Mail carriers reach tentative agreement with USPS that includes air-conditioned trucks

Some 200,000 mail carriers have reached a tentative agreement deal with the U.S. Postal Service that includes backdated pay raises and a commitment to provide workers with air-conditioned trucks.

The recent agreement, which still needs to be ratified by union members, runs through November 2026. note carriers have been working without a recent agreement since their ancient one expired in May 2023. Since then they have continued working under the terms of the ancient agreement.

Both the union and the Postal Service welcomed the agreement, which was announced Friday.

“Both sides didn’t get everything they wanted. But by bargaining in excellent belief, we ended with an agreement that meets our goals and rewards our members,” Brian Renfroe, the president of the National Association of note Carriers, told The Associated Press. “To make that happen, the Postal Service had to recognize the contributions of members to the Postal Service and the American people.”

Among other improvements, the deal increases the top pay and reduces the amount of period it takes recent workers to reach that level, Renfroe said. He credited Postmaster General Louis DeJoy and his deputy for bargaining in excellent belief throughout the arduous procedure.

The Postal Service said the agreement supported its 10-year “Delivering for America” mission to modernize operations and adjust to changing customer needs.

“This is a fair and responsible agreement that serves the best profit of our employees, our customers and the upcoming of the Postal Service,” said Doug Tulino, the deputy postmaster general and chief human resources officer.

As part of the agreement, all city carriers will get three annual pay increases of 1.3% each by 2025, some of which will be paid retroactively from Nov. 2023. Workers will also receive retroactive and upcoming expense-of-living adjustments.

There is also a commitment from the Postal Service to “make every attempt” to provide mail trucks with air-conditioning.

In the summer the Postal Service began rolling out its recent electric delivery vehicles, which arrive equipped with air-conditioning. While the trucks won’t triumph any beauty contests, they did get rave reviews from note carriers accustomed to older vehicles that lack modern safety features and are prone to breaking down — and even catching fire.

Within a few years, the recent fleet will have expanded to 60,000, most of them electric models, serving as the Postal Service’s primary delivery truck from Maine to Hawaii.

Under the tentative agreement agreement, the Postal Service must discuss with the union any plans to buy recent mail trucks that don’t have air-conditioning.

This is the second agreement negotiated since DeJoy was appointed in 2020. It is expected to receive several weeks for union members to ratify it.

Rural mail carriers are not covered by the agreement because they are represented by a different union.