store certain quantities of hazardous chemicals must complete and submit the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) Tier II form by March 1 each year. Reporting requirements apply to any location that stores threshold quantities of EPCRA-regulated chemicals, such as sulfuric acid in lead-acid and gel cell batteries, gasoline, diesel […]
A company that makes accessories for Apple and Samsung devices is offering a new collection of postal-themed designs. Troy, MI-based Affinity Bands’ line of smartwatch bands and cases for Samsung smartphones, iPhones and AirPods is available on its website. The licensed items will also be sold online by Amazon, Walmart, Target and Etsy, beginning in […]
Letter Carrier Benito Vargas was delivering mail one day last winter in a West Hartford, CT, neighborhood when he came upon an unconscious customer. The man had slipped on ice in his driveway, striking the pavement headfirst. Vargas rushed to the residence to alert the customer’s wife, who called 911, and remained on the scene […]
A new Postal Service video highlights this year’s Love stamps. The two stamps show a puppy and a kitten, each resting their front paws on a big red heart. The release continues a series that began in 1973. The new stamps, available in panes of 20 at Post Offices and usps.com, were dedicated last month […]
The Postal Service wants to remind employees with flexible spending accounts, or FSAs, of some important dates: • Expenses for the 2023 health care FSA (HCFSA) and the 2023 limited-expense health care FSA (LEX HCFSA) must be incurred between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2023. • Expenses for the 2023 dependent care FSA (DCFSA) must […]
Want to stay on top of the latest Postal Service news? Link mobile can help. The mobile-friendly version of the Link website offers news reports, feature stories and informational videos, including coverage of Delivering for America, the organization’s new 10-year plan. The site is particularly helpful to craft employees and others who don’t have regular […]
February is American Heart Month, a time to learn about the causes of cardiovascular disease and how to prevent it. The USPS Health and Wellness team encourages employees to use the month to learn more about living a heart-healthy lifestyle and to address the risks for developing coronary disease. The three most common risk factors […]
The Postal Service has revised package shipping labels to include two new barcodes. The labels now incorporate two-dimensional Intelligent Mail matrix barcodes, which are similar to QR codes. They appear on shipping labels above and below the one-dimensional Intelligent Mail package barcode and contain the same tracking number. “Some packages from mailers — usually clothing, […]
“We Go Everywhere” is such an intriguing and enchanting series highlighting the beautiful and noteworthy places that letter carriers deliver mail. There is so much history and so many sights no matter where the carriers go. […]
Linsey Goodale, a city carrier assistant, was making deliveries on a Saturday morning last fall in Kingman, KS, when she spotted smoke billowing from an apartment at a 20-unit complex. She immediately called 911 and rushed from unit to unit, banging on doors and windows to alert residents, many of whom were sleeping. Firefighters soon […]
The Postal Service wants employees and contractors to learn the basic skills necessary to identify phishing lures in a sea of office emails. Phishing emails are often sent by an unknown external entity, composed with poor grammar, contain attachments or include an urgent request that you to click on an embedded link. However, as phishing […]
The Postal Service celebrated the stamp release honoring author Ernest J. Gaines at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette on Jan. 23. “Dr. Gaines brought worldwide attention to generations of men and women who asserted their human dignity in the face of racial oppression and violence,” said Donald Lee Moak, a member of the USPS […]
The Postal Service has released a video to highlight its newest Lunar New Year stamp, Year of the Rabbit. The stamp shows a stylized mask of a rabbit’s face, which is covered with meaningful symbols. USPS dedicated Year of the Rabbit this month in San Francisco. The stamp is available in panes of 20 at […]
The Postal Service is seeking nominations for the 2023 USPS Sustainability Excellence Awards. The program, which includes the PMG Sustainability Excellence Award, recognizes efforts to create a more sustainable workplace and protect the environment. Nominees can include employees or teams who have improved the Postal Service’s environmental stewardship throughout fiscal year 2022 (Oct. 1, 2021-Sept. […]
The Postal Service will release two stamps, Florida Everglades and Great Smoky Mountains, on Jan. 22. The denominations are $9.65 for Florida Everglades and $28.75 for Great Smoky Mountains. The stamps were designed for use on Priority Mail and Priority Mail Express flat-rate envelopes. Artist Dan Cosgrove created the digital illustrations for both stamps, working […]
The USPS Logistics team has installed new barcodes on nearly 95 percent of the Postal Service’s fleet of owned and leased trailers and box trucks. The new 99V barcodes use two-dimensional data matrices, which are also known as QR codes, and are replacing traditional barcodes. The barcodes, when scanned, provide a vehicle identification number and […]
President Joe Biden has ordered U.S. flags flown at half-staff to honor the victims of last week’s mass shooting in Monterey Park, CA. Flags should be flown at half-staff until Jan. 26 at sunset. To fly the flag at half-staff, hoist the flag to the peak for an instant and then lower it to the […]
Letter Carrier Willie Shannon was delivering mail one day last summer in a Sacramento, CA, neighborhood when he spotted a balcony on fire. Shannon sprang into action, calling 911 while knocking on doors at the four-unit apartment building to let customers know there was an emergency. The Postal Service employee then used a garden hose […]
The Postal Service will hold a veterans roundtable discussion Sunday, Jan. 22, for employees who are in or have served in the military. The virtual event, which takes place at 1 p.m. EST, is hosted by the USPS Diversity, Equity and Inclusion team. Several topics — including the Wounded Warriors Leave Act, suicide awareness and […]
Postal Service employees can participate in an upcoming webinar to learn about the Federal Employees Health Benefits (FEHB) Program and Medicare. The session, “Medicare and FEHB,” will be held Jan. 26 at 2 p.m. EST. Representatives from GEHA, a not-for-profit provider of health plans for federal employees, will conduct the webinar and explain how Medicare […]