As you know, the Senate passed S. 1789 in April over the vigorous objection of the NALC. We believe that the bill offers, at best, a temporary Band-Aid and, at worst, a slow-motion death spiral for the Postal Service. It prioritizes pre-funding and downsizing and fails to offer a viable business model for the future. Click here for a comprehensive review of the bill.
A number of members in Delaware have reported receiving an e-mail from Sen. Tom Carper (D-DE), one of the bill’s chief sponsors, asking them to sign a petition calling on the House of Representatives to take up S. 1789. Click here to see the petition. The petition misleadingly claims that the Senate bill “will save taxpayers billions, save millions of middle class jobs, and keep thousands of post offices open.”
Call Sen. Carper’s office and ask him to take down this misleading petition, because:
- The USPS receives no taxpayer funds and hasn’t for decades.
- The bill specifically targets the elimination of 18 percent of the workforce (nearly 100,000 middle-class jobs) by allocating surplus FERS pension funds for employee buyouts—that is, it does not save jobs but cuts jobs instead.
- The bill merely slows the pace of post office closings since it still mandates the massive pre-funding of future retiree health benefits (which no other agency or private firm must do) and it fails to recover surplus CSRS pension funds that could cover the full cost of such benefits.
Sen. Carper’s petition follows the posting of a very misleading graphic on the senator’s website that seeks to embarrass the House into action by highlighting the mounting financial loss at the Postal Service while the House dithers. The graphic shows a running tally of the loss—$25 million per day—but it fails to tell visitors that 96 percent of that loss in the second quarter resulted from the unique and unfair pre-funding burden that Congress imposed in 2006.
Call Sen. Carper at (202) 224-2441 and let him know how you feel.
In Solidarity,
Fredric V. Rolando, President
National Association of Letter Carriers
Not laughing anymore in WI. for them demon-crats and union heads.
Scott Walker got guts like no one else.
Elect smart people that will do good for the citizens.
Never again elect unqulaified person like Obama into any office to ruin your future, and your kids’ & grandkids’ futures.
Hollywood people should wise up and stop wasting their money on Obama.
Chris Rock – president is a zebra. But never used ‘white’ side of his brain, maybe would do better job.
NO-bama Must Go.
If a white man had the past record and no experience like o-bummer, the white man would never have been elected to office. but everyone listens to the whining people and put in an affirmative action guy for president. DuH!!! you rather rub elbows with ghetto than a rich person… don’t blame your problems on rich people, you are where you put yourselves.
this country is a disater with o-bummer in office, leaking national secrets to the enemy, siding with the enemy, he shows no loyalty to this country. don’t forget, he hardly lived in this country when he was growing up, so have no loyalty , but he is loyal to the enemy.
Adios, good riddens, no more ghetto white house.
Sorry enufisenuf the jars empty…. best wishes from your weak and dying unions.
Grant and PDXPat you’re the only ones on here that made any sense. As for the scab wannabes, if you don’t believe in unions quit the PO and take your ass over to Wal-Mart, they just love scabs in that sweat shop.
Why is this so shocking? NALC & APWU both supported Issa with COPA funds in 09. 5 day delivery is supported by majority of carriers and clerks who would love a weekend off. These issues are only issues for weak and dying unions like apwu. They are so far out of the loop and have no idea what the remaining dues paying lemmings want. However…they will this August in LA when the lemmings demand a downsizing of their union’s staff along with salary adjustments. This is when we will see them jump ship and take the VERA they negotiated for themselves. That, together with their APWU Officer Only Retirement Plan no one wants to speak about which was paid for by dues money but unavailable to the dues paying masses, should make for a pretty nice golden parachute for Goofey and Omar.
PDXPat,Grant: All those are wages and benefits are from the past. We could never get those now. We are commenting about the present and the future. It is dark as the night without stars.
Remember Grant, a lot of these comments here are by people planted to sow discontent. You could drive yourself crazy reading some of the swill posted on these pages. Ignore their comments and read the content. You’ll be loads ahead of yourself.
I am totally surprised that some of the comments I read here are just plain ignorant. Some suggest going to 5 day delivery and getting rid of old carriers. 5 day delivery is the first step in the destruction of the USPS. Why don’t we just get rid of the TEs and younger carriers? You suck at providing service to customers. The comments that take the cake are the ones bashing the union. There is a reason we make $27 an hour, work ODL, nonODL, work assignment, have defense to discipline, up to 5 weeks of annual, 104 hours of sick leave, every holiday off, thrift savings, etc., it was all provided by our UNION.
Obama doesn’t give a shit about us and neither do the Union officials, the Democrats OR the Republicans! No one gives a shit about us, they all just care about their own agendas and their own “futures.” While all the previously-captioned individuals reap the benefits of their lofty offices, we are down here on the frontlines doing the work and worrying about our futures, but to no avail. Wingman, dream on about that which you hold dear. If anyone will make it 4+ years more, it MIGHT be the carriers. Your union has done more for you than the clerk union has done for the clerks…but then again, there WERE a bunch of idiots that actually voted for that bogus-ass contract, weren’t there?
As far as I am concerned, everyone is out of their minds. Us and THEM! Do we not see the writing on the wall? I don’t know about you, but I sure do, and I have for the last 4 or 5 years, I just never, ever thought it would get THIS BAD!!!! It has been obvious to me that Donahoe (and Potter) have been planning all this for several years. We are the pawns in their game of chess and Donahoe will continue to follow through with that which he has already initiated and planned for. We are going down, the question is, when? The dominoes have been set up and they will fall in succession. Get real, people! We are the scapegoats. We are the sacrificial lambs and no matter what in the hell the lawmakers, or our union officials say, we are going down! It’s become an “everybody for himself” atmosphere with the union. The officials that we paid for to “represent” us have failed miserably – and that goes for our lawmakers and our union officials.
However, we do have one voice each. We can make a difference. What we can do is to look closely at how our lawmakers vote, and how our union officials conduct themselves. And then we can actually decide whether or not they deserve to serve in their positions. We can vote! Look past your Democrat and Republican ideals. Look past the rhetoric that the union officials shove down your throats like you are sheep that have no brains. See what is in front of you. See the truth and vote accordingly. This will be the ONLY way that we MIGHT be able to re-coup from the losses that we are about to suffer.
Take nothing for granted. Your job is never secure in this atmosphere. No one gives a shit about you, but YOU! Think about it…
I am waiting to see if the puppet carriers back Obama at the convention. If they do I will be out of the union. As for COLCPE, I stopped giving at the beginning of 2011 because of the NALC’s backing of Obamacare against the wishes of the American people.
the only way the union will listen to its members is to start a mass resignation from the union letting them know they have let us down. all of you who are complaining about the union, are you still a member? have you checked into when you can stop your union dues? money talks, bullshit walks. GET OUT OF THE UNION. then maybe they will listen.
I do not want to see the Service go under and I don’t think it will. There needs to be some major changes in labor and management. While Donohoe and his ass kissers are trying to sabotage the Service, the NALC has done less than a good job in recent fights with Capitol Hill. I give to COLCPE but I may reconsider that if the NALC can’t win any fights. What would be the use of our lobby efforts if we can’t win anything?
And yes, the NALC is terrified right now of a huge membership drop out. They need the money, and are not showing enough accomplishments with it. Our contract is in arbitration and the details have been cloaked in secrecy. I predict the convention will be very heated, lots of information carriers have the right to will not be discussed and we will leave knowing no more than we do right now. If the arbitrator gives the NALC a decent contract it will breathe easier, but if any reform act passes that will allow for layoffs, closings and severely curtails our bargaining power, the future of the union will be in serious doubt.
The Senate bill 1789 is preferable to Issa’s for sure, but it must secure our bargaining power and allow the use of the prefunding money the Senate and House are stealing from the Service every day for their own nefarious projects. Sadly, it just looks like nobody is truly on the side of the craft, the real backbone and lifeblood of the Postal Service. If the GOP especially gets its way, and there are a lot of idiot carriers who are ardent Republicans, the death of the Service will be imminent. I can only hope I can safely retire in 4 and a half years before that day arrives.
sell usps, just sell it and trouble free for house and congress.
Time to close the post office down and move on. Our office can’t even get enough cages to set up the robots anymore. We end up late on our dispatches every night! We have morons for supervisors and all the Union cares about is padding their own po9ckets and to hell with the membership. Why else would PSE’s get pref treatment over career employees when closing facilities. Screw um all, shut this pigs doors!
Yea there will be some kind of reform and this bill is a hell of a lot better than that crackpot Issa’s bill, nothing wrong with early outs thats what your union members deserve>. I’m a clerk but this guy is just like Guffey, his main concern is how much dues money he gets each month!
Yes Judy. Right on. The nalc is only concerned with loosing members, period.
Sen. Carper, keep the heat on th House of Representatives, ISSA especially! He’s the main republican that holding up the S.1789 bill. Congress policies and procedures need to be chaged on certain issues, when one person can have personal reasons for holding up a debate or vote on a particular bill. Especially when it’s something and vital to the survival of a federal agency and thousands of ameicans jobs in jeporady! Not to mention the detriment it will have on all americans mail service! Please keep fighting for what’s right! There aren’t many of you left!
I totally agree with judy
follow the yellow brick road
I fully agree with Judy on Wed, 6th Jun. What she explains in her comment would be one of the opitions I have mentioned before and totally agree with.
Follow the money, then you will find out what is really going on. He doesn’t want the 5 day work week, because when he looses members, he looses dollars. Go to five days, offer a buy out for the senior carriers making the most money, then the bottom people move to become regular, or get better routes, seems simple enough to me
This figures. The NALC supported the PAEA of 2006 which got the Post Office in this mess, but now they won’t support SB1789 which would get us out.
Our idiotic branch supported S. 1789. Look at our branch 82’s newsletter B-Mike in Portland, Or. Kevin Card’s article on the front page.