Mail has been intentionally delayed at this facility since at least January of 2014. USPS OIG, Mgmt, APWU, PRC and US Reps have all been made aware. All are silent.
*UPDATED – August 7, 2014
Click Here for KFVS I-Team Special Report: Cape Girardeau mail delay (video)
The Cape Giradeau Area Mail Processing Center had operations partially consolidated in the first phase of the PMG’s Network Realignment. In what seems to be an attempt at making that initial consolidation activity appear successful, remaining operations have been fraudulently delaying mail processing and delivery.
“…if you have the ability to document the mail that is being intentionally mis-sent from the NDC I would appreciate it. Such as, taking photos with your phone….”
– OIG Special Agent Massey
This problem was initially reported to OIG Special Agent Ellen Massey. Special Agent Massey requested continuing updates and information on a daily basis of the violations. And then…suddenly…she dropped the case.
Coincidentally, she dropped the case less than three weeks before Phase 2 of the Network Realignment was announced.
It was hoped this intentional mail delay problem would be swiftly investigated and resolved by OIG Special Agent Massey so all images were, unfortunately, not kept.
As the situation progressed and actually worsened, ALL images were safely secured for future reference and evidence.
(See documents in Timeline and also scroll down
page for photo galleries and some of the correspondent
email communications/comments links.)
January 28-29, 2014
[Click here for corresponding email sent to OIG]
February 4, 2014
[Click here for corresponding email sent to OIG]
May 29, 2014
[Click here for corresponding email sent to OIG]
June 10, 2014
[Click here for corresponding email sent to OIG]
2 DAYS LATER,
after working on this case for 6 months….
From: “Massey, Ellen” <EMassey@uspsoig.gov>
Date: June 12, 2014 at 12:18:08 PM CDT
To: Bean <walking.dead.bean@gmail.com>
Subject: RE: 6/12/14
Vern, There is no need to send any further data to me.
Only the KC, MO OIG office can assist you regarding Cape issues.
Sorry I can be of no help.
EllenEllen Massey
Special Agent
USPS-Office of Inspector General
1600 Woodstone Drive, Suite 100
St. Charles, MO 63303-9928
O: (636) 345-9765
C: (314) 914-1855
F: (866) 644-6820
emassey@uspsoig.gov
June 17-18, 2014
[Click here for corresponding email sent to OIG]
June 19, 2014
This is the delayed First Class Letters, Flats, parcels and Priority Parcels that were here when I came in at 2315 Hours. This mail will sit until tomorrow afternoon, un cancelled, un scanned and undocumented, save for these images.
June 20, 2014
June 22, 2014
I don’t normally work Sunday nights/Monday morning, but this is what is always here when my partner comes in on Sunday night. These are tubs and trays of First Class and and Priority collection mail, unsorted, uncancelled and unmoved since they arrived on SATURDAY afternoon. Keep in mind that this mail will be here until Monday afternoon before it is even sent to STL for processing.
June 23, 2014
June 24, 2014
June 25, 2014
June 26, 2014
June 27, 2014
June 30, 2014
July 2, 2014
July 5, 2014
July 6, 2014
July 7, 2014
July 8, 2014
July 9, 2014
As of this past Monday night (7/7/14), the tour supervisors have been tasked with photographing this mail and sending it “up the chain.” They aren’t handling the mail any differently, just photographing and emailing. I don’t know if this is for the Plant Manager, KCMO District Management or KCMO OIG.
July 10, 2014
July 14, 2014
July 15, 2014
July 16, 2014
Tonight, we had a missent parcel from STL that had to be returned immediately (an urn). So, since that parcel had to go, I went ahead and scanned the withheld Priority & 1C parcels and sent them on the truck to STL at 2350.
July 18, 2014
July 21, 2014
July 22, 2014
July 23, 2014 (morning)
I happened to be at the plant this morning at a later time, checking the schedule and picking up some paperwork. I took a moment to confirm a suspicion and this is what I found. This is withheld, delayed, undocumented First Class letters, flats and parcels… mail that is held overnight at our Main Post Office in Cape Girardeau, MO. This mail is held downtown overnight until this arrives there at 0815 hours, the truck leaves there at 0830 hours and finally arrives back at the plant at 0845 hours (yes, our MPO is located less than 15 minutes away). It arrives 1 hour after my shift ends at the plant. This mail is held on the truck with the door closed on our dock.
This mail withheld so that it cannot be documented with the mail that is photographed as evidence on a nightly basis. My source contact in the MPO tells me that this withholding and the instructions to withhold at the MPO began in March of 2014.
Keep in mind, the photographic evidence that is documented at night, doesn’t include the volume that is withheld from delivery the plant location. If all the mail that is being withheld on this manner were to be on-site at the plant, the volume would be quite larger than the photographic evidence shows.
This is all undeniable evidence that the management in Mid-America District are and have been actively trying to cover up delivery standard failures that have been a DIRECT RESULT of the Phase I consolidation of the Richard G. Wilson mail processing facility in Cape Girardeau, MO. The AMP studies were a sham and the public trust has been violated. Laws appear to have been broken here.
Questions need to be answered:
Who is ordering the Post Offices and CPU’s to withhold our customers’ mail from processing and delivery? How high does this go? Where else is this mail behind withheld and again, who is giving those instructions? What is the difference between an OIG Special Agent in STL Gateway District, who collects and forwards this documentation to the KCMO OIG office, and those counterparts in KCMO OIG who have done NOTHING and offered ZERO response to emailed and filed online form complaints?
July 23, 2014
Realize that we are in the middle of the month during our slowest mailing season of the year. I am nearly speechless. This is getting closer to being back to the volume levels we had when this began. These are STACKS of tubs, each containing raw First Class letters & flats, in addition to the First Class and Priority parcels that remain un-scanned, all while USPS spokespersons are assuring the media that all these parcels are scanned step-by-step in their travels. Unfortunately, the clock doesn’t start until that first scan is made… eventually.
July 24, 2014
Some History:
I am a US Postal Service Employee who works on Tour 1 at the Richard G. Wilson Mail Processing Center in Cape Girardeau, MO. Our facility is, and has been, among those facilities on the Phase II list for consolidation.
This is the cage management used to physically bar employees from processing the mail.
Last year, soon after the delayed mail withholding began, some of my co-workers and I began separating out the local to local mail that we can process and deliver on time, as our destination mail operations have not changed, at least for now. We were instructed by our Tour Supervisor to stop doing it, as per instructions of the OIC, according to him. We felt that it was an unlawful order so we kept on serving the needs of our customers. When this was discovered, the delayed mail was locked in a storage cage that is attached to our BMEU on the facility’s dock. The mail was locked away from our access before we came in for our shift and was only removed sometime after we ended our tour. Yes, we were physically barred from processing delayed First Class and Priority Mail. Soon after, instructions were given to all employees involved to stop touching that mail, subtle threat of discipline included. In the end, knowing that USPS management will act and worry about consequences later, none of us wanted to risk being suspended without pay until a grievance could be settled… the nuclear option. We stopped sorting that mail but I began documenting it heavily.
Click Image for Whistleblower Protection Information
I began communications with an OIG special investigator last year when a co-worker noticed huge volumes of unsorted Priority parcels dumped on top of the properly destined mail inside of BMC’s labeled for Park Hills, MO (Part of our 636 service area). We had noticed a huge volume increase for Park Hills, MO at the time the Centralia and Carbondale Mail Processing Centers were consolidated into the Hazelwood NDC operation. We thought it was odd but never gave it much thought until my partner started looking into the contents of those containers. I collected photographic evidence for the OIG Special Investigator on that mail up until it stopped happening. (More)
Union and NAME of Local/Branch
Cape Girardeau Area Local 4088
Office held, if any
Member
I emailed the link to this page along with the OIG voicemail recordings that were left on my phone. The USPS continues to claim that there are no mail delays taking place in our facility. The truth is here and impacted rural customers in Southeast Missouri and all across the country need to be made aware. We are not unique. I know this is happening in other facilities, because I have received emails from people saying they are glad someone is standing up and letting them know they are not alone. Take this evidence to your local papers, your TV news affiliates. I ain’t heard the large, lovely lady sing, boyo’s. Do not sit out the last round. Fight!
Union and NAME of Local/Branch
APWU Philadelphia, PA Area Local #89
Office held, if any
Member / 21CPW Site Administrator
An update from Senator Blunt’s office:
Sounds like we are getting the “runaround.”
Check this out, this is why we are unnecessarily losing parcel business to our competitors.
http://community.ebay.com/t5/Archive-Packaging-Shipping/Post-Office-Not-Scan-the-Tracking-at-Point-of-Origin/qaq-p/8067521