In March 1970, between 150,000 and 200,000 postal workers staged the largest wildcat strike against the federal government in American history. It was illegal, no one was prosecuted, and soldiers sent to sort New York's mail could not do it. The settlement produced the Postal Reorganization Act and the independent Postal Service in 1971, with a lasting contradiction: public-service obligations funded like a business.
Who's who
- Lawrence O'BrienPostmaster General who proposed converting the department into a corporation
- Frederick R. KappelRetired AT&T chairman who led the 1968 commission on postal reorganization
- Gus JohnsonNew York letter carriers' branch president whose strike vote lit the fuse
- Vincent SombrottoRank-and-file carrier who led the wildcat; later national union president
- James RademacherNational letter carriers' president caught between members and the no-strike law
- Moe BillerLeader of the Manhattan-Bronx clerks' union that joined the walkout
- Winton M. BlountNixon's Postmaster General who negotiated the settlement
- Richard Nixon+15 more episodesOrdered troops into New York postal facilities; signed the reorganization act
Where it happens
- New York City+13 more episodesWhere letter carriers struck first and troops tried to sort mail
- Chicago, Illinois+15 more episodesPost office gridlocked for about three weeks in 1966
Timeline
- October 1966Chicago Post Office gridlocks for roughly three weeks
- June 1968Kappel Commission recommends a self-supporting postal corporation
- March 18, 1970New York carriers strike; the wildcat spreads nationwide
- March 23, 1970Nixon declares a national emergency and sends about 24,000 troops to New York postal facilities
- August 12, 1970Nixon signs the Postal Reorganization Act
- July 1, 1971Independent U.S. Postal Service begins operations
Still debated
Strike participation estimates run from about 150,000 to over 200,000. Union accounts call 1970 a workers' victory, while others see the Kappel corporatization plan enacted with a labor settlement attached.
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