USPS aims to save $500M with worker retirement incentive

The US Postal Service released plans to offer select employees of two of its unions a financial incentive to retire or resign before the end of the fiscal year, September 30, 2009.

The 30,000 eligible employees work primarily in mail processing facilities, which have become more efficient with new mail processing machinery. All workers are all represented by the American Postal Workers Union (APWU) or the National Postal Mail Handlers Union (NPMHU). Members of the

National Association of Letter Carriers and the National Rural Letter Carriers' Association will not be eligible.

The incentive provides eligible employees $10,000 to be paid during the first three months of Fiscal Year 2010, creating salary and benefit savings for the next nine months. The same employees will receive a second payment of $5,000 in Fiscal Year 2011.

If all workers take advantage of the offer, savings to the USPS are estimated at $500 million next year.