News Around the Country | APWU - South Jersey Area Local 0526

A Call to Action for Better Staffing

As we embark on a new year, the APWU Staffing Task Force Committee, comprising dedicated local and state leaders, is gearing up its Better Staffing, Better Service campaign. As postal workers, we stand at the forefront of the nation’s oldest and most trusted public service. Yet, years of management “cost cutting” and short staffing have eroded our ability to fulfill our mission to the public, undermining service quality, increasing workplace stress, and driving away business and revenue from the USPS.

In the coming year, our resolve to mobilize and unite with the public must remain steadfast as we demand staffing levels that ensure short retail lines, open post offices, and safer workplaces. The public deserves exceptional service, and so do we, the postal workers who tirelessly serve them.

Every member of our union, regardless of craft, holds a stake in a robust and thriving Postal Service. Each one of us can play a pivotal role in this endeavor. As we gear up for 2024, let us equip ourselves with the following strategies to bolster our campaign:

**Organize Locally:** Strengthen ties within your local union chapter. Organize meetings, discussions, and workshops to raise awareness about the importance of adequate staffing levels and the impact on both workers and the public.

**Engage the Public:** Reach out to communities, customers, and stakeholders. Educate them about the challenges faced by postal workers due to short staffing and the detrimental effects on service quality. Mobilize public support through petitions, rallies, and media outreach.

**Leverage Social Media:** Utilize social media platforms to amplify our message. Share stories, testimonials, and statistics highlighting the consequences of inadequate staffing. Engage with followers, encourage them to join the conversation, and spread awareness online.

**Collaborate with Allies:** Forge alliances with other labor unions, community organizations, and advocacy groups that share our commitment to better staffing and service standards. Pool resources, coordinate actions, and amplify our collective voice for maximum impact.

**Advocate for Legislative Action:** Work with elected officials at the local, state, and federal levels to advocate for legislation that addresses staffing concerns within the USPS. Lobby for funding allocations and policy changes that prioritize adequate staffing and support the Postal Service’s mission.

This is a fight that the APWU must lead, and victory is within our reach if we all actively participate, organize, and mobilize. Together, we can ensure a future where postal workers have the resources and support they need to provide exceptional service to the public.

Let us stand together, shoulder to shoulder, in solidarity and determination. Our voices matter, our actions count, and our cause is just. Together, let us make 2024 the year of Better Staffing, Better Service for postal workers and the communities we serve.

LiteBlue Not Working?

Late last week, LiteBlue had some issues and Direct Deposit/Net to Bank Functionality had been deactivated again. It was reactivated Monday and is up and running again. I will not go into the long details of why it was deactivated, but the short answer is the Postal Service identified patterns where certain applications were logging through anonymous VPN connections and making changes to direct deposit and net to bank. After investigation, the Postal Service found that the employees who were affected by this had voluntarily granted these apps access to make these changes by giving them their EINs, passwords, MFA information, etc. It should be common sense, but it is imperative no one give out this information or it can compromise the system. The apps that were identified as the apps making these changes were “CashApp” and “Albert”.

The Postal Service is now blocking all connections that use an anonymous VPN connection. If you are using an anonymous VPN you will not be able to login to LiteBlue. You will need to turn the anonymous VPN off in order to login.

Here is some additional messaging from the Postal Service on connecting to LiteBlue:

Due to elevated security threats, we implemented additional device and location security policies in LiteBlue in March 2023.
These policies monitor user log in activity to detect anomalies associated with known security threats, such as phishing, account takeover, etc.
Specifically, the additional security policies monitor IP addresses, locations, devices, and time between attempted log ins.
Ultimately, these policies are designed to safeguard employee account information by blocking attempted log ins from unrecognized devices or locations.

We are working with the helpdesks to improve the process when reporting issues.

If you do get your account reset you should set up MFA from their personal device to avoid potential issues with device / location security policies. We are updating the user guides and FAQ’s.

To address the last item that isn’t very clear —
When an employee has their account locked/blocked they need to get it reset. It may require a temporary password be mailed to the employee. The employee will need to call HRSSC to get that temporary password sent out (this process has been verified). Second, HRSSC will get them in contact/transfer them/have them call the IT helpdesk to get their account unlocked.

This is the important part: when the employee tries to log back in for the first time after a unlock/MFA reset they will need to make sure they do so from outside the Postal Service on their personal device — (a laptop or desktop; not your phone) that is not on the Blue network (a postal work computer). If they do log on from inside the “Blue” network and then log in from a personal device, they will be locked out again.

The Postal Service is working to improve the login process all the time. As I get updates I will let you know.

eOPF Issue

This was just released to the members from Charlie Cash, Industrial Relations Director American Postal Workers Union, AFL-CIO

As I shared before the Postal Service is in the process of addressing any insecurities in their eOPF system. Cybersecurity best practices suggest personally identifiable information (PII) should not be shared on an open internet connection.

Many Official Personnel Files (OPFs) have PII such as social security numbers still in them. Many employees—including myself—have documents that are hand written and have our PII in them. The Postal service is currently “scrubbing” files of this PII. However, because of the older handwritten documents, this process will take up to six months. In the meantime, eOPF will be inaccessible. The APWU does not disagree that these files with PII should be scrubbed and made safe to transfer over the internet.

However, the APWU also demanded that OPFs be made available somehow and without charge. The Postal Service has established a process to do that now.

From the Postal Service:

Employees may request a copy of their eOPFs in person or in writing to their district Human Resource Office. If the request is made in writing, they will be requested to provide proof of identity.

No charges will be assessed of active employees for requested copies of hard copies of their eOPFs while the eOPF system remains unavailable due to security upgrades.

I have attached a list of District Human Resource contacts provided by the Postal Service for employees to use. This is how the Postal Service provided the list so I assume it is perfectly fine to share publicly.

It should also be noted that every employee still receives their PS-Form 50s via US Mail. All employees should be advised to open all mail received from the Postal Service and it is a good practice to archive and mailings or PS-Form 50s sent to them. As this problem with eOPF has proven, keeping your own files at home with these documents is worthwhile.

If any employees has problems getting there OPF after following this process, please file local grievances and inform my office through my assistant Lee Branca via email at lbranca@apwu.org.

Thank-you,

Charlie Cash
Industrial Relations Director
American Postal Workers Union, AFL-CIO