'Potential' Consolidation List Not Reliable, Union Says

A "potential consolidation list"  developed by the Postal Service and provided to members of the Senate on April 24 has generated a lot of interest at postal facilities across the country, but it is not an official management proposal or reliable list, the union is warning. Mail processing facilities are identified on the list as “Potential to Remain Open” or “Potential to Consolidate.” 

In an April 24, 2012, Mandatory Stand-Up, the USPS wrote that the senators “requested details on what a potential mail processing and distribution network would look like, if modeled under proposed service standards contained in the bill, which would maintain overnight service for intra-SCF volume.”

The Postal Service has made clear that the list is not final, writing, “It is possible that further refinements to the model will be necessary.

“Details about the modeled network request may be appearing in the news media,” management wrote. “The Postal Service therefore wishes to clarify that information provided to the Senate does not represent a new Postal Service proposal, and should not be interpreted as a new Network Rationalization plan.”

“Management provided the list to the APWU for informational purposes, but does not consider the list official notification to the union of any decisions on consolidation,” said Executive Vice President Greg Bell.

 “Although the Senate approved S. 1789 on April 25, the legislation is not final,” he pointed out.  The House of Representatives must approve legislation, a conference committee must resolve differences between the House and Senate versions of the bill, both chambers must pass the conference version, and the President must sign it. The next phase of our struggle will be in the House of Representatives. 

Click here to see the April 24 USPS NewsBreak.