Posted by Blonduxo on 03/29/10Last updated 03/30/10
Hmmm...just got back from the Post Office after waiting 15 minutes, at least, for help at the one window that was open while over 15 people waited patiently in line. When it was my turn I inquired politely about what the policy was for opening additional windows when many people were in line, i.e. how many people had to be in line before another window would be opened? Her answer did not satisfy...there is no policy and no one else to open any [stinkin'] windows.
I then inquired if she knew what the Postmaster General's salary was? She did not. I advised that it was more than the President of the United States' salary...but I was basing that on information more than a year old as I had recalled the following from:
http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2009/feb/17/in-hard-times-postmaster-earned-
800000-in-pay-perk/
Paraphrasing: Postmaster General John E. Potter had warned that economic times were so dire that the U.S. Postal Service might have to end mail delivery one day a week and freeze executive salaries. But his personal fortunes nonetheless rose thanks to 40 percent in pay raises since 2006, a $135,000 bonus last year and several perks usually reserved for corporate CEOs.
The changes, approved by the Postal Board of Governors and contained in a little-noticed regulatory filing in December 2008, brought Mr. Potter's total compensation and retirement benefits to more than $800,000 in 2008. The President only makes $400,000 a year...okay not quite the same as there is no way to compare those apples with these oranges.
Regardless, the new compensation package, much of it deferred to later years, went beyond a newly beefed-up salary, then $263,575, that Congress arranged for him as part of a 2006 law to make top postal salaries more competitive with those in the private sector. At least four other postal officials got more than a quarter-million dollars in total compensation in 2008, according to Postal Service records reviewed by The Washington Times.
Lawmakers, already trying to limit compensation of Wall Street executives, had taken notice of Mr. Potter's good fortune as the Postal Service was posting nearly $3 billion a year in losses and wanted to raise the price of a stamp by 2 cents, and did I believe.
The House Oversight and Government Reform federal workforce, Postal Service and the District of Columbia subcommittee stated they would " investigate during this Congress," as per Marcus A. Williams, a spokesman for the panel that oversees the Postal Service.
Outside analysts also said Mr. Potter's recent vow to freeze postal executive salaries at 2008 levels meant little when several got such generous compensation packages.
I can but only wonder what his salary is now...seems the USPS has had a few other "issues" -and I do not mean a first day cover- in recent years.
Seems as though back in 2006 the U.S. Postal Service Inspector General issued a report accusing the agency's former public affairs chief of heavy drinking, expense account chicanery and sexual harassment, see
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/09/17/AR2006091700487.
html.
The report accused Azeezaly S. Jaffer, who managed a staff of 160 and a $20 million budget, of, among other things: drinking at a work function until he passed out; running up $8,000 in extra hotel room charges so he could qualify for a suite with a bathtub for two; and following a female colleague into her hotel room, propositioning her, then passing out.
Then, despite the allegations, Jaffer went on two months' paid vacation, which ended Sept. 1. Beyond that, Jaffer's attorney, Matthew Hsu, said, his client was in line for another two months' vacation pay; at his annual salary of $160,000, the four months of vacation pay amounted to more than $50,000.
The Postal Service did issue new post-Jaffer expense guidelines. Dinners, they said, should not exceed $50 per person, more frugal than, for example, the $1,066.08 that the IG says Jaffer charged the Postal Service for dinner for three, including 16 drinks.
Then there was the scandal about the postal exec caught using USPS budget to unseat a GOP Senator Tim Hutchinson back in 2002, see http://freerepublic.com/focus/news/781269/posts
The Council for Citizens Against Government Waste (CCAGW) reacted with outrage to reports that a U.S. Postal Service (USPS) executive had been forced to resign amidst allegations that she attempted to manipulate postal service resources to punish a candidate for the U.S. Senate who had been critical of the mismanaged government mail system.
Paraphrasing...there has long been much to criticize at the USPS, from financial losses and taxpayer subsidies to regular price increases amidst poor service and low productivity, CCAGW Vice President Leslie Paige said. But this is a new level of corruption and mismanagement. Taxpayers and their representatives in Congress should be up in arms.
USPS Senior Vice President Deborah Willhite resigned abruptly amid allegations she used the federal mail budget to hurt the re-election chances of Arkansas Republican Sen. Tim Hutchinson. According to U.S. News and World Report, Willhite, the postal service's top lobbyist, pushed to have the budget of Arkansas post offices cut--and Hutchinson blamed. The dollars were to be transferred to Georgia's post offices, allowing supporters there to credit Democratic Sen. Max Cleland. It was proposed that the outcome of the Arkansas and Georgia races could tip the balance of power in the Senate. They both ended up losing their races.
CCAGW had been calling for a complete and public audit of USPS books to root out the millions of dollars of waste, fraud, and abuse they knew existed. That call was reiterated with letters to the Chairmen and Ranking Members of both the House Committee on Government Reform and Senate Governmental Affairs. That scandal confirmed that not only do postal officials lose, misspend and abuse the postal budget with impunity, they were perhaps using their scarce resources to manipulate elections, which is clearly prohibited by the 1970 Postal Reorganization Act. They wanted someone to act, an independent third party to get to the bottom of where all our money is going....
Not sure if that bottom was ever gotten to.
And then before that there was the retirement scandal related to excessive relocation costs in 2000. From
http://www.govexec.com/story_page_pf.cfm?articleid=16504&printerfriendlyvers
=1 again paraphrasing the U.S. Postal Service's chief financial officer announced his retirement, one day after the USPS Inspector General released a report finding fault with the Postal Service's relocation practices in 1998.
M. Richard Porras was one of two headquarters executives to receive a total of $248,128 in relocation benefits in 1998. Porras received $142,311 while agency controller John H. Ward was given $105,817 to move to new homes in Northern Virginia. Both executives moved less than 50 miles from their old homes. The relocation benefits included $25,000 each for "miscellanous expenses."
Relocation expenses are covered for Postal Service officers who change official duty stations. The policy stipulates a 50-mile distance requirement, but exceptions to this rule can be made when it is in the best interest of the Postal Service to do so. In this particular case, both Porras and Ward continued to work at the agency's L'Enfant Plaza headquarters.
The IG investigated the matter involving Porras and Ward in late 1999, after an anonymous complaint was received by the Chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Postal Service, Rep. John McHugh R-N.Y. related to misuse of the relocation benefit.
"The IG's report is alarming. Perhaps the most troubling part is the evidence that postal management played fast and loose with the current statutory limits on the salaries paid to postal executives," McHugh said.
Porras and Ward were promoted in 1998 to chief financial officer and controller, respectively. They claimed their new positions would call for longer working hours, so they asked for moving expenses to decrease the time spent commuting. According to the IG report, Porras' commute after the move is one minute shorter, while Ward's commute shrunk by 30 minutes.
"This decision to provide benefits to these individuals was reviewed at the time from both a legal and an ethical standpoint, and was found to be consistent with our policies, which establish benefit programs comparable to those in the private sector," said Henderson in a statement, prior to the IG's finding.
"We compared the Postal Service's relocation policy with that of four Fortune 500 companies and relocation agencies used by major corporations, and found that the decision to pay these relocation benefits was inconsistent with industry practices," according to the IG report.
But even before that back in 1987 as per http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1P2-1331762.html after more than a year of investigations that saw its vice chairman sentenced to prison and its past chairman resign under fire, the Board of Governors of the Postal Service adopted a code of ethics.
Government rules of ethics have always been applicable to board members, explained Postal Service General Counsel Louis A. Cox, but the vote created a formal set of rules specifically for the agency.
The Postal Service had been caught up in a purchasing scandal for more than 14 months. I am sure the IG investigated that one as well.
Speaking of the IG got me a little curious, so I checked the USPS IG website and found the following more recent information:
Summary of Investigative Activity
for FY 2009
- Investigations completed - 5,5,01
- Arrests/Information/Indictments - 1,689
- Convictions - 865
- Administrative actions - 2,750
- Cost avoidance - $205 million
- Fines, restitutions and recoveries to the Postal Service - $24.8 million
And regarding official misconduct:
Misconduct on the part of Postal Service employees includes misuse of Postal Service computers, destruction or theft of Postal Service property, falsification of official documents and forgery, theft of funds, abuse of authority, sabotage of operations, narcotics usage or sale of drugs while on duty, and alcohol abuse.
During the reporting period, October 1, 2008, through September 30, 2009, Office of Inspector General (OIG) special agents completed 1793 Official Misconduct investigations, resulting in 149 arrests, 1,076 administrative actions, and recovered over $600,000 for the Postal Service.
And employee drug investigations:
The OIG investigates postal employees selling narcotics while on postal property or while on duty. Information on the possession or personal use of illegal drugs by postal employees is referred through management to the Employee Assistance Program for attention. Illegal drugs in the workplace can negatively impact employee productivity and safety, affect employee judgment and increase stress levels, leading to acts of violence or hostility. Use and sale of narcotics on duty by employees can also contribute to other crimes such as theft, embezzlements, and fraudulent workers' compensation claims.
During the reporting period, October 1, 2008, through September 30, 2009, OIG special agents investigated 143 cases of postal employees suspected of possessing or using illegal drugs on duty, and 66 employees were removed from the Postal Service.
Hmmm...even though the IG is doing good and necessary work I think what we really need is good old fashion competition. I bet the cost of mailing a letter and other services would be sharply reduced, the delivery of mail streamlined, efficiency increased, legacy costs drastically downsized and jobs created...not to mention getting rid of a lot of fraud, waste, and abuse. Then we might even get some real customer service at the Post Office if they could survive the challenge to their sole franchise!
That, dear reader, is not allowed! See Wilton D. Alston's excellent essay on the subject at http://www.lewrockwell.com/alston21.html
Oh, and did I also just hear that the idea of reducing mail delivery one day a week and increasing the price of first class postage is again laid on the table?
Categories: Ethics, Just For Fun, Current Events, Economy
Tags: Fraud, waste, abuse, USPS, Free Market Competition
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