Consolidation of the 6 USPS District Offices

Postal Service to trim 30 jobs across region

Fast-moving dark boxes at top drop magazines and large envelopes into white boxes, which move along a conveyer belt at the bottom in the postal facility on Corliss Street in Providence.

PROVIDENCE - As part of an effort by the U.S. Postal Service to cut costs across the country, more than 30 jobs will be eliminated in Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts this year.

The Southeast New England branch does not include any of the six district offices nationwide that are set to be consolidated under the Postal Service's plan, but along with every other branch in the country, it will be forced to trim 15 percent of its administrative staff. The exact number of positions is still unclear, according to a spokeswoman for the Postal Service.

The cuts are being made in response to the continuing financial crisis, which has deeply affected the Postal Service. The agency was already feeling the pinch as it lost business to the Internet.

The weak economy has further exacerbated the problems. Every time a company closes or cuts back, the Postal Service loses business.

"Circuit City sent out a lot more mail than you or I," said Postal Service spokeswoman Christine Dugas.

The service handled 9 billion fewer pieces of mail in fiscal 2008, which ended Sept. 30, than it did in fiscal 2007. A further decrease is expected in the current fiscal year. The declines so far, said Dugas, are worse than in the Great Depression.

Postmaster General John E. Potter told Congress March 25 that the Postal Service could run out of money by the end of the calendar year. He is seeking permission to reduce delivery to five days a week from six.

"We are facing losses of historic proportions," Potter said, according to the Associated Press.

The current plan to cut costs, which includes an offer of early retirement to 150,000 employees and cutting a total of 3,000 jobs across the country, is expected to save the Postal Service $100 million annually.

It's the latest effort to streamline operations. In the past year, the service, among other measures, has cut 50 million work-hours, suspended construction of all new facilities, adjusted postal routes to reflect diminished volume, frozen salaries of officers and executives, put in place a hiring freeze and sold underutilized buildings.

As of Feb. 28, the Postal Service had 646,000 employees, a 4.4-percent decrease over the previous year.

The six offices that will be closed are in Lake Mary, Fla.; North Reading, Mass.; Manchester, N.H.; Edison, N.J.; Erie, Pa.; and Spokane, Wash. The consolidation will leave the service with 74 district offices nationwide but will not affect mail service. The offices being shut house only administrative functions.

According to Dugas, the early-retirement offer will be made to managers and administrators who are at least 50 years of age with at least 20 years of service. A postal worker would usually be required to be at least 55 years old with 25 years of service to qualify for retirement.

Dugas said the Southeast New England branch will be able to minimize the possibility of laying off staff by eliminating administrative positions that had either been unfilled or staffed on a part-time basis.

"We think we have enough vacant positions to cover everyone," she said.

The trimming process should be complete by the end of September, she said.

"We've been reducing costs greatly, but it's still not enough," Dugas said. "We are looking at every possible way we can to reduce costs but still provide efficient service to our customers."