America Needs Real Postal Reform NOW!

“Our fight is at a critical juncture,” APWU President Cliff Guffey is telling union members.

“After several failed attempts at postal reform, Congressional leaders are again negotiating over the terms of a postal reform bill,” Guffey said. “In the meantime, the USPS is proceeding with plans to dismantle the Postal Service — closing mail processing centers, slashing hours at post offices, and reducing service,” he added.

“These cutbacks will delay mail all week long, Monday through Saturday,” he said. “They will drive away customers and lead to the demise of the Postal Service. They also will cause hardships for our members.

“APWU members must tell Congress: The situation is dire,” he said. “We need real postal reform NOW!”

To help APWU members send the message to legislators, the union will be mailing a brochure to the homes of union members in the coming days. The brochures outline the APWU’s goals for postal reform legislation and include three sample letters — one for each of our members’ senators and their representative. Guffey is asking all recipients to sign the postcards included in the brochures, affix stamps, and drop them in the mail.

Since 2012, the USPS has closed or consolidated 114 mail processing facilities, one third of the nation’s mail processing capacity. The Postal Service has also reduced hours at approximately 6,500 post offices, and plans to cut hours at 6,500 more.

Reneging on Its Commitment

Reneging on its commitment to lawmakers, communities, customers and postal workers, the USPS announced last month that it was accelerating plans to close even more mail processing facilities. The USPS said it will consolidate more than 70 plants this year that were originally scheduled for possible closure in 2014.

The APWU has called on the Postal Service to postpone any consolidations until Congress acts, and has called on lawmakers to move quickly to prevent the USPS from implementing the devastating cuts in service the closures would cause.

“Congress must act now to pass meaningful postal reform – reform that restores financial stability to the Postal Service without destroying service or harming postal workers,” Guffey said. “We urge lawmakers to address the cause of the Postal Service’s manufactured financial crisis, protect service standards, and preserve the nation’s vital mail processing network,” he said.

“Locals and state organizations have done a great job organizing our members,” the union president said, “but our fight to Save America’s Postal Service must continue at this critical time!”