APWU - South Jersey Area Local 0526 | Continuing The Fight!

What the Rally Was All About?

Written by: Tony Rodriguez

On April 15^th, APWU Local #89 of Philadelphia held a rally at City Hall. There were several purposes for this rally:

To inform the public that USPS receives 0 (zero) – no tax dollars for operating expenses and relies on the sale of postage, products and services to fund its operations.
Financial hardships for the USPS were manufactured by the 2006 “Postal Accountability and Enhancement Act.” This Congressional action forced the Postal Service to “pre-fund” future retiree health care costs 75 years into the future. The unfair burden is directly responsible for the reduction in the hours of operation, staffing, mail speed, and the quality of postal services. (Click the link above and scroll to: SEC. 803. HEALTH INSURANCE to see the details)
To give the public an understanding and gain support of H.R. 933 and H.R. 33.

Now for those who have worked for USPS for a while, may be aware of these things. Those who have just joined the ranks, are definitely not in the loop of this. The public – DEFINITELY – has no clue about these things. Cutting to the chase… There are people in Washington, D.C. that want to privatize USPS. In February, Trump suggested that USPS cut retirement and health benefits. On March 12^th, it was reported that Trump’s postal reform proposal wants to get rid of the Unions. Six days later, on the 18^th, Trump proposes a pay and benefits cut.

Privatization of USPS will, in turn, affect personal mail, packaging and shipping; not only for each and every person who presently relies on USPS services, but it will affect every small-business owner and the military soldiers and veterans. Put it like this, USPS (on a grand scale) is the most affordable, secure and reliable mailing/shipping entity world-wide. Let’s not get into the “Constitutional-side” about this.

Look at it this way, WE (the public) have lived receiving personal mail, sale advertisements, packages, post cards and the like through USPS as long as we can remember. We’ve paid postage, bought packaging goods and money orders and have even sent secured mail right at our local post offices all across America. It has ALWAYS been affordable. UPS, FedEx and the like, only ship packages, at a more costly price. TRUTH: You have occasionally received busted packages, or packages have been delayed, from ALL services at one time or another. That proves that nobody’s system is perfect. But who has always been the most affordable and has over a hundred years of service to the public?? – USPS.

Let me get more personal… As a veteran who served in Desert Shield/Desert Storm (Dec1990-June1991), to a military man/woman, deployed in somebody else’s country, there’s no better feeling than getting a letter or care package from that loved one back in the States. Yeah… it gets delayed in the internal military process of redirecting it to the unit of the service member. But getting it means the world once it is time for mail call. USPS made that happen since World War I and every conflict the U.S. has participated in ever since, putting a smile on the face and giving a reason to fight for our freedoms… affordably. FedEx, UPS and the others don’t deliver to APO (Army Post Office and is associated with Army or Air Force installations) and FPO addresses (Fleet Post Office and is associated with Navy installations and ships).

As someone who has had, (and currently running) a small business, USPS is perfect for entrepreneurs and small businesses (online and physical). Whether they are on the startup or up and running full swing. There’s a lot of mailing and shipping involved. With the affordable pricing and the dependable tracking USPS has, we tend to opt away from the higher priced competitors.Does USPS have to restructure their operations? YES.

Do they have to be sold to the highest bidder, that will:

raise mailing and shipping prices?
opt into cutting the workforce, wages and benefits?
lop-side the income in the company to where the present working man will have no future to look forward to?
change the way you presently receive your mail and packages?
take no responsibility nor pride in giving you (the public) the best service possible?
take away one of the last businesses that still have person-to-person interaction that is a part of your neighborhood?

The answer to ALL OF THAT, is – NO. Will it happen? If the public is not informed and the powers that be can continue to pass laws and make things happen in the plain sight of America and there is no action taken against it – YES.

So PUBLIC… rally alongside of the postal Unions and go to usmailnotforsale.org or call 202-224-3121 to contact your members of Congress. Tell them you support your public Postal Service! And remember… U.S. MAIL IS NOT FOR SALE!!!

A Message to The PSEs

(This was originally in the SJ Area Local Newsletter of April 2019. Written by: Tony Rodriguez)

PSE jobs were the new entry level positions for Postal careers when I first started here six (6) years ago. The vast majority all job postings on the Postal Service website are for PSE jobs, and most career positions are filled by promoting PSE employees.

PSE job description reads:

HOURS: VARIES
PSEs hold temporary appointments for periods not-to-exceed 360 days. Subsequent appointments after a 5-day break in-service may be offered but are not guaranteed and should not be expected because the use of PSEs is discretionary and subject to business needs

PSEs can be scheduled any hours and the position is intended to be very flexible, including weekends and holidays as needed. PSEs must be available to work when needed.

This is a non-career position, which may lead to a career position depending on organizational needs.

PSE Sales, Service, and Distribution Associates must also…

Work assigned tour and days of work.
Follow Postal Service policies and procedures for personal conduct at work, including adhering to rules and regulations.
Provide service to the public.
Maintain a neat and professional appearance in such interactions, including wearing a uniform and name tag when required

The above is in the job description when you applied for the PSE position.

There is a high percentage of the PSE workforce that is becoming agitated by how management:

moves people around,
work them long hours,
not giving enough hours,
changes the start time,
or never letting them know when they will get done.

ARTICLE 3
MANAGEMENT RIGHTS
The Employer shall have the exclusive right, subject to the provisions of this Agreement and consistent with applicable laws and regulations:

To direct employees of the Employer in the performance of official duties;
To hire, promote, transfer, assign, and retain employees in positions within the Postal Service and to suspend, demote, discharge, or take other disciplinary action against such employees;
To maintain the efficiency of the operations entrusted to it;
To determine the methods, means, and personnel by which such operations are to be conducted;
To prescribe a uniform dress to be worn by designated employees; and
To take whatever actions may be necessary to carry out its mission in emergency situations, i.e., an unforeseen circumstance or a combination of circumstances which calls for immediate action in a situation which is not expected to be of a recurring nature.

(The preceding Article, Article 3, shall apply to PSEs)

PSEs, if you are not familiar with the above Article, then you need to start reading the contract. PSEs… you are not helping yourself by complaining. The Job Description told you what to expect from this position. It didn’t guarantee a set schedule. It says: “…the position is intended to be very flexible, including weekends and holidays as needed.” Article 3 clearly reads: “The Employer shall have the exclusive right…” to all of the listed items A-F. Bottom Line – Management has the right to run their operation as they see fit, as needed. PSEs, you are being reminded to be flexible.

Understand the benefits you have that did not exist when I was hired as a PSE 6 years ago:

right now, your starting hourly pay is $3 higher than mine was,
you have health benefits as soon as you start; I had to wait for my first break-in-service before I was eligible,
you have holiday work pay or the option for additional annual hours for working on your working holidays; I didn’t have that when I started,
you have the ability to earn OT rate (after 8 hours) and penalty rate (after 10 hours); that was not in place when I started,

So, I question… Name a job, that you can get hired into, starting with the above listed benefits, working like you. If you don’t have an answer for that, I advise you to: come to work, be patient, be flexible. You got a paycheck every 2 weeks just for doing that. That’s the easiest paycheck to get!

President’s Report

(This was originally in the SJ Area Local Newsletter of April 2019. Written by: Rob Armentani)

Constitutional Changes
In accordance with the local’s Constitution and By-Laws, resolutions to amend the constitution may be presented by a member at any meeting, after which they will be turned over to the Constitution Committee for their recommendations. The April meeting to be held on Tuesday April 16th at 7 PM is the last meeting to submit any Constitutional Amendments. The resolutions with the committee’s recommendations are then printed in the June newsletter, and voted upon at the June general membership meeting, which is on June 9th at 10 AM. The committee members as appointed by South Jersey Area Local President, Rob Armentani, are Julio Cebollero, Chairperson, John Whartnaby and Jerome Green.

Contract Update
As you are all aware, our 2015 contract expired on September 20, 2018. Our National Union had been engaged in negotiations to reach a new agreement since July of last year. After several months President Dimondstein presented a tentative agreement to the Rank and File Committee for acceptance to send the agreement out for ratification. However, the Rank and File Committee had some concerns and they and did not vote in favor of sending the tentative agreement out for ratification. There were additional attempts to agree to some changes to the tentative agreement, but the negotiating team was unable to get management to agree to any changes. Since we are now at an impasse, an interest arbitration will be the next step. On March 7th the parties exchanged their final economic proposals as we prepare for arbitration. Management’s proposals are very regressive and will have a negative impact on all of us if they are successful. It is times like these that non-members irritate me more than ever. We are in a fight to save not only our jobs but our livelihood and way of living. There will be numerous expenses involved in this process that will be paid for by your Union dues while the non-member just comes along for the free ride. I don’t consider them freeloaders, I consider them thieves! They are stealing services from the Union that are paid for by our members.

For more information on the exchanged proposals check out our National and/or Local websites.

RI-399 National and Local Updates
The APWU and the USPS reach a National Settlement in regards to the RI-339 process. For those of you that are unfamiliar with the RI-399, it is the jurisdictional identification of work between the Clerk and Mail Handler crafts. It basically identifies what work should be done by clerks and what work should be done by mail handlers. This process has led to numerous grievances being filed by both parties over the years. In 2018 an agreement was made to update the RI-399 process and all RI-399 grievances filed before September of 2017 would be administratively closed. As a result of this a new RI-399 Inventory was completed in the three offices under our local that have both Clerks and Mail Handlers in the facility.

An agreement was also made at the National Level between the APWU and the USPS to pay both the APWU and the Mail handlers Unions $14.5 million each. It has been determined by our National Officers equal payments will be made to clerk craft employees that fall into one of the following categories; All career clerk craft employees that were on the rolls as of Sept. 1 2017 and all PSE clerk craft employees who were on the rolls as of Sept. 1 2017 and who are still on the rolls as of March 1, 2019. This applies only to clerk craft employees in facilities that employ both clerks and mail handlers.

For more information on the RI-399 check out our National and/or Local websites

Abusive Supervisors
Unfortunately, this continues to be a constant theme in the South Jersey District. Currently the Mt. Laurel office has risen to the top of the trash heap. Constant calls from employees regarding the hostile work environment that exist in the Mt. Laurel office lead us to doing a Climate Survey in the office. The initial thought was that the results would focus in on one supervisor. However, the results show that several of the supervisors are abusive and fail to treat the employees in Mt. Laurel with dignity and respect. In my experience, when several supervisors are acting this way in an office, the problem comes from above. This has become more obvious as the PM has now begun targeting injured employees. An employee that has been working a rehabilitation job assignment since 2008 is now the target of his bullying and intimidation. Labor has been given a copy of the climate survey and the Union has requested that we do a joint in-depth investigation into this pit of misery. As of this date they have not decided whether or not to agree to my request. A Labor/management meeting was scheduled but canceled at the last minute by the PM.

We must stick together when dealing with this type of management.

“An Injury to One, Is an Injury All”