Q. I have been reading a great deal about how federal employees benefits and retirements will probably change through legislation to cut spending. Such changes may include changes to COLA calculations, averaging the high-5 and not the high-3, etc. Since the Postal Service is paid for through postal products, not tax dollars, will it be affected differently than the rest of the government? A. Only time and future legislation will give us an answer to that question. However, you need to remember that no matter where your funding comes from, most of your benefits are the ones found in Title…
Browsing: U.S. Postal Service
Q: I receive federal disability retirement from the U.S. Postal Service after 27 1/2 years of service. My disability was approved for anxiety and severe depression. During my postal career, I was a city letter carrier. I have an opportunity to take a job as a medical courier. Do you think this job will jeopardize my continuing to receive disability? The two jobs are a bit similar in nature, however the stress level of the new job would be far less. I do not want to jeopardize my disability in any way. There is no way I could ever return…
Q: According to the American Postal Workers Union, the grievance to give postal employees who took early out in 2008 and 2009 severance pay is now 15 months old. Is this going to happen? I voluntarily left, moved over for the next person, then in October 2009, they came out with the $15,000 buyout. I feel that postal employees who retired early really got the shaft. A: No one who accepts an offer to retire early is eligible for severance pay. On the other hand, what you may be asking is whether the U.S. Postal Service is going to give…
Q: My brother retired from the U.S. Postal Service a few years ago. He passed away a few weeks ago, and his wife asked the San Antonio post office how she could apply for his insurance. She was told that he had no insurance. He specifically told me that he did: I retired from civil service and have insurance, and my brother said that he had the same sort of coverage. If he has a claim it would be a great aid to his widow. A: His widow should call the Office of Personnel Management’s Retirement Information Office at 888-767-6738…
Q: I can retire in February with 31 years of service under the Civil Service Retirement System as a part-time/flex employee in the U.S. Postal Service. My “high-3” years were from 2006-2009. Will they use these years to calculate my annuity? Is it always the last years? Is it always three consecutive years, or is it the highest consecutive three years? As a PTF, my hours changed yearly as to how many offices I worked in. Also, when I was hired in 1979, I never heard of “buying back” or anything related. Since I made no deposits, or didn’t know…
Q: For the 2010 year, what is the last day for U.S. Postal Service bargaining unit employees to reduce their annual leave to 440 hours? Is it Jan. 1, 2011? Is it true that the following year, we would have until Jan. 14, 2012? A: The 2010 leave year ends Jan. 1, 2011. The 2011 leave year ends Dec. 31, 2011, and the 2012 leave year ends Jan. 12, 2013.