Postal Changes on the Horizon
Ahead of the busiest season of the year for the U-S Postal Service, some Oregon postal workers are voicing concerns about the latest policy changes. They include new “service standards” that slow down First Class Mail delivery. Mail traveling less than a thousand miles should reach its destination in three days, and mail traveling more than 19-hundred miles will take about five days. The Postal Service has also hiked rates for mail, packages and other special services. Joe Cogan a representative for a postal workers’ union says with these changes and staffing issues, he doesn’t think the Postal Service is prepared for the holiday crunch.
| “I just don’t know how any organization or business can survive if you’re reducing service and charging more. It just doesn’t make sense to me. I can tell you that the employees that I represent, you know, we want to serve our customers to the best of our ability – and we believe that this action prevents us from doing that.” |
Postmaster General Louis DeJoy has said the Postal Service is hiring 40-thousand seasonal workers to help with the holiday rush, and that the changes are needed to trim a 160-billion-dollar loss by 2030.
No New Cases for Florence
Florence’s COVID-19 numbers continue to be dormant for the time being. Another day has gone by with no new cases reported by Lane County Public Health as cases around the county also seem to be reducing. New cases countywide were 115 in yesterday’s report while Oregon numbers reported by the Oregon Health Authority are at 1,413 in last night’s report. Vaccination rates continue to be higher than the previous 8 weeks as booster shots are doled out to the public. According to the OHA Pfizer is the predominant vaccine with over 3 million doses to date. Moderna and Johnson and Johnson combined are at 2.1 million. Deaths related to the coronavirus are still up with another 82 listed in Tuesday’s report.
Free Shred Day
Oregon Pacific Bank has announced a free shred day for the Florence area. A truck will be set up at the Florence location of Oregon Pacific Bank on Saturday, October 23rd Individuals that have documents that they would like to be destroyed can do so from 10 am until 1pm that day. Local businesses are asked to wait until noon in order to give the local community time to participate. Shredding documents with important personal information is a way to cut down on the possibility of identity theft as well as a great recycling effort.
School Board Meeting
The Siuslaw School Board will meet this evening with a work session at 6pm followed by a regular meeting. Individuals interested in attending will be required to wear masks and socially distance. The meeting is also available on the districts youtube channel. The meeting will go over potential changes to the districts electronic communications system. Even though there have been no changes in law, Oregon Department of Education produced a review and recommended revisions. The board will also hear from Superintendent Andy Grzeskowiak on changes to policies regarding corporal punishment. Live meeting will be held at the Siuslaw Middle School Commons.
