Why Is My Mail Delayed?

Are you wondering why your mail is delayed or why you aren’t getting your mail at all? Well, you're not alone. Over the last two years, I have heard from more and more Vermonters who are having problems with mail delivery. In fact, this January, my office received more calls asking for help with the Postal Service than any other federal issue. That's the first time that has ever happened.

What every Vermonter should know is that delays in the mail are not the fault of our local postal workers. In fact, the opposite is true. Many letter carriers are working 12-hour shifts, seven days a week. Some of them are even forgoing earned time off because they know that if they take a vacation day the customers on their route will go without mail.

The reason that Vermont and many parts of the country are now experiencing poor mail service is that the Postal Service is experiencing a major labor shortage. This has been caused by both the pandemic and very poor management decisions over the years. Hopefully, Congress will address this crisis with the passage of a major postal reform bill which should be on the floor of the House and Senate very shortly.

The problems facing the Postal Service are deep and long-standing. Among many other issues is the reality that for more than 15 years, the Postal Service has been required to pre-fund 75 years' worth of retiree health benefits. There is no other entity, either public or private, which has had that kind of financial burden. Additionally, low wages for new letter carriers and other postal workers has made it harder to attract the employees who are so desperately needed by the Postal Service.

On top of that, former President Trump’s handpicked Postmaster General, Louis DeJoy, has implemented a disastrous plan to slow down mail delivery, cut back on post office hours, shut down mail processing plants, and dismantle mail sorting machines. I believe that he should be removed from his position.

The video below features Jeff Towsley. Jeff is a retired letter carrier from Burlington and currently a legislative liaison with the Vermont State Association of Letter Carriers. Please listen to what he has to say.

Vermonters – and the American people – know that we must strengthen and protect the Postal Service, not dismantle it. We must end the disastrous pre-funding mandate, protect six-day delivery and expand services to make affordable, basic financial services available at post offices.

If you are having trouble with your mail or have ideas as to how we can improve the Postal Service – I want to hear from you. Please click here to share your comments.