The United States Postal Service is suspending employer pension contributions for workers beginning Friday, citing a looming cash shortfall, the agency announced Thursday.

The move, which affects the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS), comes just weeks after the Postal Service warned Congress it could run out of cash in under a year without significant reforms, including changes to pension funding and stamp prices.

USPS emphasized that the pause will have no immediate impact on current or future retirees.

“There will not be any immediate detrimental impact to our current or future retirees if normal FERS cost payments are temporarily withheld,” Postal Service Chief Financial Officer Luke Grossmann said.

USPS has previously reported mounting losses over the years, totaling $118 billion since 2007, as volumes of its most profitable product, first-class mail, fell to their lowest levels since the late 1960s.

The financial strain was further exacerbated by global tariffs, high inflation and recent spikes in gasoline prices, along with growing competition from private carriers such as Amazon, which now delivers many of its own packages.

USPS said it typically sends the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), which oversees federal retirement accounts, about $200 million every two weeks to cover pension costs.

By suspending the payments, the agency expects to free up roughly $2.5 billion in the current fiscal year.