An audit conducted by the Postal Service's inspector general at the Boston Processing and Distribution Center, as well as three delivery units it services, found significant issues, including delayed mail strewn about the floor and packages that were scanned improperly by employees.
The audit's findings were released Tuesday and examined the efficiency of operations at the Boston USPS facility from Aug. 1, 2023, to July 31, 2024, in five areas: mail clearance times; delayed mail; late, canceled and extra outbound trips; dock scanning; and security of registry items. The audit also included a three-day site visit during the week of Sept. 16, 2024, at the plant, as well as at Fort Point Station, the Revere Carrier Annex, and the Brookline Branch.
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According to the inspector general's office, the audit team identified deficiencies in all five areas they reviewed affecting mail delivery and property conditions at all three delivery units. At the plant, there were issues with delayed mail, truck schedules, and safety compliance.
All postal facilities had issues with scanning accurately. Two of three delivery units were also found to have delayed mail, and all three had arrow key security deficiencies.
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At the Boston plant, auditors found delayed mail on each day of their September site visit, including 2,424 unprocessed collection letters, 69 pieces of election mail left behind on a delivery barcode sorter, and 32 packages left in the hazardous material drop-off area.
From Sept. 17 through Sept. 19, auditors observed approximately 19,300 letters and 12,300 flats that were delayed, with some delayed letters with dates as far back as Aug. 30.
The audit says delayed mail was primarily due to a lack of management oversight, noting that supervisors and managers did not verify that employees checked processing machines for pieces of mail left behind.
Several safety issues were also noted during site observations, including uneven and damaged sections of the workroom floor, and two trucks and trailers that were parked at the docks without wheel chocks that are necessary to prevent them from rolling away.
At Fort Point Station in Boston, auditors determined that management was not monitoring scan performance daily and enforcing compliance, which resulted in issues with scanning and handling of packages.
On Sept. 17, auditors said 11 of 27 packages had improper scan or handling issues that included 10 packages that had been marked as "delivered" before they were successfully left at the customer's delivery address. Specifically, that includes five packages that were scanned as "delivered to front desk receptionist," three packages that were scanned as "delivered in/at mailbox" and two that were scanned as "delivered to agent." One package that was scanned as "delivery attempted - no access to delivery location" was scanned 0.4 miles away from the delivery point.
Similar issues were found at the Brookline and Revere facilities.
Mail delays in Boston have been a hot topic in recent months for city, state and federal officials, who've been inundated with complaints.
Sen. Ed Markey has been calling for accountability for months and vowed Wednesday to continue pressing USPS.
“Daily mail delays are a major problem in greater Boston, and today’s USPS Inspector General reports confirm what we already knew,” Markey said in a statement. “For months, I and my colleagues have been calling for greater accountability and oversight of USPS service and now we are finally getting some answers. But this is only the beginning."
"I will continue to hold USPS management accountable until we get to the bottom of all my concerns, including a review of facility suspensions, inadequate staffing, and consolidation of processing centers," Markey added. "Management must ultimately address all these concerns and shape up or ship out.”
Markey and other members of the Mass. delegation sent a letter to USPS Inspector General Hull last month, calling for a review of postal operations in the Bay State and decisions from management which have caused "several pressing issues with daily mail delivery and closed postal facilities, including: mail delivery delays in Boston; closed post offices in Medway, Watertown, and Allston; lost mail in greater Boston; the proposed consolidation of the Brockton Processing and Distribution Center; and the USPS proposal for a rural mail delivery slowdown."
According to Markey's office, the Office of the Inspector General also confirmed Wednesday that a larger systemic report on these issues across Mass. is underway.
