vidpro2
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posted on September 13, 2001 07:34:52 AM
This from the AuctionBytes.com Newsflash
September 13, 2001 - USPS Files for Another Rate Hike
In an announcement made yesterday, the U.S. Postal Service will file for a rate hike that could increase the cost of a first-class stamp to 37 cents. The cost of Priority Mail service may also rise by 13%. There have already been two rate increases by the USPS, one in January and another this summer, but the post office still faces a deficit of $1.6 billion this year. A rate request filed this month would be unlikely to take effect before the autumn of 2002 and the rate commission may modify or reduce the requested increase.
http://www.auctionbytes.com
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micmic66
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posted on September 13, 2001 08:08:42 AM
Enough already USPS. I have a hard time keeping enough pocket money handy already. Paypal especially hurt because all of the shipping fees go to my acct.
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outoftheblue
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posted on September 13, 2001 10:44:22 AM
UPS is starting to look better as the USPS keeps raising their rates.
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gardenaccents
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posted on September 15, 2001 01:10:12 AM
How can we prevent the post office from getting rich for a service that is neccesary to all people nationwide?
I agree that this is enough already.
I use Fed Ex Ground.
Insurance and tracking is incuded.
I shipped a 20 lb package for $8.53.
The post office rate was $20.53.
Before insurance and tracking.
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granee
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posted on September 15, 2001 02:15:11 AM
Part of the problem is that postal employees are overpaid for low-skill, low-education jobs---and they have a union, which prevents new people from being hired at wage levels more in line with other industries.
My husband's cousin flunked out of his first semester of college (and not because he goofed off partying), then applied for and received a job delivering mail, which he's now done for 20 years. He makes $15,000/yr. more than my husband (who has a college degree) does at his engineering firm.
The U.S. Post Office should be privatized and all unions and contracts eliminated. Let competent businessmen take over to streamline it and run it efficiently. Postal employees complain about hating their boring jobs, and being placed under so much stress, but how many postal workers do you see quitting their jobs to work elsewhere???
Right now, the Post Office is losing money because they priced themselves out of the market---with EXHORBITANT package rate hikes just before the slowing economy caused package business to drop off drastically. They don't have enough package business now to pay for all their expensive new trucks and airline contracts....so what do they do??? They raise their rates to make fewer packages pay for more overhead. Dumb move.
It will backfire on them, because there ARE alternative shipping services available. The more the Post Office raises their rates, the more business they'll lose to UPS, FedEx, Roadway and others. Not to mention all the internet and mail order sellers who GAVE IT UP ALTOGETHER when high shipping costs cut into their sales volume and profits so badly.
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gardenaccents
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posted on September 15, 2001 02:58:39 AM
If you disagree with this you should read the reply about the post office selling the contents of lost packages on ebay for profit.
The worst part is the law protects them and says it is legal.
One person even responded and said that since the post office pays their employees so much money that they didn't feel the post office would profit from selling the stuff because they are paying the employees to much money to sell the stuff.
[ edited by gardenaccents on Sep 15, 2001 08:20 AM ]
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soldat2
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posted on September 15, 2001 03:11:59 PM
>The U.S. Post Office should be privatized and all unions and contracts eliminated.<
That could probably never happen, thank goodness. You cannot begin to imagine how that would affect the delivery or your letters and parcels. We studied the effects that 'privatizing' the mail delivery would/could bring and it was amazing!
Just a few from memory....
No more federal postal inspectors.
No longer would it be a federal offense to tamper with mail.
No more regulated mail deliveries.
Price hikes could be inserted at will.
No free boxes, tape, labels....
The list contained more than 100 reasons NOT to privatize!
The thing that I remember best was comparing a new/private mail delivery to MBE......
....scary!
I would rather see an honest effort made to lower gas prices.
(ain't holding my breath on that one either!)
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freyj
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posted on September 15, 2001 04:04:26 PM
I think that the current balance of public/private delivery is about right. We need the universal service that only the USPO will offer, and UPS et al provide competition to help speed up service.
Going all private can have some bad consequences and all public is quicksand.
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gravid
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posted on September 15, 2001 04:24:14 PM
Soldat2 - I don't see UPS or FedEx workers taking their packages out in a field and burning them like postal workers have been caught doing. The postal insectors are good at what they do but do you see them controlling workers who crush packages?
I am using FedEx for almost anything over 3 pounds and they have not destroyed one item yet.
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hwahwahwahwa
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posted on September 15, 2001 04:42:20 PM
ifpostal system is privatised,whta will happen to your auunt in montana or uncle in vermont ,how much would incoming and outgoing mail cost them??
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quickdraw29
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posted on September 15, 2001 05:09:11 PM
They should raise the cost of first class to at least .75¢ rather than raise priority rates which are high enough.
I envision the PO going the way of the horse and carriage. They are no longer competitive with the web (email or online payment) nor other shipping services.
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soldat2
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posted on September 15, 2001 10:15:25 PM
>I don't see UPS or FedEx workers taking their packages out in a field and burning them like postal workers<
gravid
So you are saying that you have seen postal workers in a field burning packages???
I have heard a few reports of PO TE's possibly burning bulk mail, but I have never seen it. (of course I don't spend much time in the fields though......  )
Again, nice to speculate of a 'perfect' private mail delivery system, but it will never happen.
UPS, FEDEX nor anyone else will deliver a letter for .34 across the country.
USPS ain't perfect, but it works for me.
(but I also have good luck woth PayPal so I guess that I am the exception)
Whatever happens, I'll go with the flow.
Makes no dif to me.
edited because....well, just because!
[ edited by soldat2 on Sep 15, 2001 10:16 PM ]
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ploughman
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posted on September 16, 2001 11:07:39 AM
Before you get too enthusiastic about UPS, bear in mind that there's nothing preventing them today from going head-to-head against Priority Mail on parcels. Yet UPS, even with more efficiency, lower pay and lots of marginalized part-time jobs, hasn't been interested.
That tells me they aren't satisfied with the profit potential at a $3.50-$4 price point. And why open lots of costly post-office equivalents to serve consumers when you can skim the cream of the market by catering to large shippers?
UPS won't be interested in serving individuals unless the price gets up to $5 or $6 at the very least. Don't expect them and FedEx to compete on price, either. They'll do the same to consumers as the big 3 automakers and big 3 networks back in the 70s. Barriers to entry for new competiton to hold price down would be gargantuan. At least you've got some leverage over the postal service with your vote. Not so with a private monopoly or oligopoly in an essential-service area.
The USPS is hurting, BTW, because e-mail has cut deeply into personal mail, and electronic bill presentment is starting to do the same with bills. For most people that just leaves junk mail.
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belalug3
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posted on September 16, 2001 11:57:34 AM
I question the whole concept of why the Postal Service, Amtrak, etc. have to be wholly self-supporting in the first place. Maybe "privatization" isn't always the best answer?! Amtrak is already planning a massive cut in routes. And USPS has frozen new construction and has "watered down" (at least here) its Saturday operations. Why can't our tax dollars partially support a few of these agencies, so we don't become the laughing stock of the world?
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eSeller004
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posted on September 16, 2001 12:25:30 PM
Crap! Why again so soon??? 
Thanks for the heads-up! Need to get a UPS account pronto!!!
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mells
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posted on September 16, 2001 12:44:04 PM
Just another thought to why rates will go up at the PO. They have always used commercial airlines to ship mail. As of right now they are not allowed to do this because of Tuesdays tragedy. So They will have to go the gov't and ask to buy some planes to fly our mail and get there on time. But low and behold UPS and FedEx crys that that will give the USPS an unfair advantage. So our mail will take twice as long to get anywhere. Right now they are trucking everything to get across country. So do we pay more money??? Or hope things get where they are going in a decent amount fo time?
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kept2much-07
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posted on September 16, 2001 02:58:15 PM
I just got to the point where I could weigh something and know how much it will cost to mail it. Everytime I've gotten used to the rates they go up.
In my town service has gone down big time. We used to have a postal contract station but it just closed. I loved going there since they didn't do international money orders. Our main and only post office does do the international m.o.'s and since half of our towns population's hispanic you have to wait in line forever to mail something. Very few of the hispanic in our town have checking accounts and rely on money orders to pay their bills and send money to Mexico. Meanwhile a 20 minute wait in line is not unusual. And to top it off there are only two windows at the P.O. I think they should pay me for all of my time wasted standing in line!
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REAMOND
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posted on September 16, 2001 03:05:50 PM
The biggest reason for the higher USPS rates is due to the cost of gas.
UPS and Fedex will raise their rates too, both have had profits decrease. They usually wait until USPS raises rates before they raise their rates.
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chum
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posted on September 20, 2001 10:44:13 AM
My postmaster told me the new rates wont go into effect till summer 2002. This holiday season will be my last on eBay. I have planned operation leave eBay. Seems like the internet is drying up fast.
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ploughman
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posted on September 20, 2001 10:51:50 AM
Don't forget the prospect of having to collect sales tax in addition to high shipping costs and high transaction costs. It could leave e-commerce with a market share similar to that of mail order and catalogs in the pre-Internet world.
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