Regarding That Latest Postal Rate Increase . . . .
. . . idiocy like this might have something to do with it.
Seems that in 1988, a guy left active duty. He went to work for the US Postal Service.
In 1990, he rejoined the National Guard. He was active in the Guard.
So active, in fact, that in 2000 the USPS fired him for “job abandonment”. They thought he’d neglected his job at USPS and had taken off too much time for Guard matters.
During a 7-year period, the matter went to court multiple times. Courts ruled repeatedly in the soldier’s favor. But for some reason, the USPS apparently simply refused to reinstate the man in his former job.
The matter finally went to the Merit Systems Protection Board – again – late last year. And in it’s latest ruling, the board clearly was not amused with the USPS’s antics.
The board ordered the man reinstated – and also ordered the USPS to pony up for 12 years back pay and other costs. The total could come to roughly $2 million.
The USPS is reportedly appealing the latest MSPB decision. Hey, interest rates are low – what have they got to lose, right?
Sheesh. Talk about being too dumb to stop digging . . . .
Details are found here, and here. (The second link is from this guy’s union, so it’s hardly an unbiased source – IMO, lotsa spin there – but it does provide a few pertinent details not present in the first.) I’ve heard a couple of other stories of government agencies (both Federal and state) treating members of the Reserve Components quite shabbily, so I can believe this wasn’t just an accidental “Oops” on someone’s part. And the fact that multiple Federal judges and boards have ruled in this guy’s favor leads me to believe the facts are overwhelmingly on his side.
If that’s the case – and it appears indeed to be the case – this is long overdue.
It’s also good to see the USPS get absolutely body-slammed here. Government entities aren’t exempt from the Uniformed Services Employment/Reemployment Rights Act.
Hopefully those individuals at the USPS who are responsible for this idiocy end up with the same problem they foisted on this guy – unemployment. But in their case(s), it would IMO be fully deserved.
Category: Legal, Military issues, Reserve Issues
Fiance is a postmaster. Tales she tells splains why UPS and Fed Ex kick their ass.
My uncle also retired from the PO. Government inefficiency at it’s finest.
This behavior is typical of the US Government across the board. In the mid 80s I knew a USAF civilian who was moved from swingshift to dayshift without due notice. He filed a grievance and the USAF was ordered to pay him his shift differential pay. The USAF fought it and spent over $100K. They still lost and the amount owed was somewhere in the neighborhood of a thousand dollars. The rules were clear and the USAF violated them, why did they waste so much fighting it?
Am I the only one who is amazed that 12 years of back pay comes out to 2 million dollars?
The power of compound interest. And probably a somewhat high interest rate set by regulation.
The $2M amount also appears to include the guy’s legal expenses. It may also include reimbursement for medical care expenses paid out of pocket, if any, due to loss of health benefits.
This is stupid beyond comprehension.
I can say from personal experience with USPS management, that this form of stupidity doesn’t surprise me. I will guarantee you if it was someone in a supervisory position this would’nt have happened. This kind of idiocy happens to the other crafts (clerk, mailhandler, carrier maintenance, etc.) more than you think.