Weeks before the November general election, the union representing post office workers is sounding an alarm about slower mail delivery in South Florida, CBS Miami reports. It is thanks to the loss of three major post-sorting machines, the union says.
“Those machines have been moved. We’ve lost three of them so far here at Miami GMF (General Mail Facility), our main factory,” said Wanda Harris.
Harris is the general president of the Miami Chapter of the American Postal Workers Union.
She said each mail sorting machine could process a maximum of 40,000 pieces per hour. Before this summer, she said, the plan was to upgrade the machines to process even more email.
“That was what we did before this PMG came into office on June 15,” Harris said.
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, appointed by President Trump, has agreed to testify at Capitol Hill on proposed cost-cutting measures. They came at a time when several states were expanding post-voting due to COVID-19.
“It’s full of fraud and all the other things that could have happened,” President Trump said.
The president, who votes by mail, disagrees with universal post-in-votes. He also denies that he is trying to improve his chances of re-election.
“The only way we will lose this election is if the elections are rigged. Remember that,” the president said Monday.
Democrats say his claims are not true.
“The president knows exactly what he is doing by making these false pretenses,” Sen said. Michael Bennet, D-Montana, of Colorado.
Harris said the blue mailboxes in Florida have not been removed. But she said people have seen her disappear in places like Oregon, New Jersey, Indiana and Missouri.
“Our fight is to make sure that stimulus package is passed. We need the Senate to pass it on,” Harris said.
Harris said sick staff, hiring temporary help and a lower number of people buying stamps and sending mail to the post office have been hurt. While she and others fight for relief, Harris said they all work harder to get your medications, letters, notes and moods on time.
“It makes us dig a little deeper, work a little harder and make sure we get the delivery out like we normally do to satisfy our customers,” Harris said.
Removing more machines and mailboxes for email has stopped across the nation as the agency investigates customers. But the postal service told CBS News on Sunday that action is routine if there is a decline in postal volume.
.
