Millions of packages might not arrive in time for Christmas because of crisis at the U.S. Postal Service
WASHINGTON, DC -- An unprecedented volume of packages being shipped for the Christmas season is paralyzing the U.S. Postal Service, leading managers to divert vast shipments of mail across the country, the Washington Post reported Monday.
Compounding the problem is a limited number of postal employees due to surging coronavirus cases among the agency's workforce and fallout from cost-cutting efforts undertaken by the Postmaster General that first gained notoriety during the November election.
Add to it, shipping restrictions on the public recently put in place by UPS and FedEx so that they could make delivering virus vaccine shipments a top priority. That has resulted in even more packages being sent via the postal service.
As a result of this combination of issues, the delivery of millions of packages is in peril and millions of Americans likely won't see online orders arrive in in time for Christmas.
The Post's report on this crisis was based, in part, on information supplied by officials with the American Postal Workers Union.
They told the newspaper that some processing pants are now refusing to accept new mail shipments, which has led postal managers to try and divert packages to other nearby facilities.
That re-routing has also often proven unsuccessful, the Post reported, with packages sitting on trucks for days waiting for floor space to open at "overflowing" postal centers so that loads can be sorted.
