WASHINGTON, Aug. 11, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Fredric V. Rolando, president of the National Association of Letter Carriers, responded today to the actions of the U.S. Postal Service aimed at enlisting congressional support for cutting postal employees' health and pension benefits and overriding lay-off protection provisions in the postal unions' contracts.

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"The issues of lay-off protection and health benefits are specifically covered by our contract," Rolando said. "Each of them has historically been covered in collective bargaining between NALC and USPS. The Congress of the United States does not engage in contract negotiations with unions and we do not believe they are about to do so.

"Of course, pension benefits for federal employees, including postal employees, are set by law. But rather than advocating pie-in-the-sky proposals, we believe USPS and Congress should focus on pending legislation (H.R. 1351) that would allow the USPS to recover massive surpluses in its CSRS and FERS pension accounts. Under the bill, which has 181 co-sponsors from both parties, the surpluses would be used to cover the unfair burden of pre-funding future retiree health benefits—a burden that no other company or agency bears and which accounts for 100 percent of the Postal Service's losses over the past four years.

"Contract negotiations for NALC open Thursday, August 18. USPS is free to bring these issues to the table. If they do so, we will bargain in good faith."

SOURCE National Association of Letter Carriers

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