My dad worked for the Post Office for 40 years and the most dangerous aspect of the job back then was a dog bite or heavy mail bag dropped on your foot.  This now quasi-government agency, the Postal Service, in an effort to cut operating expenses has apparently tossed workplace safety out the window. This actually is no surprise to me as I find they are greatly lacking leadership without vision, creativity or the ability to use common sense when dealing with staff and issues like failing infrastructure and faulty equipment.  Even with all the electronic tracking they are very capable of losing a package in the blink of an eye or “return to sender” even though everything on the package is correct.   As you can see in the examples below, one bad thing about poor leadership is it always makes for poor workplace safety as there is no consistency of enforcing the rules, workers concerns are ignored and equipment is not kept in repair.  The bad press is not helping their already tarnished image that is also happens to be a punchline for jokes. Do you wonder like I do where the union is and why they are not taking the lead on safety to protect their dues paying members?

October 28, 2015 – Ottumwa, Iowa, Post Office – Even in Radar O’Reilly’s hometown. 1 Repeat, 1 Serious, 1 other = $46,600 fine. Exposing workers to heat hazards. – http://www.radioiowa.com/2015/10/28/osha-issues-3-citations-against-ottumwa-post-office/

September 17, 2015 – Greenville, South Carolina, Post office on Fairforest Way. 1 Willful, 2 Serious =  $80,000 fine.  Exposed employees to “struck-by” risk by blocking and restricting traffic flow in aisles that are shared by powered industrial trucks and pedestrians. – http://www.greenvilleonline.com/story/news/2015/09/17/osha-cites-greenville-us-postal-service-office/32555187/ usps putting workers in danger again.

The location is the U.S. Post Office on Admiral Callahan Lane in Vallejo, California and as you can see housekeeping and safety are ignored at times. If only they operated as efficiently as they do in the television commercials most of their problems wouldn’t exist.  What is even more interesting, the U.S.P.S. payed over $170 million to Accenture Federal Services in FY 2014 who were suppose to “help government agencies deliver better services at more sustainable costs”.  It seems the Post Office wasted $170 million or are just being ripped off by high priced consultants feasting off the golden goose. They also paid Deloitte LLP, which is a British multinational professional services firm headquartered in New York City almost $66 million for consulting services.  Apparently with the workplace safety stories above the only people having success are the consultants.  The Post Master needs to take a serious look at how their facilities are operated, get rid of these high price helpers who are just living off of the USPS and get some real leadership out in the field.  You can’t keep your promise of mail delivery if you can’t support that commitment due to unsafe working conditions, deficient leadership and injuring or killing employees.  The time has come to privatize the USPS and turn them into a real business who wants to succeed and understands the concept of service and profit.