U.S. Postal Service Struggles With Hiring Wave of New, Non-Career Employees

The U.S. Postal Service’s shift to a lower-paid workforce comes with a steep price. By the agency’s own admission, the hiring of more non-career employees has led to lower productivity, worse service, higher injury and turnover rates, and increased investment in new training programs.

The lower average pay rate was made possible by what some have called “eat your young” labor contracts—where current union members are well taken care of in exchange for concessions regarding future hires.