Paul N. Carlin
Encyclopedia
Paul Nestor Carlin is an American
businessman and former United States Postal Service
official. He served as the United States Postmaster General
from 1985 to 1986.
Carlin received a bachelor's degree from the University of Wyoming
in 1954. He served in the United States Army
for two years and taught athletics at the University of Baghdad
in Iraq as a Fulbright professor
.
During the 1960s, he was employed by the National Association of Counties
where he served as assistant director of federal affairs, a position in which he lobbied Congress. He later held a similar position, director of federal and congressional relations, with the National School Boards Association
, until 1968. He then joined the National Audio-Visual Association as vice president and educational director.
Carlin went into government as President Richard Nixon
's liaison with Congress on postal matters. He went on to become a specialist in labor and employee relations at United States Postal Service
headquarters, chief of the eastern postal region, and chief of the central postal region.
On November 14, 1984, the board of governors of the Postal Service selected Carlin from among 35 candidates to become the Postmaster General effective on January 1, 1985.
The Postal Service faced a deficit during Carlin's first fiscal year in office. Between October 1, 1984 (the start of the fiscal year) and July 1, 1985, the Postal Service had a $385 million deficit, due in part to an unanticipated increase in mail volume and changes in airline routes and schedules which required the Postal Service to renegotiate contracts with airlines and reschedule operations. In order to reduce the deficit, Carlin imposed a 3.5% pay cut on 35 top postal executives (including himself), and delayed a scheduled 3.2% pay increase for 714 other managers. Other cost-cutting measures taken by the Postal Service during his administration included cutting back on overtime hours worked and delaying or canceling the issuance of certain stamps. The Postal Service's deficit for the fiscal year as a whole came to $251.5 million.
Carlin's service as Postmaster General was cut short after just over a year when the board of governors fired him on January 6, 1986. He was allowed to remain as an adviser to the board of governors at a reduced salary. John McKean, chairman of the board of governors, explained Carlin's firing by saying, "The governors felt there was a changing environment that required a different marketplace perspective." Carlin's replacement, Albert V. Casey, related in his memoir the explanations McKean and vice-chairman Peter Voss gave him as to why Carlin was being fired. According to Casey, McKean and Voss told him that Carlin had failed to reduce the number of postal employees, that he had been slow to make decisions about purchasing equipment for automation, that he delegated too much authority, and was too subservient to the White House, in addition to running the $251 million deficit for the fiscal year.
In June 1986, Carlin filed suit against the board of governors to get his job as Postmaster General back. Carlin claimed that he had been fired for refusing to steer a contract for sorting equipment to a company favored by Voss, the vice-chairman of the board. (About a month before Carlin filed suit, Voss had pleaded guilty to taking illegal payoffs in relation to the contract and resigned from the board.) However, Carlin's lawsuit was dismissed on the grounds that the Postal Reorganization Act
did not allow judicial review
of the board's decision to fire a Postmaster General. According to the district court, Congress had granted the board authority to fire a Postmaster General "for a good reason, bad reason or no reason at all."
After leaving the Postal Service, Carlin co-founded (with Eugene C. Johnson) a company called Business Mail Express Inc. in 1990 and sold it in 1995. In 1998, he and Johnson established a company called Mail2000, which was intended to speed mail delivery by helping businesses presort mass mailings. In 2001, United Parcel Service
purchased Mail2000 for an estimated $100 million.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
businessman and former United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
official. He served as the United States Postmaster General
United States Postmaster General
The United States Postmaster General is the Chief Executive Officer of the United States Postal Service. The office, in one form or another, is older than both the United States Constitution and the United States Declaration of Independence...
from 1985 to 1986.
Carlin received a bachelor's degree from the University of Wyoming
University of Wyoming
The University of Wyoming is a land-grant university located in Laramie, Wyoming, situated on Wyoming's high Laramie Plains, at an elevation of 7,200 feet , between the Laramie and Snowy Range mountains. It is known as UW to people close to the university...
in 1954. He served in the United States Army
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
for two years and taught athletics at the University of Baghdad
University of Baghdad
The University of Baghdad is the largest university in Iraq and the second largest Arab university following the University of Cairo.- Nomenclature :Both University of Baghdad and Baghdad University are used interchangeably....
in Iraq as a Fulbright professor
Fulbright Program
The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright-Hays Program, is a program of competitive, merit-based grants for international educational exchange for students, scholars, teachers, professionals, scientists and artists, founded by United States Senator J. William Fulbright in 1946. Under the...
.
During the 1960s, he was employed by the National Association of Counties
National Association of Counties
The National Association of Counties is an organization that represents county governments in the United States.The National Association of Counties is the only national organization that represents county governments in the United States. Founded in 1935, NACo provides essential services to the...
where he served as assistant director of federal affairs, a position in which he lobbied Congress. He later held a similar position, director of federal and congressional relations, with the National School Boards Association
National School Boards Association
The National School Boards Association, or NSBA, is a nonprofit organization operating as a federation of state associations of school boards across the United States. Founded in 1940, NSBA represents 95,000 local school board members who govern 14,890 local school districts serving more than 47...
, until 1968. He then joined the National Audio-Visual Association as vice president and educational director.
Carlin went into government as President Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
's liaison with Congress on postal matters. He went on to become a specialist in labor and employee relations at United States Postal Service
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service is an independent agency of the United States government responsible for providing postal service in the United States...
headquarters, chief of the eastern postal region, and chief of the central postal region.
On November 14, 1984, the board of governors of the Postal Service selected Carlin from among 35 candidates to become the Postmaster General effective on January 1, 1985.
The Postal Service faced a deficit during Carlin's first fiscal year in office. Between October 1, 1984 (the start of the fiscal year) and July 1, 1985, the Postal Service had a $385 million deficit, due in part to an unanticipated increase in mail volume and changes in airline routes and schedules which required the Postal Service to renegotiate contracts with airlines and reschedule operations. In order to reduce the deficit, Carlin imposed a 3.5% pay cut on 35 top postal executives (including himself), and delayed a scheduled 3.2% pay increase for 714 other managers. Other cost-cutting measures taken by the Postal Service during his administration included cutting back on overtime hours worked and delaying or canceling the issuance of certain stamps. The Postal Service's deficit for the fiscal year as a whole came to $251.5 million.
Carlin's service as Postmaster General was cut short after just over a year when the board of governors fired him on January 6, 1986. He was allowed to remain as an adviser to the board of governors at a reduced salary. John McKean, chairman of the board of governors, explained Carlin's firing by saying, "The governors felt there was a changing environment that required a different marketplace perspective." Carlin's replacement, Albert V. Casey, related in his memoir the explanations McKean and vice-chairman Peter Voss gave him as to why Carlin was being fired. According to Casey, McKean and Voss told him that Carlin had failed to reduce the number of postal employees, that he had been slow to make decisions about purchasing equipment for automation, that he delegated too much authority, and was too subservient to the White House, in addition to running the $251 million deficit for the fiscal year.
In June 1986, Carlin filed suit against the board of governors to get his job as Postmaster General back. Carlin claimed that he had been fired for refusing to steer a contract for sorting equipment to a company favored by Voss, the vice-chairman of the board. (About a month before Carlin filed suit, Voss had pleaded guilty to taking illegal payoffs in relation to the contract and resigned from the board.) However, Carlin's lawsuit was dismissed on the grounds that the Postal Reorganization Act
Postal Reorganization Act
The Postal Reorganization Act of 1970 abolished the United States Post Office Department, a part of the cabinet, and created the United States Postal Service, a corporation-like independent agency with an official monopoly on the delivery of mail in the United States. was signed by President...
did not allow judicial review
Judicial review
Judicial review is the doctrine under which legislative and executive actions are subject to review by the judiciary. Specific courts with judicial review power must annul the acts of the state when it finds them incompatible with a higher authority...
of the board's decision to fire a Postmaster General. According to the district court, Congress had granted the board authority to fire a Postmaster General "for a good reason, bad reason or no reason at all."
After leaving the Postal Service, Carlin co-founded (with Eugene C. Johnson) a company called Business Mail Express Inc. in 1990 and sold it in 1995. In 1998, he and Johnson established a company called Mail2000, which was intended to speed mail delivery by helping businesses presort mass mailings. In 2001, United Parcel Service
United Parcel Service
United Parcel Service, Inc. , typically referred to by the acronym UPS, is a package delivery company. Headquartered in Sandy Springs, Georgia, United States, UPS delivers more than 15 million packages a day to 6.1 million customers in more than 220 countries and territories around the...
purchased Mail2000 for an estimated $100 million.