Postal Workers Offered Incentive to Retire - Valley News Live - KVLY/KXJB - Fargo/Grand Forks

Less and less postal workers are being hired as others retire. Or even leave prematurely for a financial incentive from the fed's.

Last Thursday in Detroit Lakes four employees threw in the towel and in Fargo 14 employees retired early for the monetary perk. Each will receive 15 thousand dollars for leaving early as the United States Post Office tries to dig itself out of a hole of about 16 billion dollars. The Post Master in Fargo, Greg Johnson, says over the past 10 years they've downsized nearly 50 percent to make the company work.

"I mean let's face it labor is the most expensive cost we have and we're trying to reduce that cost. To get to where we need to be a viable company again." Say Johnson.

Nationally, 20 thousand postal workers took the pay out to leave their job last week. Over the past ten years about 200 thousand workers have left their post, the majority of those jobs have not, and likely will not be filled.