U.S. Postal Service
Age and Disability in the Executive Service Gao ID: GAO-09-255R January 12, 2009Equal opportunity in the federal workplace is intended to result in a diverse and highly qualified workforce. Such a workplace uses the talents of all employees-- without regard to factors such as employees' race, ethnicity, gender, and disability status. Diversity within an agency's senior executive ranks, including the U.S. Postal Service's (Service) Postal Career Executive Service (PCES), is particularly important because it allows agencies to draw upon a wider variety of perspectives and approaches to address the wide array of challenges facing the federal government. The Service had 959 employees in the PCES during fiscal year 2000 and 867 PCES employees during fiscal year 2007. In April 2008, we reported on the demographic representation of employees in the Service's PCES (which includes postal officers and executives) and certain levels of the Service's Executive and Administrative Schedule (a pool of candidates for the Service's managerial and executive leadership positions). We provided these data for the end of fiscal year 2007, as well as baseline data from fiscal year 1999, which we previously reported for those positions. As requested, this report provides additional information on the demographic representation of employees who were in the PCES at any time during fiscal year 2000 and fiscal year 2007. Specifically, this report provides information on (1) the average age at which these employees entered the PCES; (2) the average age at which these PCES employees left (separated from) the Service, including the average age at which they retired; and (3) the number of PCES employees who reported having one of nine disabilities that the government, as a matter of policy, has identified for special affirmative action emphasis ("targeted" disabilities). This report also provides information on, among other matters, the average length of tenure that employees had with the Service prior to entering the PCES as well as their average length of tenure in the PCES before separating from the Service.
(1) Employees onboard during fiscal year 2000 were, on average, about 44 years old when they first entered the PCES, while those who were on board during fiscal year 2007 were, on average, about 1 year older at their original appointment to the PCES. In addition, the 87 employees, who entered the PCES in fiscal year 2007 were, on average, about 2 years older at their appointment than the 97 employees who entered in fiscal year 2000. (2) The average age of the 47 PCES employees who separated from the Service in either fiscal year 2000 or fiscal year 2007, was about 54.5 years in fiscal year 2000 (10 separations) and about 55.6 years in fiscal year 2007 (37 separations)--an increase of about 1.1 years. Retirements accounted for 35 of the 47 separations. The average age, at retirement, for these 35 employees increased from about 55.9 years (6 employees) to about 56.6 years (29 employees) between fiscal year 2000 and fiscal year 2007--an increase of about 0.7 years. (3) Two of the 959 PCES employees on board during fiscal year 2000 reported a condition that constituted a targeted disability, whereas none of the 867 PCES employees on board during fiscal year 2007 reported a targeted disability. An individual with a targeted disability has at least one of nine specific physical and mental conditions, including deafness, blindness, and mental illness. Another seven PCES employees reported having a disability in fiscal year 2000, while eight reported a disability in fiscal year 2007. However none of the conditions they reported constituted a targeted disability. Twenty PCES employees chose not to provide information on their disability status in fiscal year 2000, followed by 22 who chose not to disclose this information in fiscal year 2007. According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, employees governmentwide may not report these data due to concerns that such a disclosure will (1) preclude them from employment or advancement, (2) subject them to discrimination, or (3) not remain confidential.
GAO-09-255R, U.S. Postal Service: Age and Disability in the Executive Service
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GAO-09-255R:
January 12, 2009:
The Honorable Danny K. Davis:
House of Representatives:
Subject: U.S. Postal Service: Age and Disability Diversity in the
Executive Service:
Dear Mr. Davis:
Equal opportunity in the federal workplace is intended to result in a
diverse and highly qualified workforce. Such a workplace uses the
talents of all employees--without regard to factors such as employees'
race, ethnicity, gender, and disability status. Diversity within an
agency's senior executive ranks, including the U.S. Postal Service's
(Service) Postal Career Executive Service (PCES), is particularly
important because it allows agencies to draw upon a wider variety of
perspectives and approaches to address the wide array of challenges
facing the federal government. The Service had 959 employees in the
PCES during fiscal year 2000 and 867 PCES employees during fiscal year
2007.[Footnote 1]
In April 2008, we reported on the demographic representation of
employees in the Service's PCES (which includes postal officers and
executives) and certain levels of the Service's Executive and
Administrative Schedule (a pool of candidates for the Service's
managerial and executive leadership positions). We provided these data
for the end of fiscal year 2007, as well as baseline data from fiscal
year 1999, which we previously reported for those positions.[Footnote
2] As requested, this report provides additional information on the
demographic representation of employees who were in the PCES at any
time during fiscal year 2000 and fiscal year 2007. Specifically, this
report provides information on (1) the average age at which these
employees entered the PCES;[Footnote 3] (2) the average age at which
these PCES employees left (separated from) the Service, including the
average age at which they retired; and (3) the number of PCES employees
who reported having one of nine disabilities that the government, as a
matter of policy, has identified for special affirmative action
emphasis ("targeted" disabilities).[Footnote 4] This report also
provides information on, among other matters, the average length of
tenure that employees had with the Service prior to entering the PCES
as well as their average length of tenure in the PCES before separating
from the Service.
To address our reporting objectives, we obtained data from the Service
on the 1,826 employees in the PCES at any time during fiscal years 2000
and 2007.[Footnote 5] We specifically analyzed data on, among other
factors, the employees' (1) race, ethnic group, and gender; (2) date of
birth; (3) date of appointment to the PCES; (4) date hired by the
Service; (5) date of separation from the Service and the reason for the
employees' separation, where applicable; and (6) disability status if
reported by the PCES employee. We used these data, as applicable, to
calculate fiscal year 2000 and fiscal year 2007 data for each of our
reporting objectives. We also interviewed postal officials and
performed electronic testing for obvious errors in accuracy and
completeness to ensure the reliability of the Service's data and
determined that the data were sufficiently reliable for the purposes of
this report. Because of the relatively small number of PCES employees
affected by various employment actions such as appointments to, and
separations from, the PCES in either fiscal year 2000 or fiscal year
2007, we generally reported data on each demographic group in aggregate
form to protect the individuals' privacy. For the same reason, we did
not report data on employees in demographic groups of less than three
employees or break-out data on employees in the Services' officer ranks
(PCES II). We conducted our work from August 2008 to January 2009. A
more detailed description of our scope and methodology, including the
exclusion of 239 employees (230 in fiscal year 2000 and 9 in fiscal
year 2007) because of incomplete data, is contained in enclosure I of
this report. The Service provided technical comments on a draft of this
report. We incorporated the comments as appropriate.
In Summary:
Employees onboard during fiscal year 2000 were, on average, about 44
years old when they first entered the PCES, while those who were on
board during fiscal year 2007 were, on average, about 1 year older at
their original appointment to the PCES. In addition, the 87 employees,
who entered the PCES in fiscal year 2007 were, on average, about 2
years older at their appointment than the 97 employees who entered in
fiscal year 2000.
* The average age of the 47 PCES employees who separated from the
Service in either fiscal year 2000 or fiscal year 2007, was about 54.5
years in fiscal year 2000 (10 separations) and about 55.6 years in
fiscal year 2007 (37 separations)--an increase of about 1.1 years.
Retirements accounted for 35 of the 47 separations. The average age, at
retirement, for these 35 employees increased from about 55.9 years (6
employees) to about 56.6 years (29 employees) between fiscal year 2000
and fiscal year 2007--an increase of about 0.7 years.
* Two of the 959 PCES employees on board during fiscal year 2000
reported a condition that constituted a targeted disability, whereas
none of the 867 PCES employees on board during fiscal year 2007
reported a targeted disability. An individual with a targeted
disability has at least one of nine specific physical and mental
conditions, including deafness, blindness, and mental illness. Another
seven PCES employees reported having a disability in fiscal year 2000,
while eight reported a disability in fiscal year 2007. However none of
the conditions they reported constituted a targeted disability. Twenty
PCES employees chose not to provide information on their disability
status in fiscal year 2000, followed by 22 who chose not to disclose
this information in fiscal year 2007. According to the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission, employees governmentwide may not report these
data due to concerns that such a disclosure will (1) preclude them from
employment or advancement, (2) subject them to discrimination, or (3)
not remain confidential.
Background:
The Service's senior executive rank, the PCES, has two levels. PCES II
is composed of the Service's most senior leadership--its officers--and
includes the Postmaster General, the Deputy Postmaster General, and the
Service's vice presidents. PCES I includes all other executives in
headquarters, area, and district locations. According to the Service
and as we reported in April 2008,[Footnote 6] there were a total of 748
employees in the PCES as of the end of fiscal year 2007. Thirty-nine of
the 748 PCES employees were officers (PCES II), while the remaining 709
executives were PCES I.
The Service, like federal agencies, requests its employees to self-
report whether they have a physical or mental disability (reportable
disability) that substantially limits one or more of the employees'
major life activities (e.g., caring for one's self, performing manual
tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, or learning).
According to the Service's form 2489 for reporting disabilities, the
Service uses its employees' information to measure its progress in
hiring, placing, and advancing disabled employees.
A portion of the reportable physical and mental disabling conditions
listed on form 2489 are considered "targeted disabilities"--conditions
that the government, as a matter of policy, has identified for special
affirmative action emphasis. There are nine targeted disabilities:
deafness, blindness, missing extremities, partial paralysis, complete
paralysis, convulsive disorders, mental retardation, mental illness,
and the distortion of a limb and/or the spine. The Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission, which collects and maintains statistics for
targeted disabilities reported by employees, recognizes that other
disabling conditions may be as severe, or even more severe, than some
targeted disabilities. According to the Commission, the government
focuses on targeted disabilities to encourage the hiring, placement,
and advancement of individuals with disabilities in affirmative action
planning.[Footnote 7]
Average Age at which Employees during Fiscal Years 2000 and 2007
Entered the PCES:
As shown in table 1, PCES employees during fiscal year 2000 were, on
average, nearly 44 years old when they first entered the PCES, while
those who were on board during fiscal year 2007 were, on average, about
1 year older at their original appointment to PCES. The average age at
appointment increased between fiscal year 2000 and fiscal year 2007 by
a range of about 0.6 years (Hispanic/Latino males) to 2.3 years (Asian/
Pacific Islander males) for five of the eight demographic groups for
which we have reportable data. The average age at appointment for
employees in the PCES during fiscal year 2007 decreased slightly for
Hispanic/Latino females (0.2 years), while Black/African-American males
and Asian/Pacific Islander females were about 1 year younger than those
PCES employees (in the same demographic groups) who were on board
during fiscal year 2000.
Table 1: Demographic Data on the Average Age at Original Appointment--
All PCES Employees On Board during Fiscal Years 2000 and 2007:
Demographic group: Black/African-American males;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 72;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 46.2;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 77;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 45.2;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -1.0.
Demographic group: Black/African-American females;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 43;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 44.2;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 51;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 45.8;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.6.
Demographic group: American Indian/Alaska Native males;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 1;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: [A];
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 1;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: [A];
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Demographic group: American Indian/Alaska Native females;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 3;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 40.6;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 0;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 0;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Demographic group: Asian/Pacific Islander males;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 8;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 40.5;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 11;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 42.8;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 2.3.
Demographic group: Asian/Pacific Islander females;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 5;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 46.7;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 13;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 45.6;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -1.1.
Demographic group: Hispanic/Latino males;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 37;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 44.8;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 43;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 45.4;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 0.6.
Demographic group: Hispanic/Latino females;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 5;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 44.0;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 16;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 43.8;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -0.2.
Demographic group: White males;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 421;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 43.8;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 477;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 45.4;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.6.
Demographic group: White females;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 134;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 43.2;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 168;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 44.0;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 0.8.
Demographic group: Unspecified/other;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 0;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 0;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 1;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: [A];
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Demographic group: Total PCES;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 729[B];
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 43.9;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 858[C];
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 45.1;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.2.
Source: GAO analysis of U.S. Postal Service data.
Note: "n/a" means that the change in age was not calculated to either
protect individuals' privacy or because such a calculation was not
applicable for this demographic group.
[A] Data omitted to protect individuals' privacy.
[B] Excludes 230 employees due to incomplete data. Enclosure I provides
the reasons for these exclusions.
[C] Excludes 9 employees due to incomplete data. Enclosure I provides
the reason for these exclusions.
[End of table]
As shown in table 2, the 87 employees who entered the PCES in fiscal
year 2007 were, on average, about 2 years older at their appointment
than the 97 employees appointed in fiscal year 2000. The data indicate
wide variability between aggregated demographic groups, however,
ranging from a high of about 3 years older at appointment (white males
and all whites) to a low of more than 4 years younger (minority males)
[Footnote 8] than those PCES employees (from the same demographic
groups) who were appointed in fiscal year 2000.
Table 2: Aggregated Demographic Data on the Average Age of PCES
Appointments--All Employees Appointed to the PCES in Either Fiscal Year
2000 or Fiscal Year 2007:
Aggregated demographic group: All males;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 58;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 48.2;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 61;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 49.9;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.7.
Aggregated demographic group: White males;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 46;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 47.4;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 52;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 50.4;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 3.0.
Aggregated demographic group: Minority males;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 12;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 51.3;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 9;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 47.0;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -4.3.
Aggregated demographic group: All females;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 39;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 45.5;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 26;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 47.5;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 2.0.
Aggregated demographic group: White females;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 30;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 45.7;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 18;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 48.1;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 2.4.
Aggregated demographic group: Minority females;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 9;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 45.0;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 8;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 46.1;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.1.
Aggregated demographic group: All whites;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 76;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 46.7;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 70;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 49.8;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 3.1.
Aggregated demographic group: All minorities;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 21;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 48.6;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 17;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 46.6;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -2.0.
Aggregated demographic group: Total PCES;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Number: 97;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2000: Average: 47.1;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Number: 87;
Average age at appointment to the PCES: FY 2007: Average: 49.2;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 2.1.
Source: GAO analysis of U.S. Postal Service data.
[End of table]
As shown in table 3, the average years of tenure in the Service prior
to appointment to the PCES increased by about 1.4 years, from about
16.4 years for employees in the PCES during fiscal year 2000 to about
17.8 years for employees in the PCES during fiscal year 2007. The
average years of tenure prior to appointment increased between fiscal
year 2000 and fiscal year 2007 by a range of 0.5 years (Hispanic/Latino
males) to about 10.9 years (Hispanic/Latino females) for all but one of
the eight demographic groups for which we have reportable data. The
only exception relates to Black/African-American males appointed in
fiscal year 2007. According to these data, employees in this
demographic group had, on average, about 2 years less tenure at
appointment to the PCES than Black/African-American males in the PCES
during fiscal year 2000.
Table 3: Average Years of Tenure with the Service at Appointment to
PCES, by Demographic Group--All PCES Employees On Board during Fiscal
Years 2000 and 2007:
Demographic group: Black/African-American males;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Number: 72;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Average: 20.9;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Number: 77;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Average: 18.9;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -2.0.
Demographic group: Black/African-American females;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Number: 43;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Average: 18.4;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Number: 51;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Average: 20.2;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.8.
Demographic group: American Indian/Alaska Native males;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Number: 1;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Average: [A];
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Number: 1;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Average: [A];
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Demographic group: American Indian/Alaska Native females;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Number: 3;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Average: 14.3;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Number: 0;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Average: 0;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Demographic group: Asian/Pacific Islander males;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Number: 8;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Average: 9.6;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Number: 11;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Average: 12.4;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 2.8.
Demographic group: Asian/Pacific Islander females;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Number: 5;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Average: 12.6;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Number: 13;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Average: 17.2;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 4.6.
Demographic group: Hispanic/Latino males;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Number: 37;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Average: 19.8;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Number: 43;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Average: 20.3;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 0.5.
Demographic group: Hispanic/Latino females;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Number: 5;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Average: 4.8;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Number: 16;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Average: 15.7;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 10.9.
Demographic group: White males;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Number: 421;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Average: 16.0;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Number: 477;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Average: 17.8;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.8.
Demographic group: White females;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Number: 134;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Average: 14.8;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Number: 168;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Average: 16.6;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.8.
Demographic group: Unspecified/other;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Number: 0;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Average: 0;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Number: 1;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Average: [A];
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Demographic group: Total PCES;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Number: 729[B];
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2000: Average: 16.4;
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Number: 858[C];
Average years of tenure with the Service at appointment to the PCES: FY
2007: Average: 17.8;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.4.
Source: GAO analysis of U.S. Postal Service data.
Note: "n/a" means that the change in tenure was not calculated to
either protect individuals' privacy or because such a calculation was
not applicable for this demographic group.
[A] Data omitted to protect individuals' privacy.
[B] Excludes 230 employees due to incomplete data. Enclosure I provides
the reasons for these exclusions.
[C] Excludes 9 employees due to incomplete data. Enclosure I provides
the reason for these exclusions.
[End of table]
As shown in table 4, the 87 employees who entered the PCES in fiscal
year 2007 had, on average, about 20.1 years of tenure with the Service,
while the 97 employees who were appointed in fiscal year 2000 had about
21.4 years of tenure--a decrease of about 1.3 years.
Table 4: Aggregated Demographic Data on the Average Years of Tenure
with the Service Prior to PCES Appointment--All Employees Appointed to
the PCES in Either Fiscal Year 2000 or Fiscal Year 2007:
Aggregated demographic group: All males;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Number: 58;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Average: 22.2;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Number: 61;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Average: 20.5;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -1.7.
Aggregated demographic group: White males;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Number: 46;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Average: 20.9;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Number: 52;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Average: 20.6;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -0.3.
Aggregated demographic group: Minority males;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Number: 12;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Average: 27.3;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Number: 9;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Average: 19.5;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -7.8.
Aggregated demographic group: All females;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Number: 39;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Average: 20.2;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Number: 26;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Average: 19.2;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -1.0.
Aggregated demographic group: White females;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Number: 30;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Average: 20.0;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Number: 18;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Average: 20.0;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 0.0.
Aggregated demographic group: Minority females;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Number: 9;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Average: 21.0;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Number: 8;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Average: 17.3;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -3.7.
Aggregated demographic group: All whites;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Number: 76;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Average: 20.5;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Number: 70;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Average: 20.5;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 0.0.
Aggregated demographic group: All minorities;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Number: 21;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Average: 24.6;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Number: 17;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Average: 18.5;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -6.1.
Aggregated demographic group: Total PCES;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Number: 97;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2000: Average: 21.4;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Number: 87;
Average years of tenure with the Service prior to appointment to the
PCES: FY 2007: Average: 20.1;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -1.3.
Source: GAO analysis of U.S. Postal Service data.
[End of table]
Average Age at which PCES Employees during Fiscal Years 2000 and 2007
Separated from the Service:
As shown in tables 5 and 6, the average age of the 47 PCES employees
who separated from the Service in either fiscal year 2000 or fiscal
year 2007, was about 54.5 years in fiscal year 2000 (10 separations)
and about 55.6 years in fiscal year 2007 (37 separations)--an increase
of about 1.1 years. Retirement accounted for 35 of the 47 separations.
[Footnote 9] The average age, at retirement, increased-- from about
55.9 years (6 employees) to about 56.6 years (29 employees) between
fiscal years 2000 and 2007--an increase of about 0.7 years.
Table 5: Aggregated Demographic Data on the Average Age at Separation-
-All PCES Employees Who Left the Service in Either Fiscal Year 2000 or
Fiscal Year 2007:
Aggregated demographic group: All males;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Number: 8;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Average: 54.3;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Number: 27;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Average: 55.7;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.4.
Aggregated demographic group: White males;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Number: 6;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Average: 54.0;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Number: 20;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Average: 56.0;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 2.0.
Aggregated demographic group: Minority males;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Number: 2;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Average: [A];
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Number: 7;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Average: 55.0;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: All females;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Number: 2;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Average: [A];
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Number: 10;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Average: 55.2;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: White females;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Number: 1;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Average: [A];
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Number: 9;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Average: 54.3;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: Minority females;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Number: 1;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Average: [A];
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Number: 1;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Average: [A];
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: All whites;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Number: 7;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Average: 54.0;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Number: 29;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Average: 55.4;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.4.
Aggregated demographic group: All minorities;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Number: 3;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Average: 55.7;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Number: 8;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Average: 56.0;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 0.3.
Aggregated demographic group: Total PCES;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Number: 10;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2000: Average: 54.5;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Number: 37;
Average age at separation--all separations: FY 2007: Average: 55.6;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.1.
Source: GAO analysis of U.S. Postal Service data.
Note: "n/a" means that the change in age was not calculated to either
protect individuals' privacy or because such a calculation was not
applicable for this aggregated demographic group.
[A] Data omitted to protect individuals' privacy.
[End of table]
Table 6: Aggregated Demographic Data on the Average Age at Retirement-
-All PCES Employees Who Retired from the Service in Either Fiscal Year
2000 or Fiscal Year 2007:
Aggregated demographic group: All males;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Number: 6;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Average: 55.9;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Number: 21;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Average: 56.8;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 0.9.
Aggregated demographic group: White males;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Number: 5;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Average: 55.6;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Number: 15;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Average: 57.0;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 1.4.
Aggregated demographic group: Minority males;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Number: 1;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Average: [A];
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Number: 6;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Average: 56.5;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: All females;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Number: 0;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Average: 0;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Number: 8;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Average: 56.0;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: White females;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Number: 0;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Average: 0;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Number: 7;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Average: 55.0;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: Minority females;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Number: 0;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Average: 0;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Number: 1;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Average: [A];
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: All whites;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Number: 5;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Average: 55.6;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Number: 22;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Average: 56.4;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 0.8.
Aggregated demographic group: All minorities;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Number: 1;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Average: [A];
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Number: 7;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Average: 57.4;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: Total PCES;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Number: 6;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2000: Average: 55.9;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Number: 29;
Average age at separation--retirement only: FY 2007: Average: 56.6;
Change in age (FY 2000 to FY 2007): 0.7.
Source: GAO analysis of U.S. Postal Service data.
Note: "n/a" means that the change in age was not calculated to either
protect individuals' privacy or because such a calculation was not
applicable for this aggregated demographic group.
[A] Data omitted to protect individuals' privacy.
[End of table]
As shown in tables 7 and 8, the average tenure in the PCES for the 47
employees who separated in either fiscal year 2000 or fiscal year 2007
was about 8.2 years in fiscal year 2000 (10 employees) and about 6.4
years in fiscal year 2007 (37 employees)--a decrease in tenure of about
1.8 years. Thirty-five of the 47 separations occurred because of
retirements.[Footnote 10] The average years of tenure in the PCES, at
retirement, for the 35 employees who retired decreased--from about 8.1
years (6 employees) to about 6.4 years (29 employees) between fiscal
year 2000 and fiscal year 2007--a decrease of about 1.7 years.
Table 7: Aggregated Demographic Data on the Average Tenure in PCES--All
PCES Separations in Either Fiscal Year 2000 or Fiscal Year 2007:
Aggregated demographic group: All males;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Number: 8;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Average: 7.8;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Number: 27;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Average: 6.1;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -1.7.
Aggregated demographic group: White males;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Number: 6;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Average: 7.7;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Number: 20;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Average: 5.7;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -2.0.
Aggregated demographic group: Minority males;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Number: 2;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Average: [A];
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Number: 7;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Average: 7.3;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: All females;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Number: 2;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Average: [A];
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Number: 10;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Average: 7.0;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: White females;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Number: 1;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Average: [A];
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Number: 9;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Average: 7.1;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: Minority females;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Number: 1;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Average: [A];
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Number: 1;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Average: [A];
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: All whites;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Number: 7;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Average: 8.0;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Number: 29;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Average: 6.1;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -1.9.
Aggregated demographic group: All minorities;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Number: 3;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Average: 8.7;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Number: 8;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Average: 7.2;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -1.5.
Aggregated demographic group: Total PCES;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Number: 10;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2000:
Average: 8.2;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Number: 37;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--all separations: FY 2007:
Average: 6.4;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -1.8.
Source: GAO analysis of U.S. Postal Service data.
Note: "n/a" means that the change in tenure was not calculated to
either protect individuals' privacy or because such a calculation was
not applicable for this aggregated demographic group.
[A] Data omitted to protect individuals' privacy.
[End of table]
Table 8: Aggregated Demographic Data on the Average Tenure in the PCES-
-All PCES Retirements in Either Fiscal Year 2000 or Fiscal Year 2007:
Aggregated demographic group: All males;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Number: 6;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Average: 8.1;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Number: 21;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Average: 6.2;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -1.9.
Aggregated demographic group: White males;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Number: 5;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Average: 8.2;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Number: 15;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Average: 5.6;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -2.6.
Aggregated demographic group: Minority males;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Number: 1;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Average: [A];
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Number: 6;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Average: 7.6;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: All females;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Number: 0;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Average: 0;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Number: 8;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Average: 7.1;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: White females;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Number: 0;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Average: 0;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Number: 7;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Average: 7.2;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: Minority females;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Number: 0;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Average: 0;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Number: 1;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Average: [A];
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: All whites;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Number: 5;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Average: 8.2;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Number: 22;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Average: 6.1;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -2.1.
Aggregated demographic group: All minorities;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Number: 1;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Average: [A];
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Number: 7;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Average: 7.4;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): N/A.
Aggregated demographic group: Total PCES;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Number: 6;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2000:
Average: 8.1;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Number: 29;
Average years of PCES tenure at separation--retirement only: FY 2007:
Average: 6.4;
Change in tenure (FY 2000 to FY 2007): -1.7.
Source: GAO analysis of U.S. Postal Service data.
Note: "n/a" means that the change in tenure was not calculated to
either protect individuals' privacy or because such a calculation was
not applicable for this aggregated demographic group.
[A] Data omitted to protect individuals' privacy.
[End of table]
PCES Employees Who Reported a Targeted Disability in Either Fiscal Year
2000 or Fiscal Year 2007:
Two of the 959 PCES employees on board during fiscal year 2000 reported
a condition that constituted a targeted disability, whereas none of the
867 PCES employees on board during fiscal year 2007 reported such a
disability. As discussed previously, the list of targeted disabilities
are a subset of reportable disabilities and include disabling
conditions such as deafness, blindness, and mental illness. As shown in
table 9, another 7 PCES employees reported having a disability in
fiscal year 2000, while 8 reported a disability in fiscal year 2007.
However, none of the conditions they reported constituted a targeted
disability. Twenty PCES employees chose not to provide information on
their disability status in fiscal year 2000, followed by 22 employees
who chose not to disclose this information in fiscal year 2007. As we
have reported in the past,[Footnote 11] an employee's reluctance to
self-report his or her disability status creates the potential for the
underreporting of disability data. According to the Equal Employment
Opportunity Commission, for example, employees governmentwide may not
report this data due to concerns that such a disclosure will (1)
preclude them from employment or advancement, (2) subject them to
discrimination, and/or (3) not remain confidential.[Footnote 12]
Table 9: Disability Status--All PCES Employees On Board during Fiscal
Years 2000 and 2007:
Disability Status: Employee reported that he/she had no disability;
FY 2000: 925;
FY 2007: 836.
Disability Status: Employee reported that he/she did not wish to
provide information on his/her disability status;
FY 2000: 20;
FY 2007: 22.
Disability Status: Employee reported that he/she had a disability (but
the condition reported did not constitute a targeted disability);
FY 2000: 7;
FY 2007: 8.
Disability Status: Employee reported that he/she had a disability (and
the condition reported was a targeted disability);
FY 2000: 2;
FY 2007: 0.
Disability Status: No information available;
FY 2000: 5;
FY 2007: 1.
Disability Status: Total employees;
FY 2000: 959;
FY 2007: 867.
Source: GAO analysis of U.S. Postal Service data.
[End of table]
Agency Comments and Our Evaluation:
We provided the Postmaster General with a draft of this report for the
Service's review and comment. The Service provided technical comments
which we incorporated as appropriate.
We are sending copies of this report to the Postmaster General and
other interested congressional parties. The report also is available at
no charge on the GAO Web site at [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov].
If you or your staff have questions about this report, please contact
me at (202) 512-2834 or herrp@gao.gov. Contact points for our Office of
Congressional Relations and Public Affairs may be found on the last
page of this report. Key contributors to this report are listed in
enclosure II.
Sincerely yours,
Signed by:
Phillip Herr:
Director, Physical Infrastructure:
Enclosures:
[End of section]
Enclosure I: Scope and Methodology:
To address our reporting objectives, we obtained data from the U.S.
Postal Service (Service) on the 1,826 employees in the Postal Career
Executive Service (PCES) at any time during fiscal year 2000 (959
employees) and fiscal year 2007 (867 employees).[Footnote 13] We
specifically analyzed data on, among other factors, the employees' (1)
race, ethnic group, and gender; (2) date of birth; (3) date of
appointment to the PCES; (4) date hired by the Service; (5) date of
separation from the Service and the reason for the employees'
separation, where applicable; and (6) the disability status if reported
by the PCES employee. We used these data to determine, among other
matters, the average age at appointment to, and separation from, the
PCES for each employee in the PCES during fiscal years 2000 and 2007 as
well as whether these employees had reported a condition that
constituted a targeted disability.
Although we obtained data on the 1,826 employees in the PCES during
fiscal years 2000 and 2007, due to incomplete data, we excluded 239 of
these employees from our analyses for two of our three objectives--the
average age of PCES employees during fiscal years 2000 and 2007 when
they (1) were appointed to PCES and (2) separated from the PCES. We
excluded a portion of these data, as applicable, from our analyses to
enhance the consistency of our reporting. The majority of these
exclusions (230 of 239) involve the Service's data for fiscal year
2000. The vast majority of these employees (218 of 230) were appointed
to the PCES before 1990 but had separated from the Service at the time
we requested the data. According to postal officials, the Service no
longer has data on these employees' date of appointment to the PCES
because of a change in the agency's data systems. We also excluded the
remaining 12 PCES employees on board during fiscal year 2000 because,
due to incomplete data, we could not calculate their entire tenure with
the Service prior to their appointment to the PCES. According to postal
officials, these employees experienced a break in postal employment and
the Service's existing data system does not provide complete data on
the employees' previous period of postal employment. Finally, we
excluded 9 of the 867 employees in the PCES during fiscal year 2007. We
excluded these employees because of incomplete data which also resulted
from a break in their employment with the Service prior to their
appointment to the PCES.
To determine the number of PCES employees on board at any time during
fiscal years 2000 and 2007 who reported a condition that constituted a
targeted disability, we obtained and reviewed reporting codes used by
the Service and the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission for the
self-reporting of all employee disabilities and compared the codes to
isolate those that constituted a targeted disability. We also reviewed
available information on, among other matters, the difference between
reportable and targeted disabilities; the purpose of reporting data on
employee disabilities; and past reports by GAO, the Service, and the
Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on the representation of PCES
employees, by demographic group. To report on PCES employees with
targeted disabilities, we included data on the 1,826 employees in the
PCES during fiscal years 2000 and 2007.
Finally, we interviewed postal officials and performed electronic
testing for obvious errors in accuracy and completeness to ensure the
reliability of the Service's data and determined that the data were
sufficiently reliable for the purposes of this report. Because of the
relatively small number of PCES employees affected by employment
actions such as appointments to, and separations from, the PCES in
either fiscal year 2000 or fiscal year 2007, we generally reported
employee data on each demographic group in aggregate form to protect
the individuals' privacy. For the same reason, we did (1) not report
data on employees in demographic groups of less than three employees or
(2) break-out data on employees in the Services' officer ranks (PCES
II). We conducted our work from August 2008 to January 2009.
Two cautions apply when using data contained in this report. First,
because we did not analyze the factors contributing to changes in the
demographic representation of PCES employees, care must be taken when
comparing changes in the demographic data. In addition, as noted in
this report, data on the universe of PCES employees in this report
differ from data in the Service's fiscal year 2000 and fiscal year 2007
comprehensive statements. According to these statements, there were 859
PCES employees as of the end of fiscal year 2000 and 748 PCES employees
as of the end of fiscal year 2007.[Footnote 14] The number of PCES
employees identified in this report are higher than those published
previously principally because, for this report, we have included
everyone in the PCES during fiscal years 2000 and 2007--not just those
on board as of the end of each fiscal year.
[End of section]
Enclosure II: GAO Contact and Staff Acknowledgments:
GAO Contact:
Phillip R. Herr, (202) 512-2834 or herrp@gao.gov.
Staff Acknowledgments:
In addition to the contact above, Kathleen Turner, Assistant Director;
Heather Frevert; Amanda Miller; Minette Richardson; and Vasiliki
Theodoropoulos made key contributions to this report.
[End of section]
Footnotes:
[1] Data on the universe of PCES employees in this report differ from
data in the Service's fiscal year 2000 and fiscal year 2007
comprehensive statements. According to these statements, there were 859
PCES employees as of the end of fiscal year 2000 and 748 PCES employees
as of the end of fiscal year 2007. The number of PCES employees
identified in this report are higher than those published previously
principally because, for this report, we have included everyone in the
PCES during fiscal years 2000 and 2007--not just those on board as of
the end of each fiscal year. See U.S. Postal Service, 2000
Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations (Washington, D.C., 2001)
and U.S. Postal Service, 2007 Comprehensive Statement on Postal
Operations (Washington, D.C., 2008).
[2] GAO, Human Capital: Diversity in the Federal SES and Senior Levels
of the U.S. Postal Service and Processes for Selecting New Executives,
[hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-08-609T] (Washington, D.C.:
Apr. 3, 2008); and U.S. Postal Service: Diversity in the Postal Career
Executive Service, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO/GGD-00-76] (Washington, D.C.: Mar. 30,
2000).
[3] An employee may enter the PCES as an outside hire or, if employed
by the Service, be promoted (appointed) to the PCES. In this report, we
use the terms "entered" and "appointed" to designate the point at which
an individual first became a PCES employee.
[4] The nine targeted disabilities are deafness, blindness, missing
extremities, partial paralysis, complete paralysis convulsive
disorders, mental retardation, mental illness, and the distortion of a
limb and/or the spine.
[5] As previously noted, 959 of the 1,826 employees were in the PCES
during fiscal year 2000 and the remaining 867 were in the PCES during
fiscal year 2007.
[6] [hyperlink, http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-08-609T].
[7] Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Improving the
Participation Rate of People with Targeted Disabilities in the Federal
Workforce (Washington, D.C., January 2008). The Commission reported
that it first officially recognized the term "targeted disability" in
its Management Directive 703, which was adopted on Dec. 6, 1979.
[8] The term "minority" refers to people in the following racial and
ethnic groups: Black/African-American, American Indian/Alaska Native,
Asian/Pacific Islander, and Hispanic/Latino. These groupings are
consistent with those used in the Equal Employment Opportunity
Commission's most recent report on the federal work force.
[9] The remaining 12 employees separated from the Service through,
among other actions, resignations, involuntary separations, and death.
[10] As noted previously, the remaining 12 employees separated from the
Service through, among other actions, resignations, involuntary
separations, and death.
[11] GAO, Human Capital: Diversity in the Federal SES and Processes for
Selecting New Executives, [hyperlink,
http://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-09-110] (Washington, D.C.: Nov. 26,
2008).
[12] Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, Improving the
Participation Rate of People with Targeted Disabilities in the Federal
Workforce (Washington, D.C., January 2008).
[13] Data in this report include 48 PCES employees in the Postal
Inspection Service during both fiscal years 2000 and 2008, but excludes
executives in the Office of the Inspector General and the Postal
Regulatory Commission. The data also exclude (1) employees who were
paid at PCES wage levels, but are no longer employed in that capacity
and (2) employees in acting PCES positions.
[14] U.S. Postal Service, 2000 Comprehensive Statement on Postal
Operations (Washington, D.C., 2001) and U.S. Postal Service, 2007
Comprehensive Statement on Postal Operations (Washington, D.C., 2008).
[End of section]
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