WASHINGTON, DC — The U.S. Postal Service provided new service performance data today to the House Committee on Oversight and Reform and the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee for the week of Sept. 12 through Sept. 18, 2020. During the seven-day period, there was a slight dip in service, which is consistent with performance the week following the Labor Day and Memorial Day holidays.

Key performance indicators for the week of Sept. 12th include:

• First-Class Mail: 86.75 percent of first-class mail was delivered on time, a 1.99 percent decrease from the week of Sept. 5th
• Periodicals: 77.04 percent of periodicals were delivered on time, a 3.28 percent decrease from the week of Sept. 5th
• Marketing Mail: 86.90 percent of marketing mail was delivered on time, a 1 percent decrease from week of Sept. 5th

Historically, service performance has decreased between 1.3 and 2.9 percent in the week following the Labor Day holiday. The reported service decline in First-Class Mail was consistent with the service impact following the 2020 Memorial Day holiday.

The recent post-Labor Day dip was attributable to volume buildup in the system from the holiday weekend which was quickly addressed but not before it had some impact on service performance data. The Postal Service was able to overcome and address disruptions in service as the result of fires in the west as well as hurricanes and tropical storms in the south.

“Our Postal Service operations team responded quickly and worked over the weekend to address buildup within the system which has now been cleared,” said Postmaster General Louis DeJoy. “I have directed our operations team to move quickly and deploy the necessary resources to address an anticipated increase in mail volume this coming weekend. I am proud of the work our 640,000 Postal Service employees do every day to deliver for the American public.”

To process an anticipated high mail and package volume the weekend of Sept. 26-27, the Postal Service has made operational adjustments including: increased staffing for locations and operations with expected high volumes, early Saturday start times for all local operations, and expanded process monitoring to ensure any performance issues are frequently communicated and elevated as necessary.

Service performance is defined by the Postal Service from acceptance of a mailpiece into our system through delivery, measured against published service standards.

 

###