SAN JOSE \u2014 The U.S. Postal Service has terminated an agreement that allowed Staples employees to operate post office desks inside the retailer\u2019s stores, union and postal officials said Thursday.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe program is over,\u201d\u00a0Augustine Ruiz, a Bay Area spokesman for the USPS, confirmed Thursday. Ruiz didn\u2019t know how many Staples stores in the Bay Area provide postal services.<\/p>\n
More than 500 Staples retail outlets around the country have been offering postal services.<\/p>\n
\u201cA National Labor Relations Board Administrative Law Judge issued an order on Nov. 8, 2016, which requires the Postal Service to discontinue its retail relationship with Staples,\u201d said Darlene Casey, a spokeswoman for the USPS. \u201cThe Postal Service intends to comply with that order.\u201d<\/p>\n
Massachusetts-based Staples believes the program benefits\u00a0its patrons.<\/p>\n
\u201cThrough our contract with the U.S. Postal Service, Staples\u2019 customers enjoy the U.S. Postal Service\u2019s Approved Shipper Program with convenient locations and extended hours,\u201d Staples said.<\/p>\n
The program will officially end by sometime in March, according to the American Postal Workers Union. The labor union has staged regular protests at selected Staples outlets since the effort began as a pilot program in 2014.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Bay Area was one of the major markets for this, and particularly San Jose,\u201d said\u00a0Jamie Horwitz, a spokesman for the American Postal Workers Union.<\/p>\n
For three years, the union\u00a0has\u00a0challenged the USPS efforts to privatize postal retail operations and shift some postal services from neighborhood post offices to Staples locations.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe public Postal Service is a national treasure that was treated like a cheap trinket by the former postmaster general,\u201d said\u00a0Mark Dimondstein, president of the American Postal Workers Union.<\/p>\n
The USPS-Staples venture began in the Bay Area, Boston, Pittsburgh and Alabama, Horwitz said.<\/p>\n
Staples will retain a relationship with UPS to help customers with their shipping needs, Staples said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur members take great pride in their training and their responsibilities,\u201d Dimondstein said. \u201cThey swear an oath, they perform a public service. The quality of service at a Staples store isn\u2019t comparable.\u201d<\/p>\n