Winter pulled no punches during the first three months of 2017, sending snow, sleet and tornado-strength winds across the nation.
Employees in the South found themselves bundling up in the face of below-normal temperatures. Meanwhile, workers braved blizzards in California, Nevada and Oregon.
Along the East Coast, snowstorms forced temporary service disruptions at some facilities, while tornadoes struck Midwestern and Southern states.
The Jan. 1-March 31 period was also busy on other fronts.
On Capitol Hill, postal reform legislation was voted out of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee with nearly unanimous approval from the committee members.
The legislation is widely supported by a majority of postal stakeholders, including all of the postal unions, and a broad cross-section of the mailing industry.
PMG Megan J. Brennan said the “bipartisan bill is the product of reasonable and fiscally responsible compromise and represents a significant step toward returning the Postal Service to a position of financial stability that all stakeholders agree is necessary.”
Additionally, two major business agreements were completed during the winter: The National Postal Mail Handlers Union ratified a 40-month labor contract with the Postal Service that covers approximately 45,000 employees, while USPS renewed its Air Cargo Network contract with FedEx.
It was also a time for new stamps, including releases honoring civil rights pioneer Dorothy Height, President John F. Kennedy and the iconic posters of the Work Projects Administration.
Coming next: Link’s four-part review of 2017 continues Dec. 26 with a look at springtime activities.