Things said that don’t ring true

Things said that don’t ring true

At the Dec. 28 public meet ing on the planned closing of the Youngstown mail processing and distribution center, USPS Northern Ohio District Manager Todd Hawkins stated that Pittsburgh, Pa., is approximately 40 miles from Youngstown and some workers displaced by the closing of the facility could potentially work in Pittsburgh. (His own PowerPoint presentation stated it is 66 miles from Youngstown.)

Mr. Hawkins also stated that by eliminating only two management positions from the Youngstown facility, the USPS would realize a savings of half-million dollars. When questioned about this by an audience member he explained that the USPS was not basing this amount strictly on salary. The district manager also stated “We cannot afford to ... run our trucks all across the country” and that consolidating the distribution centers in fewer areas, there would be a savings on fuel. He went on to explain that with the closing of the Youngstown distribution center, anything mailed from Youngstown would first be trucked to Pittsburgh for sorting, then trucked back to Youngstown for delivery. He also stated a first class piece of mail will potentially take 3 to 5 days to be delivered.

Several audience members questioned Mr. Hawkins about what information was used to determine which facilities would be closed. Mr. Hawkins stated all relevant data was considered and no final determination has been made as of yet.

Richard Smiley, Girard

The writer works as a letter carrier in Austintown.