Postal News
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 4, 2002
Contact: (202) 268-2155
Remarks of Robert F. Rider
Chairman of the USPS Board of Governors
Open Session Board Meeting - Washington, DC
June 4, 2002
Good morning ladies and gentlemen. First, this morning, I'd like to report that the Board spent time yesterday discussing a legislative proposal put together by several members of our oversight committee in the U.S. House of Representatives. We commend Chairman Burton and Representatives Waxman, McHugh and Davis for their effort to fashion a legislative proposal that goes a long way to address the needs of the Postal Service.
In a March 2001 letter to the President and our legislative leadership, the Governors stated that significant statutory reform would be necessary to continue to provide consistent and satisfactory levels of universal service to the American people. The need for change is even more apparent today.
The legislative proposal put together by the leaders of our House oversight committee gives this organization pricing flexibility it desperately needs. Although the bill as proposed does not address all of the legislative needs as set forth in our March, 2001 letter, this Board supports the bill and looks forward to working with all interested parties through the course of the legislative process.
Moving on, I want to thank all those who were responsible for convening the Rate Summit last week. Not only was this an historic occasion for the Postal Service and the Postal Rate Commission, but it also marked an important step toward implementing the Transformation Plan.
All those who attended the Summit were engaged in an honest effort to bring about change in the ratemaking process. Although many different perspectives and interests were represented, I believe we made important progress toward identifying opportunities for a more flexible approach ratemaking in the future.
I want to congratulate Postmaster General Jack Potter and Postal Rate Commission Chairman George Omas for bringing our stakeholders together for this Summit. And I want to thank General Counsel Mary Anne Gibbons, and Chief Marketing Officer Anita Bizzotto for organizing the Summit.
While we are congratulating folks, I want to take special note of an award that was recently presented to our 750,000 postal employees across the nation for their heroic and dedicated commitment during the weeks and months following September 11 and the subsequent anthrax incidents.
Deputy Postmaster General John Nolan received the award from the members of the Greeting Card Industry as their tribute to the extraordinary men and women of the Postal Service who ensure that the mail does indeed go through, no matter what the circumstances. The award will be on permanent display in the Headquarters hallway entrance.
Moving in another achievement that deserves recognition, I am pleased to announce that the Postal Service has continued to reduce employee complement through attrition in the wake of the projected volume decline of six billion pieces of mail. As of AP 9, we have reduced the number of career employees by 13,750 from the end of last year.
As the Postmaster General has announced, we will have reduced our employee complement by 20,000 by the end of the fiscal year. That reduction will also mean a reduction of 60 million work hours.
I also want to commend the Postmaster General and his executives in Headquarters and in the field for moving quickly and decisively to implement the Transformation Plan. Jack's commitment to reducing expenses and his prompt reaction to the projected shortfall in volume, will enable us to finish the year with a financial loss in the range of $1.5 billion, but which could have been as much as $4.5 billion.
That observation brings me to my final comments for this morning. This month marks the end of Jack's first year as Postmaster General. And what a year it has been. We are all familiar with the extraordinary events of the past year and the effects they have had on the Postal Service. I think it is fair to say, that rarely in the history of the United States Postal Service have so many devastating events occurred to challenge the very fiber and strength of this institution.
I think it's equally fair to say that rarely has a Postmaster General had to deal with challenges of the magnitude of September 11th, the bioterrorism incidents, a rash of mailbox pipe bombing incidents, and the largest single year volume drop in postal history - all in one year, and in his first year of office.
And yet, not only has he risen to those challenges, he brought this organization and the entire mailing industry together to respond to those challenges. That alone is a rare accomplishment for any CEO. But he has not stopped there. During these past months, he has looked into the future and created a Transformation Plan that lays the groundwork for a modernized national postal system in the years ahead.
In presenting that Plan to Congress, the mailing industry and the American public, Jack has issued a challenge to all of us who have a stake in preserving the national mandate for a universal mail service that reaches every American, every business, every household, six days a week - and at affordable rates. That challenge is to determine what the people of this nation will require and deserve from their Postal Service in the future. And that too is a daunting challenge.
I want to thank Jack and congratulate him for the leadership and vision he has brought to the United States Postal Service. His forthright honesty with every stakeholder in this in this industry, his extensive experience and knowledge of the Postal Service's work and mission, and his visionary leadership, have brought us through these very difficult times. And just as important, these same qualities of leadership will guide and direct us in the future as we continue to implement the Transformation Plan.
Thank you Mr. Postmaster General. And congratulations.
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