Only in government would an agency whose business is shrinking every day (thanks to email and digital communications) and with net losses of $87 billion in recent years embark on a hiring binge.
According to economist Ed Hudgins:
Postmaster DeJoy explained that “We have stabilized our work force by converting over 125,000 employees to full time status, thus increasing employee availability and reducing overtime requirements.”
“Stabilized?”
He should say “Locked in as a permanent expense” since it will be virtually impossible to lay off or fire permanent unionized employees when economic, or technological conditions change. Of note, over the past decade, even with new technologies and attempted reforms, labor costs have continued to account for over 70 percent of USPS expenses.”
Let’s face it, the Postal Service is as outdated as the typewriter or the old Pony Express. Privatize it and sell off its assets to the highest bidder and use the money to retire some of the national debt.
The only other option — and the more likely one — is that the Postal Service becomes the next recipient of a $100 billion-plus taxpayer bailout.