Seattle postal workers to picket over delivery changes

Postal workers plan to picket in front of the Jackson Federal Building on Thursday afternoon to protest changes in the way mail is delivered downtown.

The workers are upset over changes that will require them to start their day at one of two main postal stations rather than at the small mailrooms in many downtown buildings. This could delay the time downtown businesses receive their daily mail, says Jo Ann Pyle, president of the National Association of Letter Carriers Branch 79.

But U.S. Postal Service spokesman Ernie Swanson said customers should see no change in service. "Customers who currently pick up their mail at the mailroom will continue to do so," Swanson said. He predicted all mail would be at the buildings by 10 a.m. weekdays.

About 20 of the 44 downtown mailrooms initially will see the change — likely beginning in August, Swanson said. Other mailrooms will be phased in. The move is part of overall efficiencies designed to respond to the decline in mail volume, he added.

Pyle said it was letter carriers' understanding that some of the mailrooms would end up closing and that services would be reduced or modified. Postal workers' job descriptions could change significantly, she said, which could be a violation of the union's collective-bargaining agreement.

Swanson said no downtown mailrooms would close.

Postal workers plan to picket from 4:30 to 6 p.m.