Welcome to all the new members who have signed up since our last newsletter.
Please see a steward if you need a copy of the LMOU or Constitution. I gave copies to most of the employees who wanted a copy last May. We have very few copies of the Contract left and have not reordered them as we are hoping to have a new contract within the next few months. Information about the negotiations will be posted on the National APWU website at www.apwu.org
As you read this, you will be receiving your last COLA (Cost of Living Allowance) increase for this contract. It amounts to 39 cents an hour, or $31.20 a pay period.
The main issues each time we negotiate are the economic issues such as our COLA’s and health insurance costs.
Postmaster General Jack Potter has told the National Newspaper Association that it is labor that drives up costs for the U. S. Postal Service, and that labor accounts for 76 percent of USPS costs.
"We lose money on every piece, " he said, and the USPS has no choice but to pass on those costs to their customers.
Yet on the other hand ex-VP Azeezaly Jaffer had $46,000 of questionable expenses that he won’t have to repay following his forced resignation due to those and other abuses of his position.
He earned $164,000 a year and until September 1st was on the payroll as a "consultant." How much is upper-level management driving up costs?
If you go to the National APWU website, please sign up for the APWU "E-team." You’ll receive e-mail alerts about issues coming before Congress and it’s an easy way to let your elected officials know how you feel. Privatized Social Security is expected to be an issue again in the coming year.
Another good website for current information on the post office is www.postalreporter.com . This site is updated daily and has many good links.
The National Convention was held in August. I brought back a lot of good information, including a copy of the Officer’s Reports and the proposed resolutions. We should soon receive a copy of the updated Constitution and the resolutions that were approved by the delegates. We have asked that many positions be upgraded. We have also voted to negotiate a lot of changes for employees who become 204Bs.
An issue that continually comes up is universal seniority. Many of the National Officers are interested in it, though as a whole, the delegates have rejected those resolutions. Another issue that has been broached quite often is bumping. I would like to know how the membership feels about these issues. If the day comes that the delegates agree with the officers about these two issues, it will affect each and every one of us.
Step 2 meetings were not held during the month of August, as either I or Management Step 2 representative Kim Parkhurst were out of town. We met on September 1st.
I apologize to all of you who are waiting to hear the outcome of your cases, but they are still in the system and we hope to clear many of them up shortly. Through the months of June and July, 18 cases were resolved, with members receiving about $800 and 14 hours of overtime make-ups issued.
The main problems other than sick leave usage are overtime issues. Please do see a steward for more information about overtime if you are in doubt whether it was called correctly.
The last thing I want to remind members is that if you have submitted FMLA certification and then receive a letter from the FMLA coordinator, there is a problem with your certification. Please see a steward. Do not ignore the letter or give up on getting certification.
As we head again into the holiday season, I would like to remind employees of the pecking order for the holidays. Understand that each of the three days is considered separately. According to the LMOU, Item 13 – The method of selecting employees to work on a Holiday is:
Recognize that the holiday schedule is a unique situation and takes skilled volunteers tour wide. All employees will be scheduled based on needed skills
1. Full time and part time regular employees who have volunteered to work on a holiday or their designated holiday when such a day is part of their regular work schedule. These employees would be working at the straight time rate in accordance with article 11, section 4.
2. Casuals, even if overtime is necessary
3. Part time flexibles, even if overtime is necessary
4. All other full time and part time volunteers. In the case of such full time volunteers, if they are scheduled to work and it is what would otherwise be their non-scheduled work day, they will be guaranteed eight (8) hours at the overtime rate in accordance with Article 8, sections 1 and 4.
5. Full time and part time regulars who have not volunteered on what would otherwise be their non-scheduled workday or holiday. In the case of such full time employees, they will be guaranteed eight (8) hours at the appropriate rate. Full time clerks will be scheduled by inverse seniority.
Another area of concern is overtime. Overtime Desired lists for Tour 1, 2 and 3 are established by pay location; CFS is by tour.
Casuals may be required to work overtime prior to using PTFs or FTRs on overtime. Management may require casuals and PTFs to work overtime prior to using the ODL. Management may require casuals and PTFs to work overtime prior to using non-ODL full-time regulars.
Once management begins to use full time employees for overtime the order is as follows:
1.) VOT- qualified and available full-time employees on the appropriate overtime desired list will be selected to perform such work in order of their seniority on a rotating basis.
All employees on the OTDL must be utilized twelve hours per day before an employee not on the list works any overtime, except when there is an operational window that cannot be met unless non-list employees are worked. At such time, list and non-list employees may be scheduled simultaneously.
Employees on the ten (10) hour overtime-desired list (ODL) may be
required to work up to twelve (12) hours.
Normally, employees on the overtime desired list who don’t want to work more than 10 hours a day or 56 hours a week shall not be required to do so as long as employees who do want to work more than 10 hours a day or 56 hours a week are available to do the needed work without exceeding the 12-hour and 60-hour limitations.
2.) VOT’s from the Tour in other pay locations.
Employees may only be on one (1) Overtime Desired List (ODL). However, where pay locations have insufficient volunteers, VOT’s from the Tour in other pay locations may be used on an equitable basis by qualifications.
3.) Non-Vot’s
The employees not on the OTDL are rotated by juniority.
Excluding December, no full-time regular employee will be required to work overtime on more than four (4) of the employee’s five (5) scheduled days in a service week or work over ten (10) hours on a regularly scheduled day, over eight (8) hours on a non-scheduled day, or over six (6) days in a service week.
Excluding December APWU members may not work over 60 hours in a week which includes paid work hours and paid leave hours and they may not work more than 20 hours of overtime.
