From National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Bulletin (PDF)
Bloch Chosen Neutral Arbitrator For Determining Next Contract
Fall Dates Scheduled for Hearing Testimony;
Final Decision Anticipated in Mid-November
The NALC and Postal Service have jointly selected noted arbitrator Richard Bloch to serve as the third, and neutral, arbitrator for the binding interest arbitration to determine the new National Agreement for city letter carriers.
The two parties have sent a joint request to the director of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service that Bloch be formally appointed to the neutral arbitrator position.
At the same time, Arbitrator Bloch and the two sides have selected four weeks for hearing on testimony in the arbitration: the weeks of September 10 and September 24; October 29, and November 5. There is a likelihood that one or more dates may be added in advance of September.
It is anticipated that a final award in the arbitration will be received in mid-November. The other two arbitrators will be NALC General Counsel Bruce Simon of the New York law firm of Cohen, Weiss & Simon as NALC’s appointed arbitrator, and Robert Dufek of the Washington, DC law firm of Morgan Lewis, as the Postal Service’s appointee. Bloch has had a distinguished career and served in 2002 as president of the prestigious National Academy of Arbitrators. He also received national attention in 2005 when he served as arbitrator in a widely publicized dispute between professional football star Terrell Owens and the Philadelphia Eagles over a four-week disciplinary suspension against Owens.
Simon, who has been NALC’s General Counsel since 1979, has served as the NALC appointed arbitrator in four past interest arbitrations which determined the 1984-87, 1990-94, 1994-98 and 1998-2001 contracts.
Dufek served as the USPS-appointed arbitrator in the 2000 contract arbitration between the Postal Service and the American Postal Workers Union.
Terms of the 2001-2006 National Agreement remain in effect pending the award to be issued by the Bloch Panel.
Related link: Contract goes to arbitration: USPS stonewalls partnership, NALC fights back on two fronts (NALC Postal Record- May 2007-PDF)