management violation | APWU - South Jersey Area Local 0526

Pre-Tour Overtime

(This is a combination of written emails by Mike Wright, Director of SJAL AOs and Julio Cebollero, SJAL Area Steward)

The latest nonsense to come out of the South Jersey District is not authorizing pre-tour overtime. Here are some things management will try to comply with the latest marching orders that we need to keep an eye on;

Article 1.6 (Management) and 7 (other crafts) performing our work, management loves to rely on Article 3 (right to mismanage) to claim “emergency situations”, short staffing is not an emergency, heavy volume is not an emergency, mail up-time is not an emergency, and finally NOT AUTHORIZING PRE-TOUR OVERTIME IS NOT AN EMERGENCY.
Do not let management solicit you into changing your schedule to avoid overtime, we’re hurting ourselves and other members by doing this. There is language in the ELM that supports our argument, just like there is language in the ELM to protect us if they retaliate against an employee who does not cooperate in these situations.
Make sure to keep management honest on their up-time scans, don’t scan the barcode early, if they instruct you to, inform them you’re doing so under protest and let us know immediately. There have been integrity memos send that I like to refer to even though we have many offices that ignore these.

Everyone needs to keep watch on this in their office! Management shouldn’t be performing any bargaining unit work.

Does management rights stated in Article 3 allow management to violate the other provisions of the National Agreement?

NO. MANAGEMENT RIGHTS ARE LIMITED BY OTHER PROVISIONS OF THE NATIONAL AGREEMENT AND/OR APPLICABLE LAWS

What is “emergency situation” as mentioned in Article 1 section 6.A?

AN EMERGENCY IS “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.

Other crafts shouldn’t be performing clerk work unless the union is properly notified. Crossing crafts is allowed at times if there is too much work in one craft and not enough in the other. Again proper notification must be given to union.

If you are a Custodian asked to perform clerk work then you must move on the the clock to proper operations number and be paid level 6.

Also, you are entitled to do your work as a Custodian and get Overtime for that day.

Don’t be quiet. Contact your in office steward or the office ASAP!

Write a complete and thorough statement of what is going on in your office and get to union ASAP!

Don’t let management change your schedule to avoid Overtime. This not just a violation of your rights under the national agreement but a violation of law.

Remember, if any of this is going on in your office, we need to be informed in a timely (14 days) manner. Don’t sit on this, don’t fear retaliation, and most important DON’T MAKE DEALS.

You have a strong local that has your back. Don’t be intimidated by management!

Address To Membership: Nationwide Reversions

As mentioned in this video, you are either watching, listening or have watched the President of NY Metro Area Postal Union. This message is to all members no matter what area local, district or region you belong to.

This fight is real brothers and sisters. Stewards, we have to stay the course and file any/all grievances timely. I know that our area has been having issues with RFIs. If your RFIs are not being fulfilled, that becomes an additional grievance (Article(s) 15, 17, 19, and 31).

It can not be stressed how important it is for members to report to their shop stewards, that management performs bargaining unit work (Article 1.6). These violations can not be left to slip through the cracks. Management is going to come down hard, and we (members and stewards) need to fight back just as hard. This will not be an easy summer, but we can win!!

In solidarity,

Tony Rodriguez
Director of Safety/Webmaster

Nationwide Issue: Reversions/Abolishments By The Postal Service

So it begins. This is being done Nationally so it will be a fight. Just to give you an idea of what is going on when you start getting questioned about abolishment letters.

Just sending this out as there is a National USPS movement to revert/abolish duty assignments so there is a slow down on PSE conversions.

There will be more to come on this issue as there was a telecom from the APWU HQ level with the NBAs and Regional Coordinators.

It is anticipated that another telecom will take place from the APWU HQ level with the local and state leaders.

The subject matter will most likely have the words Dashboard Compliment in it.

We will do our best to get this information out to the locals and state organizations.

The Postal Service is currently using two applications. The first is a Workforce Dashboard application that includes the following:

• On-rolls complement for Mail Processing, City Letter Carriers, and Retail and Customer Service Craft employees

• Actual vs. earned complement

• Recent position activity, such as job postings, conversions, positions reverted, and positions abolished

• Newly vacant craft positions

The second is a Job Bid Management application that includes the following:

• Daily display of vacant craft positions for Mail Processing, City Letter Carriers, and Retail and Customer Service Craft employees

• Earned complement data from the Workforce Dashboard for use when requesting bid postings

• Reversion module to assist in tracking the contractual requirements when reverting a vacant position

Neither of these applications includes any new staffing models or tools. They are simply a mechanism by which the field can access current data regarding staffing and/or complement. The Postal Service has not changed how staffing or earned complement is determined; therefore, usage of the applications has no impact on wages, hours, or working conditions of bargaining-unit employees. These are merely internal management tools aimed at providing readily available data and ensuring compliance with postal regulations and the collective bargaining agreements.

The Postal Service is abolishing duty assignments all across the country under the instruction of higher level management and against the urging of local management.

Local Postmasters and installation heads do not support these unilateral actions.

We have received information where this action is being directed from the national level, down to the area level and ending up at the local level.

Anytime 30 or more jobs are abolished at one installation at one time, when just before the abolishment were announce the Postal Service were using actual work hours is an unfair labor practice. PSEs are working in those same sections with no reduction in hours. Clerks were not on standby time due to lack of work. The actual hours as scheduled by management under Article 3 reflected the duty assignments are needed.

Their is no liberal annual leave and in many cases leave is being denied.

A tool, scheduler, or etc. does not justify these actions. There are no agreed to work standards or work measurements according to the Postal Service.

It is the position of the Union that the Postal Service is unilaterally abolishing/reverting duty assignments in response to Goldberg’s national award where he ruled the Postal Service has an obligation to create new duty assignments when we can show they exist.

The Postal Service is reverting and abolishing duty assignments in an arbitrary and capricious manner.

The Postal Service is attempting to achieve what they were unable to achieve in the 2010 and the 2015 national negotiations.

The Postal Service proposed to have PSE usage for up to 20% of all hours and that proposal was rejected. The end result was that the Postal Service could have a 20% PSE workforce to supplement career employees.

To protect career employees, the parties agreed that ALL available hours could be used to create new duty assignments under Article 37.3.A.1.

This language did not exclude PSE hours.

This issue was the subject of a prior NLRB charge.

The Union reserved the right to renew the charge in the event the Postal Service did what they are now doing. We put that language in the settlement because surely we knew this would reoccur.

Continue the fight at the local level and defend the abolishments/reversions with grievances as suggested earlier in the week.

This is just an additional fight at our level.

This will not be an easy fight. This is a Post Office agenda at the highest level in an attempt to get us to grant them further relief from Article 37.3.A.1 and the conversion of PSEs to career.

They are experiencing buyers remorse.

There will be some instances where an individual reversion/abolishment is legitimate and contractually correct.

Attached to this post are downloadable documents to help support/fight back in your local grievances. We can win!