The Postmaster is on My Naughty List Big Time
By: Denise Shelton
Tags: Post Office, Amazon, Business, Trump, eBay

The Postmaster is on My “Naughty” List Big Time

Trump’s petty squabbles and election-related shenanigans are continuing to cause big problems for small businesses and individuals.

Mandel Ngan | AFP | Getty Images (fair use)

My side gig is selling stuff on eBay. Before Trump’s appointment of Postmaster General Louis DeJoy in May of this year, the US Postal Service and I got along fine. For the three years that I’ve been an eBay store owner, I’ve had a growing appreciation for the service our post office provides. But DeJoy’s “leadership” and Trump’s plots within plots to punish his enemies and forward his self-interests have turned my dream partnership with the post office into something of a nightmare.

“Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” — quote by Herodotus carved in granite over the entrance to the New York City Post Office on 8th Avenue

Sellers’ reputations are being tarnished

I’m a well-respected seller on eBay with a 100% positive rating. I mostly sell things I own that I no longer want and occasionally buy things to flip. I only make a few thousand dollars a year, but it’s worth it because I get rid of things I don’t need without adding them to the landfill and get enough in return to pay a few bills. The best part is that whenever I’m a little down, I can read my customer reviews for an ego boost. Here’s a sampling:

Everything is perfect and beautiful. Amazing seller. Thank you!

Packing job good, item exactly as described, I would recommend! A+ seller.

Great seller, I highly recommend them

SUPER SELLER! Great to deal with, answers all questions very fast. Thank you!

Fast shipping. Nice item. Great seller. TY!

Part of the reason I have a great reputation on eBay is that I ship things fast. When my customers place an order, I usually pack it and create a shipping label within an hour. I ship either the same day or on the following morning. Because my buyers are given the tracking number on their packages, they can log in to the USPS website and watch their progress through the system.

“…between October 2019 and August 2020, the agency removed 712 machines that processed letters and flat mail — and more than 60% of them were removed between June and August this year.” — Jory Heckman, Federal News Network, October 21, 2020

(Photo via Istockphoto.com)

Ever since DeJoy made changes in the way mail is handled, including removing sorting machines, significantly reducing late and extra truck trips, and reducing overtime, delays have become the new normal. This does not sit well with my customers who expect Priority Mail packages to arrive within 2 to 3 days.

I’ve also noticed that packages are not being scanned into the system as frequently as they used to be. My mail carrier picked up a package at my address on November 30 but didn’t scan it. It was never scanned by my local post office either.

It’s been almost two weeks, and it hasn’t arrived yet. My customer has issued a complaint to eBay because the USPS tracking system indicates that I created a label but never mailed the package. I filed a missing package report, and the package was finally scanned into the system for the first time on December 10, 11 days after the mail carrier picked it up. It looks like it’s on its way, but when I check the tracking system, it predicts a December 7th delivery, which is impossible since it’s already the 12th, and it’s not there yet! To the customer, it must look pretty fishy.

(Photo via Istockphoto.com)

A 10-day delay in scanning happened with another of my packages a few weeks ago. The customer asked for a refund, which I provided. The package arrived the next day. Luckily, my customer was honest and paid again. She left me a positive review, too. Not everyone is so understanding. Here are some comments from sellers on the sub-Reddit group r/Flipping:

“Customer went to his local USPS and they told him they are not in possession of the item, so he filed a refund request. I understand from his perspective since it looks like I never shipped, but I 100% did.”

“I had about 60 small orders in limbo for 6 days (everything I dropped off last Thursday). They did start moving on day 7 yesterday, thank god.”

“It’s an awkward situation since he can reasonably I assume I am pulling some shenanigans and just didn’t ship it, but I am equally worried the tracking will never update but he’ll receive it and move forward with the refund.”

Even a single bad review from a customer on your eBay feedback profile can hurt future sales. It doesn’t even have to be your fault. These delays have unintended consequences for sellers, not just on eBay, but on other online platforms like Amazon and Etsy.

(Photo via Istockphoto.com)

Throughout the pandemic and the turmoil related to mail-in ballots, the rank and file postal workers have performed admirably, as they always have. They’re doing the best they can within a system that’s been re-designed for failure.

The delays caused by DeJoy’s ill-advised management decisions have been compounded exponentially by the high volume of mail-in ballots, the increase of online shopping related to the pandemic as well as Black Friday and Cyber Monday, and the number of postal workers out sick or who have died from COVID-19.

DeJoy could have foreseen all these challenges since we were well into the pandemic when he took office, and the election and holiday shopping season dates were known to all. Nevertheless, he instituted changes that made a bad situation worse and whose impact is continuing to be felt. The courts intervened before the election and issued preliminary injunctions against some of DeJoy’s changes, but the Trump administration is currently working to have those overturned.

I don’t know it for a fact; I just know it’s true

The following are my opinions about what is going on with the USPS.

Donald Trump knew many more Democrats than Republicans would be voting by mail due to the pandemic. For this reason, he ordered DeJoy to slow down the mail so that many mail-in ballots would arrive late and miss the deadline to be counted giving him and other Republican candidates an unfair advantage. He also opposed emergency funding to the post office in the wake of the pandemic.

(Image via startribune.com)

“Now they need that money in order to make the post office work so it can take all of these millions and millions of ballots … But if they don’t get those two items that means you can’t have universal mail-in voting.” — President Trump in a Fox News Interview on August 13, 2020

Many Americans stood in line to vote rather than trust the mail system, potentially exposing themselves to the pandemic.

Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos (image via Wikipedia.org)

The temporary price increase on domestic packages announced in August (in effect from October 18 until December 27) was in part motivated by Trump’s desire to stick it to his nemesis Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, during his most profitable quarter. Trump has accused Bezos of scamming the USPS. The president tipped his hand about this on March 21, 2018, when he tweeted this:

“ If the P.O. “increased its parcel rates, Amazon’s shipping costs would rise by $2.6 Billion.” This Post Office scam must stop. Amazon must pay real costs (and taxes) now!” — @realDonaldTrump

The price increase was obviously intended to hurt Bezos and Amazon, but it’s hurting every other business, large and small, that uses the USPS to deliver its goods.

Courtroom sketch of Steve Bannon at his arraignment (Credit: Jane Rosenberg/Reuters)

Trump has a grudge against the post office itself. It was U.S. Postal Service Inspectors who arrested his former campaign adviser Steve Bannon aboard a luxury yacht anchored off the coast of Connecticut on August 20, 2020.

Bannon and three others have been charged with conspiracy to commit wire fraud and money laundering in conjunction with his efforts to raise money for Trump’s pet project, the border wall between the U.S. and Mexico. His trial is set for May of 2021.

Donald Trump may have lost the election, but the damage he’s done while posing as President of the United States will have long-lasting effects for all its citizens. January 20th can’t come soon enough. In the meantime, support your USPS postal workers. They’ve been through the wringer this year. My guy Perry is getting a very nice bottle of wine.

©2020, Denise Shelton. All rights reserved.