NO SATURDAY MAIL?

NO SATURDAY MAIL?

     This is an important and relevant topic in our household.  My husband has been a letter carrier for a little more than a decade and a half.  It's a hard job physically.  I've watched my beloved transform from a very agile and athletic 30-year-old when he started the job to a still-fit man in his late 40s, who walks like an 85-year-old when he first gets up in the morning.  No offense to 85-year-olds.  It's also a dangerous job  . . . one of his coworkers was shot in the face a few years ago.  And it's an underappreciated job, in that within many communities, mailmen are something residents set their clocks by.  One elderly lady on my husband's route once fell near her front door.  He helped her when he got to her stop, and she told him, "I knew you'd be here, so I just waited rather than hurting myself worse by trying to get up."  Lastly, it's a good job, and we are thankful for it. 

    At any rate, now you will know why I am sharing the following press release from the President of the National Association of Letter Carriers.  Sometimes the public is so quick to criticize the post office and its hard workers.  Many times when reporting the elimination of Saturday delivery, the media focuses only on decline in mail volume. . . It seems that one of the main issues at hand is the "formula" for funding retiree benefits, which is not discussed at length on the news or the two sentences dedicated to the issue on internet newspages.  That is addressed below.

    Thanks for reading this post, and be sure to give your mailman a friendly wave today!

~Cindy

Letter carriers union opposes cutback in mail service; urges Congress to give USPS ‘financial breathing room’

3/2/2010

ORLANDO, FL—The president of the 300,000-member National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) today opposed the proposal by Postmaster General John E. Potter to eliminate Saturday delivery to American homes and businesses, and urged Congress instead to take steps that would provide “financial breathing room” while a better plan can be developed.

NALC President Fredric V. Rolando, in this city for the mid-winter meeting of the AFL-CIO Executive Council, said such a drastic move is both unnecessary and counter-productive and that other steps should be taken to bolster the Postal Service's financial situation while all stakeholders examine viable long-term changes that will assure continued universal service throughout the country.

“I do not believe that weakening our commitment of six-day service to the public will enhance the long-term position of the Postal Service as a critical element in our nation's economic infrastructure,” Rolando said. “In view of the January report released by the postal Inspector General that showed that the USPS was overcharged by $75 billion for postal pension costs, Congress instead should take immediate steps to correct the error.”

“If Congress takes such action, the Postal Service will have the financial breathing room needed to develop a more successful plan,” Rolando added. “The NALC stands ready to join in discussions with other principal stakeholders to develop a comprehensive strategy for the long-term viability of the Postal Service and continued high-quality service to the American people.”

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