One Week Left; Local Lobbying Efforts Take Off

APWU locals and state organizations are responding enthusiastically to the call to lobby their senators during the congressional recess, which began April 2 and ends April 13.  In addition to rallies and meetings with senators during the break, locals will conduct informational leafleting at post offices around the country on Tax Day, April 17.  The APWU is being joined in both activities by the National Postal Mail Handlers Union (NPMHU).

Hundreds of APWU and Mail Handler locals have received fliers and are organizing to rally support for amendments to the Senate’s 21st Century Postal Service Act (S. 1789), which is expected to come up for debate soon after the Senate returns to Washington DC on April 16. With time getting short, APWU President Cliff Guffey is urging all APWU members to get involved.

“As it’s currently written, the bill will not prevent the Postal Service from degrading service standards or closing thousands of post offices and hundreds of mail processing centers around the country,” Guffey said.

The APWU and the Mail Handlers Union are involved in an all-out push to amend the Senate bill to maintain current service standards, keep post offices and mail processing centers open, and fix the Postal Service’s finances without drastic cuts in cutting service.

A moratorium on post office closing and mail processing center consolidations is set to expire May 15, and postal officials have indicated that they intend to proceed with plans to dismantle the network unless Congress acts before then.

Locals that haven’t done so already should download an April Actions Press Kit [PDF -members only]. The kit includes a sample press release, a fact sheet about the Postal Service, tips for working with the media, and news clips about the Postal Service’s “crisis.”

Locals are also asked to send photos of the events to the APWU Communications Department.  Photos may be sent via e-mail to photos@apwu.org. Please include a description for each photo, including when and where it was taken, and identifying any elected officials shown.