The Very Real Threat Of Postal Privatization:

by GlennDL

Opinions and references to privatization of the postal service comes up among postal workers from time to time. Usually in regards to some event that is related to the financial well being of the service at the national level or some questionable practice implemented at the lower levels. Events and practices such as sub-contracting, excessing, automation, re-organization etc., etc. Because the discussions are usually instigated by cynics and usually referencing singular events, or multiple events with no obvious connection, the subject is easily dismissed and relegated to the level of just a conspiracy theory. We all tend to recognize that the ideal of privatization was considered at one time, but is now just the boogie man under the bed that only a few paranoids see.

But the threat of privatization is real. The fact there is little overt discussion, and even covert discussion is hard to find, does not mean that it is not on the table. It is important to understand that a push for the privatization of government services has been a target of corporate America for the last twenty years. This is true at the national, state and local levels. State run licensing agencies [Bureau of Motor Vehicles], city run utilities, state operated toll roads, state prisons, city jails, county agencies, state and city Human Resource Departments, city golf courses, snow and trash removal, and parking meter operations to name just a few.

Why do private industries want to take over services that generate no revenues or at the most generate minimum revenues? Its quit simple, monopoly and guaranteed revenues with minimal liability. The common mistake postal employees make when they look at the threat of privatization is they assume that only the revenue generating operations could be privatized successfully. On the surface this is a commonsense conclusion, but it is wrong. We already see transportation being sub-contracted from MVS and transportation generates no revenues. For years janitorial and maintenance have been sub-contracted and they produce no revenue. How many times do we see the installation and maintenance of automation being contracted out? The appeal for private industries is not the amount of revenue the operation could generate because the profit margin on even the revenue generating operations at the post office would be too small for them. It is the monopoly and the guaranteed revenue from a government contract. It is the reduced liability from that government contract and the permanence of a government contract that appeals to them.

Those who want to believe that postal privatization isn’t a possibility need to look at the realities of how privatization comes about, how it really works and how the public is duped into accepting it.

This post is the first in a series on the subject and will be followed up by at least the three following topics:

1. The Very Real Threat Of Postal Privatization:   [This post]
2. The History of Postal Privatization [And How It Works]   [This post it has been updated [12:30pm, 2-8-2011] since its initial publication. See note at end of article.]
3. What a Privatized Postal Service Would Look Like
4. The ‘Perfect Storm’ That Threatens Us

When the subsequent topics are published the above titles will be linked to them, so bookmark/favorite this post. Or click the ‘Privatization’ link below or in the sidebar periodically.

Please feel free to comment below.

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