It has been debated for months and United States Postal Service officials announced Wednesday the agency will discontinue beginning the week of Aug. 5 the delivery of first-class mail on Saturdays.
“In the last six years, first-class mail volumes have dropped about 50 percent,” Postal Service spokesman Pete Nowacki told The Journal. “We do not have the revenue we once did.”
While carriers will not deliver mail such as letters, bills and magazines on Saturdays, Nowacki said package delivery and post office hours will not change.
“This will not impact window hours,” he said. “Carriers just will not be delivering or collecting on Saturdays.”
In addition, Nowacki said Saturday mail will still reach post office boxes.
International Falls Postmaster Rick Messerschmidt declined to comment on Wednesday’s announcement.
The cash-strapped agency expects to generate cost savings of about $2 billion annually once the plan is fully implemented, Nowacki said, adding that the Postal Service last year had a $15.9 billion deficit.
“The Postal Service is advancing an important new approach to delivery that reflects the strong growth of our package business and responds to the financial realities resulting from America’s changing mailing habits,” said Patrick R. Donahoe, U.S. postmaster general and the agency’s chief executive officer in a statement. “We developed this approach by working with our customers to understand their delivery needs and by identifying creative ways to generate significant cost savings.”
Over the past several years, the Postal Service has advocated shifting to a five-day delivery schedule for mail and packages, according to a statement.
In 2006, the Postal Service handled 213 billion pieces of mail, Nowacki said. Last year, only 168 billion pieces were managed. However, recent strong growth in package delivery – a 14 percent volume increase since 2010 – and projections of continued strong package growth throughout the coming decade led to the revised approach to maintain package delivery six days a week.
“Our customers see strong value in the national delivery platform we provide and maintaining a six-day delivery schedule for packages is an important part of that platform,” Donahoe said. “As consumers increasingly use and rely on delivery services — especially due to the rise of e-commerce — we can play an increasingly vital role as a delivery provider of choice, and as a driver of growth opportunities for America’s businesses.”
Nowacki said he feels many Americans will be on the Postal Service’s side concerning this week’s decision.
“Public opinion polls show most won’t be impacted by (the change),” he said.
Postal Service research shows about 70 percent of Americans supported the switch to five-day delivery as a way for the Postal Service to reduce costs in its effort to return the organization to financial stability. Support for this approach will likely be even higher since the Postal Service plans to maintain six-day package delivery.
In a post on The Journal’s Facebook page, Terri Thompson wrote, “I think it’s a good compromise to avoid going out of business.”
In another Journal post, Cory Norgart shared a similar opinion.
“I think the economy may need this,” he said. “As long as nobody is losing a job over it.”
Nowacki told The Journal the new plan was considered in a way that avoided handing any postal employees a pink slip.
“We believe we can cover any reductions through attrition, reassignment and greater flexibility in the workforce,” he said. “We do not anticipate layoffs.”
Nowacki said Wednesday’s announcement was made more than six months before implementation to allow residential and business customers enough time to restructure how they do business. This includes the print edition of Saturday’s Journal.
“Journal staff and management are discussing how to move forward with delivery of the newspaper in light of the U.S. Post Office plan to end Saturday mail delivery,” Rob Davenport, Journal publisher, said. “When decisions are made, we will share that information with our readers.”
And what about congressional support?
Nowacki said a resolution that says mail must be delivered six days per week will expire March 27, and Postal Service officials are hoping to work with lawmakers on necessary cost-saving efforts.
“We want to see this happen ,and we want to have (lawmakers) on board as well,” he said.
However, Sen. Al Franken, D-Minn., who has been one of the most outspoken advocates for rural mail delivery, had a different tone.
“I’m extremely disappointed that the Postal Service will be discontinuing Saturday delivery,” he said in a statement. “Many Minnesotans rely on the mail to get their essentials like newspapers and paychecks, and for many parts of the state — especially rural communities — the U.S. Postal Service provides the only way to get something delivered.”
Franken said a chunk of the blame should be placed on the U.S. House of Representatives which neglected to vote on a bipartisan postal reform bill passed in the Senate last year.
The bill, which included an amendment championed by Franken, would have given the Postal Regulatory Commission the power to overturn scheduled post office and processing center closures when communities or individuals make a compelling case to keep the facility open.
“That legislation would have put the Postal Service on sounder financial footing and would have allowed rural communities to have greater say in the operation of local post offices,” Franken said. “While I’m saddened by this turn of events, I will continue to fight to ensure Minnesotans have reliable and quality postal service they need.”
The Postal Service plans to publish specific guidance in the near future for residential and business customers about its new delivery schedule.
