Southern Oregon Union Workers Will Rally in Opposition to Postal Delays That Could Impact November’s Mail-In Votes
MEDFORD, Ore. — Postal workers from Rogue Valley will be holding a rally on (Saturday August 3) in the hope of persuading the United States Postal Service (USPS) to revert a Delivering for America decision that they believe could have an impact on the November election.
Their concerns relate to the USPS mail consolidation process that resulted in the postmarking machine in Medford being shut down and mail from Southern Oregon rerouted to Portland for postmarking.
Shutting Down Medford’s Postmarking Machine Causes Delivery Delays
Local businesspeople and residents have complained about the new system, saying that items posted locally are sometimes lost or can take weeks before arriving at its destination.
The consolidation of mail processing methods was implemented in May this year in Medford and Eugene in a move to save USPS money. The project involved the removal of the Medford postmarking machine and redirecting mail to Portland for postmarking.
The Southern Oregon Local American Postal Workers Union #342 is concerned that the speed of mail delivery will be impaired by limiting postmarking locations. Workers are concerned that mail-in ballots for the November election may not be received in time because Medford no longer has a postmark machine.
President, Jeremy Schilling, says the rerouting system has raised concerns that mail-in ballots for the November election will not be counted in time. However, Schilling expressed optimism that the USPS consolidation system can be undone.
The Medford postmarking machine is in storage on site after having been disassembled when the Delivering for America project was launched.
Union Calls for Local Mail to be Kept Local
Calling for local mail to be kept local, Schilling says there is no reason someone sending a letter from Talent to Medford should have their correspondence rerouted to Portland for postmarking, only to be returned to Medford for delivery. ‘I believe there is an easier way to keep local mail local,’ states Schilling.
The Union president says locals have told him about frequent postal delays, but strategic communications specialist with the USPS, Kim Frum, says local mail is a product delivered in two-to-three-day. She says according to data, mail between Eugene and Medford is delivered within that time frame.
Takeaways
Delivering for America is a project which the USPS hopes will achieve financial sustainability and service excellence within the next 10 years. However, the project has been subjected to push backs from all levels, including from members of the legislature.
The union rally, which will take place on Saturday at 10 a.m. in the Vogel Plaza in Medford, is hoped to raise awareness about the USPS workers’ concerns.