Price of first class stamp increases 1 cent
By Ed O’Keefe, Washington Post
Postage rates jumped Sunday for the first time in two-and-a-half years as the U.S. Postal Service hopes to generate more revenue amid historic losses.
First-class postage stamps now cost 45 cents each, a price jump that officials anticipate will generate an additional $888 million in annual revenue. The rate increase does not affect the use of Forever stamps purchased before Sunday.
The price hike comes as negotiations between the U.S. Postal Service and two of its labor unions reached an impasse that may eventually require a ruling by an arbitrator.
Postal and union officials announced late Friday that separate talks had collapsed between USPS and the National Association of Letter Carriers and the National Postal Mail Handlers Union. Contracts with both unions, which represent a combined 242,000 postal workers, expired in late November. Negotiations were extended twice before failing Friday.
