File photo: October 2014 – About 100 people gathered with picket signs outside the federal courthouse in Duluth, MN many of whom were some of the 70 postal service employees who could lose their jobs if the processing center closes in 2015 like it is scheduled to.

Postal Workers at Duluth Minnesota’s mail processing center were informed Thursday that some mail sorting will remain in Duluth and employees will retain their jobs here beyond a previously announced closure date, a union official told the News Tribune.

While plans are going forward to send most outgoing mail to the Twin Cities to be sorted starting April 18 — and the last mail pickup time in Duluth still will be bumped up from the evening to 3:15 p.m. as of that date — workers were told that sorting and sequencing of incoming mail will continue to be performed in Duluth, said Kurt Waite, clerk craft director for the American Postal Workers Union.

Waite said workers at the Duluth facility were told Thursday that they’ll keep their jobs — though hours and duties may change. They’ll continue to sort incoming mail to get it ready for carriers across the region. Waite said employees also were told that some outgoing packages — but not letters — may continue to be sorted in Duluth.

Why the change in plans? Postal Service officials were not available to comment on Thursday night, but Waite said there may have been concerns with the ability of the Twin Cities facility to handle all operations from Duluth as well as processing centers in Bemidji, St. Cloud and Mankato slated to close this year. Read more

Duluth postal center gets a reprieve in the face of nationwide closures

“We believe this is very good for the workers. Most people, if not all of them, will save their job in Duluth, Minnesota. They will not have to uproot their families, move and try to relocate to a different position,” Postal Union President, Todd Fawcett, said.

Fawcett was told some mail will still be sent to the Twin Cities for processing along with some of the equipment at the Duluth center.

Congressman Rick Nolan and U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar have been outspoken opponents of the closure. Read more

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