USPS Comments on Recent Washington Post Story


October 02, 2017 


We consider any allegations of the mishandling of mail very seriously. We take issue that the OIG subjectively selected eight plants out of our postal network of more than 250. It also mischaracterized our plants as rural or urban entities. The OIG’s flawed methodology results in conclusions that are both inaccurate and susceptible to misinterpretation.

What the OIG found in its August 10th report was that some employees did not properly record delayed mail and needed additional training on that issue. We agreed with that conclusion and will complete employee training on the proper procedures for recording mail delivery by next week.   

The audit also wrongly concluded that mail arriving late to our processing centers will be delivered late or delayed. This is not true. Mail can arrive at a mail processing center after the acceptance deadline and still be processed and delivered on time.

A separate inquiry and investigation mentioned in the article related to a different matter. Please note that while the Postal Service does not discuss employee discipline or personnel decisions, the actions of a very few employees does not reflect on the 640,000 dedicated men and women of the Postal Service.  The Postal Service investigates allegations of wrongdoing by its employees and takes corrective action as warranted, based on the facts of each investigation.

 

Robert Cintron
Vice President, Network Operations
United States Postal Service