Help Round Up Missing Equipment

Each year, the U.S. Postal Service spends millions of dollars to replace equipment that disappears. Losses quickly can add up with wooden and plastic pallets ranging from $7 to $20 each, cardboard and plastic letter trays ranging from 65 cents to $2.75 per tray, and plastic flat tubs costing around $4 each.

Help round up missing equipment. If you see Mail Transport Equipment (MTE) outside the postal network, call the Recovery Hotline at 866-330-3404.

Sharpening Your Basic Driving Skills

Driving isn’t like riding a bicycle. If you don’t drive often or perform certain maneuvers for extended periods of time, it’s likely that you won’t perform them quickly or correctly when the need arises. Keep your basic skills sharp with the following tips from the AAA Foundation:

LEFT TURN ARROWS
Many busy intersections have dedicated left turn lanes with their own arrow or traffic light. The signal for the left lane usually turns green before the other traffic can go. But left turn signals can be tricky.

1. Sometimes the green arrow turns to yellow and then red. Sometimes the green arrow just turns off, which means you can still make a left turn if traffic allows it.
2. Here the arrow turns yellow, briefly, before turning off. Be particularly cautious here; it's best to stop rather than charge through a potentially dangerous intersection.
3. When you see the green arrow go out, be alert! Do not turn left into oncoming traffic. If you have any doubt at all, stay in the lane until the arrow turns green again.
4. Once you have started your turn and are in the intersection, do not hesitate or dawdle. Move through the intersection briskly.

LANE CHANGING
Lane changing on busy highways can be difficult for even the most experienced drivers. The secret is to plan ahead by knowing what other vehicles are doing around you.

Be smarter than the other guy! Use your turn signal every time you change lanes. Before you make your move, look in your side and rearview mirrors to make sure the lane is clear. If there is another vehicle in the lane, or if there is another vehicle in the right lane behind you (at a distance) which is overtaking you at a fast speed, stay where you are. Wait for that vehicle to pass you.

Remember you have blind spots, and that the blind spot on the right is larger than on the left. Before you change lanes, turn your head carefully to check the appropriate blind spot. When you decide it is safe, turn the steering wheel in the direction you wish to go. Change lanes quickly, but smoothly. Do not wander as you change lanes. You always want to appear confident and in control of the situation. Once you've successfully negotiated the lane change, make sure your turn signal is off.

FOUR-WAY STOP
The rules for a four-way stop are like those for a two-way: Stop and look for oncoming traffic, and proceed when it is safe to do so.

You may occasionally arrive at a four-way stop sign at the same time as another driver. In such cases the driver to the right has the right of way. However, not all drivers know this. If someone to your left decides to go first, let them!

September is National Preparedness Month

The earthquake and hurricane that hit the East Coast within days of each other at the end of August are reminders that emergencies can occur anytime, anywhere and in any combination.

Just how prepared are you and your family for these and other calamities? Do you have a basic emergency supply kit? Do you have a plan for contacting family members in case of an emergency?

September is National Preparedness Month. It’s a time to encourage Americans to prepare for emergencies in their homes, businesses and communities.

Develop a plan to suit your family’s unique needs. To get started, use the tools at http://www.ready.gov/.

USPS encourages all employees to follow three steps to prepare for potential emergencies at home:
-- Stock a supply kit with items needed to survive an emergency.
-- Make a family plan ahead of time to know what to do during an emergency.
-- Be informed about potential emergency situations that could occur.

Employees also need to be familiar with their facility emergency plan if something happens at work. Call the USPS National Employee Emergency Hotline — 888-363-7462 — for the latest information on the operating condition of your facility.

It's an Online ePostage Revolution

The Postal Service this month begins testing ePostage — a new electronic postage. It will be used by merchants who sell their wares through online marketplaces.

“More than 2 million merchants use online marketplaces,” said Gary Reblin, Vice President, Domestic Products. “The success of this test has the potential to significantly increase the Postal Service’s package business, especially for business-to-consumer shipping.”

ePostage will be tested in the Los Angeles, CA, San Francisco, CA, and Washington, DC, areas, which will be points of origin for package shipments. ePostage will be available with Express Mail, Priority Mail, First-Class Mail parcels, Package Services (except Library Mail) and Parcel Select barcoded nonpresort. The testing of ePostage also means the introduction of a new label for USPS employees to identify in the mailstream. It’s similar to other PC Postage labels except it will indicate “ePostage” is being used.

Acceptance scans must be performed, just as with other prepaid postage. Delivery Confirmation is included and indicated as part of the Intelligent Mail package barcode. Insurance and Signature Confirmation will be offered as extra services.

“With our product offerings, nationwide logistics network, convenient pickup options and thousands of drop-off locations, we offer online sellers and retailers one-stop shipping that delivers value and convenience and helps bring in new revenue,” said Reblin.

PMG Testifies, Seeks Urgent Legislative Action

This week Postmaster General Patrick R. Donahoe told a Senate committee that without enactment of legislation by the end of this month, USPS can’t make a congressionally mandated $5.5 billion payment to pre-fund retiree health benefits and will be in default.

“The Postal Service is in a crisis today because it operates within a restrictive business model and has limited flexibility to respond to a changing marketplace,” Donahoe told the U.S Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.

“We need the ability to operate more as a business does,” said Donahoe. “In order to return to sound financial footing to meet America’s evolving mailing and shipping needs for generations to come.”

Donahoe said the Postal Service needs the enactment of comprehensive, long-term legislation to provide needed flexibility. He called on Congress to pass a bill that would amend the law requiring the Postal Service to make $5.5 billion annual payments to prefund retirement health benefits, return $6.9 billion in Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS) overpayments, overpayments, give USPS the authority to determine delivery frequency, allow the Postal Service to restructure its healthcare system, making it independent of federal programs, grant the Postal Service authority to provide a defined contribution retirement plan for new hires, and streamline the process for product development and pricing.

Is Your Pooch an Owney Look-Alike?

Does your dog love to travel? Is it friendly to letter carriers? And does it look like Owney, the Postal Dog?

If so, enter your pooch in the National Postal Museum’s Owney Look-Alike Contest — celebrating the Postal Service icon.

Owney gained worldwide fame in the 1890s for riding in railcars carrying the mail. After his death, he was put on display at the Postal Museum. This year, the museum unveiled a new exhibit on the Railway Mail Service featuring the beloved mutt, and USPS issued a commemorative postage stamp.

The Postal Museum and the Washington Humane Society are sponsoring the contest. To enter, photograph your dog doing its best Owney pose and write a paragraph about how it resembles Owney. Click here to submit your entry before the Sept. 15 deadline.

Prizes include a 16GB iPad2, the e-book, “Owney: Tails on the Rails,” an Owney plush toy, an autographed copy of the book, “A Lucky Dog: Owney U.S. Railway Mascot,” and an uncut press sheet of Owney’s stamp.

Photos of the grand prize winner and two runners-up will be displayed next to the real Owney in the Postal Museum for two weeks.