Postmaster General: USPS cannot survive coronavirus outbreak without help

The USPS currently employs around 630,000 employees. Almost 500 of those employees have tested positive for COVID-19, with 6,000 in self-isolation due to exposure within the workplace and 19 dead.

By ZACHARY KEYSER
U.S. postal service trucks sit parked at the post office in Del Mar, California (photo credit: REUTERS)
U.S. postal service trucks sit parked at the post office in Del Mar, California
(photo credit: REUTERS)
The US Postal Service pleaded with Congress earlier this week, requesting grant assistance from the federal government, noting that it's possible the parcel deliverer will run out of funding by the end of the fiscal year due to a "devastating" fall-off in business stemming from the coronavirus outbreak.
"The Postal Service relies on the sale of postal products and services to fund our operations, and these sales are plummeting as a result of the pandemic. The sudden drop in mail volumes, our most profitable revenue stream, is steep and may never fully recover," said USPS Postmaster General Megan Brennan.
"We now estimate that the COVID-19 pandemic will increase the Postal Service’s net operating loss by more than $22 billion dollars over the next eighteen months, and by over $54 billion dollars over the longer term, threatening our ability to operate."
The requested $13 billion grant for the USPS was denied, however, where a $10 billion loan was instead incorporated into the $2.2 coronavirus stimulus package - to which the USPS will eventually have to pay back.
This portion of the package came under much contention, mainly from United States President Donald Trump and his administration, according to the Washington Post and the New York Times.
Trump claims that the USPS's financial troubles can be solved by simply raising fees for packages delivered by e-commerce giants such as Amazon, or other shipping vendors such as UPS and FedEx, against the advice of shipping experts well versed on the butterfly effects this type of move could have on the US economy.
“We told them very clearly that the president was not going to sign the bill if [money for the Postal Service] was in it,” the Trump administration official said, according to the Washington Post. “I don’t know if we used the v-bomb, but the president was not going to sign it, and we told them that.”
The USPS has been facing financial troubles for decades, and as long as the coronavirus pandemic lasts they are projecting to lose around $2 billion a month. If the USPS ceases operations, politicians have warned that it could invoke serious consequences for the overall health of citizens around the country - adding that if they don't receive this assistance, they might not survive the summer.
"At least six days per week, and in some instances seven, Postal Service employees accept, process, transport, and deliver vital mail and packages like medicine, products that sustain us, benefits checks, and important information, in every community, to every home and residence, and we will continue to do so," Brennan said in a USPS statement. "As Americans are urged to stay home, the importance of the mail will only grow as people, including those in rural areas and senior citizens, will need access to vital communications, essential packages and other necessities."
The USPS currently employs around 630,000 employees. Almost 500 of those employees have tested positive for COVID-19, with around 462 other suspected cases and 6,000 in self-isolation due to exposure within the workplace. Nineteen have died.
"We are grateful for the heroism and commitment of our 630,000 postal employees who continue to serve the American public during this pandemic, and we look forward to working with policymakers on ensuring the solvency of the Postal Service,” Brennan concluded.


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