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USPS Gears Up for Holiday Surge With Fewer Seasonal Hires

The U.S. Postal Service expects to handle a 40% increase in mail and package volumes during the upcoming holiday season and aims to improve upon its 2.8-day delivery performance from the prior year. Postmaster General David Steiner said the carrier has sufficient capacity for the rush. The agency is recruiting more than 10,000 seasonal workers, a significant decrease from 14,000 last year and 40,000 several years ago. USPS credits improved staffing stability, reduced supervisor vacancies and lower overtime costs since 2020 for minimizing temporary hiring needs. The carrier installed 164 automated package sorting machines this year as part of a $40 billion modernization initiative launched in 2022. These machines handle more and larger parcels than previous-generation equipment. It has deployed 673 high-speed sorters overall. Since 2022, USPS opened 182 sorting and delivery centers, 19 regional distribution centers and four regional transfer hubs. These facilities eliminate network redundancies and boost efficiency across the delivery network.