APWU: Some Questions – and Answers – On the Tentative Agreement

Several questions have been posed on the APWU’s Facebook page regarding the Tentative Agreement for a new contract. Union officers address questions regarding the conversion of Clerk Craft part-time flexible employees and part-time regular employees below.

Questions & Answers On Conversion of Clerk Craft PTFs and PTRs

1) What is a traditional full-time and non-traditional full-time duty assignment in the Clerk     Craft?

Response: A traditional full-time duty assignment is eight hours a day, five days a week, totaling 40 hours. A non-traditional full-time duty assignment is more or less than 5 days a week; between 30-48 hours a week; between 4-12 hours days.

2) Is there a specific schedule or guideline for conversion of part-time regular employees     and part-time flexible clerks in Level 21 & above offices to full-time?

Response: Yes. All conversions will take place within three months of the signing of the agreement. A Form 50 taking such action will be sent to the employee.

3) Can the Postal Service convert to full-time prior to the effective date?

Response: Yes, unless there is withholding in the installation and/or there are employees with retreat rights under Article 12.

4) What happens if there are excessed full-time clerks who retain retreat rights or must be returned to the Clerk Craft from other crafts when part -time flexibles or part-time regulars in those installations are converted to full-time?

Response: Excessed clerks will be offered any of the following prior to conversion to full-time:

  • The opportunity to exercise a retreat to the newly created assignment.
  • A former clerk who was excessed to a non-AP WU craft must be returned to the vacancy but you can’t be assigned to less than 40 hours per week.
  • A clerk who was excessed to another APWU craft may use their retreat right to the vacancy or may voluntarily give up the right to retreat.

5) How will employees be assigned once converted to full-time?

Response: The employees shall be placed in a residual vacancy in accordance with Article 37.

6) What if converted PTR or PTF employees cannot be placed in traditional full time or non-traditional full-time available residual vacancies?

Response: They will become an unencumbered full-time clerk per Article 37.4.D

7) How long can employees converted to full-time be unencumbered?

Response: 120 calendar days. If the employee is unencumbered for 120 days, this shall demonstrate the need to post full-time duty assignments in accordance with Article 37.4.

8.) Can former part-time regular or part-time flexible employees converted to full-time in accordance with this agreement be assigned to non-traditional full-time residual assignments?

Response: Yes, but after excessed employees have been given their retreat rights and/or an opportunity to return to the craft in accordance with Article 12 and Question #4 above.

9) What is the minimal number of hours that can be assigned to non-traditional full-time assignments?

Response: 30 hours a week

More APWU, USPS Contract Agreement Highlights

19 thoughts on “APWU: Some Questions – and Answers – On the Tentative Agreement

  1. I well know and am use to the talk around from the post office but from my union… ??? What a bunch of reading between the lines and sugar coating crap wrote up here…. No layoffs Limits on Excessing hmmm as stated in the news bulletin the new collective bargaining agreement wich expires may 20th 2015 retains protection against layoffs for all career employees who were on the rolls as of nov 20 2010 when current contract was scheduled to expire. Then further down on Job security it states the same but also adds that article 6 which governs layoffs and reductions in force remains unchanged ….. Well are the career employees before nov 2010 safe from layoff or is this the sugar coated to make them sound like it, if they do not meet the language of artical 6 on the six year in for job secuity.. The answer is whats in the contract is what goes and why did they just not say article 6 remains unchanged and not make it sound like if you work before nov 2010 your safe from layoff… OR add that to the article if thats the way it suppose to be….. sounds like word game to make people feel safe that do not cover the spread…. I do but those that dont be ware
    there will be a slight shift in employees share of contributions toward health care……… this will lead to several dollars per pay period each year ….. what the hell does that mean dhaa think slight means a little and several means alot… What a word game is this give me a amount or a percent and let me do the math if you cant,,,,, dont like the word games and dont like being BSed around… Thats about all I got to say and whats the rest of the contract dealings …

  2. I agree, vote no if you have any intelligence at all. If you don’t you will be taking a pay cut so the carriers can get another huge pay increase from our losses. We haven’t had a pay increase of any sort in a year and a half, already. They want to forego a cola increase until 2012 that you won’t actually recieve until 2013? They also are voting to let the cost of “our share” of health insurance to go up starting in 2013. By the time you take that into consideration, you will actually be looking at a pay cut. Meantime, if the cost of living goes up, your screwed. Our union officers need to get some guts. Delay the contract as long as possible so we can see what the NALC is going to do. Besides, the economy could improve by then or the Post Office could go to 5 day delivery and save enough to put negotions in better standing. The union needs to be battling harder over the $75 billion that was overpaid to the Civil service retirement plan. That is the real reason the Post Office is in the red. The American people need to have a peaceful protest to get a change in goverment and get rid of the poloticians who are selling out the people to the greed of the wealthy and the Chinese. We need a third party of working class people and get rid of the Democrats and Republicans both.

  3. i think you guys should really look at the big picture. If you don’t know whats going on in this economy then maybe you should start reading and finding out. For many years I have heard the same complaints but none of you are trying to make a difference. We do have a job, unless you have a degree or some other skill that can land you a better wage, then I think voting yes on this contract may be the wise thing to do. Lets not mess this up people.

  4. some these complaints are very valid but where are you going to do better! Management will continue to close stations and plants so where do these people go…keep it real and start training for a marketable skill ! This system is on life support.

  5. A PTF with S/S off? Must be nice. I retired with 23 years service and never had enough senority to get week ends iff!

  6. Just vote NO! Then maybe the union can tell us about the real contract after the votes are counted. Just like the last contract. You know “everyone will get a level increase”. Then after the vote and RATification, “oh by the way ET’s we are moving you down one grade to level 10. They didn’t even give us the consideration to tell us the truth before we voted. I just wonder what they are not telling us now until after the votes are counted. Oh and all of you waiting for a VER buyout, don’t hold your breath. Just as you are being manipulated by your union you are being duped by the USPS/OPM. Just think in 6 years when you have your new high three for retirement you can rest assured that 10 to 15 dollars a month will cover a gallon of gas or maybe 2 if your lucky. Besides then you will be 6 years closer to the end .Anyway you had no life to look forward to after working 40 years in hell. I just want to thank all of the APWU locals who always look out for themselves when they make those back room deals. Who knows maybe if you kiss their butts just like they kiss managements you too can enjoy the sweet smell of success on your way to the American reality of home foreclosure and bankruptcy. Just think of it as adding to the great successes of the new era of open warfare on the middle class for the advance of the rich. Have you paid your share toward corporate bailouts for mismanagement .(STEALING from the poor, Corp bonuses, and gov’t bailouts at the taxpayers expense) or do you just want to keep blaming anyone (not yourself) who is just trying to get a share before they run out…and WOWWOW you must be a successful ceo (LOSER) that stole his weight in bailout money and corporate bonuses for the trash you wrote at least a TOOL of management. Hey maybe you can 204B they’re always looking for suckers (lazy newbies that never did a days work in their whole pathetic lives but know everything and have done nothing). Anyway congrats on your new career as an expert on idiocy in the post office.

  7. Excessing will be beyond 50 miles when your Plant shuts down. The only jobs available to the thousands displaced will be 30 hour garbage. Or perhaps you can find a 40 hour FTR left (after all the NCAs take over 20% in the clerk craft and every vacant custodial job in the nation) maybe somewhere around 400 to 500 miles away if you’re lucky. You want to trade away your job security, for what?

  8. Management gives away the store, and the craft cries boo hoo. Dying company allows APWU to keep the no layoff clause, and guarantees nobody will be excessed more than 50 miles, and the craft cries, boo hoo hoo…

    Greed. No wonder the unions are experiencing such a public backlash. Countries getting flushed down the toilet economically, high unemployement, and craft cries because they didn’t get more more more more more more

    WAKE UP PEOPLE. THIS SHIPS GOING DOOOOOWWWWWWWNNNNNNNNNN, stop complaining & start bailing

  9. This is the worst contract ever. You’ll be half-a-fool to think of voting for it and a total fool for voting for it. 3.5% over 4.5 years? Let’s see now, that’s 3.5/4.5 = .78% per year = .0078 x 52,000 = $405.60 (at best) per year. 405.60 / 26 = 15.60 per pay period. That’s BEFORE taxes and BEFORE the union takes their cut. What will you be left with? Probably less than $10 per pay period. Wow this raise is phenomenal!! The union is celebrating their “victory” for 5 stinking bucks a week!! You can actually buy a loaf of bread and still have money left over…wow!! THIS is what they settled for?! The maintenance workers in NYC just got a 6% salary increase over 4 years and we got 3.5% over 4 and a half years. LOL!! They got 1.5% per year and we got .78% per year…in plain English, their’s is almost twice as good as ours. And that is pathetic for the United States Postal Service. And that was through your “powerful” union. As I said, you’d be a fool to vote FOR ratification of this lousy contract. Oh yeah, and you won’t see any money whatsoever for another 2 years…March of 2013 while food is going up, gas is going up, etc. TWO YEARS without a raise!! You call that acceptable!! Fire the union!! Vote NO. Simple as that.

  10. This just give each different local the ability to make any “back room agreements” that can benefit either them(union local) or management (local).

  11. if u work over 40 hours a week do we still get over time if u are a non tradtional full time employee ?

  12. you are only guaranteed 30 hours, still part time. Right now my form 50 says 35 hours. Can we ever become traditional full time employees. Right now i have saturdays and sundays off, .Who wants to work 6days a week? If we are going to be titled full time why not give us the privelages that full timers have , which is 40 hours a week 5 days a week. This is not a good deal. Can we bid on traditional bids or do we have to wait until the unassigned clerks bid. If so what have we gained here,still less pay for more days a week, been there ,done that!

  13. If your still a PTF after 15 yrs come on what do you expect.Managers being placed back to craft are going to fill them positions .YOUR SCREWED-BEND OVER AND TAKE IT IF YOU CAN,IF NOT YOU WASTED 15 YRS OF YOUR LIFE

  14. This thing sucks. Too many questions need answered. ALOT of room in what I see for MGT to manuver. What about a PTF that has 15 years seniority? Do they become a 30 hr FT still with split shifts? it says you can work 4 ten hr days but doesn’t say you can’t also have a split shift. Hey great more hours in level 15, 16, 18 except that you are all forgetting that the DUO process is gonna take care of all of those and turn the offices into level 13 so that doesn’t hold water either. Need more answers to make an informed decision…………………………………..

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