Preparations Underway for April 24 National Day of Action to ‘Stop Staples’
March 21, 2014
APWU locals are gearing up for the National Day of Action to Stop Staples on Thursday, April 24, at locations across the country.
In a teleconference with local and state presidents, national officers and retiree chapter leaders on March 21, APWU President Mark Dimondstein stressed the urgency of thwarting the pilot program, which has established “postal” counters in more than 80 Staples stores – staffed with low-wage, high-turnover Staples employees. Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe has already announced management’s intention to expand the program to all of Staples’ 1,536 stores nationwide when the trial period ends.
“The Postal Service is kicking the door open to privatize retail operations,” Dimondstein said. Staples is not a Mom-and-Pop operation, he pointed out, and, “If we don’t stop this program, we will soon get a letter from the Postal Service telling us management plans to contract out all of retail,” he said.
At protests in front of Staples stores on April 24, APWU and supporters will spread the message: The U.S. Mail Is Not for Sale! The National Association of Letter Carriers and National Postal Mail Handlers Union have urged their members to participate, as have other labor organizations and community groups.
Locals that wish to sponsor a protest should notify the union’s national office via email to awoodbury@apwu.org, and should begin making plans, reaching out to nearby APWU locals and other allies, getting permits where they are needed, etc.
To assist locals, the national union has developed flyers geared to postal employees, as well as flyers suitable for distribution to Staples’ customers. Posters and T-shirts are also available to local and state organizations that plan a protest. To place an order, local and state presidents, national officers and retiree chapter presidents should visit www.StopStaplesStore.com.
APWU locals are encouraged to keep the national union office informed of their plans, to forward lists of their members’ email addresses and phone numbers to the national office, and to send high-resolution photos of their events to sdavidow@apwu.org.
Locals that don’t have a Staples store may plan to protest at a postal facility and engage in other “member mobilization” activities.
