History Segment: “MLK: Before He was King” and “The Modern Civil Rights Movement: An Essential History”
The Human Rights and Diversity Commission, in conjunction with the Teamsters History Project, welcomes the next segment of monthly history programs based on Teamsters, the labor movement, and the diversity within our union. These programs are designed to look at a wide variety of aspects in our shared past, including events in Black, Women’s, Indigenous, […]
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Our Labor History: National Strike Against GE and New York Transit Strike
January 17, 2025This month in Labor History, we look back at two major strikes that shifted their industries: the General Electric and Westinghouse nationwide strike of over 800,000 auto and steelworkers, and the New York City Transit Strike which shut down the city’s public transit for 12 days. Learn more here:
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National Strike Against General Electric Sparks Shutdown of Major Industries
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Southern California Costco Teamsters Practice Picket in San Diego
(SAN DIEGO) – Hundreds of Costco Teamsters from throughout Southern California held a practice picket today as the January 31 deadline of the Costco National Master Agreement approaches. Nationwide, more than 18,000 Teamsters at Costco are demanding an historic, industry-leading contract and are prepared to strike if Costco fails to deliver. “Costco has just 15 […]
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APWU Applauds Decision to Keep Local Mail Local
January 16, 2025In November 2024, The Postal Regulatory Commission reversed course on a slew of postal consolidations, retaining local mail processing at 16 additional facilities across the U.S. This is a win for the public postal service, as we believe local mail should remain local.
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In November 2024, the Postal Service notified the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) in two rounds of announcements dated Nov. 12 and Nov. 22, that 16 additional facilities that will retain local mail processing, reversing their recommendation for consolidation, as originally planned.
The APWU applauds this decision. While we agree that the current network needs upgrades to handle the change of mail-mix from a majority of envelopes and flats to packages, we believe that local mail being consolidated and sorted hundreds of miles away from its entry into the mail flow, only to return a day later, further delays America’s mail.
We stand with the people of our country and agree that we need improved postal services. During the peak season for holiday mail, we anticipate too many delays. But we also know how well the Postal Service can operate. During the 2024 General Election season 97.7 percent of them were delivered within three days.
When we have the proper staffing in place and enact measures to ensure that our system runs efficiently, like we did during the 2024 election season, we can ensure that every community from coast to coast – and beyond – has dependable mail delivery service.
“The APWU believes that the Postal Service must modernize its network to improve service and deliver mail reliably to its customers,” said APWU President Mark Dimondstein. “We are happy to see the USPS responding to feedback that local mail should stay local, but we also know that moving the goal posts on service standards and ending afternoon collections for certain facilities will not improve the public’s trust or experience with our Postal Service.” ■
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USPS Board of Governors Elects New Leadership
January 16, 2025The USPS Board of Governors elected governor Amber F. McReyolds as a new board chair at its fourth and final meeting of 2024, Now three vacancies exist upon the expiration of Anton Hajjar’s term on December 8.
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On Nov 14, in its fourth and final meeting of 2024, the Postal Board of Governors elected fellow governor Amber F. McReynolds to serve as chair of the Board. She also currently chairs the Board’s Election Mail committee. Additionally, the governors elected Derek Kan to serve as vice chairman.
At this meeting, the Board discussed the Postal Service’s 2024 financial report, reports from the Audit and Finance committee, Compensation and Governance committee, Operations committee, and Election Mail committee.
It was also the final meeting for Governor Anton Hajjar. Hajjar’s seat on the Postal Board of Governors expired on Dec. 8, adding an additional vacant seat to the two existing vacancies. Outgoing President Joe Biden had already submitted three nominees to fill these seats, which include Val Butler Demings, William Zollars, and Gordon Hartogensis. But, by the time of publication for this issue of The American Postal Worker, the Senate failed to move to confirm the president’s nominees, and the vacancies are expected to carry over to a new Trump administration.
The Board provides the important oversight in ensuring that this institution continues to provide high-quality service to every community.
The gridlock to confirm these qualified nominees is frustrating, but it further demonstrates the necessity of grassroots actions and vigilance at the state and local level to ensure that the Postal Service is treating employees well and moving the mail to every door, without exception.
The Postal Board of Governors does not have the final say in how our mail runs – the people do. No matter who Trump nominates to the Board, the APWU will keep fighting for the exceptional service and delivery standards our communities deserve. Stay tuned for more updates.
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Project 2025 Seeks to Undermine Public Services with Schedule F
January 16, 2025The reinstatement of Trump’s 2020 “Schedule F” Executive Order may be on the horizon with Project 2025, reclassifying many civil servants into at-will employees without job protection. Organized labor must stand together and prepare to fight back:
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The American Postal Worker has reported on the conservative-created, Trump-supported Project 2025 in past issues. Please see the August- September 2024 and October- November 2024 issues for more background information.
Americans everywhere depend on efficient government services to support our communities, foster economic stability, and provide a social safety net for neighbors in need. Civil servants, at all levels of government, help make sure public services like Social Security payments, disaster relief, and public education are accessible to everyone who wants them. Keeping high quality public services available and open to the public also means keeping civil servants with expertise in these jobs.
Project 2025 seeks to undermine this expectation of efficiency and expertise in public services by dismantling the Federal Government and reinstating Trump’s 2020 “Schedule F” Executive Order. This would allow the ruling administration to reclassify many civil servants as policymaking or policy-evaluating workers, thereby removing their civil service protections and making them at-will employees. President Trump could then install whomever he pleases based on favoritism and loyalty to his administration.
Deploying Schedule F to replace dedicated civil servants with inexperienced cronies removes the very people who are experts at their jobs and have the knowledge to help our government serve our communities in the best possible way.
Installing employees based on “who you know” favoritism effectively removes the nonpartisan and professional nature of civil service – civil servants should simply be the most qualified for the job. That’s why tests like the ones postal workers must take for employment exist. An unbiased exam means that workers earn their jobs based on their skills, not who we know or what color our skin is.
Furthermore, in the long run, this practice could effectively dismantle public trust and efficiency in government services, letting billionaires like Donald Trump and Elon Musk make the case for a privatized, capitalistic government that profits off its citizens, instead of a government that exists to uplift workers and our communities.
Our union family at the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) is preparing to fight back and protect their workers who are providing essential public services at the federal level. We must stand together as working people and fight back against attacks on the AFGE and our other union families, to protect knowledgeable, dedicated federal employees and great public services for everyone. ■
Project 2025 Seeks to Undermine Public Services with Schedule F0
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2024 Ballot Measures: Wins for the Working Class
January 16, 2025During the 2024 General Election, voters weighed in on more than just candidates; in many states, they also voted on state-specific ballot measures that mattered most to them as individuals, such as increasing the minimum wage, preserving public education, protecting reproductive rights, and the right to unionize.
magazineElections
During the 2024 General Election, voters didn’t just choose candidates to represent them in their respective local, state, and federal elections, but in many states they also voted on ballot measures on specific issues that mattered most to them as individuals.
Ballot measures, or ballot propositions, are state-level measures that give citizens the power to change laws through a vote, meaning that the voters decide on the issues. Ballot measures can be a key tool to allow voters to pass measures at the state level.
In 2024, voters decided on issues that affect working class people, irrespective of partisan affiliation, such as increasing the minimum wage, expanding paid sick leave, preserving public education, banning anti-union captive-audience meetings, protecting reproductive rights, and the right to unionize.
In many cases, the same states who voted in favor for the issues above also elected candidates that opposed them, showing a dissonance between the progressive policies voters want and the conservative policies elected officials enact. Working people need a party that will focus on the issues that affect us – and fight for those same issues when they are in office. Voters said enough with the status quo and empty promises, they sought change that will impact their lives and families. The results in this election, for both candidates and ballot measures, show that if we are going to win for working people, we need candidates who will fight for us, not the billionaire class. ■
2024 Ballot Measures: Wins for the Working Class0
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USPS Fiscal Year 2024 Financial Report Highlights Need for Adaptation, Expanded Services
January 16, 2025Volume Down, Revenue Up. The financial results of the Postal Service for the 2024 fiscal year have been announced, and the results may surprise you. While USPS remains a trusted public service, it must continue to adapt to changes in the mail mix to remain competitive. Read more:
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The Postal Service released its 2024 Form 10-K on Nov. 14, 2024, which reports on its financial results for the 2024 fiscal year (FY) that ended on Sept. 30, 2024.
Highlights of the report show that the total operating revenue for FY2024 was more than $79.5 billion, an increase of $1.35 billion, or 1.7 percent from FY2023. Revenue from shipping and packages was $32.26 billion, an increase of $625 million, or 2 percent from FY2023.
Despite the increases in revenue, total volume was down 3.2 percent for the year. Package volume, however, increased 2.7 percent, with a 1.9 percent increase in revenue. First-Class Mail (FCM) volume declined by 3.5 percent, but revenue increased by 3.38 percent. The revenue increase results from four price increases on market-dominant products in 2023 and 2024. And while the USPS revenue was down 1.3 percent for single-piece FCM, revenue was up 5.4 percent for presorted FCM. The price increases easily made up for the modest volume losses.
For the past decade, private companies such as FedEx, Amazon, and UPS have been investing in the expansion of their delivery networks at a financial loss in hopes for future gains, which has taken modest mail and package volumes away from the Postal Service. FedEx and Amazon have made the most investments, which may soon become profitable. This would allow them to gain more density in the market space, meaning that they would provide similar shipping and delivery services, and the Postal Service could lose its market share in the industry.
While the Postal Service remains a trusted public service, it must continue to adapt to changes in the mail mix and declining mail volumes by expanding its products and services to remain competitive. This may be difficult if the Postal Service enacts additional proposed changes to service standards that would further slow mail, degrade services, and undermine the public trust. Expanded products and services, like postal banking, could also increase revenue for the USPS and should remain a priority for the USPS to become fiscally solvent. ■
Total Volume: Down 3.2%Total Revenue: Up 1.7%First Class Mail Volume: Down 3.5%First Class Mail Revenue: 3.38%
USPS Fiscal Year 2024 Financial Report Highlights Need for Adaptation, Expanded Services0
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IAM Union Members Join Labor, Civil Rights Allies at AFL-CIO MLK Conference
IAM Union members joined labor and civil rights allies in Austin, Texas, for the 2025 AFL-CIO Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Civil and Human Rights Conference. The AFL-CIO MLK Conference is held annually to honor Dr. King’s legacy and advance workers’ rights and social justice. “It makes me proud to see the number of IAM
The post IAM Union Members Join Labor, Civil Rights Allies at AFL-CIO MLK Conference appeared first on IAMAW.
U.S. Government Publishing Office Workers Join Teamsters Union
(WASHINGTON) – Workers at the U.S. Government Publishing Office (USGPO) in Washington, D.C. have voted overwhelmingly for representation with the Teamsters, becoming the third group of print industry workers to join the union this month. The 215 new Teamsters work as printing plant workers and publish trusted information on behalf of the federal government. “Teamsters […]
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