Elon Musk and Donald Trump want to privatize the U.S. Postal Service after years of billion-dollar losses. Unions say it’s a ‘terrible idea’

US Postal Service:This week after resignation is facing an indefinite futurePostmaster General Louis dejoyAND PRESIDENT DONALD TRump and Elon Mushk’s offer, which runs the government’s efficiency, that the postal servicecould have been privatized.

The unions of the postal employees have increased the idea of ​​privatization, staging protests throughout the country.

While they support modernization efforts,Including those initiated byAnd the leaders of the union warned that allowing US mail to launch US mail will eventually damage daily citizens, especially about 51 million people living in rural areas depending on the postal service.

“It’s a terrible idea for everyone that we are serving in the” National Press Club “at the” National Press Club “at the Washington Club on Tuesday at the National Press Club on Tuesday. RENFRO National Association.

What the next thing happens can depend on who becomes the next postman. Is US Postal Service: The Board of Governors, the independent establishment of the Executive Branch of the Postal Service, has maintained the search for the World Consulting Company, search for the 76th postman and the Chief Executive Officer.

USPS is currently working about 640,000 employees, which has been assigned to deliver rural areas from domestic cities and even distant islands.

Trump and musk want to make big changes to USPS

In February,Trump saidHe can post the US Postal Service under the control of the trade department, which will be the executive branch of the agency, which has been operating as an independent entity since 1970.

“We want to have a post office that works well and does not lose mass money,” Trump said during the swearing-in ceremony of Trade Secretary Howard Lutnik. “We’re thinking about doing that. And it will be a merger, but it will stay in the postal service, and I think it will work much better. “

As long as he did not say anything about the privatization of the event, the President had supported the idea in the past. In December, he suggested privatization of service, taking into account the competition from which ContricolativeUPS, FedEx: and others.

“It’s an idea that many people have been in a long time. We look at it, “said the President.

Musk, meanwhile, raised it this month to support the technological conference of the PAIN SERVICE, saying: “We must privatize privatized.”

Postal workers are protesting, warn Americans who can lose a favorite service

Postal workers in the country have been protesting in recent days, many who are not sold to the USA are not sold, and some signs that read. “Mail office, not billionaires.”

Renfro said that the purpose of protests is to inform the American public that drastic changes are being considered for the postal service.

“Our message is:” No. ” Private business is interested in doing business, as they should be, “he said.

How did USPS complete in such a bad financial state?

Since the reorganization in 1970, the USPS is mainly self-financed. According to Congress Research Service, most of the $ 78.5 billion budget comes from customer payments. The Congress provides a relatively small annual embezzlement of about $ 50 million in 2023 fiscal years to subsidize free and reduced mailing services.

In the conditions of challenges, which include the decline in beneficial first-class mail and the value of the pensioner benefits, the accumulated postal serviceDamage to $ 87 billionFrom 2007 to 2020. The service reported $ 144 million in the last quarter, attributing it to the 10-year plan of Vejo to modernize operations and stem losses. The service reported $ 2.1 billion in a net loss in the same quarter last year.

“By improving my product portfolio, we increase our competitive position in the cargo market,” said Dojaj.In a written statementFebruary 2025 Accompanying the results of the first quarter of the fiscal year.

The leaders of the union said on Wednesday that they hoped that the next postman’s common rods with a modernization program and find the postal service to other services, including basic banking, electric charging.

“The network of our physical places, retail places … Our delivery network is in our position that needs to do very different things,” Renfro said.

This story was originally shown Fortune.com