APWU
The USPS, Postal Workers Under Threat
April 7, 2025Postal Workers Must Once Again Stand Up and Fight Back against the Threat of Privatization! See what postal privatization means for postal workers.
Privatization – selling the Postal Service to private corporations – could happen in a few different ways. It might mean a big sell off of the whole USPS to the private sector. It could mean splitting the network into two or three pieces – selling off the most profitable parts to corporations, while leaving the rest to fail. It could even mean contracting out most of the network. However they try to do it, the effect on postal workers would be similar.
Efforts to sell off the Postal Service, in whole or in part, or to strip it of its independence or public service mission, would be of no benefit to the American people. Instead, it would drive up postage rates and lead to reduced service, especially to rural areas.
The Postal Reorganization Act, the 1970 law that created the Postal Service as an independent agency, intended our work to be freed from the shifting political winds, and dedicated to serving the American public. We have fought – many times – to keep our service free from political meddling, but we have never seen a threat this dire. Let’s stand up and fight back, APWU! ■
What Would Privatization Mean for Postal Workers?
You would not have a job with the U.S. Postal Service.
You would no longer be covered by the contract between the APWU and the USPS.
Your wages, benefits, cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs), and financial and job security would be gone.
Fair hiring practices for disabled veterans and people from all walks of life would likely cease.
Your federal retirement benefits would be frozen and would not increase. New, not-yet-vested workers would lose their retirement.
You would lose your health insurance with the Federal Employee Health Benefit (FEHB) plan. Your no-layoff clause and just-cause protections against unfair discipline and termination would cease.
All your benefits, like your sick, vacation, and holiday leave, would be gone.
Your right to file grievances would be lost, unless you are working for a unionized private company.
There would be no recourse for unsafe work environments, harassment, and more.
Your postal seniority and related benefits would be gone.
Download a Copy of this Factsheet
Postal Workers Under Threat: What Would Privatization Mean For You?
The USPS, Postal Workers Under ThreatPostal Workers Must Once Again Stand Up and Fight Back against the Threat of Privatization!0
Read More....Postal Workers Under Threat: What Would Privatization Mean For You?
https://d1ocufyfjsc14h.cloudfront.net/sites/default/files/postal_workers_under_threat_-_what_privatization_means-1.pdfPostal Workers Under Threat: What Would Privatization Mean For You?
Read More....2025 Oklahoma Postal Workers Union State Convention
Training begins April 24. Registration: $140. Training, Convention and Banquet will be held at the Stride Bank Convention Center at 301 S Independence. Enid, Ok. For questions, contact Loretta Hackman at 918 833 2477
April 24, 2025 – 8:15AM to April 26, 2025 – 5:15PMGlo Best Western123 W Main St, Enid, Ok
LocalNoYes2025-04-04 00:00:002025 Oklahoma Postal Workers Union State ConventionTraining begins April 24.
Hotel Information
Glo Best Western
123 W Main St,
Enid, Ok
580 540 4172
Training, Convention and Banquet will be held at the Stride Bank Convention Center at 301 S Independence. Enid, Ok.
Registration is $140 Payable to:
OPWU
PO Box 3505
Tulsa, Ok 74101
Questions: Loretta Hackman at 918 833 2477
10
March 20 Day of Action Recap
On March 20, 2025 APWU members took to the streets to say “Hands Off our public Postal Service. See our recap from the Day of Action.
p3ADrVYbBTsSee how our members took over the news cycle on March 20, 2025 as postal workers said “Hands Off” our public Postal Service.00
USPS Report: PSE Compliance Report Pay Period 7 – March 21, 2025
https://d1ocufyfjsc14h.cloudfront.net/sites/default/files/apwu_pse_compliance_report_fy25_pp07_v03.xlsUSPS Report: PSE Compliance Report Pay Period 7 – March 21, 2025
Read More....Watchdog Report Reveals Big Banks Are Salivating Over Prospect of Postal Privatization
April 2, 2025Truthout, an independent news organization, recently reported on a Revolving Door Project analysis that revealed big banks are salivating over the prospect that the Postal Service will soon be broken up and privatized by the new Administration.
US Mail Not for SaleU.S. Mail is Not for Sale!
Truthout, an independent news organization, recently reported on a Revolving Door Project analysis that revealed big banks are salivating over the prospect that the Postal Service will soon be broken up and privatized by the new Administration. In February, Wells Fargo equity analysts circulated a document within the banking industry arguing that postal privatization could be a huge money-maker for investors. They advise the Administration to sell off the most profitable parts of the service – primarily packages and parcels, while putting taxpayers on the hook for the rest.
They called the Postal Service, which generates nearly $80 billion in revenue each year, “an obvious source of value.” That is $80 billion in the public domain that Wall Street investors can’t get their hands on.
Privatization would lead to significant price increases – potentially doubling them, and mass layoffs. These layoffs could drastically reduce the number of unionized employees in the U.S., as 91 percent of the Postal Service’s 640,000 employees are unionized.
“We know that privatized postal services will lead to higher postage prices, and lower service quality to the public,” said APWU President Mark Dimondstein in a statement about the leaked Wells Fargo report.
Read the entire Wells Fargo report HERE
Find the Truthout breakdown of the report HERE
Watchdog Report Reveals Big Banks Are Salivating Over Prospect of Postal Privatization0
Read More....2025 APWU PAYROLL PROCESSING SCHEDULE
https://d1ocufyfjsc14h.cloudfront.net/sites/default/files/apwu_payroll_processing_schedule_final_.pdf2025 APWU PAYROLL PROCESSING SCHEDULE
Read More....
The ‘Hands Off Our Veterans’ Healthcare’ Fight Continues In 2025
March 24, 2025The ‘Hands O¥ Our Veterans’ Healthcare’
Fight Continues In 2025
magazineVeterans Resources
In the January/February 2025 Home Front article, we informed APWU veterans about the very serious consequences that Project 2025 will have on Veterans Affairs (VA) benefits, the quality healthcare services veterans receive, and the use of private contractors to process and evaluate their disability claims. We called it a “Code Red Alert” because Project 2025 plans to totally privatize our VA healthcare during President Trump’s second four-year term of office.
Project 2025 does not just affect VA healthcare benefits, it also affects five and 10-point Veterans’ Preference to regular federal government agency employment. So, while we are fighting to save our healthcare, we are also fighting to save our Veterans’ Preference jobs with the Postal Service, which are also threatened to be privatized under President Trump’s Project 2025 plans.
The plan to privatize VA healthcare has been a gradual, ongoing process ever since for-pro t private contractors started replacing VA Federal Government Management and highly trained VA employees more than 22 years ago. In fact, the private contracting of VA healthcare services has increased to such an extreme over the years, that currently over 70 percent of the more than $300 billion of the annual 2022, 2023, and 2024 VA healthcare budget went to private contractors, while only 27 percent went to regular VA federal government employee wages and VA healthcare.
Project 2025 tries to rationalize the privatization of VA healthcare. The most insulting excuse is that sending veterans to local private healthcare contractors would provide faster, top-quality healthcare services, and would reduce waiting times for medical appointments and claim decisions, more so than with fully staffed federal government medical professionals who are trained to serve and provide top-quality healthcare serves to veterans.
There is absolutely no proof that privatizing VA healthcare and increasing the wealth of those awarded private VA contracts would provide better or faster healthcare services than a fully staffed and trained federal agency that specializes in serving veterans. Has the increased privatization of VA healthcare services over the past 23 years reduced wait times for VA appointments? The answer is no! Wait times for a newly enrolled veteran’s first medical appointments are months long, which is a dramatic increase in waiting times for VA services.
A Look at VA Services Diminished by Privatization
While veteran suicide rates have increased, the process to access help from the privatized Veterans Suicide and Crisis Lifeline has gotten more challenging. When dialing 988 to access support, the automated process prompts veterans to dial 911 if it is an emergency, instead of connecting them directly to a real-life mentalhealth professional. This additional step a veteran must take adds another hurdle to access the care they need. Veterans Community Care and Emergency Medical Care services have separate billing systems controlled by private contractors, which seem to change like the weather. Additionally, for-profit private contractors oversee electronic VA enrollment and disability claims processing procedures.
So, APWU family, it is time to act against further privatization and degradation of VA services! Contact your congressional leaders and tell them to stop allowing private for-profit companies to enrich themselves at the expense of our veterans and the services they have earned. How are private contractors providing so-called quality healthcare while enriching themselves from the billions of dollars of veterans’ co-payments and the wage garnishments that cause financial hardship? Isn’t it obvious that privatization like Project 2025 demands has already been implemented at VA medical centers across the country? It is up to our APWU veteran family to stand up and fight back!
Our “Hands Off Veterans Healthcare” initiative and the struggle to save the Postal Service continues! ■
The ‘Hands O¥ Our Veterans’ Healthcare’
Fight Continues In 20250
Senate Introduces Resolution to Oppose USPS Privatization
March 31, 2025On March 27, a bipartisan group in the Senate introduced Senate Resolution (S. Res). 147, which “expresses the sense of the Senate that Congress should take all appropriate measures to ensure that the United States Postal Service remains an independent establishment of the Federal Government and is not subject to privatization.”
Legislative and Political
On March 27, a bipartisan group in the Senate introduced Senate Resolution (S. Res). 147, which “expresses the sense of the Senate that Congress should take all appropriate measures to ensure that the United States Postal Service remains an independent establishment of the Federal Government and is not subject to privatization.”
The bipartisan resolution, led by Senators Gary Peters (D-MI), Dan Sullivan (R-AK), Susan Collins (R-ME), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), and Thom Tillis (R-NC), is crucial to demonstrating the strong support of the Senate for the public services that the Postal Service provides across the country, and the critical work that postal workers do every day to bind the nation together.
On Jan. 28, a group in the House of Representatives introduced their own similar bipartisan resolution, H. Res 70, which expresses the House’s support for taking all appropriate measures to ensure that the Postal Service is not subject to privatization. To date, this resolution has 180 co-sponsors.
“This strong showing of bipartisan support from both chambers of Congress confirms what we have always known, that the Post Office is our national treasure, providing invaluable services to the public,” said APWU President Mark Dimondstein. “The essential services we provide as postal workers cannot be replicated in the private sector, and any attempt to privatize the Postal Service would only increase costs and reduce services, which would be harmful to the people and businesses across the country.”
“The APWU extends our deepest appreciation to the senators leading the fight to protect the people’s Postal Service and push back against privatization attempts,” said Legislative and Political Director Judy Beard. “I am asking every APWU member, their families, and community allies to reach out to your Senators and encourage them to co-sponsor this resolution.”
Senate Introduces Resolution to Oppose USPS Privatization0
Read More....
What’s Next in 2025?
March 24, 2025Retirees Director Nancy Olumekor wonders What’s Next in 2025 for postal retirees.
magazineRetireesNancy Olumekor
With the recent passage of the Social Security Fairness Act, we have successfully navigated the repeal of the Windfall Elimination Provision (WEP) and Government Pension Offset (GPO). APWU members are now facing another life-changing decision with the announcement of the Postal Service’s Voluntary Early Retirement (VER) incentive offer. Before you decide if you should take the VER and the $15,000 incentive, consider the following questions:
Have you discussed your retirement plans with your family? Retirement is a family decision, not an individual decision.
Have you given due consideration to how this decision may impact you – are you financially prepared to retire or no longer work for the Postal Service? If you accept the VER or incentive, what bene ts do you keep or lose?
Have you made realistic calculations for how much money it will take to maintain your standard of living?
Do you understand the estimated amount of annuity you will receive each month from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM)? In addition to federal income taxes, what other deductions will reduce your monthly annuity?
Did you provide a survivor benefit? How much will that optional life insurance cost you?
Did you talk to the USPS retirement counselor and get all your questions answered?
If you are not satisfied with your answers to these questions, ask yourself, “Why not wait until I am ready to retire?” For more information, visit apwu.org/VER-2025
The Work to Protect Our Benefits Continues
Passage of the Social Security Fairness Act (H.R. 82) was a historic win for millions of Social Security bene ciaries; now, over two million public-sector retirees and their spouses will collect full Social Security bene ts. APWU President Mark Dimondstein, Legislative and Political Director Judy Beard, and I, Retirees Department Director Nancy Olumekor, were all in attendance on Jan. 5, 2025, when President Biden signed this historic bill into law at the White House, praising it as a “big deal” for the public servants “who dedicate their lives to their communities.” Those retirees now will receive an average $360 monthly increase in Social Security benefits in 2025, and a lump sum payment for benefits they would have earned in 2024. Unfortunately, there is no fixed timeline for when the benefits will be implemented by the Social Security Administration, and we anticipate delays ahead.
On Jan. 28, 2025, OPM announced: “During the first week of his administration, President Trump issued a number of directives concerning the federal workforce.” In its “Fork in the Road” notice to Federal Employees, the OPM stated, “At this time, we cannot give you full assurance regarding the certainty of your position or agency, but should your position be eliminated you will be treated with dignity and will be afforded the protections in place for such positions.” The announcement included an offer of a deferred resignation program to full-time federal employees, which would give employees an opportunity to resign while still receiving full pay and benefits through Sept. 30, 2025, provided they accepted the offer by Feb. 6, 2025. Postal workers were among those excluded from the program.
This is a direct attack on our union family in the AFGE. The time is now to join with all workers to protect our jobs and services. With a potential reduction in the federal workforce, we can expect longer waiting times for services at OPM, Social Security, Veterans Administration, and all other federal agencies. We must continue the fight against the threat of privatization of the Postal Service and seek congressional support for House Resolution (H. Res.) 70, which reaffirms our public Postal Service is essential and must remain in the hands of the people, not private interests. Retirees know that it is important for us to continue the fight. The struggle continues! ■
What’s Next in 2025?0
Read More....