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

Other Postal News

This is other informational news brought to us from APWU National, Communications Director, Emily Harris.

Postal Service Floats Big Cuts to Employee Pay, Leave and Benefits
GovExec.com

“The U.S. Postal Service, facing pressure from Congress to propose initiatives to ensure the agency’s long-term viability, is floating a business plan that…Mark Dimondstein, president of the American Postal Workers Union, called the potential business plan a ‘cut, slash and burn approach.’”

USPS worker honored after stopping scam
WAVE 3 – Bertie Faulkner is a member of the New Albany Area Local

“Earlier this year, Faulkner, who works in New Albany as a USPS lead clerk, suspected a customer was trying to scam them with a money order.”

Can the U.S. Postal Service deliver on promise of new mail delivery trucks?
Linn’s Stamps

“Sometime this summer, the United States Postal Service is scheduled to release a much-awaited proposal for new mail delivery trucks.”

New tools to stop illegal drugs coming in US mail
KIRO 7

“Dangerous deliveries of powerful narcotics are being sent through the U.S. mail. Postal inspectors want to keep people from getting hurt. Inspectors are armed with a new law to stop those illegal and dangerous shipments. The law was cosponsored by Washington Rep. Suzan DelBene. And it’s aimed directly at China.”

USPS Focuses on Increasing Cyber Workforce
MeriTalk

“The United States Postal Service (USPS) Corporate Information Security Office will be adding 60 new cybersecurity positions to its workforce…”

How Post Offices Can Beat Payday Lenders
Washington Monthly

“The fight to curb payday loans has reached one of America’s oldest institutions: the Postal Service. Democratic representatives Bill Pascrell of New Jersey and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts recently introduced an amendment to the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act authorizing post offices to provide small loans, savings accounts, and other financial services. The amendment sets aside $1 million to cover any overhead. It passed the House of Representatives on June 25.”

After Dramatic Workforce Reductions, Postal Service Sees Spike in Overtime Hours
GovExec.com

“The U.S. Postal Service’s spending on overtime pay to process mail spiked in fiscal 2018 following significant workforce cuts over the year, according to a new report.”

NALC, USPS formally open 2019 bargaining talks
NALC

“The leaders of the National Association of Letter Carriers and the United States Postal Service formally opened negotiations for a new collective-bargaining agreement today. In his opening statement, NALC President Fredric Rolando told Postmaster General Megan Brennan that, ‘As always, we will seek to preserve and improve the standard of living for city letter carriers. We aim to move forward, not backward. There will be no concessions offered or given. But we will work diligently and professionally to find common ground and mutual progress.’”

NPMHU and USPS Present Opening Statements as National Negotiations Begin in Washington D.C
NPMHU

“The National Postal Mail Handlers Union bargaining team met with representatives of the U.S. Postal Service on June 27, 2019 to mark the official start of the collective bargaining process for a successor agreement to replace the 2019 National Agreement which is scheduled to expire on September 20, 2019. The NPMHU is committed to making every reasonable effort to reach an agreement that is good for our members, good for the Postal Service, and good for the American mailing public.”

Amazon, the new king of shipping
Axios

“Less than a decade after Amazon broke into the logistics industry, it has become its own biggest shipper.”

INTERNATIONAL POSTAL AND LABOR NEWS

216 jobs set to go as Cork mail site closes
Irish Examiner – Ireland

“The Cork Mail Centre in Little Island is to close with the loss of 216 jobs, affecting 240 people. An Post officials travelled to Little Island last night to inform employees that the closure of the sorting centre will occur on a phased basis between September 2019 and March 2020.”

Korea Post Workers Union to strike if dangerous working conditions continue
Parcel and Postal Technology International – South Korea

“The Korea Postal Workers Union (KPWU) has announced plans to strike on July 9 if management continues to renege on promises to fix hazardous…”

Amazon and Alibaba Said to Study Buying Brazilian Postal Service
riotimesonline.com – Brazil

“President Jair Bolsonaro’s intent to privatize the Brazilian Postal Service (Correios) is well known, and he recently dismissed the president of the state-owned company who expressed disapproval of the plan, replacing him with General Floriano Peixoto,more favorable to privatization.”

Honoring President Bush

(This article was first reported December 3, 2018 on the link.usps.com website)

President Donald J. Trump has proclaimed Dec. 5 as a national day of mourning throughout the United States and has called on the American people to pay homage to the memory of former President George H.W. Bush on that day.

Out of respect for President Bush, the nation’s 41st commander in chief, and to honor his vast contributions to the United States during his lifetime, and consistent with the presidential proclamation, the Postal Service will observe the national day of mourning.

The Postal Service will suspend regular mail delivery and retail service Dec. 5. USPS will provide limited package delivery service on that day to ensure that the Postal Service network remains fluid and USPS does not experience any impacts to its package delivery operations that might negatively affect customers or business partners during the remainder of the busy holiday season.

All Postal Service facilities — including headquarters in Washington, DC, and area and district administrative offices — are included in the national day of mourning. Local managers will advise employees on staffing levels to maintain operations and prepare for the resumption of regular activities Thursday, Dec. 6.

Pay and leave administration for the national day of observance for affected bargaining unit employees is governed by section 519.4 of the Employee and Labor Relations Manual and provisions of May 4, 2000, memorandums of agreement between the Postal Service and its unions.

This originally is a USPS release, in accordance to our post yesterday, December 2, 2018.

National Day of Observance

To honor the death of America’s 41st President George H W Bush, President Trump has declared Wednesday to be a ‘National Day of Mourning’ for his predecessor. The stock market will be closed on a regular trading day. All executive offices and agencies of the federal government will close Wednesday to “pay homage to the memory” of the 41st president. Some federal employees in national security, defense or other public sectors may still have to report for work, as directed by their department head.

“How will postal employees participate in this National Day of Observance?”

Below is the:

MEMORANDUM OF AGREEMENT BETWEEN THE UNITED STATES POSTAL SERVICE AND THE AMERICAN POSTAL WORKERS UNION
ELM: 519.4 National Day of Observance

These are the regulations in which USPS is to follow for this National Day of Observance. Let there be not any confusion. Either read it from here, but print it out, read it and be informed. If you have questions, direct them to your stewards and let them deal with your local management to ensure that your location will be properly administered.

Taking too long?

Reload document

Open in new tab