Jason Thompson, a delivery man for the United States Postal Service (USPS), said he was suspended and threatened with firing after he criticized extreme working conditions on his Facebook profile during the snowstorm that hit the region.
Last Monday (26), Thompson arrived at the post office in Fairfield, 26 miles (42 kilometers) north of Cincinnati, Ohio, to find the parking lot poorly cleared and delivery trucks covered in “two feet to three feet of snow,” he wrote.
“Our carriers deliver mail during heat waves, blizzards, thunderstorms and emergencies, and today they showed up to work again only to be put in danger, with nothing to do and no safe place to work,” Thompson said on his Facebook profile.
“Deliveries come from Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana and surrounding areas, risk their lives just to get to work, and then find out there’s no mail or packages,” he revealed.
“This isn’t our fault and it’s not a situation we should be dealing with. Why don’t we hire a specialist company to clean up all these establishments instead of the delivery guys trying to get out on their own?” he asked.
Thompson said delivery drivers were told they would have to use sick or vacation time if they wanted to miss the rest of their shift, even though they had nothing to deliver. “This is not how the most dedicated men and women of the US Postal Service should be treated,” argued Thompson.
Five hours after posting his post, Thompson said he was warned by USPS superiors to remove the post or “consequences could follow.” “Now I’m in danger of losing my job if I don’t delete this post! Help, hear us out… Please!” he wrote
About an hour after the initial warning, Thompson announced that he had been suspended without pay for the post. “I have been notified that I am being placed on extraordinary unpaid leave! I hope this brings positive changes for everyone,” lamented Thompson.
The station WXIX a USPS spokesperson said “the safety of our employees is a top priority, especially during periods of extreme cold. In extreme cold conditions, delivery operators follow established safety precautions.”
“The Postal Service is constantly monitoring weather conditions and strengthening safety guidelines to ensure employees can deliver mail in the safest manner possible while continuing to provide reliable service to our customers.”
Photo and video: Facebook. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
