An APWU workplace survey of more than ten thousand APWU members has painted a stark picture of hostile work environments, low morale, and understaffing, overseen by poorly trained, ineffective, and disrespectful managers.
The survey was launched in March 2023, and an incredible 10,375 workers responded. Almost 78 percent of surveyed members said that they have witnessed or experienced a toxic work environment in the past two years. Sixty-two percent of responders gave poor ratings for workplace morale, while only 18 percent rated morale positively.
“This survey shows just how deep the problem is,” said APWU President Mark Dimondstein. “Across the country, managers are disrespecting workers and creating a toxic work environment. For the good of our members, and for the good of our public Postal Service, this has to stop, and we are determined to make it stop.”
Warnings about a a hostile climate at the Postal Service are not new. The Kappel Report, which contributed to the 1970 Postal Reorganization Act, observed that an authoritarian style of supervision had become the rule in the Post Office. In the years since, warnings from the General Accountability Office, university studies, and postal unions have gone unheeded.