National Rural Letter Carriers' Association
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| Founded | 1903 |
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| Members | 104,717 (2012) |
| Key people |
Jeanette Dwyer, President |
| Office location | Alexandria, Virginia |
| Country | United States |
| Website | www.nrlca.org |
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Jeanette Dwyer, President
Ronnie Stutts, Vice President
Clifford D. Dailing, Secretary-Treasurer
Joey Johnson, Director of Labor Relations
David L. Heather, Director of Steward Operations
The National Rural Letter Carriers' Association (NRLCA) is an American labor union that represents Rural letter carriers employed by the United States Postal Service. The purpose of this Association shall be to "improve the methods used by rural letter carriers, to benefit their conditions of labor with the United States Postal Service (USPS), and to promote a fraternal spirit among its members."
To be able to join the NRLCA, one must first be employed by the USPS and work in the rural carrier craft as a Rural Carrier Associate (RCA), Substitute Rural Carrier, Rural Carrier Relief (RCR), Part-time Flexible (PTF) or Regular Carrier (Designation Code 71). Upon completion and processing of NRLCA form 1187, an official membership card is mailed, and the benefits of membership begin. The NRLCA provides information and fellowship for its members at county, district, state & national meetings where all members may participate in a democratic process of developing Association policy. The NRLCA provides a monthly publication, The National Rural Letter Carrier, to keep its members informed on postal and legislative matters of interest.
Free mail delivery began in American cities in 1863 with a limited scope. Shortly afterwards, rural citizens began petitioning for equal consideration. Postmaster General John Wanamaker first suggested rural free deliver (RFD) of mail in the United States in his annual report for fiscal year 1891. It began in 1896 with five routes, and the first rural carriers were paid $300 per year for their services. Seven years later, it had expanded to 15,119 routes covering 322,618 miles, however, inadequate pay was still an issue. The NRLCA was formed in 1903 at a cost of fifty cents per year in dues to its members.
In 1906, rural carriers were granted six national holidays. Christmas was not one of them, and did not become a holiday for rural carriers until 1923. In 1924, a special association committee traveled to Washington, D.C. to lobby for an equipment maintenance allowance (EMA). The following year, it became law. In 1928, the NRLCA implemented term limits for its officers, however, term limits were repealed in 1932. In 1941, tire and gasoline rationing from World War II affected rural carriers. NRLCA President Walker gained some exemptions from rationing for rural carriers. In 1946, the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) expressed interest in incorporating RFD into their union. In 1947, the NRLCA declined.
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