Anyone else here that can't stand the US Postal Service?

[olyman]

If this hasn't already been said, the Post Office make way too much money for the job they do. I don't blame the employees for trying to make as much as possible, I blame the government for paying them that much. The problem is they have to cut expenses someplace else in the postal service when they overpay their employees and where they cut is in the service. If that wasn't enough the government is getting ready to give them more time off with pay which will result in higher cost and worse service.

and its that way,,in ALLL branches of gov.................................they like to suck on the taxpayer tit...............

 

[epicklein22]

I didn't read the entire thread, but the post office has been pissing me off lately with a special handling fee. It has been $13.00 every time and when I estimate shipping online, that fee is never mentioned. I'm gonna start printing out labels at home and say screw going in the actual post office. It seems to always be cheaper online any ways; I just get nervous that my label would get rejected some where along the way and be lost for good.

 

[1Alpha1]

I didn't read the entire thread, but the post office has been pissing me off lately with a special handling fee. It has been $13.00 every time and when I estimate shipping online, that fee is never mentioned. I'm gonna start printing out labels at home and say screw going in the actual post office. It seems to always be cheaper online any ways; I just get nervous that my label would get rejected some where along the way and be lost for good.

I too, have had issues with USPS on-line estimates / fees.

Seems like the post office always finds something that wasn't mentioned on-line. And, they go by their weight scales, not yours.

 

[sunfish]

It's cheaper to do it on line, they want you to. You can also pay with paypal. Your carrier can pick it up, so you don't even need to leave your house.

I still would rather go to my PO, but am doin the click n ship thing on line more now.

 

[sunfish]

I too, have had issues with USPS on-line estimates / fees.

Seems like the post office always finds something that wasn't mentioned on-line. And, they go by their weight scales, not yours.

My little one horse town PO sure sounds better than your big PO!!!

 

[Definitive Dave]

The USPS is the cheapest and most reliable delivery service in the world, hands down.
Up until about about 9 years ago the post office made a profit of more than a billion dollars per year which went towards supporting the government at large, they were almost entirely self managed with the exception of Congress setting postal rates. Upon the urging of lobbyists from other large US based delivery firms, congress enacted new laws without a vote by the public or postal system requiring the postal service to make payments to a retirement fund for all future postal workers. Instead of paying for retirees as they went and with interest on investments they were forced by law to fully fund to the tune of 5-6 billion per year. The other companies said this was need so they would be more in line with private companies even though NONE of them fund retirement this way. Guess who administers the 5-6 billion, oh yeah congress. So a bunch of dummies ruined the only piece of the US government that made a profit.
Whatever you think a postal employee should be paid, think about the term going postal and the countless assholes they have to deal with, they are not paid enough.
If you want great postal rates, buy your postage online, print it out and have all your packages on a scan sheet in a bin ready to go when you get to the post office. They will smile when they see you as they intake 50 packages in less time than it takes the guy at the next teller to figure which 42 cent stamp he wants to buy.
First class to 13 oz and Priority on up with free insurance and tracking, I had two packages get lost in the last 6 months out of almost 11,000 and during that time my post office burned down.
Dave

 

[ZeroJunk]

I agree with Dave. I have shipped stuff all over the world, big stuff, fifty pound ham radio transceivers, chainsaws, whatever. And, I have never had a problem.
Never had a problem with UPS or FedEx either for that matter.
I think some people are just too dumb to pack something right, print a coherent label, etc.

 

[groundup]

I have had decent success shipping with them BUT... we ordered a part from New York Monday, it was shipped immediately, still not here and the USPS tracking says it's still in NY, frustrating

 

[Rambo1964]

and its that way,,in ALLL branches of gov.................................they like to suck on the taxpayer tit...............

The Post office does not get ANY tax payer money, they actually pay money to the government. As Dave said, the Post office always ran in the black until the laws congress passed. No other company private or public must prefund retirement funds....for people not even born yet. They keep closing offices and distribution centers to save money at a cost to service for the customer. I know several people that work there and you would not believe how they are treated. Before knowing them I thought "how hard is it to put a letter or package in the mail box"....but there is WAY more to it than that.

 

[Definitive Dave]

long and short they are all very decent and on any given day anything can happen to a package
I forgot about the third lost package this year, I shipped a Stihl flywheel puller in a small padded envelope (not ideal but boxing jumps it up to the next shipping weight and service, so since it is a cheap part I try to keep it cheap for the customer), it never arrived to the customer and I shipped another one to the customer which arrived just fine, no big deal I write it off. About three months later I get a large envelope from the post office with my package inside completely covered in black grease obscuring everything except part of the return address along with a form apology letter from the post office. They had tried to decipher the partial address and had mailed it to Canada and back before it got to me.

Back in the days when people paid for music we sold imported Japanese versions of CDs online to collectors worldwide who wanted to have the exclusive bonus tracks.
We used any service the customer chose. On one particular release we tracked everything to see who was most reliable and each of the three services lost one package. We shipped over 1000 packages that day, only three late or lost, the USPS to mexico never arrived, the other two missed their promised dates. But more than 900 of them went USPS. anecdotal for sure but a big enough sample size to impress us at the time
Dave

 

[Definitive Dave]

in the early days all postal carriers were required to be armed on duty at all times, now the same offices are carry free zones, not sure what this has to do with anything but it is wrong
if a civil servant faces an angry canine he gets to defend himself with a little pepper spray

 

[a. palmer jr.]

I would guess that Congress wants the Post Office to pre pay their retirements is so they, Congress, can borrow the money like they did with Social Security and replace the money with worthless IOUs.

 

[Definitive Dave]

I would guess that Congress wants the Post Office to pre pay their retirements is so they, Congress, can borrow the money like they did with Social Security and replace the money with worthless IOUs.

exactly and if my memory serves when congress was asked during brief debate over the issue where the 1 billion a year profit had gone, they couldn't answer
we elect clowns who aren't even a little funny
DDave

 

[Chris-PA]

I would guess that Congress wants the Post Office to pre pay their retirements is so they, Congress, can borrow the money like they did with Social Security and replace the money with worthless IOUs.

It's basically the same reason we are all encouraged to put money in retirement accounts - so others can get to it.

 

[drf255]

exactly and if my memory serves when congress was asked during brief debate over the issue where the 1 billion a year profit had gone, they couldn't answer
we elect clowns who aren't even a little funny
DDave

Ain't that the truth.

So.....

The eBay idiot seller put one instead of three AV bushings in the first package, so I'm waiting again. Unbelievable.

 

[olyman]

I would guess that Congress wants the Post Office to pre pay their retirements is so they, Congress, can borrow the money like they did with Social Security and replace the money with worthless IOUs.

dang right...........

 

[olyman]

exactly and if my memory serves when congress was asked during brief debate over the issue where the 1 billion a year profit had gone, they couldn't answer
we elect clowns who aren't even a little funny
DDave

you do know,,they need a little more cash in their retirement fund, right????????

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

7-21 days more like it.

It's likely moving just hasn't been scanned. Priority is 2-3 days and that's just a guesstimate, not guaranteed. It should read 2-7 days...

 

[sunfish]

7-21 days more like it.

Yes, for Alaska... I used to ship a lot to Hawaii and was always surprised how quick it got there.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

I agree with Dave. I have shipped stuff all over the world, big stuff, fifty pound ham radio transceivers, chainsaws, whatever. And, I have never had a problem.
Never had a problem with UPS or FedEx either for that matter.
I think some people are just too dumb to pack something right, print a coherent label, etc.

I pack stuff to survive anything. I have a chainsaw bar I shipped 12 Dec, still not received. They tell me "it's on its way" Was supposed to take 7-10 days!