Bruce Stupy, for Himself and for Others Similarly Situated v. United States Postal Service, the National Rural Letter Carriers Association

Bruce Stupy brought this class action under section 1006 of the Postal Reorganization Act (“PRA”), 39 U.S.C. §§ 101-5605 , to challenge the Postal Service’s policy of providing an entry-level wage to letter carriers voluntarily reassigned from urban to rural areas. The district court dismissed the claim against the Postal Service on the ground that the PRA, 39 U.S.C. § 1006 , does not confer a private right of action. The district court granted summary judgment on the breach of contract claim under 39 U.S.C. § 1208 (b) against the National Rural Letter Carriers Association (“NRLCA”) on the ground that the union did not owe a duty of fair representation to Stupy. 772 F.Supp. 1125 .

In 1987, Stupy, a city letter carrier with the Postal Service in Nogales, Arizona, requested and received a reassignment to Tucson, Arizona, where he was to serve as a rural letter carrier, effective January 2, 1988. Urban and rural letter carriers are represented by different unions. Three weeks prior to the reassignment, Stupy received a letter from the Postal Service confirming the effective date and the salary for his new position. The salary, computed according to section 424.221 of the Postal…