Prior to the changes the Postmaster General, a cabinet level position, was the dispenser of all political patronage jobs for the administration.
Regards,
GtG
When I was hired as a Mailman in 1966 I was hired by a Postmaster who was appointed by whichever political party was in at that time. After the strike in the early 70’s and the switch from the United States Post Office to The United States Postal Service all promotions were “in house”. That was the beginning of the end. Most everyone wanted to be a Postmaster or at least a supervisor. Guys were ratting on each other and/or stabbing each other in the back to get promoted—and it worked. Problem was—the most capable were not the ones promoted. Still that way.
In 1984 all government and Postal employees were put into Social Security. Prior to that they were in the Federal Civil Service Retirement System. Like me, they never paid a dime into Social Security. The new hires (post 1/1/84) were put into the Federal employees Retirement System. They are GIVEN 1% of their pay in a 401k type account plus they have the opportunity for matching funds. Plus Social Security. This can mount up but the “average” Mail Carrier/Clerk will never have an 80,000 dollar + pension.
After 33 plus years actual service plus 2 years military service time, plus nine months of accumulated sick leave I have a pension of almost 2,000 dollars a month. NO Social Security.
My opinion—Eliminate Saturday delivery, Close tons of small Post Offices where the one or two people who work there make more in a year than they take in in a year, eliminate tons of jobs that have NOTHING to do with delivering the mail.