Greece’s fiscal meltdown could be a sign of things to come in the U.S. if we don’t get our own fiscal house in order. The images of Greek unions rioting against desperately needed government reforms bring to mind our own problems with public sector unions.
Downsizing Blog
USPS Labor Inflexibility
U.S. Postal Service management has repeatedly told Congress that it needs greater labor flexibility to reduce costs. Despite increased automation and workforce reductions, labor continues to account for 80 percent of the USPS’s cost structure.
NASA's Feel Good Mission
NASA administrator Charles Bolden says that his “foremost” mission is to improve relations with the Muslim world. This head-scratching statement is made more bizarre by Bolden’s claim that he received this instruction from the president himself.
USPS Wants Rate Hike
The long-term prospects for the U.S. Postal Service monopoly are bleak. To help stem the flow of red ink, the USPS intends to seek a rate increase. Only a government monopoly would try to raise prices when the demand for its services is plummeting. The rate increase will only push its already declining customer base to use cheaper, more efficient electronic alternatives.
Amtrak's Financial Shenanigans
In the mid-1990s, Amtrak president Thomas Downs claimed that the perpetually taxpayer-dependent railroad was “on a glide path to profitability.” In reality, Amtrak was on a glide path to bankruptcy without continuing taxpayer subsidies.
The USPS and the Constitution
In a Washington Post article on the U.S. Postal Service’s continuing problems, Ed O’Keefe calls the USPS “a quasi-government agency enshrined in the Constitution but required by law to act like a business.”
The USPS's "Automation Refugees"
Jim O’Brien, a vice-president at Time Inc. and chairman of the Mailers Council, recently guest-blogged on the U.S. Postal Service’s inspector general’s web site on the subject of “automation refugees.”
Amtrak Delays
The Washington Post takes a look at the state of Amtrak and finds that train delays are a chronic problem. As a Cato essay on privatization notes, Amtrak “has provided second-rate rail service for more than 30 years while consuming more than $30 billion in federal subsidies.”
The Postal Service's Union Problem
Comments from members of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee at a recent hearing on the U.S. Postal Service’s woes indicate they don’t appreciate the USPS’s union problem. Postmaster General John Potter went before the committee to make his case for restructuring the postal operation, including greater labor flexibility.
Congress is Hurdle to USPS Reforms
National Journal reports that two key policymakers don’t support the U.S. Postal Service’s desire to eliminate Saturday mail delivery. House Financial Services Appropriations Subcommittee Chairman Jose Serrano (D-NY) says he’ll be working with USPS management and the postal unions to avoid service cuts. And House Oversight and Government Reform Federal Workforce Subcommittee ranking member Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) announced that he too opposes the move.