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About the
U.S. Letter Carriers
Mutual Benefit Association |
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From its earliest years... |
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...the NALC pioneered
programs for mutual support and welfare to complement its
struggles for improved working conditions. The union established
the Mutual Benefit Association at its 1891 convention in Detroit.
The MBA offered life and other kinds of insurance to help
protect letter carriers and their families.
 While
speaking at NALC's 1891 National Convention in Detroit,
Michigan, MBA's founding fathers reaffirmed NALC's fundamental
goal of uniting for the benefit of NALC members and their
families. MBA, they said, was designed to advance that goal
by offering union members life and other kinds of insurance
for the protection of themselves and their families. One
year later, MBA was granted a charter in the state of Tennessee.
In its early years, MBA offered a simple death benefit
policy which letter carriers could purchase for a modest
fee. This early policy was an extremely important feature
of the MBA because the federal government did not provide
death benefits for postal employees, a fact which, all too
often, left a carrier's family without any income when the
carrier died.
Prompted by this grim fact, the National Ladies Auxiliary,
an increasingly influential association of women from letter
carrier families, began urging its members to purchase life
insurance from the MBA. At the same time, branch "collectors,"
forerunners of today's MBA representatives, went to work
signing up other NALC members for MBA insurance protection.
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In 1905... |
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...NALC members in attendance at the National Convention in Portland,
Oregon, voted to expand the role of MBA to include the National
Sick Benefit Association (NSBA) so that NALC could provide
sick benefits to letter carriers who found themselves out
of work due to accident or illness. Since most of the large
branches had already set up their own sick benefit plans,
NSBA was organized primarily for members in smaller branches.
At the time of its inception, premiums for NSBA insurance
were between 50 and 80 cents per month and benefits
averaged $8 per week for up to 20 weeks.
By the time of NALC's 1935 convention, MBA had already earned
a reputation for its "stability and great usefulness."
Even during the hard years of the Depression, the MBA benefit
fund grew substantially, recording a growth in assets of more
than 58 percent between the years 1927 and 1935.
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Wilmot
Dunn, of Nashville, Tennessee, entered the carrier service
in 1880 as a mounted auxiliary carrier, and subsequently
carried a city delivery
route in the
most important business district of Nashville.
Present at the 1889 founding meeting of the NALC in
Milwaukee, Dunn was a tireless early organizer of
the NALC. He was a member of the committee which developed
the framework of the Mutual Benefit Association and
became its first Chief Collector, a position he held
until 1915. |
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In 1953... |
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...the administrative offices
of MBA were moved from Nashville, Tennessee, to 100 Indiana
Avenue, NW in Washington, DC where, in 1952, NALC had established
its permanent headquarters. Permission for the move was granted
by the Commissioner of Insurance of the State of Tennessee.
Two years later, the Insurance Department of the State
of Tennessee also permitted MBA/NSBA to begin writing accident,
health, and hospitalization coverage, a decision which ultimately
led to greater authority for NSBA, and to the birth of NALC's
Health Benefit Plan as it is known today.
MBA's continued success in the 1950s, '60s, '70s and beyond
stemmed largely from the efforts of its "collectors,"
local branch members who collected money from members to
pay the premiums on their MBA policies. These collectors,
later renamed MBA Representatives, were also responsible
for receiving applications for membership to the MBA.
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In 1977... |
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...the Mutual Benefit Association
redefined the role of the MBA Representative from one of collector
to one of liaison between branch members and MBA's home office.
Armed with complete knowledge about every MBA insurance program,
MBA Representatives became every member's source for MBA information.
Today, there are over 400 MBA Representatives located in branches
all over the country.
By the time the 1980s rolled around, MBA had an impressive
record of financial stability, as well as the ability to
grow and respond to the changing needs of NALC members.
In his Biennial Report to NALC's 56th Convention in Portland,
Oregon, Director of Life Insurance, William M. Dunn, Jr.,
described MBA's growth as "most favorable." Indeed,
between the years 1982 and 1987, MBA's assets increased
by a whopping 84.4 percent, with premium income increasing by 114.2 percent.
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Today... |
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 ...MBA
continues to record strong year after strong year. Total assets continue to increase over
previous years by millions of dollars, and surplus increases
by hundreds of thousands. Despite the stock market decline, MBA was continuing
to outperform other life insurance companies, just as it had
done for more than 100 years.
Today, the MBA
has over $267 million of life insurance in force
and can claim over $176 million of admitted assets.
The organization continues to serve letter carriers and
their families nationwide—not only by providing insurance
protection, but through other activities as well. Thanks
to the unfailing support of its members and the expert guidance
of its Board
of Trustees, MBA can easily look forward to another
100 years of success.
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© National Association of Letter Carriers, AFL-CIO |
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