OT sort of--The Post Office is the 9th Circle of Hell

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Posted By: Rick McQuillan

Hello, Since I am a Postmaster in a mid-sized office, I felt that I should respond to these legitimate concerns from Postal Customers.

1. Yes, you can insure almost anything, but make sure that it is properly packaged. Don't send a photo in an envelope or a bubble mailer. Put the photo between two pieces of cardboard, or even better, put the photo in a box, with padding. You might end up paying a little more in packaging, but it will save you from dealing with a damaged item.

2. The 3/4" thick rule for delivery confirmation has never made sense to me, since we are trying to sell delivery confirmation, yet we are excluding thin packages. We are trying to get this changed, and I hope that this will be resolved in 2007.

3. Always use Priority Mail. If you send something by Priority it does not have to be 3/4" thick for delivery confirmation. Over 96% of Priority Mail is delivered within 1-3 days. Our Priority Mail system is streamlined, with much of it flying on FedEx or UPS planes. When you try to save a few cents by using Parcel Post or Media Mail rather than Priority, you end up with packages being bottle-necked in the big parcel post centers in Chicago and Minneapolis.

4. Rude clerks. This one really gets me PO'd. There is absolutely NO reason that you should have to put up with a rude clerk. Ask the clerk for his or her full name. Don't ask for a supervisor, ask to speak with the Postmaster. When I have a customer complaint about a rude clerk, that clerk is in my office withing 30 seconds for an ass chewing, I apologize to the customer, and the clerk also has to apologize. If you do not want to take the time to talk to the Postmaster, go to USPS.com and file a complaint on-line and request a call back. We have 24 hours to respond to these complaints or we get a call from district manager. Our clerks should be courteous, and helpful. We are trying to increase our business, not drive it away.

5. Let's talk about the unions. Being in management, I do have some problems with unions, but I also realize that the unions have done many good things, and the unions are needed to protect their members from overzealous managers and employers. Yes, Fed EX and UPS are unionized, but the key thing to consider is that they are private companies, and if an employee is not performing, they can fire non productive employees. The Post Office employees have three unions, and the unions have done a great job of improving working conditions for all of us, but the unions are so strong, and they have so many rules that must be adhered to, that it is nearly impossible to fire a Postal employee, unless they are stealing or physically threatening someone.

6. Let's get back to my favorite subject, which is vintage cards. I love low grade 33 Goudeys and T206's, along with higher grade cards, harper's woodcuts, baseball articles from the 1800's, etc., and regardless of grade, I don't want to see anything damaged, especially from a shipper. Take a little extra time to package the item properly, spend a little more money to upgrade to Priority Mail, Use numbered insurance and delivery confirmation for tracking, and you won't have to worry about your PSA 10 1933 Goudey arriving as a PSA 2.

Enjoy your cards!

Rick McQuillan