April 01, 2022 - Joe Rodgers

The 15-year struggle to protect and maintain six-day delivery, to repeal the mandate that the Postal Service pre-fund decades’ worth of health benefits for its future retirees, and reform of the Federal Employees health Benefit program (FEHPB) is now the law of the land.

I would like to thank the members of Branch 157 and their families for doing all they could to help HR 3076 become a reality. Every employee of the United States Postal Service had a role to play, and it was a group effort that made this important bipartisan legislation a certainty. I want to thank the leadership from our National Officers, for all their hard work in guiding us along the way. Additionally, my sentiments go out to PA State Chair, Paul Rozzi, Mark Ashman, and our colleagues from our fellow unions.

To our friend Senator Bob Casey, and the entire Philadelphia Congressional Delegation, Representatives Madeline Dean, Mary Scanlon, Dwight Evans, and Brendan Boyle, you never let your devotion to a viable United States Postal Service and to organized labor wane. You always understood the importance of the USPS and what it meant to your constituents. We thank you for your extensive support for the Postal Service and its employees over your tenure in office.

I don’t know about you, but I am so happy that I will not have to answer questions anymore from family and friends about why the Postal Service is losing so much money every year. And, then having to have to explain about the pre-funding mandate. You see, things can get better with perseverance and good legislation.

On a final note, I want to thank all the members of Branch 157 that contribute to the Letter Carrier Political Fund (LCPF). Your voluntary contribution helped pass HR 3076. For those that don’t contribute, I hope you will reconsider and recognize just how important your participation would be is securing the financial viability of the USPS. A strong USPS is good for all of us.

God Bless