Audit: Staffing shortages lead to mail delivery delays

LACONIA — A Postal Service Inspector’s audit shows that staffing shortages have delayed mail at 10 postal facilities in New Hampshire, including one in Laconia.

The Postal Service has a reporting system for undelivered mail. The audit found that in some cases this reporting system was not used. For some packages, auditors found that it appeared there was a deliberate attempt not to record undelivered items.

Unreported delayed mail was identified in Laconia, Bradford, Enfield, Newport and West Lebanon in July.

In December 2019 and January 2020 delayed mail was noted at all of the facilities except Laconia.

The other facilities looked at were in Andover, Campton, New London, Newbury and Spofford.

“This independent report confirms what constituents told me – that they are experiencing delayed mail, and that facilities need additional staff to ensure that mail is delivered on time,” said Sen. Maggie Hassan, who requested the audit and released the report Thursday.

“Granite Staters depend on mail deliveries for medication, business supplies, and other necessities, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic.”

From January to May 2020, the U.S. Postal Service’s Northern New England District received 29,396 customer complaints regarding mail delivery and customer service. Of those, 12,421 (42 percent) were in the state of New Hampshire and 754 (6 percent) were at the 10 facilities that were part of the audit.

Hiring difficulties have led to an insufficient number of career and non-career staff to sort, distribute, and deliver mail, according to the audit.

The audit also found that carriers improperly scanned 61 (18 percent) of 337 packages at the 10 postal facilities because managers did not enforce proper procedures.

"This occurred because delivery unit management and Post Office Operations Managers did not enforce daily mail scanning procedures and directed packages to be scanned with a 'stop-the-clock' scan to avoid undelivered packages being reported on the Package Scanning End of Day Report," the audit stated. "We made referrals to our Office of Investigations as appropriate."

This office can look into the issue further and recommend personnel disciplinary actions if appropriate, Hassan's office said.

The audit recommended managers develop a plan for compliance with these procedures and that staffing issues be addressed through better coordination with Postal Service Human Resources.

From December 2019 to last June, one of 32 posted open positions were filled at the 10 locations. None of the 10 openings in Laconia were filled.

“Postal Service management stated the job requirements for the RCA (rural carrier associates) position make it difficult for hiring,” the audit stated.

“In many offices, RCAs are required to supply their own vehicle to deliver mail on routes, and the Postal Service does not guarantee RCAs a minimum number of hours per week. Postal Service officials indicated that younger entrants into the job market might not be willing to take an RCA job due to these factors, especially when other jobs outside the Postal Service are available.”

The Postal Service’s hourly wage rate for rural carrier associates is $18.56 an hour.

“Other businesses in the area offered $15.00 to $21.00 per hour for comparable entry-level positions,” the audit said. “In addition, job applicants must go to the New Hampshire Division of Motor Vehicles (DMV) to request driving records in person, which can add time to the onboarding process. In other states, the Postal Service can obtain driving records directly from state motor vehicle jurisdictions.”

The audit also described a lengthy and difficult hiring process that led many applicants to withdraw their employment applications.

Managers responded to the audit by listing hiring efforts including six job fairs, radio and television ads, social media advertising, digital billboards, hiring handouts and posters. They also said they would implement or reinforce policies to mitigate problems with package scanning procedures.

In a Dec. 4 letter in response to the audit, Regina Bugbee, Postal Service district manager for Northern New England, listed these recruitment efforts, but noted there were six facilities in the region that still did not have a full complement of workers, including Laconia. 

"Management agrees with the findings and recommendations noted in the audit report," she stated. 

Calls to Darryl Hoover, officer in charge of the Laconia Post Office, were not immediately returned.