Officials don’t cross postal picket line

SCARBOROUGH – None of Maine’s top elected officials walked past picketing postal workers to take part in a ribbon-cutting ceremony Thursday that celebrated the opening of an $82 million mail distribution center that began operations this summer.

Dozens of employees were protesting what they said was streamlining of operations at the new facility that threatened job security through transfers and consolidations.

After talking with members of Local 458 of the American Postal Workers’ Union, Sens. Olympia Snowe and Susan Collins stayed outside and did not attend the ceremony.

“Until these issues are resolved,” Collins said, “I just don’t feel comfortable in participating in the ribbon cutting.”

Neither Gov. John Baldacci, U.S. Rep. Tom Allen nor any of their representatives attended the event.

Snowe and Collins later wrote to Postmaster General John Potter, asking that he reconsider job reclassifications at the site and explain the justification for the changes.

“As we celebrate today’s opening of the state-of-the-art facility in Scarborough, it is critical we not lose sight of the fact that the success of the mail processing center depends on the dedicated people who work there,” the senators wrote.

Postal spokeswoman Christina Dugas expressed disappointment that no top elected officials attended the ceremony, but said the Postal Service values “the support that they’ve given us throughout this process” of bringing the new facility to Maine.

The 429,000-square-foot facility, equal in size to about 71/2 football fields, was designed to handle all mail for southern and central Maine, with a work force of more than 600 assigned to three eight-hour shifts.

The plant brings together operations from the 275,000-square-foot Forest Avenue facility in Portland and satellite operations.