\u00a0![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.apwu.org\/news\/webart\/2014\/14-061-staples-nlrbhearing-140407.jpg\")
<\/p>\n
The page above is typical of about half of the pages in the copy of the agreement that was provided to the union.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut it hides more than it illuminates. The secret deal is still a secret.\u201d Most of the significant details in the Approved Postal Provider Pilot Agreement are redacted.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Postal Service belongs to the people of the country,\u201d said APWU President Mark Dimondstein. \u201cWhat are they hiding? And how can they justify operating in the dark?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018Thoroughly Dishonest\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n The hearing exposed how thoroughly dishonest Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe has been about the purpose of the deal, said Burelson, who testified about the union\u2019s request for information about the program.<\/p>\n In a Jan. 19 Associated Press article<\/a>, Donahoe rejected the union\u2019s claim that the program constitutes privatization. He is quoted as saying, \u201cThe privatization discussion is a ruse. We have no interest in privatizing the Postal Service.\u201d<\/p>\n But a December 2012 internal USPS document<\/a> that was presented at the hearing shows that management is indeed seeking to privatize window clerk duties. The Approved Shipper Plus Pilot Program Memo says,<\/p>\n \u201cThe pilot will be used to determine if lower costs can be realized with retail partner labor instead of the labor traditionally associated with retail windows at Post Offices\u2026<\/p>\n \u201cTransferring USPS product and service transactions to retail partner locations should allow USPS to cut costs associated with window labor time and credit card transaction fees. Initial analysis suggests that Retail Partners can sell USPS products and services at a projected cost-to-serve of $0.16 per revenue dollar, which is less than a third of the cost-to-serve observed at traditional Post Offices.\u201d<\/p>\n Smoking Gun<\/strong><\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s the smoking gun,\u201d Burelson said. \u201cClear away the \u2018management-speak\u2019 and the message is clear: The Staples deal is intended to sidestep USPS labor costs by transferring window duties to private businesses. Management\u2019s internal document admits it.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s privatization,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cI hope every postal worker understands exactly how serious the threat is \u2013 to our jobs and to the United States Postal Service as a public institution,\u201d President Dimondstein added. \u201cWe have to make sure the American people understand as well.\u201d<\/p>\n The Staples \u201cpilot program\u201d is just the beginning, he pointed out. The Jan. 19 Associated Press article also quotes Donahoe as saying he\u2019d like to see post office counters in every Staples store \u201cas soon as possible.\u201d<\/p>\n And it\u2019s not just Staples. The Approved Shipper program \u201caims to establish USPS customer access points in leading national and regional retailer\u2019s store locations nationwide.\u201d<\/p>\n Following a Pattern<\/strong><\/p>\n At the hearing, USPS witness Brian Code testified that the Retail Partner Expansion Program, which Staples is part of, had been in development at least since 2011, when he joined the Retail Alliances Department.<\/p>\n According to Code, postal executives studied postal retail trends in Germany, Great Britain, Sweden, Australia, Canada and other countries, and used them as models for the program.<\/p>\n What do those countries\u2019 mail systems have in common? Their retail operations are largely privatized. According to a 2011 report [PDF] by the Government Accountability Office<\/a> (GAO), postal retail operations were privately owned and operated, as shown below.<\/p>\n Germany 98%
\nSweden 88
\nAustralia 81
\nCanada 39<\/p>\n