The American Postal Workers Union last week held a “Day of Action” outside the Sgt. Christopher David Fitzgerald Post Office, 9925 Bustleton Ave.
The union gathered to highlight concerns such as the possibility of privatization and a push to limit mail-in election voting.
APWU Bulk Mail Center Local 7048 and APWU Local 89 were joined by the National Association of Letter Carriers, the National Postal Mail Handlers and postal service retirees.
City elections commissioner Lisa Deeley was on hand, along with Sean Tobin, an aide to U.S. Rep. Brendan Boyle. Vince Tarducci, the Eastern Region Coordinator for the American Postal Workers Union, called on Boyle to run for Sen. John Fetterman’s seat in 2028.
Tarducci started the rally by calling for a moment of silence in memory of Christopher Fitzgerald, the Temple police officer shot to death in 2023.
The rally included music, with songs such as Solidarity Forever. Participants held signs such as “USPS is a service not a business” and “Protect our public post office,” and chanted, “We fired up, won’t take it no more.”
The United States Postal Service was founded in 1775, with Benjamin Franklin as the first postmaster general.
Postal unions oppose President Donald Trump’s proposed restrictions on mail-in balloting, want the Senate to confirm nominees to the Board of Governors only if they have the best interests of the USPS and want the Postal Service to invest in the future of the agency, “so we’re here for another 251 years,” Tarducci said.
James DeRidder, National Business Agent for the APWU Clerk Division and former president of APWU Local 7048, said USPS Board of Governors nominees must oppose privatization and not reduce services. He urged the crowd to call the offices of Sens. Fetterman and Dave McCormick and ask them to vote for nominees only if they agree to pursue policies that will lead to the long-term viability of the USPS.
Deeley said some states, such as Washington, Oregon and Colorado, have been conducting all-mail elections for decades. She likes the Pennsylvania law that allows mail-in voting along with in-person voting. In Philadelphia, she said, about 30 percent of voters cast ballots via mail while most of the rest show up in person at one of 1,703 divisions, staffed by some 8,500 poll workers.
Tim Mulvenna, president of NALC Keystone Branch 157, has been a letter carrier for 38 years, starting at the Bustleton Avenue office. He said people rely on the USPS’ house-to-house delivery model.
“We serve the American public,” he said. ••
