The Postmaster General and the USPS are lobbying Congress. What are they asking legislators to do?
- Reduce letter delivery to five days per week;
- Deny new hires a “defined benefit” retirement (pension) plan;
- Force injured workers into a poverty retirement.
If these points look familiar, they should! They are all part of the severely flawed Senate bill (S. 1486) sponsored by Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE) and Sen. Tom Coburn (R-OK).
There is no doubt the Postmaster General’s fingerprints are all over this terrible legislation. Promising savings, the PMG is slowing down the mail, closing processing facilities, selling post offices and destroying postal service to America.
But the savings the PMG predicted haven’t materialized. What has happened instead is delayed mail, poor service and letter carriers delivering mail well into the night.
The lobbying is not just happening in Washington, DC. Presentations in the field to members of Congress include the same misleading propaganda.
What exactly are USPS officials presenting?
Healthcare – Management says Congress should allow the Postal Service to establish a USPS-sponsored health care program to create $8 billion in savings by “managing health care” for active members and retirees.
Five-Day Delivery – Claiming that 80 percent of the public supports it, the Postal Service wants Congress to allow five-day delivery.
Pension Control – The USPS is asking Congress to implement a “defined contribution” retirement plan for new employees rather than a “defined benefit” retirement plan. This would make new hires eligible for TSP only.
Service Changes – Managements says the USPS needs a “streamlined” process to petition the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) for changes.
PRC Reviews – The USPS says it needs a “streamlined” process for after-the-fact reviews of Postal Service actions by the PRC, as well as a streamlined process for reviewing complaints.
Arbitrators – The USPS states it is a problem that arbitrators cannot operate like Chapter 11 bankruptcy courts, where the financial condition of the USPS would be considered. They claim it is a problem that arbitrators are not allowed to adjust statutory benefits, such as retiree health care and pensions. Postmaster General Donahoe wants Congress to mandate that arbitrators consider the financial condition when issuing interest arbitration awards.
Appeal EEOs – The USPS says it needs the right to appeal EEO class-action decisions in federal courts.
Donahoe will not let the truth get in the way of what he wants, the destruction of the Postal Service as we know it. What is his vision of the future for the Postal Service? A Postal Service that relies on the extensive use of subcontracting and does as little mail processing, delivery, transportation and retail work as possible. The postal workers that are left would have their wages, health care and retirement set by arbitrators who are forced to ignore everything but the financial condition of the USPS. This will mean the return of “collective begging” for postal workers and retirees.
The USPS made $1 billion profit on operations in the first six months of fiscal year 2014, but presents it as a $1.9 billion dollar loss, citing a retiree health care pre-funding payment the Postal Service never made.
What can you do? Stand up and fight back! Get active in your local and get the real facts on postal reform. Then educate your friends, neighbors and communities. Join in the effort to educate your senators and representatives and hold them accountable at the ballot box.
The threat is real. This PMG will not stop – and neither will the APWU!
John L. Marcott, Legislative & Political Director.
Why not just abolish the 13 TH amendment and make all workers slaves? No more problems dealing with pay, work safety, health care costs, or retirement costs! Then the businessmen can hoard more money! Plus, the tea bastards can get a big tax cut.
I just read this article the other day entitled, “A Secret Plan to Shut Down Social Security’s Offices and Outsource its Work” over at alternet.org Someone even commented that the invisible powers that be are doing the same thing to us. I would link to it but every time I have attempted to do that in the past, my comment never gets posted. Anyway, if we could get the public made aware of that fact and then piggyback the plight of the USPS with it, we could stir up a very angry and potentially powerful hornets’ nest.
No legislation would be better than S.1486 going to Obama.
Blah Blah Blah…… So tired of this damn republican…. That’s their agenda.. Privatize everything and protect the GOP ( Greedy One Percenters )…. Amazes me that poor and middle – class americans keep voting for their own deaths… Some democrats are bad and worthless but most have commonsense and are still in touch with the people who voted them in office….
If you look at the numbers…….we are coming very slowly out of the tailspin of a depression cause by the financial industry ( while they still reap exorbitant profits). This is what is making the bottom line better…If usps has reduced capacity so much, where are the reductions in management size and costs?
Your article states the PMG’S plan is failing, then in a few paragraphs later note how the USPS made a billion dollars so far this year…Which is it ?
The PMG is one of Lucifer’s children, he’s in bed with those that would like to crave up the Post office and feed it to the people that want to make profit off the backs of hard working americans and postal employee’s.
Unless you at the APWU can out-bribe those private companies who want to see the USPS go private, which you can’t since they outdo the unions 20 or 30 to one when you combine union PAC’s, another nice word for bribe, it’ll be up to the public to save the day. They’ve done more to slow down Donohoe than anybody else through their legislators, and we must appeal to the voters directly to get the mandate we need.
Perhaps flooding President Obama with mail and calls would help because I don’t think with all the other crap he’s dealing with, some self inflicted, some not, the fate of the USPS is not on his radar. How long Donohoe will be allowed to continue his rampage is unknown, but there is no question he has been there too long, perjured himself before Congress, and has been the most corrupt criminal in office since mail service began. Unions seem powerless to stop him, and the GOP is yanking his strings. Perhaps a midterm election that sees some of the Republicans kicked out may help, but I doubt it. I’m just glad I’m out in two years because new employees face a very shaky future. At least for the time being Donohoe can’t fuck with my retirement.