The postal sorting facility in Rock Springs is set to close later this month, but residents in Sweetwater County shouldn’t notice decreased service according to a U.S. Postal Service spokesperson.
David Rupert, a spokesperson for the USPS in Wyoming and Colorado said processing will be done in Salt Lake City, but residents should still see the same two-day mailing time to locations in southwestern Wyoming. Rupert said the transition should be seamless, without any operational delays. The Rock Springs facility sorts mail for the 829, 831 and 830 zip codes, which includes area west of Rock Springs and north to Jackson Hole.
“(The delivery times) will not change,” he said.
The sorting facility’s closure doesn’t mean the post office in Rock Springs is closing. Rupert also said while some jobs are affected by the closure, the USPS has been upfront with its temporary employees about the switch and is working to reassign longterm employees.
“We haven’t laid anyone off,” Rupert said. “We don’t know how that’s going to sort out in the end, but we are committed to working with these employees’ respective unions.”
Rupert said seven career employees are affected by the shift, while eight temporary employees will not have their contracts renewed.
The change was first announced in 2011 and the USPS has since shut down 124 facilities during the last three years.
The facility’s shutdown is in response to falling revenue and first-class mail numbers, which form the backbone of the post office’s revenue stream.
Rupert said first-class stamp purchases have declined by 52 percent since 2005. With the reduced amount of mail and stamp sales, fewer sorting facilities are needed. Rupert also said the USPS doesn’t receive tax funding for its service, making it one of the largest self-sustained government services.
The Rock Springs facility is one of 82 closures occurring this year.
Rupert said Rock Springs is part of the USPS’s first phase of closures, while a second round will occur this summer.
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