According to various news reports, the Postal Service might not pay the $5.5 billion annual obligation to the Treasury Department for the prepayment of healthcare benefits for future retired employees.
“We’ll pay our employees, we’ll pay our suppliers, and we won’t pay the government,” PMG Pat Donahoe said at the National Postal Forum. “We have contention as far as owing that. Disruption in mail delivery won’t serve the government or the stakeholders.
Under the Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act of 2006, the USPS is required each year to prepay about $5.5 billion to cover the health care benefits of retired employees until 2016.
What do you think? It looks like the only way to comply with the law is not make payroll or not pay our suppliers. What other options should we consider? Is this a good idea? Leave your thoughts here.
17 comments:
I think we have already done everything else we can do. The solution lies with Congress, particularly regarding the annual $5.5 Billion payment to aggressively prefund future retiree health benefits. If the only way to get Congress' attention/action is to default on that payment, so be it.
I think they need to realize that we, as an organization, are not just lap dogs who will roll over on command. Our leadership has been talking and talking, but no one seems to believe that we are, indeed, in an impossible situation. I am all for this if it is what we need to do.
We haven't done everything that we can do. We still have postmasters and supervisors out on details and are paying them mileage AND whatever else they need. If these positions that they are in ARE SO NEEDED then put them in the position or MAKE THEM GO BACK TO the original position THAT THEY ARE GETTING PAID FOR. If they don't go back they would have to retire. The whole situation is ridiculous and needs to stop. The USPS just hired 2 new vice-presidents WHY WHY WHY ????? I know of a postmaster that has not been in her office for over 10 years. She has been doing a secretarial postion for a POOM all that time AND getting paid for the level of office that she is a postmaster for. Our postmaster is out ON A DETAIL and we have an OIC that has been out of her office for at least 3 years because she has been the acting station manager at the downtown station. We have 2 204B;s and supervisors. I have now found out that the Postal Service is putting PMR's in OIC positions. It all is stupid and crazy and Donovan needs to get a handle on EVERYTHING.
We need every employee, family and friends to write their Congressman and Senator requesting that they do the USPS right by changing this requirement. No other government agency has this mandated placed on them. At the same time as employees we need to do our best at our job regardless of all the ugliness and situation we don't agree with and save, save, save.
The employees and public come first. The GOV just bailed out private companies that did nothing for the individual. I'm glad to see the USPS will take care of it's own before handing more monies over to the GOV to be mis-handled by our elected officials.
Why should we pay it. I'm sure the government is spending the money anyway. It isn't setting in an account for later use.
We being a federal employee and its leader publicly declaring we are going to break the law by not fulfilling obligations does not look good for a trustworthy reputation. So much said and so less done. Here we go again...
The Postal Service has already over-paid for retiree health benefits- a fact acknowledged by the PRC - so why pay more? My Congressional Representative told me that "the Postal Service will never get that money back", and although he is only one member of the House, I think he might just be right. If I over-paid my electric bill one month, the next month the over-payment would be subtracted from my bill.
Congress has treated the Postal service as both a cash cow and an ugly stepchild; constantly belittling its outstanding performance by calling it a dinosaur, and working systematically to take the universality out of the mandate to provide universal service. They should be forced to decide what they want from a federally mandated communications delivery service that treats rural and urban areas equally, and get on with it.
Members of Congress send their franked mail for free....
The IRS requires tax preparers to submit returns electronically....
Social Security plans to go exclusively to direct deposit....
Jasmine is right; our own government has no respect for us. It seems that they are doing all they can to undermine the Postal Service rather than support us. I say, default on this payment and keep congress from getting their sticky mitts on it. We've already paid too much into this fund, it's time we get some relief.
Oh, and give us back our $75 billion overpayment from CSRS!!
Not only should the Postal Service NOT pay the $5.5 billion but they should demand repayment for $75 billion that was overpaid already!!!
I don't see any "bail out" money coming our way any time soon. What exactly would happen if tomorrow the Postal Service refused to deliver a single piece of mail until this was settled? Maybe things would move along a little faster! It may also make congress realize just how important the Postal Service is!
I think the days of having an office with a PM are gone. I am a PMR serving as an OIC. I don't get PM pay, no paid holidays, no paid vacation, no paid sick days, and no health benefits. This is a win for the postal service. I work M-F as and OIC in one town and Saturday as PMR in another. Now because there is no "sitting postmaster" my office is under review for discontinuance. Under the current rule the post office is better off replacing PM with OIC then the office can be reviewed and discontinued.
Go on strike with no mail until we are paid back our $75 billion overpayment with interest and penalty. That should start today. After 1 year how we will pay $80 billion for its operations and then we will still be inspired successfully with losses.
If there is an oic in an office and they want that office, they should give them the office .Make them the postmaster without having to apply for the position.I thought the usps is trying to save money.Doesn't make sense
Postmaster general Donahue is right to say we won't pay any more. USPS has overpaid CSRS, overpaid FERS and now they want us to overpay health benefits. Congress has used USPS as a cash cow for long enough. Without all these overpayments we would be in the black.
To the person up above who wants to Strike. Ask the Air Traffic Controllers from the early 80's who went on Strike what they got. Mr. Reagan fired them!!! I don't know about you, but I can't afford a 100% pay cut!!!
First of all Postal Employees can not strike. As for not making the payment - have them apply the amount to the over payment.
My question to the post above about closing offices - Do you really think they should keep an office open if the revenue is just mere dollars a day and the person they are paying is making upwards of $16 an hour? Makes good business sense to me to close them.
Regarding closing offices. With another location only a few blocks or miles away, that makes more sense then closing one which is 30 - 60 miles from the next location.
When offices are that remote, the chance of the community having another source for customers to use is slim and none.
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