Postal Service Plans to Close Centers, Cut Jobs to Rein in Costs

The U.S. Postal Service said it will close or consolidate 223 mail processing centers and eliminate up to 35,000 jobs as part of a cost-cutting strategy, Reuters reported Friday.

The USPS has been losing billions of dollars each year as email chips away at mail volumes and as it faces massive annual payments to the federal government, Reuters said.

In his proposed budget released earlier this month, President Obama called for ending Saturday mail delivery by the Postal Service, in an effort to cut costs.

Postal officials said in September they would study more than 250 of the 461 processing sites for possible consolidation with other facilities as part of a series of cost-cutting steps, and set plans to end next-day delivery to cut back on overnight work, Reuters reported.

No facilities would close before mid-May due to a temporary moratorium announced in December intended to give Congress time to pass legislation to help overhaul the agency, Reuters said.