USPS in a Pickle Again

Two years after headline-making postal reform, here we go again. The U.S. Postal Service witnessed a headline-making drop of 9.5 billion mail pieces in fiscal year 2008, which contributed to a net loss of $2.8 billion. But having to pay $5.6 billion to prefund its retiree health benefit fund was the major hit that made the USPS management’s aggressive cuts of $2 billion from annual operating costs practically disappear into thin air. And with no relief in sight, Postmaster General John Potter has stated the organization is on track to post a revenue shortfall of $5 billion in fiscal year 2009.