By LEAH WEATHERSBY

Lately, some postal service customers and members of the American Postal Workers Union in the 98103 ZIP code have feared that staff cuts could be coming to the Wallingford station. It now appears that, for now, no one will be leaving.

Ernie Swanson, customer relations coordinator with the Seattle District of the US Postal Service, said the only changes currently being planned are moving one Greenwood postal worker over to help at Wallingford part-time and changing some of the positions at Wallingford to allow for more flexibility in the types of tasks workers perform. When changes like this are made, Swanson explained, jobs have to be re-posted and workers need to reapply. "That doesn't mean people are going away," Swanson said. He added that there would be no reduction in window service at either to Wallingford or Greenwood stations.

Swanson also said that post office box deliveries in the 98103 ZIP code are down 35 percent from this time last year and carrier route volume is down 8 percent. These figures, he added, are similar all over the city.

David Yao, a chief steward of the American Postal Workers Union and an employee at the Wallingford branch, said that two clerks are being reassigned to different jobs, one a clerk position that could end up filling in at any North Seattle station, and one a jack-of-all trades position in Wallingford that the former clerk will have to be retrained for.

Wallingford area postal customers will undoubtedly keep a watchful eye on their station to see how these changes play out.

For more information, call the Postmaster of Seattle's office at 442-6170. b