UPS Ground Rates going UP UP UP

[StayLow]

It wasn't that long ago you could ship a bass coast to coast for $65, it's twice that now.

It wasn't that long ago you could ship at 100lb 4x10 for less than that.

You'd think with efficiencies, modernization and competition prices would've gone down if anything, but we're at the tail end of history's greatest debt-fuelled spending binge and we should all cash in before the socioeconomic tide turns, and that includes USPS, FedEx and Canada Post.

Speaking of ... no kidding, I just got a UPS delivery. Good, friendly service for what that's worth.

 

[charlie monroe]

I have a cousin that works for Canada Post. It must be a dangerous job, because every time school has begun in September, she has a new injury that will prevent her from carrying out her duties until the following June.

She has seriously only worked about 4 months per year for about 12 or so years now. She has always been paid in full.

I am not proud of her behavior. She’s on the Injured Reserve list right now. Probably plotting how she can cut that inconvenient 4 month period down further.

 

[Alkali Ike]

I've said it before...I think the general public is footing the bill for all the "free" Amazon Prime shipping.

This is incorrect. If USPS were not required by law to pre-fund its future pension obligations (billions every year), it would be marginally profitable.

 

[Zbass82]

Honestly, the only service I use anymore is FedEx. USPS has become laughable in its tracking (not just around the holiday season) and UPS has never been my shipper of choice. I'm cautious of anything that suggests free, two-day, or SmartPost shipping...

Currently battling USPS for insurance money. Sold an amp on Reverb 3 weeks ago, they delivered it to the wrong address and put zero effort into trying to get it back. I had to refund the buyer and file an insurance claim which is currently on it's 2nd appeal. I paid for insurance, have the receipt and proof of value and they still denied my claim. The post office that delivered it to the wrong address admitted what they did and still the claims department is saying it was delivered to the correct address. Never ever again using USPS

 

[mikewalker]

USPS is awesome (most of the time anyway).

I agree! And (unbeknownst to most, I expect) the Russian postal service is mostly amazing... Canada has never been as good as either... 20 years ago I'd call them "okay" but now they have priced themselves nearly out of the market. No comment on the strike (political content is banned here)

 

[rodak]

You would think with all the package shipping due to online shopping that they'd be making their operations more efficient. It's only one incident, but my wife ordered three coats all at once from JC Penney. A few days later, two of them were delivered in the same day....by two different USPS trucks, at two different times of day. And our regular mail delivery came from yet a third truck at a totally different time. Seems like they could stand to tweak some of their delivery scheduling/routing software. I'm also continually annoyed that if I want the free shipping, and they schedule it for Sunday, Amazon doesn't allow me the option to get it at a later date - Hey Amazon, I'm not in that big a hurry! Give the delivery guys a break, huh?

 

[James Collins]

Among other considerations...Inflation last year in the US was around 2.5%. So they are making an extra 2.5 cents on the dollar relatively speaking. If you shipped something for $50, it will now cost $52.50 to ship. If you convert last year's dollars into this year's, you would expect it to cost $51.25 without them making anymore.

Everyone should be getting a raise every year just to keep up with inflation. Otherwise, you are getting paid less than you did last year. Say you are getting paid $50,000 a year and you don't get a raise. If you don't get a raise, you just took about a 2.5% pay cut this year. The way you feel it is when MusicMan or USPS raises their prices to reflect the decreased value of the dollar.

 

[gitfiddl]

Canada Post is privatized. So like Fedex & UPS and many other national carriers they are not mandated to perform.
The U.S. Postal Service, is one of the few true 'services' left that are not allowed to strike.
Even the venerable Royal Mail, in the U.K. has been privatized.
One of the arguments for privatization has been that the service delivery standards will improve- this has not been the case with any national service that has been privatized, case in point Canada Post.

And as much as folks slag on the USPS, as usual Americans just don't realize how good they've got it.

Another note is that the USPS is a 'quasi'-governmental agency, in that they receive no tax dollars to operate. All their operating expenses are funded by the postage fees they charge. So in that regard they are just like all the other private carriers- except the USPS is not allowed to shut down or go on strike, that's where the 'quasi' part comes into play.

Another little tidbit about the USPS' 'quasi'-gubmintal status: their Workmens Comp claims are all handled by the Federal Dept of Labor's OWCP division.

 

[Val Tremola]

To live in this town you must be tough, tough, tough, tough, tough!

 

[Fab Superlative]

I just looked it up.

Canada Post is "Crown Corporation". "Crown corporations are wholly owned federal or provincial organizations structured like private or independent companies."

In no way is Canada Post privatized by any rational definition of that word. In fact the Canadian parliament(?) stayed in session over the weekend recently to debate and vote on mandating Canada Post go back to work. That obviously wouldn't happen if it were a private corporation.

Also the strikes have been rotating, not an actual full-scale strike. Mail has still been delivered daily, just more slowly for the most part.

The pay and benefits are amazing for what they do. Bottom line, they have a massive sense of entitlement just like all government employees and they're trying to hold the country hostage to get even more. Nothing new.

"In no way is Canada Post privatized by any rational definition of that word."
According to the definition you posted (I bolded the passage) that seems like a fairly straight forward rational definition?

By establishing Canada Post as a Crown corporation, is in many ways similar to what was done to the USPS when it was taken 'off budget' meaning that it was no longer being subsidized with taxpayer money. And while the Crown (govt.) is still the sole stakeholder of Canada Post, it allows it to operate at arms length. To the point that Canada Post is able to invest/purchase wholly owned private companies like Purolator Courier to own at present a 91% stake in it. So in many respects, it can IMHO be argued that Canada Post is more privatized than nationalized. And the fact that there have been numerous strikes and service disruptions, also places it functionally and operationally in the realm of a private corporation.

There are plenty of grey areas to go around no doubt. For instance in the U.S. the major rail freight companies are 'private' companies although they are publicly traded in the stock markets etc; And while they are also able to strike, the govt. can and has stepped in during the past to order them back to work. In much the same way that the Canadian Parliament is stepping in to order Canada Post back to work.

In the USPS, they are still nationalized in the sense that they are prohibited to strike or otherwise inhibit the service, whereas Canada Post shares more in common with privatized corporations in that crucial regard.

 

[Kukulkan61]

It wasn't that long ago you could ship a bass coast to coast for $65, it's twice that now.

I shipped a bass USPS this week to Seattle 60.00..

 

[gitfiddl]

By establishing Canada Post as a Crown corporation, is in many ways similar to what was done to the USPS when it was taken 'off budget' meaning that it was no longer being subsidized with taxpayer money.

The USPS is still subsidized by taxpayer money to some extent. We, the US taxpayers, pay for their workmens' comp claims, from the initial treatment of injuries, the processing of those claims, to the adjudication of judgments on those claims. My daygig is that of a gubmint contractor processing documents for DOL/FECA/OWCP. Well over 50% of the documents that come across my digital desk are from the USPS.

 

[Fab Superlative]

The USPS is still subsidized by taxpayer money to some extent. We, the US taxpayers, pay for their workmens' comp claims, from the initial treatment of injuries, the processing of those claims, to the adjudication of judgments on those claims. My daygig is that of a gubmint contractor processing documents for DOL/FECA/OWCP. Well over 50% of the documents that come across my digital desk are from the USPS.

This is true, but isn't workmans' comp available to workers both public & private?
And is it also true that the USPS also pays into workman's comp insurance?

 

[James Collins]

"In no way is Canada Post privatized by any rational definition of that word."
According to the definition you posted (I bolded the passage) that seems like a fairly straight forward rational definition?

By establishing Canada Post as a Crown corporation, is in many ways similar to what was done to the USPS when it was taken 'off budget' meaning that it was no longer being subsidized with taxpayer money. And while the Crown (govt.) is still the sole stakeholder of Canada Post, it allows it to operate at arms length. To the point that Canada Post is able to invest/purchase wholly owned private companies like Purolator Courier to own at present a 91% stake in it. So in many respects, it can IMHO be argued that Canada Post is more privatized than nationalized. And the fact that there have been numerous strikes and service disruptions, also places it functionally and operationally in the realm of a private corporation.

There are plenty of grey areas to go around no doubt. For instance in the U.S. the major rail freight companies are 'private' companies although they are publicly traded in the stock markets etc; And while they are also able to strike, the govt. can and has stepped in during the past to order them back to work. In much the same way that the Canadian Parliament is stepping in to order Canada Post back to work.

In the USPS, they are still nationalized in the sense that they are prohibited to strike or otherwise inhibit the service, whereas Canada Post shares more in common with privatized corporations in that crucial regard.

Striking is independent of public versus private. We have public teacher strikes here. Same with police. I think the difference between public and private is just who owns the business. Most of the time I believe we are all thinking of democratic capitalist countries when we make the distinction of a worker as a government employee meaning they work for the people without profit. We get so used to the government being a public entity.

 

[StayLow]

"In no way is Canada Post privatized by any rational definition of that word."
According to the definition you posted (I bolded the passage) that seems like a fairly straight forward rational definition?

By establishing Canada Post as a Crown corporation, is in many ways similar to what was done to the USPS when it was taken 'off budget' meaning that it was no longer being subsidized with taxpayer money. And while the Crown (govt.) is still the sole stakeholder of Canada Post, it allows it to operate at arms length. To the point that Canada Post is able to invest/purchase wholly owned private companies like Purolator Courier to own at present a 91% stake in it. So in many respects, it can IMHO be argued that Canada Post is more privatized than nationalized. And the fact that there have been numerous strikes and service disruptions, also places it functionally and operationally in the realm of a private corporation.

There are plenty of grey areas to go around no doubt. For instance in the U.S. the major rail freight companies are 'private' companies although they are publicly traded in the stock markets etc; And while they are also able to strike, the govt. can and has stepped in during the past to order them back to work. In much the same way that the Canadian Parliament is stepping in to order Canada Post back to work.

In the USPS, they are still nationalized in the sense that they are prohibited to strike or otherwise inhibit the service, whereas Canada Post shares more in common with privatized corporations in that crucial regard.

Thanks.

Plenty of governement factions strike, in Canada and the U.S.

Equally important distinctions, and arguably the bottom line, is that they can be "structured like" whatever they want but if they're paid and have benefits and pensions backstopped by the taxpayer, who is never fairly represented in vote-buying "negotiations" between government and public unions, then they resemble little to nothing of private no matter what they pretend to act like.

As for them being majority owners in Purolator, well de-facto government control of private corporations in fact or by fiat is nothing new and seldom if ever ends well.

That's not an argument for private vs. public, or a commentary on Canada Post overall, it's just how it is. History repeats.

 

[comatosedragon]

Ok. Just seems high to me.

I agree, a 5% increase sounds high.

In 2019, the USPS will increase the cost of a first class postage stamp by 10% (from $0.50 to $0.55). And there are far far more first class letters than packages getting delivered.

It's all relative; I guess. But it still sucks.

 

[gitfiddl]

This is true, but isn't workmans' comp available to workers both public & private?
And is it also true that the USPS also pays into workman's comp insurance?

I don't believe the USPS pays anything into the Federal workmens comp. I do know that the same claims examiners for FECA/OWCP that handle USPS claims also handle those for various other government agencies (USDA, etc). Private sector companies' WC claims aren't handled at the Federal level. I've had to file two WC claims in the 30+ years I've been a member of the workforce. Both went though my then-employers' (a defunct local retail chain Pic 'N Save and then AutoZone) insurance companies (BC/BS and Aetna, respectively, IIRC).

 

[Fab Superlative]

The Postal Service reimburses DOL for all workers' compensation claims in addition to paying an administrative fee.

 

[Spidey2112]

Canada Post is privatized. So like Fedex & UPS and many other national carriers they are not mandated to perform.
The U.S. Postal Service, is one of the few true 'services' left that are not allowed to strike.
Even the venerable Royal Mail, in the U.K. has been privatized.
One of the arguments for privatization has been that the service delivery standards will improve- this has not been the case with any national service that has been privatized, case in point Canada Post.

And as much as folks slag on the USPS, as usual Americans just don't realize how good they've got it.

Another note is that the USPS is a 'quasi'-governmental agency, in that they receive no tax dollars to operate. All their operating expenses are funded by the postage fees they charge. So in that regard they are just like all the other private carriers- except the USPS is not allowed to shut down or go on strike, that's where the 'quasi' part comes into play.

Bingo.

 

[JoeWPgh]

It depends a lot on your local hub. UPS was the king in my parts, with Fed-Ex a distant 2nd, and USPS an absolute train wreck. Lately UPS has slipped a little, Fed-Ex has improved noticeably, and USPS has gotten very good. So now, there's no clear cut 'winner' here.