London mail sorting could move to Lexington

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November 18, 2009

Anonymous The Times-Tribune Wed Nov 18, 2009, 09:07 AM EST

By Becky Manley / Staff Writer

Public comment is being gathered as part of a study to determine whether regional mail sorting currently done in London should be moved to Lexington.

If the move is made, up to 20 jobs that pay from about $40,122 to $53,668 annually could be impacted at the London Processing and Distribution Facility, 1760 Hwy. 192 West, according to David Walton, spokesman for the U.S. Postal Service Kentuckiana District in Louisville.

The facility currently has 85 employees, Walton said.

If the change takes place, Walton said the hourly workers affected — who are all union members — would have the option to take jobs at other post offices or at the Lexington Processing and Distribution Center.

Currently, Walton said outgoing mail collected in areas with ZIP code prefixes of 407, 408 and 409 is sent to the London facility where it is cancelled and directed to its destination. Those are the ZIP code prefixes that would be affected if processing is moved to Lexington.

Although union representatives have said the changes will delay mail, Walton said customers won’t notice any changes and delivery time will still remain the same.

“We transport mail many, many miles each day and turn around and deliver it the next day,” Walton said. “We don’t foresee any delay in deliveries.”

The study, which was announced Sept. 22, is expected to take four to six months to complete, Walton said.

The study will examine work hours, the number of hours automated machines are used and whether there are times when they are idle, and whether USPS trucks are leaving the center with full loads of mail, Walton said.

Though a date has yet to be set, Walton said a public meeting will be held in London about the potential move during the study.

The study continues as the Postal Service reported a $3.8 billion loss for the fiscal year 2009.

Reasons for the loss — the same cited by Walton as the reason behind the study at the London facility — include decreased revenue, increased expenses and less mail volume.

To help cut costs, the Postal Service offered an early retirement bonus of $15,000 to employees, Walton said. Although an expected 30,000 employees nationwide were expected to take the bonus, Walton said only about 20,000 accepted it as of the Sept. 25 deadline, including five employees at the London facility.

A similar study is underway at the Bowling Green Processing and Distribution Center, where Walton said processing could be moved to Nashville, Tenn.

Across the country, Walton said the Postal Service is currently conducting about 30 studies at regional processing centers.

In another cost-cutting move, the Postal Service is also considering shuttering some post offices. In Kentucky, Walton said three post offices face potential closure, all located in Louisville.

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