USPS rose to the challenges of peak, unlike private carriers

Criticisms of USPS’ package business are off base,” and Congress should build around the Postal Service’s core strength.

The Postal Service faced no shortage of trials last year. The COVID-19 pandemic tested USPS last spring when Americans first shifted to life at home, forcing us to order our medicines, groceries, household supplies and everything else we needed directly to our homes. Postal workers were hit hard by the virus, creating additional stress on the postal workforce and operations.

Everything came to a head in December, when the Postal Service faced a hundred-year-flood worth of packages for the holiday season.

The fact is, without the Postal Service, American businesses and consumers would have had even fewer options.

As COVID-19 rates rose and more families stayed at home instead of shopping in stores, package delivery volumes surged. Private carriers like UPS shrunk from the challenge, firing customers and implementing strict limits on packages from even the nation’s top retailers like Gap, Nike, Macy’s and L.L. Bean. It also imposed rural and residential delivery surcharges on many Americans.

USPS, on the other hand, stepped up to the challenge.

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