Postal workers in Wilmington are not in love with their new labor agreement between the National Association of Letter Carriers and the U.S. Postal Service.
Some of them will be rallying in Rodney Square in Wilmington on Veterans Day and voting “no” on the ratification of the contract. Those organizing the rally said the proposed wage raise and reduction of “office time” and routes hurt the entire workforce.
The contract gives a raise of 1.3% to city carriers every year in November through 2025. Victor Poindexter, one of the letter carriers organizing Monday’s rally, says he is uniting with other NALC members in Wilmington to demand a bigger raise in the contract.
Career letter carriers will also receive cost-of-living adjustments through the term of the contract, should it be ratified. The adjustments are $978 in August 2023 and September 2024 and $353 in March 2024. These will be retroactively paid if ratified. Future payments are to be determined by changes in the consumer price index.
“We are stepping up and speaking out about this contract; it’s not good,” he said. “It’s gonna be hard for us to feed our families with 1.3%.”