Postal Rates

As a postal worker, i feel it's my duty to remind everyone that the rate for mailing first class mail, first ounce, goes up to 39 cents on Monday :)

I'm really getting tired of these postal rate increases. I'd like to know what the justification for them is.

we were just talking about this in one of the forums i belong in.. i enter alot of snail mail contests. really bummed out about the increase,may cut down on entering for awhile.

I'm really getting tired of these postal rate increases. I'd like to know what the justification for them is.

Rate Increase Rationale

"If previous rate cases are any example, Sunday’s price change will bring plenty of Monday morning comments from customers who may not have heard why the Postal Service is raising its rates. To help offset their concerns you can let them know the facts:

This rate increase — the first since 2002 — is needed to fulfill the requirement of a federal law passed in 2003. That law requires the Postal Service to establish a $3.1 billion escrow account, with use of the funds to be determined by Congress at a later date. Without this federal mandate, it would not have been necessary to raise rates in 2006.

Keep this in mind if customers question the rationale behind this latest rate increase. It wasn’t driven by operating costs or revenue shortfalls — but by Congressional legislation."

from online postal newsletter

I have no problem with postal rate increases. The fact that I can get a message to someone in New York which is all the way across the country for 39 cents is amazing. I think the rate should be even higher. Sending a birthday card to someone 20 miles away for 50 cents is probably cheaper than driving. Plus, it saves me time.

I know the postal workers deserve to be paid more. It is a stressful job. My mailperson is usually stressed out about his job. For about a year. I was getting someone else's mail. The number was correct, but the street was wrong. It took many calls to get the problem corrected. Now, I have a USPS pink sticker on my mailbox to alert the mailperson to doublecheck my mail. Even after the sticker went on, I got the wrong mail a couple of times.

Plus, if the rate were higher, it would discourage the junk mailers and save trees. Also, the lines at the post office would certainly be a lot shorter because they could hire more staff.

I WANT A HIGHER POSTAL RATE!!!

Thanks Patricia.

If i were still working the window, i might ask the irate customers, "did anything else you purchase go up in price since 2002?" But, we have to be careful, the customer is always right ;)

Everything goes up in price. The post office has just been easy to pick on for a long time :)

Those shiesty not nice words! Of course they wait to make the increase till the week I actually need to send some very important mail!!! What a freakin rip off!!!

Note: This is not in any way aimed at any of the hard working postal service people...I know yall are just doing your jobs. *smile*

I do have a theory running about the post office trying to ruin my life...this will fit in very nicely with my theory.

Nadine.

IT'S 2 CENTS PEOPLE,2 CENTS!!!!! NOT DOLLARS, 2 CENTS. Would you even stop to pick up 2 pennies if you dropped them?

How much is gasoline and how much has it gone up recently?

If you can't send 10 letters and spend 20 more cents to do it, perhaps you need to look into your spending habits....cell phone, internet, starbucks coffee.....

Get a life....just can't believe 2 cents a letter will make you not able to mail your mail.

Just my "2" cents....

When I began to realize how much easier it is to pay my bills online, I began using that option. And, realized later that I hardly ever have to buy stamps. In fact, last year I only bought stamps a couple of times, the last time was at Christmas. And, like every Christmas, I end up with stamps left over. I didn't really mind so much spending a few extra cents to buy some 2 cent ones to add to my leftover 37 cent ones, but I know that it'll probably take me most of this year just to use even those.

So, yeah, all in all I can't really complain about the cost of stamps or that they went up, because the fact is, I don't use them very often anymore.

However, I do have a beef with how much it costs to post packages internationally. And, don't even get me started on how my little local post office is set up. They keep all the documents you need to fill out in their inner area where the windows are (cashiers). That's where the line of people form, so you can't even get up there to (1) pick up the documents or (2) fill them out, until you've waited in line for 20 minutes. Then, you're scrambling to get them filled out, sometimes taking them up to the window to do so, JUST TO FIND OUT that you are missing a document (because Lord only knows how you're supposed to know THAT), and the cashier tells you to go fill it out and get in the back of the line. :eek: :mad:


That's what I have a beef about, not the cost of stamps. :p

..... And, don't even get me started on how my little local post office is set up. They keep all the documents you need to fill out in their inner area where the windows are (cashiers). That's where the line of people form, so you can't even get up there to (1) pick up the documents or (2) fill them out, until you've waited in line for 20 minutes. Then, you're scrambling to get them filled out, sometimes taking them up to the window to do so, JUST TO FIND OUT that you are missing a document (because Lord only knows how you're supposed to know THAT), and the cashier tells you to go fill it out and get in the back of the line.


That's what I have a beef about, not the cost of stamps.

Oh, Whiterose....

You'd like living out here better. Our postal employees have so much "West Coast Love"; they don't slam you like that. ;)

You get to step to one side, fill out whatever you missed, and resume the transaction just as soon as they finish helping the person standing behind you.

*smug smile* :D

Well, I do have to say, that depending upon the worker, some have let me step to the side, but more often than not, they aren't very sympathetic to the situation that their office and its setup creates.

I have suggested soooooo many times that I have lost count, that they simply move the documents to a location in the outer lobby area where a customer can go ahead and fill them out before they get inline. Many other post offices in the vicinity do that, but not the one closest to me. :p And, I also suggested that the customers have access to a computer that will tell you what forms you need for each country. This would mean that I could make sure that ALL the forms I needed were completed. But, nooooo. That would make not only my life easier, but the lives of the workers at the windows easier, too.

But, then, I do have to admit that I have not taken my suggestion so the management there. I tend to offer that suggestion to the workers at the windows, who are probably more focused on processing requests to take much notice of my ideas.

My experience here in the L.A. area is also positive. Postal employees are always super helpful and courteous. I also pay my bills online, so I don't have much occasion to use stamps except for sending packages. I don't really object to a 2 cent raise. I know I blow many more dollars than that in buying junk. I do wish, however, as Patricia points out that the price of junk mail being sent to us would go up. I read somewhere that it is the money made from all the junk mail we get that subsidizes the price of first class mail--keeps the price down.

Well, then why do they say, he/she went postal on his/her boss?

Flanker, I don't think it has anything to do with postal employees/customer relationships. Postal employees who lost it did it apparently because of feeling treated unfairly by the post office.

I figured it was due to the increase in oil prices, since the Postal Service doesn't use vaccum tubes anymore...at least in Manhattan.

I must say...disregarding the fact that I live in the only zip code without a post office (seriously...11231....zip code, no post office!) I have more problems with privated services, FedEx and DHL in particular...although I've never had a problem with UPS, than I've had with the USPS. Although, it is kinda crappy to walk to miles to the nearest post office, and listen to some lady go nuts on the teller because she's got a slip from UPS, not USPS and she's trying to pick up a package.

Post office widow person: "Lady...you GOTTA GO to the local UPS office!"
Older than Jesus Lady: "THIS IS the closest UPS office!"
etc. etc. ad naseum...LOL!

Well, I do have to say, that depending upon the worker, some have let me step to the side, but more often than not, they aren't very sympathetic to the situation that their office and its setup creates.

I have suggested soooooo many times that I have lost count, that they simply move the documents to a location in the outer lobby area where a customer can go ahead and fill them out before they get inline. Many other post offices in the vicinity do that, but not the one closest to me. :p And, I also suggested that the customers have access to a computer that will tell you what forms you need for each country. This would mean that I could make sure that ALL the forms I needed were completed. But, nooooo. That would make not only my life easier, but the lives of the workers at the windows easier, too.

But, then, I do have to admit that I have not taken my suggestion so the management there. I tend to offer that suggestion to the workers at the windows, who are probably more focused on processing requests to take much notice of my ideas.

You really should take your suggestions to management there, even if you just fill out a "Customer Complaint Form," which they should have somewhere there amongst the forms ;) You have a valid complaint and they really need to see it from the customers' standpoint.

There are bad postal workers, just like in every other career. I hated working the window, because we were always understaffed, and the customers got tired of waiting in line and took it out on us, when none of it was our fault. We were told to take our time with each customer, and be polite and friendly. They even sent us to "charm school." Hopefully i will never have to be a Window Clerk again!

No rate increases since 2002? and its only .02 cents.....

No problems here. I live in a little town with a small post office. The workers there go out there way for us here....

(Though I swear when one lady was PMSing, she would send back my mail if it had my street address on it and not my PO box....other times she would just put it in my box...who knows?) LOL

On the other hand, Ive had them call me at home to let me know important mail came in and I should come get it....

No qualms here...give it to them!!!

So, this morning I come in at the crack of dawn. . .it was my job to install the new chip on the postal meter in our office.

I follow the directions. . .I pull out the old chip. . . this should be a breeze, right? You pull out the old chip and push in the new chip. . .but said chip DOES NOT FIT!

Said chip is too long. So, I wait until seven to call the company. I say, you sent us the wrong chip, it's too long. They immediately panic because they'd sent out 5000 of those chips for THAT type of Meter last Monday.

Needless to say, over lunch I'm being sent to pick up a roll of stamps!!!

Freakin A!!!

So not only is it bad enough that I've got a ton of mail to send off this week and they raised the price of stamps...which is more of an inconvienance than anything...

But when I went to the post office today...THEY DIDN'T EVEN HAVE ANY 1 or 2 CENT STAMPS!!!

What a rip off! GRRRRRrrrrrrrrr. *fumes to herself and goes to take a nap*

Nadine.

The rate for sending cards and letters to Europe has gone up 4 cents as well.

Can't really argue with that, it would cost around $600 to take it in person :)