Deborah,

I think that many of us hear your pain concerning operating on a diminished budget.

A number of years ago we, too, had a major problem with our mailroom when the processing of mail was outsourced.  I'm happy to say that in recent years the problems have been resolved.

Here are some suggestions:

1.  Don't be shy about complaining.  Just be sure your complaints are made to the proper person and done in a respectful and constructive manner.  Someone at your institution has signed the contract with your current provider of service.  This is the person to whom you should be voicing your concerns.  Tell him or her what your problems are, how they impact your service to staff and students, and what you would like to see happen.  You mentioned that other departments are having problems as well.  They should be encouraged to communicate their concerns with this person as well.  The provider does NOT want to lose your contract and hopefully will be responsive to your collective concerns.  That was the case at our institution.  A new supervisor was hired and workers were replaced.  That has made a world of difference.

2.  Make a habit of checking your mailing labels to be sure that both the name of your department (Library) AND name of institution are on each label.  We cannot expect the post office or our institution mail sorters to be mind readers.  Many publishers just don't seem to "get it" that a department name needs to be included on the mailing label of a publication sent to a college campus.  I make a habit of checking the labels at the beginning of each subscription year, making a copy of the labels that have incomplete addresses, and faxing them to my Ebsco customer service rep.  She is willing to contact the publisher to have corrections made, and both of us enjoy the benefits of better delivery.  Our mail room personnel are grateful, too!  If you don't have time to do this, it's a job that a student worker can easily take over.

I hope these suggestions will help!

Linda

Linda Harding
Periodicals Assistant
AC Buehler Library
Elmhurst College
190 N. Prospect Ave.
Elmhurst, IL 60126

lindah@elmhurst.edu

-----Original Message-----
From: SERIALST: Serials in Libraries Discussion Forum [mailto:SERIALST@list.uvm.edu] On Behalf Of Loretta Hartsell
Sent: Wednesday, February 20, 2013 9:04 AM
To: SERIALST@LIST.UVM.EDU
Subject: Re: [SERIALST] Chronicle of H. E. damaged issues...again

Hi Deborah Barone,

I am writing this e-mail to you in desperation and to you since you have a
title that carries some authority in serials and writing to you might do
some good, if not I am just blowing off a little steam and thank you for
listening.

I work serials in a small to mid-size academic library.  The state of Texas
has cut back our funding and our library is suffering for it.  I have high
regard for our acting library director and for this university's president
as they as well all of staff are doing our best to carry on.

Our mailroom person retired and instead of hiring a full time staff person
to process the mail; the processing of the mail was outsourced.  Two part
time students do the sorting of the mail.  So I as well as other departments
do not get all of our mail.  I have had to claim and claim and claim with my
customer representative from EBSCO.  She is friendly and accommodating, but
I feel that her patience as well as my patience is wearing thin.  I had at
the first part of the year 2012 been doing some processing and copy
cataloging the books and serials at once.  But the acting library director
took away the cataloging part of my duties; but not before I got behind in
keeping up my serials records so I missed some claims and the result was I
lost some issues to a couple of very costly subscriptions.

The mailroom situation is a real thorn in my side.  And I just don't know
what to do about it but to complain and grumble which is not really my
nature.  Thank you for listening.  Have a good day.

Loretta J.Hartsell M.L.S.
Serials Assistant
Dunagan Library
University of Texas of the Permian Basin
4701 East University Blvd.
Odessa TX 79762

-----Original Message-----
From: SERIALST: Serials in Libraries Discussion Forum
[mailto:SERIALST@list.uvm.edu] On Behalf Of BARONE, DEBORAH L GS-11 USAF
AETC AUL/LTSA
Sent: Wednesday, February 20, 2013 8:35 AM
To: SERIALST@LIST.UVM.EDU
Subject: Re: [SERIALST] Chronicle of H. E. damaged issues...again

I think this is a post office problem - see this blog post:
http://www.swissarmylibrarian.net/2013/01/19/reference-question-of-the-week-
11313/
Deborah

//SIGNED//
Deborah Barone

Chief, Acquisitions/Serials Section (AUL/LTSA) Fairchild Research
Information Center
600 Chennault Circle, Room 160
Maxwell AFB, AL  36112-6010
Phone:  334-953-2410 / DSN: 493-2410
Fax:  334-953-5130

-----Original Message-----
From: SERIALST: Serials in Libraries Discussion Forum
[mailto:SERIALST@list.uvm.edu] On Behalf Of Lynne Weaver
Sent: Wednesday, February 20, 2013 8:21 AM
To: SERIALST@LIST.UVM.EDU
Subject: [SERIALST] Chronicle of H. E. damaged issues...again

When this thread first came up in early November, I had not had any problems
with this title.  Shortly after that I received two rather mangled ones, and
another yesterday.  I've just claimed the new one as a damaged issues, as I
did the other two. If all of us who get these would claim each one as a
damaged issue to be replaced by the publisher, the publisher might be
inclined to do mailings differently. (Maybe.)

Lynne Weaver
Lipscomb Library
434 947-8396 Phone      434 947-8134 Fax
lweaver@randolphcollege.edu<mailto:lweaver@randolphcollege.edu>
Randolph College
Founded as Randolph-Macon Woman's College in 1891
2500 Rivermont Avenue
Lynchburg, VA 24503

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