1970 United States postal strike
The U.S. postal strike of 1970 was an eight-day strike by federal postal workers in March 1970. The strike began in New York City and spread to some other cities in the following two weeks. This strike against the federal government, regarded as illegal, was the largest wildcat strike in U.S. history.
| U.S. postal strike of 1970 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Striking postal workers highlight the disparity in wages between themselves and the politicians | ||||
| Date | March 18–25, 1970 (approximately) | |||
| Location | began in New York City, spread across the United States | |||
| Caused by | Low wages and poor working conditions | |||
| Resulted in | Postal Reorganization Act | |||
| Parties | ||||
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| Lead figures | ||||
New York City letter carriers NALC president James Rademacher, NALC rank and file strike leader Vincent Sombrotto US president Richard Nixon, Postmaster General Winton M. Blount | ||||
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President Richard Nixon called out the United States armed forces and the National Guard in an attempt to distribute the mail and break the strike.
The strike influenced the contents of the Postal Reorganization Act of 1970, which dissolved the United States Post Office Department, replaced it with the more corporate United States Postal Service, and guaranteed collective bargaining rights for postal workers (though not the right to strike).