To determine the total number of postal service mail carrier jobs lost between 2012 and 2022, we start by analyzing the numbers provided:
1. The number of postal service mail carriers in 2012 was 295.1 thousand.
2. The projected number of postal service mail carriers in 2022 is 215.8 thousand.
To find the total number of jobs lost, we subtract the projected number of jobs in 2022 from the number of jobs in 2012:
[tex]\[ \text{Jobs lost} = \text{Number of jobs in 2012} - \text{Projected number of jobs in 2022} \][/tex]
[tex]\[ \text{Jobs lost} = 295.1 - 215.8 \][/tex]
Performing the subtraction yields:
[tex]\[ \text{Jobs lost} = 79.3 \][/tex]
Therefore, the total number of postal service mail carrier jobs that will be lost between 2012 and 2022 is 79.3 thousand jobs.