The United States Postal Service (USPS) is an autonomous executive branch organization responsible for providing postal services to every address in the country, including 160 million homes, companies, and Post Office Boxes. The Postal Service generates more than $71 billion in annual operational revenue and delivers 48 percent of the world’s mail. It employs almost 630,000 people.
Employees at the USPS are divided into two groups: career and non-career. Career employees work full-time or part-time in permanent positions and are eligible for all federal benefits. Non-career employees, on the other hand, are more or less contract workers who are hired on a temporary basis. USPS employs 516,636 career employees and 136,531 non-career employees as of 2021.
In the USPS termination policy, established procedures and terminologies are strictly followed when producing personnel action forms. The contract of employment of a non-career employee can be ended in one of two ways: separation or termination, or employment expiration. A career employee, on the other hand, can be fired or disqualified for misconduct or failure to meet employment standards.
Is it possible to fire a worker because of poor performance?
For an employee who is not efficient at work or fails to achieve the conditions established during the probationary term, a supervisor may request a Separation-disqualification action to the official with jurisdiction to take action. It could also be the outcome of knowledge that would have disqualified the employee for the position if it had been known at the time of the appointment. During the probationary term, this step must be taken.
Is there a Separation-disqualification Procedure?
The employee must be informed in writing as to why he or she is being fired and when the action will take effect. It must also include the appointing official’s assessment on his or her unsatisfactory performance at work.
Is it possible to fire an employee for making political recommendations?
Any Postal Service employee who accepts a forbidden statement or advice risks being fired.
Political and some other recommendations for appointments, promotions, assignments, and transfers are prohibited under US federal law.
Is it possible to lose an employee’s job if he tests positive for COVID-19?
A positive COVID-19 test does not automatically result in dismissal. Employees who test positive are entitled to a 14-day paid emergency leave if they test positive.
If an employee drank alcohol or other controlled substances without permission, would his or her work contract be terminated?
Employees who use, sell, or possess these substances on company premises or while on the clock will be fired. The use of these chemicals jeopardizes the health, welfare, and safety of workers. Any activity that jeopardizes the safety of others at work is met with a zero-tolerance policy at USPs.
All laws and regulations controlling the use, sale, and possession of alcoholic beverages, controlled narcotics, and illegal drugs are followed by the USPS.
Is it possible for an employee to appeal a dismissal based on discrimination?
Where an employee has a mixed case, that is, when an action is appealable to the Merit Systems Protection Board (MSPB) and also appealable through the EEO complaint procedure because the employee argues that the action was taken on discriminatory grounds, the employee can. He or she can submit an MSPB mixed-case appeal or a Postal Service mixed-case EEO complaint, but not both.
Employees with one or more years of ongoing continuous service in the same or a similar position are eligible to appeal such unfavorable personnel action.
What are the Policies for Resignation Notice and Acceptance?
When an employee files a resignation in writing, the employee must include the reason for the departure as well as the effective date of the resignation. The resignation letter should be sent at least five weeks prior to the projected last day of work.
Employees, on the other hand, have the option of submitting an oral resignation, which must be approved by their supervisor or another official, ideally in the presence of witnesses. The date received, the explanation stated, the effective date, and the names of any witnesses are all expected to be recorded by the supervisor or other authority who receives it. This document is kept in the employee’s official personnel folder as a permanent record, and it is signed by the supervisor.
Regardless of whether an employee resigns orally or in writing, the reason for the resignation must be stated.
Conclusion
True to its mission for employability and central to the success of the USPS is the quality of its employees. Therefore it is not surprising how USPS has since its inception, managed to maintain a pristine standard of the workforce. Undoubtedly, this has been through a balance between the employment rate and the termination rate through sound policies to maintain a healthy equilibrium that favors USPS’s overall productivity.
