Some 200,000 mail carriers have reached a tentative agreement with the U.S. Postal Service that includes backdated pay raises and a promise to provide workers air-conditioned trucks.

The new agreement, which must still be ratified by union members, is in effect until November 2026. Mail deliverers have been working without a contract since May 2023.

The union and the postal service welcomed the agreement announced Friday.

“Both sides didn’t get everything they wanted. But by negotiating in good faith, we reached an agreement that meets our goals and rewards our members,” said Brian Renfroe, president of the Association National Mail Carriers, to the Associated Press. . “To achieve this, the Postal Service had to recognize members’ contributions to the Postal Service and the American people.”

Among other improvements, the deal raises top wages and reduces the time it takes new workers to reach that level, Renfroe said. He thanked Postmaster General Louis DeJoy and his deputy for negotiating in good faith throughout this arduous process.

The postal service said the deal supports its 10-year “Delivering for America” mission to modernize operations and adapt to changing customer needs.

“This is a fair and responsible agreement that serves the best interests of our employees, our customers and the future of the Postal Service,” said Doug Tulino, Postmaster General and Chief Human Resources Officer.

Under the agreement, all urban carriers will benefit from three annual wage increases of 1.3% each by 2025, some of which will be paid retroactively from November 2023. Workers will also benefit from retroactive and future adjustments of the cost of living.

The Postal Service also pledged to “do everything possible” to equip postal trucks with air conditioning.

The Postal Service began rolling out its new electric delivery vehicles, equipped with air conditioning, this summer. Although the trucks won’t win any beauty contests, they have received rave reviews from mail carriers accustomed to older vehicles that lack modern safety features and are prone to breakdowns or even fires.

Within a few years, the new delivery fleet will number 60,000 vehicles, mostly electric models, serving as the Postal Service’s primary delivery truck from Maine to Hawaii.

Under the tentative agreement, the Postal Service must discuss with the union any plans to purchase new, non-air-conditioned postal trucks.

This is the second contract negotiated since DeJoy was named postmaster general in 2020. It is expected to take several weeks for union members to ratify the contract. Rural mail delivery workers are not covered by the contract because they are represented by a different union.