Workers and Small Business Oppose San Francisco's Job- Killing Do Not Mail Proposal

April 1, 2009 — The Mail Moves America coalition today expressed disappointment in the San Francisco Board of Supervisors’ vote of recommendation yesterday for a resolution calling for the creation of a Do Not Mail program. The resolution was widely opposed by labor unions and workers because of the harmful impact that a Do Not Mail program would have on jobs and the economy.

“In the midst of this economic crisis, we are disappointed that the committee would endorse an action that would hurt small businesses and destroy jobs,” said Ben Cooper, Executive Director of Mail Moves America. “Even though this is a non-binding resolution, we believe it is important that city, state and local governments not support legislation that would hurt the livelihoods of hundreds of thousands of workers.”

The San Francisco resolution met with stiff opposition from organized labor and workers. In a letter to the Board of Supervisors, Rome Aloise, Principal Officer of the Teamsters Local 853, wrote, “Right now, Californians want their government to focus on putting people back to work, not out of work.” The San Francisco Labor Council also passed a resolution saying the creation of a Do Not Mail registry would be “an extremely negative development”. Copies of the letter and resolution are available by contacting the Mail Moves America coalition.

Advertising mail plays a critical role in the California economy. More than 400,000 Californians have jobs that are directly or indirectly made possible by advertising mail. In 2008, more than 22,000 small businesses in California relied on advertising mail to support their businesses, and advertising mail brought almost $97 billion in increased sales to California’s economy.

Advertising mail is also an environmentally responsible way to advertise. Major U.S. paper manufacturers have adopted sustainable forestry practices where trees are planted, harvested and re-planted to ensure a growing future supply. In fact, there are more forests in the U.S. today than there were 50 years ago. Furthermore, recycling rates for advertising mail and catalogs are increasing rapidly. According to the EPA, from 1990 through 2007 the recovery rate for advertising mail and catalogs rose from 5.2 percent to 40.3 percent. Advertisers and the U.S. Postal Service also have implemented programs to help further increase recycling of advertising mail.

Furthermore, Do Not Mail programs are unnecessary as individuals already have many existing options available to manage their mail, including the Direct Marketing Association’s Mail Preference Service (MPS) at http://www.dmachoice.org/.

Mail Moves America is a national coalition representing the millions of American workers, small business owners and others who read, design, deliver, handle, print, supply and do business each and every day through advertising mail.

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