USPS Under Fire for Cheating Workers Out of Pay
A recent report has shed light on the United States Postal Service (USPS) and its questionable practices when it comes to compensating its employees. The report, released by the Facility for Public Honesty, exposes a shocking reality – USPS mail carriers are routinely being shortchanged in their pay, and the agency’s lack of accountability is deeply concerning.
Since 2005, the USPS has been cited by the government a staggering 1,150 times for underpaying its workers, resulting in a loss of $659,000 in wages. Surprisingly, the Labor Department has allowed the USPS to reimburse its employees with less than half of the owed amount. Alarmingly, in 19% of the cases, it remains unclear whether workers were paid back at all.
Furthermore, the report highlights a disturbing lack of consequences for supervisors who engage in these dishonest practices. Despite being caught cheating the system, many managers merely received a warning or additional training. Shockingly, the report reveals that certain post office managers continued to tamper with time cards, even after promising to put an end to such misconduct.
Manipulated Time Cards: A Grim Reality for USPS Employees
The mistreatment of USPS employees goes beyond underpayment. Disturbingly, between 2010 and 2019, records indicate that approximately 250 managers in 60 different post offices were caught altering employees’ time cards to show fewer hours worked, ultimately depriving them of their hard-earned wages.
Mail carriers have voiced their concerns, sharing that supervisors are under immense pressure to minimize overtime costs. Consequently, even if they worked well beyond their scheduled eight-hour shifts, they were instructed to clock out at the designated time and continue working without proper compensation.
Years of Neglect: USPS’ Failure to Address the Issue
The USPS has been aware of this ongoing problem for years. In a 2009 letter to legislators, the agency’s inspector general acknowledged that employees were being underpaid. However, despite this acknowledgment, the issues persisted. In 2019, a damning report from the inspector general revealed that supervisors across the nation had deducted over 46,000 work hours from employees in just six months.
According to whistleblowers who spoke to Public Stability, supervisors manipulate time cards to keep overtime expenses down, as their annual pay raises are directly tied to reducing overtime spending. Unfortunately, the USPS has not clarified whether pay increases are indeed linked to overtime expenditures.
A Troubling Pattern: USPS Neglect Amidst a Global Crisis
This investigation comes on the heels of previous reports highlighting the dire circumstances faced by postal workers amidst the pandemic. Last year, as postal employees risked their health to deliver mail during a global health crisis, an increasing number of them tested positive for COVID-19. Tragically, some even lost their lives due to inadequate testing and a failure to adhere to Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines.
Insider reported in April of last year that one USPS employee revealed a shocking incident where a supervisor coughed near them as a joke, disregarding the seriousness of the coronavirus. Such stories reflect a lack of regard for the well-being and safety of USPS workers.
The mistreatment and underpayment of USPS employees are issues that demand immediate attention and rectification. It is crucial for the agency to address these problems, ensuring fair compensation and a safe work environment for its dedicated workers. Failing to do so not only undermines the morale and livelihood of employees but also erodes public trust in this essential institution.
