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Times-Journal | Across US, people protest end of Saturday mail

March 27, 2013

Across US, people protest end of Saturday mail
Times-Journal | March 27, 2013

Postal Service workers and customers gathered last weekend at sites across the country to protest the end of Saturday mail delivery.

Dozens of letter carriers were among more than 200 people who rallied Sunday on the New Haven Green in Connecticut to protest the proposed end of Saturday mail deliveries.

The Postal Service says ending Saturday delivery will save the financially troubled agency $2 billion a year. A spending bill approved by Congress last week appears to continue the requirement for six-day mail delivery, but some lawmakers and postal officials say plans to cut Saturday service should proceed.

Postal workers also are worried that 22,500 letter carriers nationwide would lose their jobs.

U.S. Rep. Robert Aderholt, R-Ala., said he is concerned about how the proposed changes would affect his district.

Aderholt’s district includes DeKalb County, and the congressman said he supported the bill that keeps six-day delivery in place through the end of September.

“While there is a temporary solution in place, I remain concerned that the rural areas like ours will be disproportionately affected by post office location closings and reduced delivery schedules,” he said in a statement from his Washington office Monday.

“My staff and I will continue to monitor this closely as USPS considers its options to streamline its budget going forward.”

Postal Service employees rallied Saturday in Denver, saying mail carriers need legislation that guarantees six-day delivery so that they don’t have to continue facing temporary budget fixes every six months, five months or four months as they have been for several years.

Crowds also gathered in front of post offices in Cincinnati and Des Moines, Iowa, among other areas, on Sunday.

In Southfield, Mich., about 600 Postal Service employees and supporters marched in the Detroit suburb. About 100 more demonstrated in Grand Rapids, Mich.

“It’s about saving a lot of jobs,” letter carrier Henry Jaracz told The Detroit News in Southfield.

“I have a customer on my route. He has his own business and he gets payroll checks on Saturday. … A lot of businesses are open on Saturday and depend on us to deliver on Saturdays.”

The Postal Service is facing a proposed cut in Saturday delivery to help cope with $16 billion in 2012 losses.

According to The Denver Post, mail carriers are also worried that scaling back delivery by even one day could hurt public relations.

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