https://www.wgbh.org/news/local-news/2020/08/17/at-least-a-dozen-mail-sorting-machines-have-already-been-removed-in-massachusetts-postal-union-officials-say
WGBH NEWS
LOCAL
By Saraya Wintersmith
August 17, 2020
At Least A Dozen Mail Sorting Machines Have Already Been Removed In Massachusetts, Postal Union Officials Say
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“It’s disturbing to see the machinery taken out,” said Scott Hoffman, APWU Boston Local 100 president. Hoffman said nine machines have been removed from Boston’s Dorchester Avenue post office located downtown.

“When you eliminate machinery, you’re eliminating future possibilities to handle certain fluctuating volumes,” he said pointing to the annual busy periods of tax season, Mother’s Day and Christmas.

John Flattery, president of APWU Central Mass Local confirmed to WGBH News Monday that three pieces of sorting equipment were recently removed from his union’s region, which includes Ashburnham, near the New Hampshire border through Worcester, Franklin, and Sturbridge.

Bill Thomas, another Boston union officer and postal clerk said he believes the changes are a deliberate attempt to undermine the postal service.

“It’s intentionally delaying the mail,” Thomas said in an interview with WGBH News.
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Documents obtained by WGBH News show a schedule to remove a total of 19 pieces of mail sorting equipment throughout Greater Boston — which includes Providence, R.I. — between the months of June and August. The documents, circulated in June, came along with letters from the Postal Service headquarters in Washington, D.C., that described the move as a response to low mail quantity.
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The various machines, which sort mail parcels for distribution, would all contribute to sorting ballots from voters who elect to cast their votes by mail, according to postal workers.