THE GREAT POSTAL HEIST is the directorial debut of a postal worker's son, Jay Galione, who tells the story of his father, a 30-year postal clerk who was harassed, threatened, and fired for standing up for fellow employees. The documentary reveals how the USPS has been systematically dismantled and privatized by the trillion-dollar mail industry and its politicians who seek to raise prices and lower wages. A moving indictment of the toxic culture and push to downsize, the eye-opening documentary allows viewers to hear from experts and advocates including Ralph Nader and Richard Wolff, and directly from the selfless and courageous people hidden behind the scenes, long suffering and ignored. (96 min, 2019, Director: Jay Galione)
Short to precede:
SIGNED, SEALED AND DELIVERED: LABOR STRUGGLE IN THE POST OFFICE - On July 21, 1978 thousands of postal workers across the country walked off their jobs when their contract expired, saying “No” to mandatory overtime, forced speedups and hazardous working conditions. As a result of this wildcat strike, 600,000 postal workers won a better contract. But 200 workers were arbitrarily fired by management to teach all postal workers a lesson.
Signed, Sealed and Delivered is the story of the struggle these postal workers waged to win back their jobs. It follows their fight into the streets, onto the floor of the American Postal Workers Union’s National Convention and among workers and communities nationwide. But it took the tragic death of Michael McDermott, a 25 year old mail handler who was sucked into a conveyor belt and crushed to death, to bring their hazardous working conditions to national attention. (38 min, 1980, Directors: Tami Gold, Dan Gordon, Erik Lewis)