skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Saturday, November 23, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Trump suffers first defeat but as always doubles down for the next fight; From Ohio to Azerbaijan: How COP29 could shape local farming; Funding boosts 'green' projects in Meadville, PA; VA apprenticeships bridge skills gaps, offer career stability.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Trump has a new pick for Attorney General, his incoming "border czar" warns local Democratic officials not to impede mass deportation, and the House passes legislation that could target any nonprofit group accused of supporting terrorism.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

The CDC has a new plan to improve the health of rural Americans, updated data could better prepare folks for flash floods like those that devastated Appalachia, and Native American Tribes could play a key role in the nation's energy future.

Are Postal Service Delays Hampering Small Business?

play audio
Play

Wednesday, August 12, 2020   

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Operational changes intended to help the financially troubled U.S. Postal Service save money aren't going over well with some small-business owners in Missouri and other states.

Recent modifications, including the end of overtime for workers, have led to numerous reports of delays, both in personal and commercial mail and package delivery. John McHugh, chairman of the Package Coalition, said there is legitimate concern about the viability of some small businesses if these problems linger during what's expected to be a challenging economic recovery.

"Package delivery for them is often vital," he said. "They have to get whatever it is they're making to their customers; they have to get from their suppliers whatever it is they need. And if that service is not available, what happens to those small businesses? They shut down. That's horrible for them."

Missouri has more than 523,000 small businesses.

The postmaster general said the cutbacks are needed to produce more efficiencies for the agency, which could lose roughly $11 billion this year.

There have been growing calls for a federal rescue, but some Republicans -- including President Donald Trump -- have resisted that idea and favor privatization. Brad Jones, Missouri state director for the National Federation of Independent Businesses in Missouri, cited some communities where the postal service is their only delivery option.

"The Postal Service in our rural areas are so important for your smaller businesses to be able to get out their billing, to be able to get out the marketing pieces that they need to get out, just to reach out to their existing clientele," he said. "It's extremely important."

Jones said the one thing small-business owners don't like is uncertainty.

"Whether it be in their taxes, how much they're paying for health care, their delivery system -- whatever it might be, uncertainty is never good in the small-business world," he said.

The U.S. Senate is considering a bipartisan bill that would provide up to $25 billion in emergency financial relief for the U.S. Postal Service.

Missouri small-business information is online at sba.gov.


get more stories like this via email

more stories
The smoking rate among adults in Maryland is 9.6%, much lower than the national average of 12.9%. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A new report on lung cancer by the American Lung Association showed Maryland has quite a bit of room to improve diagnoses and treatment but experts sa…


Social Issues

play sound

La Niña is bringing a cooler, wetter winter to Oregon and likely driving up heating bills as systems work harder. This is the third year of …

Environment

play sound

The number of pedestrians and bicyclists killed on roadways in the U.S. has nearly doubled in the past 12 years and a New Mexico researcher wants to …


Social Issues

play sound

CLARIFICATION: We updated language to clarify the timing for when the study's authors began tracking certain outcome measures for children within the …

Health experts said young children often catch walking pneumonia at school and bring it home, spreading it to their families. (Adobe stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

By Kyla Russell for WISH-TV.Broadcast version by Joe Ulery for Indiana News Service reporting for the WISH-TV-Free Press Indiana-Public News Service C…

Social Issues

play sound

A recent study from Florida Atlantic University highlights a concerning rise in alcohol-related deaths across the United States, with mortality rates …

Environment

play sound

By Dawn Attride for Sentient.Broadcast version by Farah Siddiqi for Ohio News Connection reporting for the Sentient-Public News Service Collaboration …

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021