“U.S. mail is not for sale!” — postal workers protest privatization of agency

COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — United States Postal Service employees and members of the American Postal Workers Union are protesting what they’re calling a proposed hostile takeover and sale of the agency by the Trump administration.

Columbia is just one of 150 cities where the “U.S. Mail is Not for Sale – Day of Action” events are planned. Others include Washington, Atlanta, New York, Detroit, Dallas, Denver, Orlando, Cincinnati, Los Angeles, Nashville, Minneapolis, Philadelphia, Buffalo, and Seattle.

On Monday, U.S. Postmaster General Louis DeJoy signed an agreement with the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency reform team to help identify cost saving methods.

This following Musk saying at a JP Morgan conference on Wall Street that he believes the postal service should be privatized.

And in February, President Trump told reporters he may look into folding the USPS into the U.S. Commerce Department, citing the organization’s net loss of $9.5 billion in 2024.

However employees say this could have devastating impacts.

“We are one of the four unions that negotiate contracts with the U.S. Postal Service. And if we should go under the Department of Commerce, all contracts with the union are void, and in my opinion it’s just a form of union busting,” says President of the Columbia APWU Betty James-Leaks.

Union members believe privatizing the agency will lead to employee cuts and fewer open hours — significantly slowing down mail delivery time, and increasing prices to customers.

They say this could also decrease wages and benefits of remaining employees, and lead to potential problems for people who receive medicine by mail, as well as voter security issues for citizens who mail in their ballots.

“And it’s gonna be a disaster. They don’t work for the Post Office so they don’t know the intake of service that we give to the community,” says Felicia Miller, Clerk Craft Director for the Columbia APWU.

“Hands off our Post Office. It’s not yours, it’s ours, and our union is strong, that’s why we’re out here today,” says Postal Service Clerk Lovely Williams.

The USPS currently has what’s called a “universal service obligation,” delivering mail without regard for distance or profitability.

They worry that may also change if privatized.

“We want them to leave our service alone, leave it for the public because us mail is not for sale,” says Miller.

The agency currently employs around 635,000 people across America.