Proctor Post Office Remains Open
Proctor Post Office will not be shutting its doors nor be letting go of any of its employees, according to Post Office General Manager James L. Goodwill of the United States Post Service. This decision appears to be at least partly thanks to a survey in which 235 of the local office’s customers took part.
A total of 758 customer surveys were mailed to those served by the post office, with 235 of those being returned. Goodwill stated that the number of surveys returned was a satisfactory amount, with 91 percent of the survey’s respondents choosing “Realignment of Hours” as a good solution to lower revenue.
Goodwill stated that after reviewing surveys that were returned and taking into account the postal service’s operational needs, retail hours for the Proctor Post Office would be similar to 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. with lunch from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday’s post office hours would not change and would be kept at 9 a.m. to noon. However, the United States Postal Service would take into account customers’ suggestions prior to making a change in the hours; it was noted that 7:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. might be a better fit for customers instead. Goodwill assured the public that mail would continue to go out at the same time. Also, despite a decrease in hours, customers will have 24/7 access to sturdier, heavy-duty boxes outside of the post office which will hold their mail. These changes are set to occur in January 2015.
Goodwill also reassured the public that a decrease in operating hours is not just happening at the Proctor post office, that hours are being cut nationwide due to the increase in electronic mail and decrease in customer retail visits. “We are not out to punish or penalize anyone,” he noted. Goodwill stated that specifically, 40 billion mail transactions have been lost thanks to electronic mail.
In a June 30 letter to its customers around the United States, the USPS stated that it is planning to resume the rationalization of its network of mail processing facilities, which began in 2012. The USPS is providing a six-month advance notice of consolidations for up to 82 facilities, which will begin in January 2015.
The letter noted that in 2012 and 2013, the USPS consolidated 141 mail processing facilities. This “rationalization was highly successful, resulted in negligible service impact, generating annualized cost savings of $865 million and required no employee layoffs.” Furthermore, “completion of this phase of network rationalization will generate an additional $750 million in annual savings.”
The Postal Service has recorded financial losses of $26 billion over the past 30 years. It receives no tax-payer funds for operating costs and derives all of its revenues from the sale of its products and services.
Also, according to the USPS website, 54 percent of surveyed rural customers around the United States have supported the new strategy to maintain their local Post Office with reduced window hours. Forty-six percent prefer either a Village Office, offering services from a nearby Post Office, or expanding rural delivery.
Rural post offices will remain open unless a community has a strong preference for one the alternative options, such as a “Village Post Office.”
These post offices are located within existing communities in different locations such as local retailers, libraries, and town halls. These post offices are run by the proprietor or respective management.
Notably, only one Proctor Post Office customer who took the survey chose this option.