Postal Workers Rally Against Service Cuts
Postal service workers, city officials and supporters took advantage of Tax-Day-Tuesday to rally on the steps of city hall in Colorado Springs.
Kathy Corcoran, state president of the Colorado Association of Letter Carriers, said rally participants want the community to understand that tax dollars are not used to fund tax services.
?No tax money goes to fund the postal service, it is all rate payer money that funds the postal service and we want to keep that postal service strong and vibrant into the future,? said Corcoran.
Corcoran also told KRDO Newschannel 13 the point of the rally was to bring attention to the looming service cuts that could go into effect as early as May 15.
According to Chuck Bader, treasurer of the American Postal Workers Union, there is a bill before the Senate that would end Saturday deliveries.
According to the postal services, this would save approximately $3.1 billion. Bader said the bill would also result in the nationwide closures of 3,600 post offices, 250 processing centers nationwide and would eliminate 100,000 jobs nationwide. Bader said of the 100,000 jobs cut, 350 would be located in Colorado Springs.
?If this bill passes it will have a very devastating impact on Colorado Springs,? said Tim Leigh, Colorado Springs city councilman.
Leigh and Corcoran told KRDO Newschannel 13 that there is another solution to the financial troubles the postal service is facing, that involves a law passed by congress in 2006.
According to the American Postal Workers Union, this law requires the postal service to ?pre-fund 75 years? worth of future retiree health benefits.? By eliminating this law, the APWU said the postal service could save $5.5 billion per year.
?You can make a pretty compelling argument that if congress simply changes its position on that one issue these jobs are saved, as would be thousands of jobs across America,? said Leigh.
Corcoran said she believes rallies, like the one held on Tuesday, are helpful. She said she hopes their message has been heard.
?My ideal outcome from these rallies is that everyone would call Congressman Lamborn, Senator Bennett and Senator Udall?s office and urge them to try for postal reform,? said Corcoran.
