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Philip Jennings, the UNI Global Union General Secretary, brought the 8,000 delegates of the 70th biennial convention of the National Association of Letter Carriers to their feet with his message yesterday in Los Angeles: It's time for a postal comeback. 

Jennings applauded the NALC for its tenacious defense of the USPS, universal postal services, and good union jobs against a hostile Congress. He said, "Universal service – 6 days a week, to every household and business in this country – isn’t just good for this union, it’s good for the Postal Service, and it’s the promise you’ve upheld to the country for decades. It's that universal service which will be the rock that postal comeback is built on. The NALC and the Post Office must make your mark on the e-commerce explosion and grow postal services. UNI will stand with you every step of the way."

The NALC convention comes just months before the general election in the US, and at a time when the Congress is considering a comprehensive reform package for the postal service. NALC President Fred Rolando called members to action in the final months of the campaign. "Few workers have more at stake in the upcoming elections than letter carriers. We must mobilize our members to elect pro-letter carrier candidates to federal office," Rolando said. Jennings joined Rolando in that call, saying NALC members and their allies must ensure the Democratic Party's platform for a vibrant, public, universal postal service be adopted following the November elections. 

Jennings also called on NALC members to continue their fight for postal financial services, one of the union's key priorities. "Nobody is more trusted in the United States than the Post Office. The American public deserve an affordable, accessible postal bank, just like millions of people around the world already enjoy. UNI Global Union will fight with you to put the payday lenders and the loan sharks out of business and ensure that postal workers are the face of responsible banking in America."