Claims of negligence that put postal workers in Fredonia in unsafe situations have now led to plans of a protest at Barker Commons to raise awareness of recent incidents. The protest is scheduled for Sunday, Feb. 23 from noon until 2 p.m., across the street from the post office in the village.
A press release authored by the grassroots reform movement Build a Fighting, on behalf of the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC), was obtained by the OBSERVER. In the release, letter carriers claim their safety was jeopardized by local management.
The incidents occurred in late November, during a winter storm that caused white-out conditions that led to travel advisories and bans throughout the region. Allegedly, a carbon monoxide detector in the Fredonia Post Office was left to blare overnight and into the next work day before being addressed. Meanwhile, letter carriers and other postal employees were asked to continue working as normal.
Once management addressed the issue by evacuating the building, carriers were instructed to travel to the Dunkirk Post Office in their personal vehicles during the hazardous conditions of the Nov. 30 winter storm. Build a Fighting and NALC claim that no medical assistance was provided to carriers throughout the process.
Build a Fighting and NALC stated, “The handling of both events over the course of two days put those carriers’ lives at risk.”
More than two months later, Fredonia letter carriers have planned to make their voices heard. The press release states, “Fredonia letter carriers are refusing to remain silent about postal management’s callous attitude toward their safety.”
The Build a Fighting chapter of Buffalo and NALC Branch 3 has requested a congressional investigation be conducted regarding the incidents. The press release states, “This blatantly careless attitude on the part of management regarding letter carrier safety is not an isolated phenomenon however, and WNY letter carriers want to bring public awareness to the inhumane treatment and lack of respect or compassion they are often subjected to in the name of ‘making the numbers’.”
Community supporters are encouraged to attend the protest on behalf of Fredonia’s postal workers.
