News In Brief

Postal workers stay on job without new contract

Postal employees worked without a contract Saturday, after talks between the US Postal Service and four unions representing 600,000 workers reached an impasse. The old labor agreements expired Friday night.

Federal law forbids strikes against the Postal Service, which is pressing for a three-year wage freeze. The breakdown of negotiations triggered a fact-finding period that could lead to binding arbitration. It may not be resolved before Dec. 10, said Postmaster General William F. Bolger.