Workers strike back stands with letter carriers demanding a strong contract
By Emily McArthur, Workers Strike Back. Published April 12, 2023
Last week Workers Strike Back joined letter carriers in Minneapolis in a rally demanding a strong contract. The National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) represents over a quarter million workers across all fifty states. NALC Branch 9 in Minneapolis, MN is pointing the way forward for how those workers can win a strong contract this year: building a militant membership that’s ready to fight!
“Letter carriers are working 10, 12, even 14 hours a day, six and even seven days a week in some cases, and it’s just not sustainable,” said Tyler Vasseur, NALC Branch 9 Shop Steward and Workers Strike Back activist. “It causes people to quit, it makes the staffing crisis worse. And so we’re here to rally, and we want to fight for a strong contract that addresses these issues.”
For letter carriers, the hours worked don’t just mean time spent away from family, they mean feeling dangerously exhausted while on the job. The contract expires at the end of May, and it’s an opportunity to win real gains since letter carriers were declared essential workers who helped millions of Americans stay home during the Covid lockdowns.
Unfortunately, so far the national leadership of NALC have projected they’re hoping for a “mutually beneficial contract” through back room arbitration. Instead of trying to get agreement from the bosses, what’s needed to win is for the quarter million NALC members to build a powerful struggle for a strong contract.
The US Government Accountability Office charges that the United States Postal Service (USPS) has “lost” $87 million over the past 14 years, but the idea that the Post Office should be a self-funding public corporation is absurd. The Post Office isn’t a business, it’s a public utility millions of Americans depend on to get day-to-day essential items, including medicines, delivered to their homes.
Politicians from both corporate parties lack the political will to fully fund essential programs like green energy, Medicare for All, public schools, and the post office because it means going after the super-profits of the billionaires who fund them. Public utilities should be publicly-funded and brought under democratic workers control.
Many public sector workers, from teachers, to social workers, to letter carriers, are told “the money just isn’t there” In order for the USPS to fund higher wages, a massive investment in upgraded infrastructure, and pensions, one initial step would be to stop cutting deals with highly profitable companies like Amazon. But to fully fund an ongoing high-quality public utility, it will be necessary to tax the rich.
An injury to one is an injury to all. When the federal government is forcing dangerous amounts of overtime and paying wages that don’t keep up with the historic levels of inflation, it sets a dangerous precedent for all workers. Following the inspiring example of Minneapolis workers who hosted a rally with the support of Workers Strike Back, letter carriers across the country are now discussing holding their own rallies for a strong contract that raises starting pay to $32 an hour.
