Why is the USB grid locked during this holiday season?

The United States Postal Service does not fit into the current chaos of shipping delays, threatening the timely delivery of Christmas gifts to many Americans. Due to Govit-19 Epidemic, more and more people are shopping online this year: for example, on Cyber ​​Monday, shoppers spent $ 10.8 billion Adobe Analytics, Set the record for the largest American online shopping day in history. Amazon Urged customers To order gifts in advance this year, it is feared that too many orders will affect their delivery capabilities. It has long lines, undetectable packages and late mail across the country.

This creation has been around for a long time: focused on mail-in votes at the beginning of the year, resources Most were dedicated to the presidential election, and other postal issues went unnoticed. Like Adam Clark Estes before Announced as a record, Has been a rock for the USPS overall this year. The postal system has been in serious trouble for some time now – with the drive for privatization by President Donald Trump and cost-cutting by postmaster Louis Dijo appointed in May, USPS is in grave danger this year. When the Postal Service is required to enforce new policies by the Postal Regulatory Authority, DJ Failed to do so, Resulting in more than 7 percent of changes in first class mail being delayed within the first five weeks of changes.

It’s not just a matter of funding or understaffing. The postal service employs local seasonal workers as needed, and this holiday season is particularly brutal. Debra Iser, 66, who has been with USBS for 10 years, says there is some seasonal help at her place in Resterstown, Maryland, but that is not always enough.

“There are many more clerks to help us. But on the career side, I have not seen anything. On the city side, there is no extra help, there is no extra help in the countryside,” he said. “The big problem with the post office is, quite honestly, that they have enough to retain their workers. Not paid. Turnover is a big issue for them. ”As 2019, The postal service has a turnover rate of 38.5 percent. The issuer says he feels the issue came from low pay. According to Glass door, The average USPS mail carrier makes 27,113 per year.

“When I started, they paid a lot more than I pay now,” the provider said. “They work very hard on you. They push you, push you, push you, push you, try to get as far away from you as you can. Then they will not give you anything. “While the postal service now provides health care, the provider says he did not do so when he started many years ago.

Washington Post Announced Private carriers such as UPS and FedEx have stopped taking delivery from some retailers. The result is overcrowding to USB, more piles to the postal service and more delays to customers. Philadelphia Investigator Announced Thanks to some facilities there are pre-packages, and in some particularly exciting places, “not enough space to walk.” According to the American Postal Workers Union, 19,000 workers are sick or have isolated themselves due to Govt-19. But the postal service currently receives about 6 million packages a day. Per PostParcel volume rose 14 percent as of December 12. Delivery workers find it difficult to keep up with demand, and work overtime, which leads to time off with their families.

Izar says he has not personally seen the backlink reported in the past few weeks. Although the size of the packages is not much larger than in previous years, she finds delays in delivery times. “I see huge delays. I delivered a parcel today, it is a priority parcel. It was estimated to be delivered on December 10th and I delivered it today. This is the 17th. I have never seen this before, ”he said.

Dave Walker III, a 29-year-old photographer and influencer in Alabama, says delays are interfering with his livelihood. Before December, things were fine, but now he is noticing significant delivery delays in his packages. Part of his daily job includes promoting clothing brands on social media, and if he can’t get products on time, it affects his ability to meet deadlines.

“It affects me because I can do it quickly, I can get paid quickly,” he says. Walker is currently waiting in several packages and does not know when they will arrive. “My package is more than a week past the date they were delivered,” he said. Although his clients were notified of possible delays, it was still toss-up while he worked. “It’s very disappointing – there was no expected date. They said, ‘Hold on with us, we are experiencing delays.’

In a statement to Vox via email, a spokesman for the Postal Service said, “The historical record of the amount of vacation accumulated due to the temporary staff shortage caused by the COVID-19 uprising, and the potential challenges for aircraft and trucking to move this historic scale is leading to postal delays. “Nothing can be done but to continue to wait to avoid delays. The USPS overland shipping deadline has already passed until December 15. Those wishing to squeeze in a last-minute holiday package must stay put.” Priority Express Service, Which is disconnected on December 23 and excludes Alaska and Hawaii, but delivery at Christmas time is not yet guaranteed.

For those waiting for packages, hang on tight, and please walk up to your postal staff. For those who still need to send something, run, do not walk – but you’re too late to pull off the Christmas festivities. Either way, the postal service needs our understanding, especially after such a difficult year. Everything about 2020 was different – we can also be happy with the idea of ​​giving gifts with the new year.