When an envelop marked “Caution: Ricin Poison,” generated
some confusion after showing up at an airmail facility in
Greenville, South Carolina, the Postal Service improved
the consistency and clarity of its guidelines for dealing
with suspicious mail, but a new report from the Government
Accountability Office says key elements are still lacking.
It said that despite monthly talks to employees covering
procedures and what to look out for, that current guidance
does not fully address issued raised by the incident, and
managerial training on identifying and responding to
questionable mail is incomplete.
“The Postal Service has not provided managers with explicit
guidance on communicating with employees and unions
regarding suspicious mail incidents,” according to
GAO-05-716.
It said that during the 2003 incident, USPS had guidelines
in place including one instructing employees leave a
suspected parcel alone and respond to it immediately, but
the envelope was placed in another room and left
unattended for 12 hours.
