U.S. Postal Service: The Program for Reassessing Work Provided to Injured Employees Is Under Way, but Actions Are Needed to Improve Program Management
GAO-10-78
Published: Dec 14, 2009. Publicly Released: Dec 14, 2009.
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Highlights
Between 50,000 and 60,000 United States Postal Service (Service) employees, or 7 to 8 percent of the Service's workforce, occupied a modified work assignment during fiscal year 2008. The Service must provide these assignments to employees with workplace injuries if work is available to perform within their medical restrictions. Historically, the Service has returned employees to work as soon as possible, partly to reduce its costs for workers' compensation. In 2006, the Service initiated a program, the National Reassessment Process (NRP), to ensure that modified work assignments are medically suitable and necessary to carry out the Service's mission. This requested report addresses (1) the goal of the program, (2) how it is being implemented, and (3) the program's status and outcomes. To perform its work, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) analyzed data and documentation, visited four districts selected to illustrate a range of conditions, and interviewed Service officials.
Recommendations
Recommendations for Executive Action
| Agency Affected | Recommendation | Status |
|---|---|---|
| United States Postal Service | To enhance the NRP's implementation, the Postmaster General should articulate senior management's commitment to the NRP by setting program milestones, including a timeline for all districts to complete the NRP to improve program management and enhance accountability and transparency. | In 2009, we reported that after 3 years none of U.S. Postal Service's (USPS) 74 districts had completely implemented the National Reassessment Process (NRP), and implementation in most districts was far from complete. USPS initiated the NPR without clear management support for ensuring timely implementation. USPS did not set specific time frames for completing the program and it has taken longer than senior headquarters officials expected. We concluded that although USPS officials estimate that the NRP will be completed by September 30, 2010, without milestones for its completion, it is uncertain when the NRP will be completed. Therefore, we recommended that USPS establish milestones for... completing the program. In response, USPS established a deadline of December 31, 2010 for all districts to complete the NRP. According to the senior manager responsible for the implementation of the NRP, all the districts met the completion deadline. As a result, USPS demonstrated management support for the NRP and ensured that it was completed successfully and in a timely manner.
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| United States Postal Service | To enhance the NRP's implementation, the Postmaster General should, when deployed, use the Service's new claims management process to track and measure whether the NRP's goals are being met, including tracking the number of employees placed in necessary and medically suitable modified work assignments to improve program management and enhance accountability and transparency. | We found that data on National Reassessment Process (NRP) employee outcomes are limited and preliminary because, in part, the Service does not track the number of employees who are in modified work assignments that are medically suitable and necessary to carry out the mission of the Postal Service, which is the goal of the NRP. The Service indicated that it planned to deploy a new national claims management program in February 2010 that will enhance its ability to track and measure NRP progress. However, the Service did not indicate that it planned to use the new program to track and measure NRP employee outcomes. Therefore, we recommended that, when deployed, the Service should use its...
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| United States Postal Service | To enhance the NRP's implementation, the Postmaster General should fully disclose any limitations that apply to NRP-related cost savings reported to the Congress and others to improve program management and enhance accountability and transparency. | We found that although the Service reported to Congress that the National Reassessment Process (NRP) saved $146 million in fiscal year 2008, the Service did not disclose that these reported savings reflected neither the Service's total gross savings nor its net savings, nor any other limitations in its cost estimation methodology. Therefore, we recommended that the Service fully disclose any limitations that apply to NRP-related cost savings reported to the Congress and others. In response, the Service in its 2010 Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations to the Congress disclosed that the Service's estimate of NRP-related cost savings through June 2010 represented only the savings...
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Data collectionHealth care servicesOccupational health and safety programsPostal servicePostal service employeesProgram evaluationProgram managementWorkers compensationProgram implementationLabor force