Local Newsletter | South Jersey Area Local 0526 - APWU

Business Agent’s Report

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

Attendance:
I was able to listen in recently to a teleconference District was having with the offices. They go over each and every person that has what they might consider questionable attendance. A lot of it seems like District is pushing local management to discipline. We know this happens, but to hear it is different. Some things to keep in mind:

1) If you have a condition that would fall under FMLA then try to obtain it by having your doctor fill out the appropriate forms. If you need them, the APWU at National had attorneys read the law and create a form that is somewhat shorter than the more intrusive WH-380

2) Fill out your own 3971’s upon your return to work from any unscheduled absences. I am not saying that all management does it, but we have had supervisors try and have members sign 3971 that they printed and sometimes it would be for AWOL. YOU DO NOT HAVE TO FILL OUT THEIR 3971.

3) If management attempts to PDI you tell them you want your Union Rep there for it and do not answer any questions until one of us is there.

4) If management never makes you turn in signed 3971’s and then one day walks up to you with a stack of them that “need to be signed!” Again, you can fill your own out, but on top of that please put the date on the 3971 that you were approached by management to sign them, do not back date them.

It is sad that we have to write about this and see members go through this. USPS gives you sick leave as a benefit but then tries to punish you if you use that benefit. There is an online messaging board mostly for APWU members that has a section with these actions by management labeled correctly as “Postal Attendance Terrorism.”

Giving Management Statements:
Someone has to explain to me why at times it is like pulling teeth to get statements on management violating your contractual rights yet, if management asks an employee to write a statement in which they want an employee to incriminate another there is no hesitation in writing a statement.

Listen, I am not here to tell you that you can or cannot write statements, but seriously try to figure out what a Union truly is at some point. Can we ever stick together again and show Unity? We don’t have to be best friends with our co-workers, but we should all have the same two main goals:

A) to make money to take care of ourselves and our families and
B) to keep the wolves (management) at bay when they try interfere with that.

We don’t throw out sacrificial lambs in hopes that will quell the wolves’ bloodlust, we stand united and make the wolves retreat.

Unity is Strength, Strength is Power, Power is Security…

Never let management make you feel like you have to ever write a statement for them. You, as a postal employee, are required to cooperate with their investigation. You are not required to give a written statement nor are you required to sign any papers where someone wrote down what you said and they want you to certify it by signing it. If you feel uneasy about your rights, ask the supervisor, PM or Inspector to allow you to contact your Union rep before proceeding any further.

Know Your Rights

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

“So, who is Weingarten and why should I care?”
Know Your Rights: How we came to be protected by a chicken lunch

In 1972 Leura Collins, an employee at a fast food chicken place, took two pieces of chicken and put a dollar, the correct amount, into the cash drawer, but there were no dollar-sized boxes, so she put her chicken into a $2.98-sized chicken box. Another employee, one who saw the chicken box, but not the contents, turned Collins in, reporting that Collins had paid only a dollar for a $2.98 meal. So, Collins was called into the office.

Her many requests for a steward were denied, and an inquisition continued until finally everyone was satisfied that Collins had done nothing wrong – that she had paid a dollar for a dollar’s worth of chicken, and that there were no dollar-sized boxes in the store.

But Collins was upset, and volunteered that the only thing she had ever taken without paying for was the free chicken meals that employees were entitled to. “What’s that?” the Weingarten company rep said [Weingarten owned the lunch store chain], “You’re only entitled to free lunches at stores where we have lunch counters. This store has no lunch counter. Therefore, you owe $160.00 for the chicken you admit you’ve eaten!” It turned out that no one in the store was aware of this lunch-counter/no lunch-counter policy, and that everyone in the store, including the manager, had been taking free lunches.

Nevertheless, Collins was required to sign a note promising to pay $160.00, which she refused to sign, and she was instructed not to tell anyone about the interview, which she did; she told her union steward.

This refusal of Weingarten to allow Collins to be accompanied by her steward for what she believed was a disciplinary interview ended up as a case heard by the Supreme Court – a case that Weingarten lost and unions won!

So, here’s your dessert from the chicken lunch:

The Supreme Court has decided that any time you believe that you are in a discussion with a supervisor that in your mind might lead to discipline, you have the right to have a steward present. Once you have requested a steward, the supervisor must stop the interview until the steward is present. And once the steward is present, you have the right to consult privately with the steward before continuing the interview.

It makes no difference if the supervisor insists it isn’t a disciplinary discussion – the important perception is yours. If you feel the discussion could lead to discipline, you have the right to ask for a steward and to say nothing until the steward is with you. And finding a steward isn’t your problem. If there’s no steward in the building or in the county, you don’t have to answer any questions; no steward, no discussion. Who said so? The Supreme Court said so.

Leura Collins’ dollar box of chicken was a good deal for us!

Director of AOs Report

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

Misappropriation Nation
In August 2018, the last South Jersey District Labor-Management Meeting we attended, one of our main concerns that we brought to the District’s attention was their investigation into alleged “administrative errors” of another office and why the Union was kept in the dark in their findings until a Step 2 decision from Labor.

I apologize for sounding like a broken record, but regardless of how many times a Timekeeping Integrity Memo is sent (either from District or Area), these memos are not being read, followed or both. My suggestion, maybe we can send these memos around in 5-inch cardboard tubes, since this is how the memos are being treated.

If you were at the February General Membership Meeting, I reported on almost 800 hours of alleged “administrative errors” (in Woodbury) where clerks who never spent a minute performing custodial work were somehow moved to OC 747 (custodial duties). A settlement was signed that management:

would transfer the hours back to the proper LDC,
100% of the Line H hours would be met for Fiscal Year 2019,
and the Union and Management would review the hours.

Everything seemed right on the surface until a month later when the same supervisor, again alleged in a grievance interview, had instructed a clerk to swipe onto 747 and continue to perform clerk duties.

I don’t mince or sugar-coat words, this is FRAUD (if this is true) not an “administrative error”, or whatever management’s catch phrase of the week is. The alleged moving clerks onto custodial operation codes, is FRAUD. This isn’t the first office and, I’m willing to gamble, not the last office we’re going to find this issue in.

In Hammonton, we had a RMPO where a custodian was instructed to work the retail window under the Postmaster’s ACE ID. This again was confirmed in a grievance interview and further admitted to by the Postmaster to Labor Relations in the District. While not as egregious as what allegedly happened in Woodbury, this is still falsification.

I think it’s safe for me to say this Local is done trying to seek accountability from this District. This is the scenario where rogue management is running the asylum with no recourse for their alleged actions.

Misc.
My email is mjwrightapwu@hotmail.com. Those who have emailed me over the years know my quick response rate regardless of the time of day. I’ve also, over the years, sent out what many offices don’t post, which are conversion opportunities. In a perfect world, I’d like to see every dues-paying member in a full-time position. We need to continue to fight, if you see something that isn’t right, email me, contact the office @ 856-228-8090, or fax a statement to the office @ 856-228-2627.