Will that present you mailed to Uncle Felix reach him by Christmas? Maybe not.
The U.S. Postal Service finds itself “gridlocked” this holiday season by a crushing combination of gift packages and cards, mail-in ballots for Georgia run-off elections in early January and the decision by commercial carriers UPS and FedEx to abandon delivery service for some retailers.
Plus, reports the Washington Post, there’s the Covid-19 pandemic, which keeps Americans at home, triggering a surge in online shopping at Amazon and other e-commerce companies. Every purchase they ship adds to the backlog jamming many post offices.
“We’re really gridlocked all over the place,” an unnamed USPS transportation manager in Ohio told the Post. “It’s bad. I’ve never seen it like this before.”
Unlike FedEx and UPS, as a government agency the Postal Service doesn’t have the luxury of simply turning delivery customers down.
The result is widespread delays affecting even First Class mail like bills, paychecks, personal letters and, of course, Christmas cards.
In a news release Monday night, the USPS said it has warned its employees — including 50,000 seasonal workers — that their peak season will “peak this week.”
“Commercial delivery services … rely on the Postal Service for the ‘last mile’ shipping of [their] packages to save money, or ensure delivery on Sundays or to rural areas,” the Post says. “Those packages frequently end up in the same delivery trucks carrying other mail … which could contribute to delays.”
Such delays follow a “tumultuous summer and election season” for the Postal Service, the Post says, during which the agency struggled to implement cost-cutting measures imposed by Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, then had to roll them back while more than 65 million Americans voted by mail in the November election.”
In a video message Monday, DeJoy thanked postal workers, saying that 2020 has been a “difficult year” for the agency.
“The women and men of the Postal Service have played a tremendous role in supporting the nation throughout the pandemic, during the election season, and now through a very busy holiday season. I am grateful for your service in every community.”