{"id":6758,"date":"2013-11-27T09:42:32","date_gmt":"2013-11-27T14:42:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/?p=6758"},"modified":"2013-11-27T09:42:32","modified_gmt":"2013-11-27T14:42:32","slug":"apwu-the-great-postal-giveaway-usps-sends-jobs-work-to-staples","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/2013\/11\/27\/apwu-the-great-postal-giveaway-usps-sends-jobs-work-to-staples\/","title":{"rendered":"APWU: The Great Postal Giveaway – USPS Sends Jobs, Work to Staples"},"content":{"rendered":"

On Nov. 10, in a deal that has been in the works at least since March, the USPS announced it was launching a pilot program to put postal retail units in Staples stores across the country. Some sites opened quietly in October and others have opened in the last two weeks, including some where ribbon-cutting ceremonies were held. \"4-APWU-Small\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Staples is the largest retailer of office supplies in the country, with almost 1,600 stores. The pilot will begin at 84 sites, and, if it is successful, may be extended to other Staples stores. Agreements between the USPS and other big retailers may follow.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a direct assault on our jobs and on public postal services,\u201d said APWU President Mark Dimondstein.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe APWU supports the expansion of postal services. But we are adamantly opposed to USPS plans to replace good-paying union jobs with non-union low-wage jobs held by workers who have no accountability for the safety and security of the mail,\u201d he said. \u201cPostal workers deserve better, and our customers deserve better.\u201d<\/p>\n

In a meeting with Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe on Nov. 20, the union president insisted that if the plan proceeds, the postal units at Staples must be staffed by career postal employees. The APWU has requested information about the specifics of the deal, and has instructed the union\u2019s attorneys to explore legal avenues to challenge the program.<\/p>\n

The APWU also has requested a meeting with Ron Sargent, the Chairman and CEO of Staples, to discuss our concerns, Dimondstein said. He also expects to have additional discussions with postal management.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhile these efforts proceed, we will begin preparations for protests at Staple stores across the country,\u201d he said. The APWU Executive Board discussed the issue via telephone on Nov. 22 and endorsed the plan to fight back.<\/p>\n

\u201cPostal management will undoubtedly try to convince our members that this arrangement is beneficial because it creates revenue for the USPS,\u201d Dimondstein said. \u201cBut revenue without good union jobs is not in the interest of our members. Postal services that are performed by anyone other than well-trained postal workers will not serve the American people well,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is a huge step toward privatizing retail services,\u201d Dimondstein said. \u201cIf we don\u2019t draw a line in the sand, mail processing and other operations will soon follow.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Staples units will offer most postal products and services: They will sell stamps; accept first-class letters, Priority, Priority Express, standard mail, and first-class packages, and accept certified mail. The units will be operational during Staples\u2019 business hours \u2014 as late as 9 p.m. on weekdays, on Sundays and many holidays. And, in a unique arrangement, the office supply giant will offer 5% Staples Rewards for the postage on packages paid for and shipped at its locations.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe can only stop these privatization plans if we work and fight together,\u201d Dimondstein said. \u201cWe will keep APWU members informed of any progress at the national level. In the meantime, prepare for action!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

On Nov. 10, in a deal that has been in the works at least since March, the USPS announced it was launching a pilot program to put postal retail units in Staples stores across the country. Some sites opened quietly in October and others have opened in the last two weeks, including some where ribbon-cutting […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6404,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6758","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-apwu-news","last_archivepost"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6758","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6758"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6758\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6759,"href":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6758\/revisions\/6759"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6404"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6758"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6758"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6758"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}