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Portland postal workers protest possible plans by Trump to privatize service [1]
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Date: 2025-02-24
PORTLAND Ore. (KPTV) - A crowd of Portland postal workers gathered in southeast Portland on Sunday to protest after President Trump said on Friday that he is considering taking over the United States Postal Service.
President Trump has also spoken in the past about the potential for moving the Postal Service into the private sector.
On Sunday in Portland, postal workers said they are nervous about the impacts on rural communities and potentially increased prices for consumers under a for-profit organization.
Dozens stood under umbrellas in the pouring rain to listen to speakers and chant together against the potential action.
“The power is here, they can’t buy this power,” said Portland City Councilor Tiffany Koyama Lane.
Sunday marked 12 years on the job for mail carrier Jae Burlingame, whose parents were also mail carriers for more than two decades.
“It’s not a job that anyone can do, it’s labor intensive, and you’re out in the weather, no matter what the weather is,” Burlingame said.
He said he loves serving the Laurelhurst Park area, but he worries the privatization of the mail service would go against his main motivations.
“People in rural areas wouldn’t be able to get their medications that they depend on, they might not get mail at all, if it’s privatized,” Burlingame said.
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Rico De Vera has been a mail carrier in the Parkrose neighborhood for a year, and he’s concerned not only with the national news, but with wages. He and his colleagues, who are members of the National Association of Letter Carriers, recently turned down a 1.3% raise agreement with the Postal Service.
He said he makes around $22 an hour, and it is not enough to make ends meet.
“When I was a line cook and I was working 40 hours a week, I would make more money than I would working 40 hours a week as a mailman. And that’s sad,” De Vera said. “I’m afraid for my peers and myself, because it is our livelihood.”
“With how expensive things are getting, it’s really hard to pay for anything, you have to scrimp more and more because you don’t have enough to stay whole,” Burlingame added. He said he has not had a raise since 2022, and 1.3% is not nearly enough to keep up with inflation.
For now, things are in limbo with both wages and the future of the service, but postal workers said they plan to fight for the right they believe belongs to their neighbors.
“We know that we are trying to save our jobs, we are trying to get paid better, but we are also trying to protect this free service that all Americans get,” De Vera said. “It’s been 250 years, and it shouldn’t stop.”
Workers said they plan to rally again if an executive order is made, and many hope to join efforts to take legal action.
FOX 12 has reached out to the U.S. Postal Service for a comment but has not yet received a response.
Copyright 2025 KPTV-KPDX. All rights reserved.
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[1] Url:
https://www.kptv.com/2025/02/24/portland-postal-workers-protest-possible-plans-by-trump-privatize-service/
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