Overtime Use During Fiscal Years 2011 and 2012
BACKGROUND:
The U.S. Postal Service has launched various initiatives to address its financial challenges, many resulting in workforce changes that have contributed to increased overtime workhours. The Postal Service uses overtime workhours to provide flexibility and meet its operational requirements without having to increase overall staffing levels. Management has set a target rate for overtime hours of about 5 percent. We initiated this audit in response to a request from the postmaster general. Our objectives were to determine the reasons for significant overtime use and assess how management uses the time and attendance collection system to manage overtime.
WHAT THE OIG FOUND:
Overtime hours accounted for 7.4 and 7.8 percent of total workhours in fiscal years (FY) 2011 and 2012, respectively. This rate is well above the Postal Service's target rate of 5 percent. We reviewed overtime use in three districts with the highest rates over the past 5 years and one district where employees received the highest overtime dollars and determined the Postal Service incurred significant overtime workhour use because management did not always align workforce to workload or provide adequate supervisory oversight. In FY 2012, the Postal Service paid seven mail handlers at one facility between $65,000 and $76,000 each for overtime workhours, which more than doubled their salaries. Also, we found mail did not always arrive at delivery units timely, resulting in carriers waiting to begin their work and having to use overtime to complete deliveries. We estimated the Postal Service paid $2,312,303 in FY 2011 and $4,450,003 in FY 2012 for overtime associated with late trips in three of the four districts we visited. Further, an agreement between the Postal Service and a local union in the Houston District resulted in increased overtime costs. In addition, although the time and attendance collection system did not send automatic alerts, managers and supervisors at the facilities we visited used system reports to monitor workhours, overtime hours, and unauthorized overtime use.
WHAT THE OIG RECOMMENDED:
We recommended management: establish a plan to address staffing vacancies and better align the workforce to workload, require officials at identified mail processing facilities and delivery units to implement plans to better align mail arrival times and carrier schedules, require supervisors to monitor carrier workload and conduct street supervision, and pursue changes to local agreements in the Houston District.