There is no question that collective action works. The question is how much solidarity, on the shop floor and from the general public, will it take to get results? In 1970, under a conservative administration facing a two-decade high of inflation, stagnant wages, continued civil unrest and an ongoing war in Vietnam, New York Branch 36 of the then US Postal Department defied union leadership and federal law, voting to walk off the job. Over the next eight days, more than 200,000 workers from coast to coast joined the effort, making it the largest outlaw strike in American history. That is the largest strike initiated by unionized workers without approval from union leadership. As a result, the Postal Act was passed, creating what we now know as the United States Postal Service (USPS).
The late Utah Phillips once said, “The long memory is the most radical idea in this country.” A wildcat strike forced the administration to create the USPS. Despite being one of the most radical strikes of our shared history, it is hardly part of our collective consciousness.
Today, it is still illegal for USPS workers to strike. Regardless of craft, whether part of the APWU, NALC, NPMHU, and NRLCA or not, all USPS employees must rely on collective bargaining, contract negotiations and arbitration instead of general strikes.
The threat of a postal strike was hardly a concern before 1970. Obstructing or delaying the mail has been considered a federal offense since the late 1800s. In 1912, the Lloyd-La Follette Act gave some federal employees the right to collectively bargain as long as those organizations forfeited their ability to strike. In 1947, the Taft-Hartley Act put an end to closed shops which slowed the union momentum of the early 20th century, and Law 5 USC 7311, the “Loyalty and Striking” law passed in 1956 imposing loyalty standards on federal workers. The law regulates that an individual may not hold a position of any kind in the United States Government, including postal workers, if they advocate to overthrow the constitutional form of government, are a member of an organization which advocates to overthrow the constitutional form of government, are a member of an organization that asserts the right to strike against the United States Government or asserts the right to strike against the United States Government themselves. Striking against the United States Government was and continues to be illegal, and because of the contracts and laws in place, the threat of postal strike continues to be minimal.
By the late 1960s, the power of postal unions was decentralized and limited. Inside post offices, faith in the union was low but agitation with the status quo was increasing. For many, the momentum of frustration outweighed the risk of fallout, and the first postal walk out took place at the Kingsbridge Post Office in the Bronx in July of 1969. While it only lasted one day, it set the stage for the following year, showing other workers that direct action, with or without the support of union leadership, was possible.
Inflation, Inaction and an Ignition Point
In 1970, inflation was high, wages were low, the number of US troops deployed to Vietnam had just hit its peak in 1969, and President Richard Nixon was battling dwindling approval. Civil rights, second wave feminism and other social movements were still in full swing and generally speaking, workers were growing increasingly combative towards exploitation.
At the United States Post Office Department, workers were split by craft, something that is still the case today. However, instead of the four unions that now represent postal workers, there were eight. All eight were forbidden from striking. Former Industrial Relations Director of the American Postal Workers Union, Thomas Neil, describes the era as one of “collective begging” instead of collective bargaining. Legislation was the only way for postal workers to garner wage increases.
In 1970 inflation was about 6 percent, which was almost triple the previous two decades. The starting wage for a postal employee was about $6,176 annually, the equivalent of $50,000 in 2025. For a worker, it took twenty-one years of constant employment to reach the top of the pay scale, which was about $8,442 a year, or $69,000 today. These weren’t livable wages in 1970. Today, the starting wage for a carrier is about $42,000 annually, which is less than it was in 1970 when adjusted for inflation.
Constituents and local union leaders in the Washington D.C. area organized marches, petitioned Congress and in some cases even staged sick-outs, the latter being largely denounced by most, if not all, of management and official leadership. Repeated efforts to raise wages were met with only a 4 percent or 5 percent increase. Recently the USPS offered mail carriers a 1.3 percent increase per year for three years, totaling 3.9 percent. Like the most recent contract that was voted down, the efforts to petition Congress in 1970 were also considered a failure.
Postal workers were thought to be reliable if not compliant. Rule followers, not rule breakers. After all, neither rain nor shine could threaten their dependency. With strikes being illegal, there was no perceived threat, which means there was no reason for Congress to come to the bargaining table in good faith. In fact, Congress verbally agreed to a wage increase, but then failed to act on it–even though that same Congress had given themselves a 41 percent raise the year before–10 times the agreed amount for workers. This was a slap in the face that directly led to the wildcat.
The Largest Wildcat Strike in American History
On March 17th, Branch 36 in New York City voted to strike. Union leaders didn’t condone the strike, but they also didn’t cross the picket line or defy it. Over the next eight days, the strike took root in over 200 American cities where over 200,000 federal employees walked off their jobs in solidarity.
The mail never stops. As the saying goes, “Neither snow nor rain nor heat nor gloom of night stays these couriers from the swift completion of their appointed rounds.” For the first time since 1792, workers from New York City to Los Angeles stopped the mail.
At the time, 548,572 postal workers handled over 270 million pieces of mail a day. Today, 640,000 USPS workers handle over 318 million pieces of mail a day. In 1970, just over 35 percent of the national workforce joined together to mobilize the strike. It only took three days for every aspect of American life to be impacted. Residential. Business. Financial. Everything.
With mounting public approval, fear spread to Washington. President Nixon and union leaders alike were quick to demand that carriers return to work, but threats couldn’t slow the spread of action. Authorities issued lockouts, threatened unions with up to $100,000 a day in fines, told strikers they’d lose their jobs, be arrested and even be fined up to $1000 a day for participating in the strike.
President Nixon offered to negotiate with workers once they returned to work, but workers demanded “actions not words.” Other governmental agencies threatened to join the strike if Nixon pursued any legal action towards their fellow federal workers. The public, the Post Office and Federal Workers were all united.
To combat the “unlawful work stoppage,” Nixon issued Proclamation 3972, deploying over 18,000 military personnel to restart delivery. But postal work proved more complex than perceived and the effort was largely ineffective.
Unable to circumvent the labor force, the administration was forced to meet them at the table. In just eight days, the 1970 postal strike became the largest and arguably most effective wildcat strike in American history. Not one single postal worker was fired. So in good faith, negotiations began with workers returning to their jobs. The result was the Postal Act, which transformed the US Postal Department into the United States Postal Service that we know today. This included the ability to legally collectively bargain, a 6 percent and additional 8 percent wage increase, a faster track to reach the top pay scale in eight years rather than twenty-one, improved benefits and protections for the USPS as an independent agency under the executive branch and the constitution.
Once the Wildcat is Out of the Bag
Every strike ends with compromise. Today, the Post Office continues to fight for cost of living wage adjustments (COLA), better benefits and conditions. Every worker had their own opinion on the contract that was signed in 1970, just as workers today have on the contract they voted down in 2025. The USPS is once again facing stagnant wages, overburdened routes and high inflation in a culture of mounting social unrest. City and Rural carrier contracts both recently reached arbitration and the future for a half million postal workers lies in the balance as Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency continues to threaten privatization.
The USPS states every American is “entitled to service” and that “no small post office shall be closed solely for operating at a deficit.” In opposition to its competition at UPS, FedEx and Amazon, all of which rely on the USPS to deliver the final mile, which means the USPS delivers parcels to customers who those businesses deem too unprofitable to serve. The USPS is designed for public use. It is a non-profit service, not a business incentivized to optimize profits. Today, like in 1970, a letter carrier touches every part of the American economy. Despite propaganda to the contrary, the USPS doesn’t receive tax revenue. It is self-funded. Making any changes to the organization and structure of the service is more than a matter implementing a new org chart, it would require changing the constitution.
Today, 640,000 USPS workers are 91 percent unionized across all crafts. Every USPS employee swears an oath to protect the mail and uphold the constitution upon hire. In 1970, those workers took the gamble that even if they lost their job, the next worker would get a better shake, and they were right. Every postal employee after 1970 owes something to the workers who banded together to defy the law, upend rank and file union leaders, bring the country to a halt and force the President’s hand.
The long memory as Utah Phillips puts it, once again holds the answer. The 1970 wildcat strike is more than just a story to steel our spines. It is an enduring reminder that the perceived power of law is still no match for the immovable force of solidarity.