Postal workers protest plan to cut delivery days, rural post offices

Postal workers lined the sidewalk in front of the Rush H. Limbaugh Sr. U.S. Courthouse Thursday to show their opposition to Senate legislation that would end Saturday mail delivery among other things.

Senate Bill 1789 would end six-day delivery, phase out door-to-door delivery, close post offices and eliminate jobs, say members of the National Association of Letter Carriers.

"We have got to get across to Congress what it's going to cost the rural community if they go to five-day delivery," said Audrey Humes, a mail carrier in Jackson. Humes who is president of the Missouri Rural Letter Carriers Association, was one of about 20 mail carriers who took part in Thursday's rally. Medicine, first-class mail and checks that people are depending on will be delayed if the legislation is approved, she said.

"If this bill would pass, our service standards would go down. That's one of our selling points is our service," said Thomas Bolen, an officer with the local National Association of Letter Carriers union.

Congress can't expect to cut service and still keep customers, Humes said. "If we don't do Saturday delivery, someone else will," she said.

Senate Bill 1789 could be brought up for debate in the Senate as early as next week, said John LaBombard, spokesman for Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., who also has concerns about the legislation.

Earlier this year, McCaskill unveiled a plan to address the Postal Service's pension prefunding requirement while preserving six-day delivery and keeping rural post offices open, LaBombard said.

"Claire has argued that rural post offices constitute less than 1 percent of the USPS budget, so even if all rural post offices across the country were closed, the USPS would be virtually no closer to resolving its financial challenges," LaBombard said.

At the urging of a group of senators including McCaskill, the Postal Service has agreed to wait until May 15 before taking any action on its plans to close more than 250 mail distribution centers, including one in Cape Girardeau, and hundreds more rural post offices.

Sen. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., said it is fortunate the moratorium on closings gives Congress time to develop an alternate plan.

"We need to consider all possible options before closing post offices and processing centers," he said in an emailed statement.

mmiller@semissourian.com

388-3646

Pertinent address:

555 Independence St., Cape Girardeau, MO