May 2026
NPMHU CALLS FOR STRONGER POSTAL FINANCES
As Mail Handlers are now aware, Postmaster General David Steiner announced earlier this year that if the United States Postal Service continues operations as usual, it is set to run out of money by the end of the year. In order to meet performance standards for customers without impacting employment, the Postal Service enacted cost saving measures to help lessen financial stress in the short run while long term solutions are created. The National Postal Mail Handlers Union has received questions from members regarding the Postal Service’s decision to defer its payments to the Federal Employee Retirement System (FERS) for the remainder of the fiscal year. The Postal Service estimates this deferment will make about $2.5 billion available. Rest assured, current and retired Mail Handlers and all postal employees will not be immediately impacted by this temporary suspension. The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is still obligated to meet USPS retirement payments and there will not be a lapse in annuities.
The Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) is the older of the retirement programs and only applies to postal and federal employees hired before 1984 and only covers a minority of postal employees. The methodology for calculating USPS CSRS expenses misconstrues employees’ salary and USPS is required to cover the full cost of CSRS benefits — which does not apply to other federal agencies.
The Postal Service is also handcuffed by how it can invest its retirement funds, as they are managed by the Office of Personnel Management and the Treasury Department. The OIG has repeatedly reported that if USPS were already allowed diversified investments of 60 percent stocks and 40 percent bonds would have generated billions in previous fiscal years. Appropriately investing retirement funds would lower the Postal Service’s retirement costs.
Finally, the Postal Service has borrowing authority from the Treasury Department to maintain liquidity and fund operational expenses. The borrowing limit is currently set to $15 billion, however, that limit was set back in 1992, and does not meet inflation growth.
The National Postal Mail Handlers Union will work with our fellow postal unions, USPS, and other stakeholders to promote these common-sense accounting solutions. The Postal Service has delivered for every American household and business for over 250 years and is invaluable to the country’s national economy. We must work to ensure that it can continue this work while also protecting Mail Handlers’ jobs and benefits.
NPMHU CALLS FOR STRONGER POSTAL FINANCES
