Oshkosh mail processing operations moving to Green Bay

OSHKOSH - The U.S. Postal Service announced Monday it will be closing its mail processing and distribution facility in Oshkosh. Operations there will be moving to Green Bay.

However, postal service says retail operations will still be open for customers at the 20th Avenue facility.

According to USPS, the 140 employees working there will be transferred or offered other jobs.

The postal service has been studying the idea since August of 2010.

Oshkosh postal workers say the announcement left them stunned and angry.

"They'll disrupt many lives, they'll disrupt this community," Mindy Mcnab said.

"You always hold out hope, but it sounds like it's gone now," Sharon Schrage added.

USPS says it believes consolidating mail processing in Green Bay is vital and the right business decision.

"The postal service is facing an acute financial crisis with an economic downturn and increased diversion to the internet," spokesperson Marge Oehlke said. "Mail volumes have dropped dramatically, more than 32 billion pieces in the last two years."

Oehlke says the move will save the postal service $4.6 million annually.

Once the transfer of operations is complete, the Oshkosh distribution facility will be closed. That is expected to happen by September.

About 20 of the facility's 140 employees will remain to staff the office's retail and other operations.

Employees say transferring to Green Bay will be a major hardship.

"Nobody wants to go to Green Bay, nobody wants to leave Oshkosh, nobody wants to drive 54 miles, these people aren't going to sell their homes," Postal Union President Dave Meier said.

"I'm angry, I was angry in the beginning because I was convinced that this facility did not get respect from those in charge making the decisions," Oshkosh Mayor Paul Esslinger said. "I think they had poor representation all the way along and it looked like Oshkosh got a railroad job."

At one point the postal service considered moving Green Bay jobs to Oshkosh, but decided against that option last summer.

"As a business we must make adjustments to reduce our costs," Oehlke said.

USPS says this decision is firm, but employees plan to keep fighting.

"We still aren't giving up on it, we're still going to battle it until the last light goes out here," Meier said.

Employees say the changes will have a negative impact on local mail delivery.

The postal service maintains that service will not suffer, however as a result of the consolidation service to 539 from 549 will change from overnight to 2-day.

Service to ZIP codes 530,532,534 and 537 will improve from 2-day to overnight, according to USPS.