[July 24th]

Maintenance Updates (from Bobby Donelson)

1. The APWU filed a Step 4 grievance on the Merlin issue as soon as the USPS issued the instructions. It is one of approximately 100 Step 4 grievances for Maintenance.
   
2. The Maintenance Craft has also had an arbitration on the MS 47 - management setting all the frequencies.
   
   
3. We also have an arbitration scheduled for July 26, 2001 on the ASM changes done in 1991.
   
   
4. We are also preparing for the interest arbitration. Maintenance is involved with the main issues as well as the two issues directed by the Maintenance Convention.
   
   
5. We have also completed the DBCS - ABC Routes Grievance Template. The first copies were sent to the Maintenance Executive Council today.
   
   
6. A full hard copy of the evidence will be sent to the Maintenance Executive Council in the next few weeks. In addition, we have sent in a request for 500 CDs, which will have all the evidence in PDF format.
   
   
7. The APWU has also appealed all the MMO's stating work should be level 4 or 5 to arbitration.

        [July 23rd]

Hearing Dates Set for Contract Arbitration

As pgh-metro.net told you back on July 9th, the neutral arbitrator was picked and the panel was completed. And on July 12th we told you that hearings would begin as soon as possible.

Now we'd like to let you know a little more:

"Consistent with the number of hearing days needed in prior arbitrations, the arbitration panel has set 19 hearing days, ending on November 17, 2001. The parties are then required to file post-hearing briefs five days after the conclusion of the hearings. We expect to have a decision before the end of November."

"We appreciate the support we received from our very able APWU-appointed arbitrator, Professor Carin Ann Clauss of the University of Wisconsin Law School, in our efforts to begin the hearings in July. She promised to clear her very demanding schedule to accommodate early and more frequent hearing dates. The working relationship we have with Professor Clauss and the overall composition of the interest arbitration panel promises to give us a very thorough and fair hearing. This bodes very well for postal workers. We are ready to go and eager to begin the hearings."

From the Burrus Update, #42.

        [July 21st]

Special Insert in Latest Issue of the APWU's "The American Postal Worker"

As you should know by now, there is a national level election for our Union's officers in October of this year. Inside the latest issue of the APWU's "The American Postal Worker" is a special insert containing 300 word statements from the candidates vying for the available positions.

Most importantly, President Moe Biller will be stepping down-- this is his last term in office.
You will be voting on a new National Level President very soon.

Look for ballots to arrive in your homes and mailboxes by the third week of September, and make sure your vote is an informed one. Take some time to read these articles and discuss them at work. It can only help.
**************************************************************************


From a recent trip to National HQ in Washington, D.C.


L to R: Secretary/Treasurer Bob Tunstall, Administrative Asst. Judy Beard,
Executive Vice President Bill Burrus, PMAPWU President Rosemary Penascino,
PMAPWU Vice President and Business Agent Patricia Meanor

Seated, center: APWU President Moe Biller

        [July 21st]

Postal Service Defends Bonuses for Executives

We all should be concerned with the news of USPS executives receiving yet more bonuses, in spite of a predicted budget shorfall this year. With the matter of our national contract still unresolved and we, the craft employees, bearing an unfair burden of publicity for our wages and benefits, how on earth can this practice of pay-for-performance be defended?

If it can be defended, then why aren't we being rewarded for the increased productivity that the USPS has been bragging about to the DMA and the federal government?

Take a few minutes to read this article by Kellie Lunney from GovExec.com... you'll get a chance to learn more about this extremely important issue.

        [July 18th]

Did You Ever Wonder Which Companies are Union Shops?

We have a list of "Do Buy" Union-made goods on our Metro News page.

Things like Kitchen Items, Cooking Equipment, Sporting Goods, and more are listed there.
Go check it out!

        [July 18th]

Ergonomics... a Work in Progress

Working families aren't falling for the U. S. Department of Labor's sham hearings on ergonomics. Activists rallied July 16 before the first of three hearings at George Mason University in Fairfax, VA., and demanded a new standard that protects workers from repetitive stress injuries - not Big Business's attempt to further erode worker safety. AFL-CIO Secretary-Treasurer Richard Trumka testified at the hearing.

Future hearings are scheduled in Chicago on July 20 and Palo Alto, CA., on July 24.

For more information, visit the Ergonomics Update at the AFL-CIO website.

[From the AFL-CIO Newsletter]

        [July 16th]

Bonuses In Sight For USPS Executives

The outlook may appear sour this year for the U.S. Postal Service, which is facing a potential $2 billion deficit. But many Postal Service executives may be on the brink of a banner year. Postmaster General John Potter told top postal executives if the Postal Service continues increasing productivity this year, their bonuses could amount to 25 percent of their salaries.

"This year, productivity is up," Potter said in a July 3 letter to approximately 900 executives.

While growth in mail volume has slowed, the number of addresses receiving mail has increased, while work hours have dropped from last year.

"That generates positive economic value," Potter said in the letter.

Can you believe this? Who else runs a business like this... the Private Sector they are always comparing themselves too?

We think not.

From the Federal Times Online.

        [July 16th]

More Job Impact Updates

Management has announced that changes will be made in both the CFS and PSDS operations. Bids for both sections are expected to be posted in August 2001.

CFS is reducing their daylight staffing by 8 bids, eliminating all Tour 1 bids and creating a Tour 3 crew. Due to the excessing, the daylight bids will be canvassed in each section. The Tour 3 bids will be posted city-wide with retreat rights for the three clerks who were excessed several years ago.

PSDS staffing will be reduced in conjunction with the implementation of TACS. These bids will be posted as level 5, Time and Attendance Clerks. Management did not have a staffing package available for the meeting.

Rumors of changes at the AMF and BMC have not yet been verified. As of this date, no meetings have been scheduled to discuss such changes. We will forward information as we receive it.

        [July 12th]

PA Liquor Store Employees Work Five Years Without a Contract

2300 employees of PA's State Liquor Stores have worked five years without a new contract, yet they have not participated in one day of work stoppage. 1000 employees of PA's State Liquor Stores have worked for six years without a pay raise.

The PA State Liquor Store system, through its profit revenues, funds the treasury of the State of PA in amounts that exceed 50 million ($50,000,000) dollars per year.

In addition to this funding of the PA Treasury with profit revenue, the State Liquor system directly transfers to the State Treasury an additional 240+ million dollars per year in sales taxes. Not one penny of these sales taxes, or any other tax monies is used to pay any expense of PA's State Store System.

Pennsylvania's State Liquor Store system is a self-sufficient agency. All expenses, including payroll, are paid with sales revenues from Pennsylvania's Wine and Spirit shops.

These workers need your support!
Please Contact Governor Tom Ridge by phone: 717-787-2500 or visit www.state.pa.us.

A letter from the president, Rosemary Penascino, July 12, 2001

        [July 12th]

Arbitrator Goldberg Announces Interest Arbitration to Begin On August 27

Interest arbitration hearings to decide the terms of a new collective bargaining agreement between the APWU and the USPS will begin on August 27, 2001. In a letter dated July 2, 2001, neutral arbitrator Stephen B. Goldberg notified the parties that he would be unable to grant our request to begin the hearings in July.

The APWU had requested that the hearings begin as soon as possible and continue in the evenings and on weekends in order to complete the process as quickly as possible. However, Arbitrator Goldberg informed the parties that his first available date for beginning the hearings is August 27. In order to begin on that date, the first three days of hearings will have to be held in Chicago. Subsequent hearings will be held in Washington, DC.

"As we discussed in our telephone conference with the party-appointed arbitrators," Arbitrator Goldberg wrote, "we will work hard at completing these hearings efficiently, including working long days and scheduling some Saturday hearings. Once hearings have begun, the request of the APWU that hearings also be held after dinner and on Sundays will be considered by the panel if a specific need should make it necessary to do so."

Briefs outlining the positions of the parties will be presented to the arbitration panel seven working days before the hearings begin.

From the Burrus Update, #40.

        [July 10th]

Do You Know Your ABC's?

Maintenance employees... are you familiar with the new USPS "ABC Maintenance" philosophy? Read more about it in this article by By Joe Frega, Maintenance Staffing Specialist.

        [July 9th]

National Arbitration Panel is Now Complete!

This three-member panel will decide the disputes [in the contract negotiation process] between the APWU and the Postal Service. Hearings will begin on a schedule to be determined by the members of the panel.

APWU and the Postal Service representatives completed the neutral arbitrator selection process June 27th by striking all but one name from the list of potential arbitrators. The arbitrator selected is Stephen B. Goldberg, who is a Professor of Law at Northwestern University Law School in Chicago, IL. Professor Goldberg is also President of Mediation Research and Education Project, Inc.; a Member of the Center for Public Resources Panel of Distinguished Neutrals; and a court-appointed special master for several courts.

The APWU and the Postal Service also announced their party-appointed arbitrators. The APWU's party-appointed arbitrator will be Professor Carin Ann Clauss of the University of Wisconsin. Professor Clauss served as Solicitor of Labor, the highest ranking attorney in the U.S. Department of Labor, during the Carter Administration. Before that, she served as Associate Solicitor of Labor for Fair Labor Standards. In that capacity, she was responsible for enforcement of the Equal Pay Act, the Fair Labor Standards Act, and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act, among others.

The Postal Service's party-appointed arbitrator will be Mr. Robert Dufek, who is a partner in the Washington, D.C., management labor law firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius. Mr. Dufek is a graduate of Georgetown University Law School, where he is now a member of the adjunct faculty.

As the next step in the process, the party-appointed arbitrators will contact Professor Goldberg to schedule hearings.

Understandably, APWU members are impatient to achieve a new national agreement that recognizes their contributions to the best postal system in the world. All of the union's issues will be presented to the panel by the union's legal counsel, including a significant wage increase as requested during the negotiations; and the union will request that any initial wage increases be applied retroactively to November 21, 2000.

The future of 380,000 employees will be determined by this decision; so careful consideration was given to the process of selection, taking more time than any of us would prefer.

From the Burrus Updates, #s 38 and 39.

        [July 8th]

Information Needed From Prospective FLSA Class Action Plaintiffs

Have you traveled for training in your capacity as an employee of the USPS and not been compensated?

The travel pay compensation issue is an ongoing battle with the USPS. The APWU attempted to resolve this during negotiations, but the USPS was and is not receptive to resolving the travel compensation issue.

Read more about this issue to see if you are entitled to additional compensation for any travel time incurred during your work week. If you feel this might affect you, please read the following:

"We appreciate your interest in the suit to obtain full compensation under the Fair Labor Standards Act for time spent traveling away from home overnight. To determine whether you may be owed additional compensation for such travel time, we need to have some detailed information about your work schedule and about your activities during any workweek you traveled and may not have been fully compensated."

1. Name and current address
2. Your phone numbers at home and work, including cell phone number if there is one, e-mail address, and fax number if these are available.
3. Your present USPS employment, including place of employment, hours of work, off days, and a way of contacting you at work if necessary.
4. Your employment history with the USPS, date and place first employed by USPS, positions held and approximate dates of employment in each different position.
5. Position and regular rate of pay at time of travel.
6. Your normal work-schedule at the time of travel.
7. The dates and times of travel, the means of travel, and the points of origin and destination (it will be helpful to have your travel vouchers documenting your date and time of travel.)
8. State how you spent your work time during the workweeks in which you traveled, including all time spent at your usual workplace and any leave taken (holiday leave, sick leave, annual leave, jury duty, or any other type of leave away from your place of work.)
9. Pay for the Period involved:
   
   • What payments did you receive during the workweek of overnight travel?
   • Did you receive any over time compensation for the travel time which resulted in exceeding 40 hours in that workweek?
   • Please provide pay vouchers if they are available.

"Please do not hesitate to contact us if you have any question. You can submit the information requested above at the following address either by mail or facsimile."

O'Donnell, Schwartz & Anderson, P.C.
1300 L Street, Suite 12000, N.W.
Washington, DC 20005
Phone: (202) 898-1707, Fax: (202) 682-9276

Attention: Darryl J. Anderson
Lee Jackson
Murshed Zaheed

        [July 3rd]

Improved Finances May Imperil Postal Reform

The welcome news that the U.S. Postal Service might not lose nearly as much as was thought just two months ago could lessen the sense of urgency for postal reform, some observers say.

The Postal Service now projects that losses for the year will be between $1.5 billion and $2 billion, down from estimates of as high as $3 billion that fueled calls from industry and lawmakers for legislative changes to the agency's charter.

"Getting a reform bill passed into law will be a serious uphill climb," Neal Denton, executive director of the Alliance of Nonprofit Mailers, said June 25 at a conference his group sponsored in Washington, D.C. "If [the Postal Service] were to lose $3 billion this year, the effort might get some steam. But I think the losses will be less than $1 billion."

From the Federal Times Online.

        [July 3rd]

New Retail Window Position

Effective July 1, there's a new level 6 retail position, Lead Sales and Services Associate. It's designed to "help retail units achieve their revenue goals and improve customer service."

The new position's duties are a combination of two former level 6 jobs – Window Services Technician and Clerk, Finance Station.

        [July 1st]

Living Wage News

Due to years of contract negotiations and arbitrations, permanent Postal
employees enjoy a decent living wage.

Many persons employed outside of the Postal Service do not receive a decent wage for their hard work and are termed, "the working poor." In an effort to encourage favorable legislation for a decent living wage, the Western Pennsylvania Living Wage Campaign takes a proactive stance by contacting legislators and encouraging individuals to volunteer their efforts so that all working persons can earn a decent living wage.

The Western Pennsylvania Living Wage Campaign is asking county residents to send County Council members a message that they want this bill passed now.
Here's how to help...

        [July 1st]

Coat Drive for Homeless Begins in September (Reposted)

Light of Life Ministries Annual Coat drive will begin September 4 through October 12. Drop your gently used winter coats off at your neighborhood drycleaners anywhere you see the Western Pennsylvania Cleaners and Launderer's Association (WPCL) logo displayed.

These participating drycleaners will clean the coats free of charge and deliver them to the mission. Coats will be distributed to the homeless and the needy on Saturday, October 27, 2001.

        [July 1st]

Rock Against Racism 2001 (Reposted)

The Thomas Merton Center is presenting Rock Against Racism 2001
on Saturday, August 18th, 2001 at the Schenley Park Overlook.

Read the message from representative Maryellen Hayden:

"The Thomas Merton Center has been hard at work supporting the Living Wage, producing education and information pieces on how the Bush tax cuts affect the poor, working class, and middle class people in our area. We have also been working to develop broad-based community support for efforts against racial and ethnic oppression."

"Rock Against Racism is an effort to bring together different kinds of people using diverse types of music. Last year, our first concert had over 500 people in attendance. This year, we expect 2000."

Make plans to go!