Teresa Navarette, San Diego
The Postal Service’s collaboration with Sandboxx, an app that helps families and friends send physical letters to military recruits in basic training, is excellent. […]
Shawn Selby
Posts by Shawn Selby
Holiday connections
In this week’s all-employee video message, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy discusses the significance of the holiday shipping and mailing season. “Many customers will be ordering more gifts online this year than they normally would. With fewer people traveling for the holidays, those cards and gifts will mean more. That is why our role in connecting […]
New prices
The Postal Service has announced additional price changes for next year. If reviewed favorably by the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC), the changes would take effect Jan. 24, 2021. Here’s a list of current and planned prices: Priority Mail small flat-rate box: $8.30 (current), $8.45 (planned) Priority Mail medium flat-rate box: $15.05 (current), $15.50 (planned) Priority […]
Better shop around
To help Postal Service employees compare health plans during this year’s open season, the organization offers access to Checkbook’s Guide to Health Plans for Federal Employees. Checkbook has information about all plans available through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. The comparison tool allows you to find the right health plan for you and your […]
Your count counts
The Postal Service is reminding facilities to have sufficient coronavirus pandemic-related supplies on hand — and to accurately and regularly report their inventories in the organization’s field surveys. Each facility should have a 30-to-45-day supply of COVID-19 materials, including face coverings and gloves; cleaning and disinfectant products; and hand soaps, sanitizer and paper towels. Having […]
Hooray for Hollygrams
Do you have a co-worker who could use a little cheer this holiday season? Maybe it’s someone who deserves recognition for a job well done, or someone who simply embodies the spirit of postal pride. Whatever the situation, why not send them a Hollygram? The Postal Service has created six templates that employees can use […]
Critical massive
Rural Carrier Reggie Elliott was delivering mail one day last winter in Yorkville, IL, when he spotted a customer lying on the ground at the end of a driveway. The man had suffered a massive heart attack while shoveling snow, and his wife was frantically trying to administer CPR while talking to a 911 dispatcher. […]
Mary Neokleous, Windsor, CT
The “2020 Veterans Day Celebration” video was an excellent presentation to honor our military veterans. I hope the Postal Service will do this every year. Bravo! […]
Recycled mail
The Postal Service recycles 200,000 tons of undeliverable Marketing Mail each year, and now some of that mail is being turned into home insulation. USPS is marking America Recycles Day by highlighting a recycling test taking place in Utah. America Recycles Day, held each Nov. 15, is a campaign to raise awareness of the importance […]
Scanning snapshot
Scanning snapshot. A snapshot of Postal Service scanning data shows the national rating was 97.03 percent during the week ending Nov. 6, down 0.14 percent from one week earlier. The data was collected Nov. 12. Western-Pacific led the four areas with a rating of 97.39 percent, while Southern ranked last with a 96.65 percent rating. […]
Easy does it
Do you need help figuring out which health care, dental and vision plans are best for you during open season? If so, you can use Checkbook’s Guide to Health Plans on the Open Season LiteBlue page to compare available options. Once you’re ready to make a change, use PostalEASE to enroll in the Federal Employees […]
Leading the way
“News Quiz” is a weekly feature that lets you test your knowledge of recent Link stories. The correct answers appear at the end. 1. What’s the name of the current campaign to encourage Postal Service employees to submit sales leads? a) Get the Red Out b) Go for the Gold c) The Power of One […]
Nadine Burton, Atlanta
I just loved the “Little boy blue” and “Doggie double take” articles featuring pictures of kids and dogs dressed as mail carriers. It warms my heart to know our customers acknowledge the service we provide. […]
Open season webinars
The Postal Service will offer a special webinar for employees who want to learn more about their options during this year’s open season benefits enrollment period. The session, “Making the Most of Open Season,” will be offered several times throughout open season, which runs from Nov. 9-Dec. 14. Each session will take place through the […]
Background check
The Postal Service wants employees to remember to keep it professional when it comes to profile photos on HERO, Outlook, Zoom and other platforms used by USPS. Under the organization’s photo policy, employees should post only recent images of themselves wearing appropriate attire, such as business-casual clothing or a USPS-sanctioned uniform. Profile photos should also […]
Peak planning
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s latest video message for Postal Service employees previews the holiday peak delivery season. He discusses the growth in the organization’s package business during the coronavirus pandemic and explains that volumes are expected to further increase during the holidays. To ensure USPS effectively serves package customers, the organization is expanding air and […]
CFC season
With the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC) underway, the Postal Service wants employees to understand the rules about fundraising in the workplace. The CFC allows federal employees, retirees and contractors to contribute to more than 7,000 charitable organizations. The campaign consolidates solicitations of postal employees into a single, officially supported effort. Contractors cannot be solicited, but […]
Relocation reminder
The Postal Service wants employees to remember that relocation expense reimbursement requests submitted after Nov. 20 will be processed for payment on Jan. 2, 2021. USPS established this deadline to ensure the organization has adequate time to record and report all relocation expenses for 2020 tax purposes. All relocation expense reimbursement requests submitted after the […]
Crosswalk collapse
Customer Services Supervisor Lucille Hickerson was driving to work on a recent morning in Colorado Springs, CO, when a crisis erupted at a stoplight: A pedestrian crossing the street collapsed. Hickerson rushed to check on the woman. Detecting no pulse, the Postal Service employee immediately called 911, retrieved a CPR kit from her car and […]
Patricia Branch-Brown, Cleveland, OH
“Little boy blue,” the article about the friendship between Philadelphia Letter Carrier Jody Forte and 2-year-old Julius Westfall, shows how USPS represents consistency and normalcy. That’s important to someone so young who looks forward to his letter carrier’s arrival every day. […]
Honoring veterans
The Postal Service has released a video to mark Veterans Day. The 32-minute production honoring the organization’s military veterans features remarks from Postmaster General Louis DeJoy; Chief Human Resources Officer Isaac Cronkhite; Simon Storey, employee resource management vice president; Jeryl Wilson, diversity and talent acquisition director; and retired Army Staff Sgt. Jeremiah Pauley of the […]
Commit to quit
The USPS Wellness team wants to educate Postal Service employees on the importance of quitting smoking. Approximately 38 million adults in the United States smoke cigarettes, and 58 million nonsmokers are subjected to secondhand smoke. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), smoking is the leading cause of preventable death and harms […]
Canine carriers
“News Quiz” is a weekly feature that lets you test your knowledge of recent Link stories. The correct answers appear at the end. 1. Fill in the blank: Since January, the officially licensed USPS dog costume has sold more than (blank) units through the online Postal Store. a) 100 b) 1,000 c) 10,000 d) 100,000 […]
Stephanie White, Washington, DC
“Little boy blue,” the article about Philadelphia Letter Carrier Jody Forte and his 2-year-old pal, Julius Westfall, made my day. It’s the cutest article that I’ve read in Link. […]
Delivering integrity
In his latest video message, Postmaster General Louis DeJoy thanks Postal Service employees for their work during election season. Because of the coronavirus pandemic, millions more people voted by mail this year. The Postmaster General reviews the steps USPS took to serve these voters, and he discusses how political campaigns used mail to educate voters […]
Peak vessels
The Postal Service is shining a light on employees and what they contribute to the organization during the holidays. Peek into Peak is a #PostalProud communications initiative that was introduced in 2018. The campaign is back with new images and quotes from employees who discuss how they spread joy throughout the peak delivery season. “What […]
Opening soon
Open season, the annual period when Postal Service employees can change their health benefits or enroll in a new plan, begins Monday, Nov. 9. A variety of health, vision and dental coverage is available through the following plans and programs: Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHB) USPS Health Benefits Plan (USPSHBP) for non-career employees only […]
Raising awareness
November is Diabetes Awareness Month, a time to learn more about the disease that affects more than 30 million adults in the United States. Diabetes is a chronic health condition that affects how the body converts food into energy. The disease increases your risk of heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, lower-limb amputation and blindness, according […]
Martha Carson, Guysville, OH
The doggie mail carrier costumes featured in “Doggie double take” are pawesome and the two canine models are quite fetching! […]
Mr. Right
Letter Carrier Nathan Sies was delivering mail in March to a Whitewater, WI, group home for eight disabled residents when he noticed something worrisome: There was a burning odor in the air and a smoke detector was beeping. Sies knocked on the main door and alerted a customer, who called 911 just as they saw […]