November 5, 2014
By Neal Tepel
Washington, DC – The United States Postal Service is again planning the closing of more distribution centers. Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe has issued a statement stating that 82 distribution centers will be permanently shut in 2015.
In response, the nation's four postal employee unions will be planning a mass protest, on November 14. The theme is
"Stop delaying America's mail!" The unions timed the protest for the last meeting of the Postal Board of Governors for this year.
"The Postal Service is set to make severe cuts in mail delivery service that, if implemented, would cause hardships for customers, drive away business, and cause incalculable harm to its reputation," said Letter Carriers President Fredric Rolando.
"This plan would sacrifice service while failing to address the real causes of the Postal Service's financial problems," Rolando said.
A report by the non-partisan Government Accountability Office (GAO), released October 27, backed Rolando. It said Donahoe's past closings slowed 25 percent of first-class mail.
Besides closing postal facilities, Donahoe's wants to end Saturday service, let 100,000 workers go by attrition, replace full-time unionized postal worker jobs with part-timers and subcontract out much of USPS functions. There is great concern by postal advocates and legislators that the new cuts are so severe that they will forever damage the U.S. Postal Service.
