Postal rallies aim to save USPS jobs

AUSTIN (KXAN) - In a self-proclaimed effort to "Save America's Postal Service," members of the four employee unions of the United States Postal Service are getting together Tuesday to rally.

Members of the following unions will meet at two Austin locations from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m.

• American Postal Workers Union
• National Association of Letter Carriers
• National Postal Mail Handlers Union
• National Rural Letter Carriers' Association

Austin locations:

• 300 East Eighth St.
• 5929 Balcones Drive

National Association of Postal Supervisors has joined forces with the four postal unions representing employees of the Postal Service to designate Tuesday as a day of action to Save America’s Postal Service, looking to send a message about the impact that closing Postal Service locations would have.

The association's statement said that during these informational rallies, members will visit the home office of each member of the House of Representatives.

"NAPS members must take decisive action to let their member of Congress know that the Postal Service, an agency who serves every constituent in their respective districts needs relief that can only be assured through the passage of HR 1351. This is the time to join with all other employee groups to get this message to our members of Congress," said NAPS President Louis Atkins.

Postal employees will be asking legislators to co-sponsor and support the passage of HR 1351, a bill they said would restore financial stability to the Postal Service. The legislation already has 193 co-sponsors, including both Democrats and Republicans.

The rallies will also thank those members who have signed on as co-sponsors of HR 1351.

NAPS members said the passage of HR 1351 would prevent the financial collapse of the USPS -- without closing thousands of post offices, eliminating hundreds of mail processing facilities, delaying mail delivery, laying off 120,000 workers, cutting postal workers’ pay, or ending collective bargaining rights.

They also said It would allow the Postal Service to apply billions of dollars in pension overpayments to the congressional mandate that requires the USPS to prefund the healthcare benefits of future retirees.

Member contend that no other government agency or private company bears that burden, which forces the Postal Service to fund a 75-year liability in 10 years -- at a cost of more than $5 billion annually. Without the mandate, they said, the USPS would have shown a surplus of $611 million over the past four fiscal years.