Washington takes notice of delayed mail

The state’s federal legislators are weighing in on recurrent mail delays being experienced by residents throughout northeastern Minnesota.

Sen. Amy Klobuchar and Rep. Pete Stauber both addressed the topic last week.

“During the past weeks, I have heard from many of you from all around the Northland about major disruptions in mail delivery,” said Stauber, R-Hermantown, in a Facebook post. “In some areas, people haven’t received mail in three weeks.”

Klobuchar, a Democrat, wrote U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy on Dec. 31, urging him to do everything he could to address mail service issues.

“These delays do not just mean residents have gone without holiday gifts, but that they are not receiving federal checks, business mail, medications, and paychecks that they rely on for their health and livelihoods,” Klobuchar wrote.

Last month, the Pine Knot reported on a Barnum mail carrier who was reprimanded by the U.S. Postal Service after he took to Facebook to explain to residents that delays in their mail were due to staffing shortages and an abundance of priority packages.

“We are doing the best we can with what we have,” the carrier said on Facebook. “We have to focus on packages right now because the post office is completely full to the ceiling.”

In Duluth, the problem is widespread, according to a series of reports on television news stations, with some residents going several days between mail deliveries.

U.S. Postal Service responses have been cookie-cutter, telling media outlets the U.S. Postal Service is aware of the issues and working to “flex” its resources to match the workloads.

With the Congressional session starting this week, Stauber said he’ll prioritize the issue.

“I will continue working to find answers and solutions to these delays being caused by major staffing shortages as well as delayed construction projects and winter storms nationwide,” Stauber wrote on his Facebook page.

Klobuchar encouraged folks looking for work to apply to join the U.S. Postal Service workforce, “and help ensure Minnesotans continue receiving reliable mail service,” she said in a news release.

The U.S. Postal Service has not been immune to current economic pressures, which include a flush workforce with fewer candidates for open positions.

But it’s also been victimized by its own decisions. As it competes with corporate competitors, the U.S. Postal Service has behaved more like its counterparts, delivering packages on Sundays and “rationalizing” a once robust network. The U.S. Postal Service has reduced its physical infrastructure, with scores of rural post office closures and rural sorting operations being centralized into metro areas.

In calling for new employees in September, the U.S. Postal Service seemed to leave behind the network rationalization era in favor of “our innovative and bold 10-year plan,” it said, one “focused on building a more stable and empowered workforce.”

“Our employees are our greatest asset and we are investing in our new employees by providing robust training and on-the-job support,” the U.S. Postal Service said.

In July, the U.S. Postal Service announced it would begin procuring scores of battery-electric vehicles as it worked to reshape its fleet.

“I appreciate the hard work that Minnesota postal workers do to deliver mail, especially with increased mail volume during the holidays and in the face of winter storms and road closures,” Klobuchar said in her letter to DeJoy. “Staffing shortages have made their jobs more difficult, and these shortages continue to be a significant cause for mail delays in Minnesota.”