Mark Szakonyi, Daily Content Editor | Nov 15, 2011 5:56PM EST
The U.S. Postal Service lost $5.1 billion in fiscal 2011, raising the pressure the ailing agency will default on a $5.5 billion payment as it loses business to electronic communication.
USPS’ loss would have been far greater if Congress hadn’t postponed a $5.5 billion retirement fund payment until Nov. 18. USPS Chief Financial Officer Joe Corbett said the agency will default if the deadline remains in place, according to Bloomberg.
“The Postal Service can become profitable again if Congress passes comprehensive legislation to provide us with a more flexible business model so we can respond better to a changing marketplace,” said Postmaster General and CEO Patrick Donahoe. “To return to profitability we must reduce our annual costs by $20 billion by the end of 2015."
USPS is asking Congress to allow it to cut some 120,000 workers, close thousands of post offices and end Saturday delivery.
USPS saw mail volume decline 1.7 percent year-over-year. Revenue from First Class mail, the agency’s most profitable product, fell 5.8 percent to $32.2 billion within the same period.
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