Letter Carriers mobilize to oppose FERS bill
Feb. 6, 2012 — On Jan. 24, Rep. Dennis Ross, the chairman of the House Subcommittee on the Federal Workforce, U.S. Postal Service, and Labor Policy, introduced H.R. 3813, the Securing Annuities for Federal Employees Act. But it probably comes as little surprise that Ross’ measure, were it to become law, would in fact threaten the retirement benefits of federal workers—including postal workers.
Ross’ proposal calls for entirely eliminating the defined benefit component government workers receive under the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS). Instead, under the Ross plan, FERS annuitants would be entitled only to the benefits earned through both Social Security and the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP). Read more
NALC Opens Its Archive For Research
The National Association of Letter Carriers has made its voluminous records archive available to the public at the Walter P. Reuther Library Collections at Wayne State University. The records have now been catalogued and there are descriptions available for each part of the NALC Collection. Read more
Senate to Vote on Postal Bill: APWU Members Must Take Action NOW!
The APWU has learned that the Senate will consider postal legislation very soon, and President Cliff Guffey is asking union members to contact their senators immediately and tell them that the 21st Century Postal Service Act (S. 1789) is unacceptable in its current form. “The stakes couldn’t be higher,” Guffey said.
As currently written, the bill would give the USPS some short-term financial relief, but also would inflict long-term damage to the nation’s mail system, he said.
“The bill would force the Postal Service to close hundreds of mail processing centers, shut thousands of post offices, and cause massive delays in mail delivery,” the APWU president said. “By failing to give more substantial financial relief, the bill would weaken the Postal Service, kill jobs, and drive customers away,” he added.
“APWU members have done an outstanding job of expressing our concerns to their senators and representatives,” Guffey added. “At this critical time, union members must continue to let them know where we stand.” Read more
America’s message to Congress: We want first-rate mail delivery service, six days a week
Yesterday, NALC President Fredric Rolando formally welcomed members of both chambers of Congress back to Washington for the second session of the 112th Congress. Both the House and Senate have legislation pending before them that could shape the future of the United States Postal Service.
The American people want Congress to take action to save the service network. As President Rolando states in his letter, Congress should take action to “strengthen and build the Postal Service, not weaken and slowly destroy it.” As Congress debates the future of the Postal Service, it should pause and take into account the will of the people. More than 1 million Americans signed an open letter to their senators and representatives urging them to preserve six-day mail delivery service. Read more
Letter and Rural Carriers Collect One Million Signatures to Save 6-Day Delivery
In October, members of the National Association of Letter Carriers and the National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association were asked to collect signatures in support of protecting the future of the United States Postal Service—and you have delivered.
From active and retired letter carriers, from big cities to small towns, more than 1 million signatures have been collected.
The message is clear: Americans support first-rate mail delivery service, six days a week, and they will do everything they can to protect it.
By reaching this goal, it is our hope that it will help prevent passage of two major bills pending before Congress that are designed to dismantle the Postal Service—H.R. 2309 and S. 1789. Read more
USPS, Two Postal Unions Extend Contract Talks Again Until January 20, 2012
Outcome Critical to Postal Service, Employees, Future
WASHINGTON — The Postal Service and two of its major unions have agreed to extend separate labor contract negotiations until Jan. 20, 2012. Contracts with the National Association of Letter Carriers, AFL-CIO (NALC) and the National Postal Mail Handlers Union, AFL-CIO (NPMHU) expired at midnight Sun., Nov. 20, 2011. The extension will allow the parties to continue to work on the important economic, health care, workplace and other contractual issues being discussed.
The NALC represents more than 195,000 employees who work as letter carriers delivering mail primarily in urban areas. The NPMHU represents more than 46,000 employees who work in mail processing plants and Post Offices. Respectively, wages and benefits for NALC- and NPMHU-represented employees exceeded $15.7 billion and $3.5 billion last year. Should negotiations fail, a process begins which could result in a third party determining contract term s and work rules for more than 240,000 employees.
Unlike the private sector, when negotiations come to an impasse, postal employees are not permitted to strike as Congress has designated the Postal Service as an essential service to the nation. An arbitrator determines the final outcome and is not legally required to consider the Postal Service’s financial obligations when rendering a decision.
For additional background information on labor negotiations visit this link.
From the National Association of Letter Carriers
Contract talks extended into the new year: The National Association of Letter Carriers and the U.S. Postal Service have agreed to extend the current round of contract negotiations until Jan. 20, 2012. The extension will allow the parties to continue to work on the important economic, health care, workplace and other contractual issues being discussed. “We are encouraged that progress is still being made and we want to take all the time necessary to reach an agreement that serves the interests of America’s city letter carriers,” NALC President Fredric Rolando said. “We are committed to achieving a win-win contract at this crucial time in the history of the Postal Service.”
NALC: Extension of payroll tax holiday should not be paid for on backs of federal workforce
As the House of Representatives prepares for a final vote on the payroll tax holiday extension later today, the Republican majority has once again turned to federal employees to foot the bill for it. NALC has weighed in over and over with Congress on the inappropriateness of treating federal workers as the cash cow or “pay-for” for programs that most Americans are able to enjoy. NALC fully supports the extension of the payroll tax holiday while the economy continues to struggle, but certainly not on the backs of the federal workforce.
H.R. 3630, the “Middle Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2011,” extends the current 2 percent payroll tax cut for one year. The bill offsets the costs of these extensions in part by freezing federal employee pay for an additional year through 2013, and it would increase federal and postal employee pension contributions by 1.5 percent over three years, starting in 2013. It would kill the retirement supplement that is paid to federal workers in lieu of Social Security for those in FERS who retire before age 62. This would affect those FERS employees retiring in 2013 or after. New employees hired in 2013 with less than five years of previous federal employment would be hit even harder, paying 4 percent of salary toward retirement benefits instead of the current 0.8 percent while slashing benefit levels by up to 44 percent. (This is achieved by reducing the “years of service” credit from 1 percent to 0.7 percent per year and by basing your annuity on your highest five years of salary instead of the currently used highest three years of salary.)
This bill is irresponsible and unfair to federal workers. Please call your member of Congress as soon as possible — click here for a contact information list — and urge him or her to vote NO on H.R. 3630. Also, click here to read a Federal-Postal Coalition letter that was sent to Congress on this last week that provides more information.
The payroll tax holiday should not be paid for by federal employees!
In Solidarity,
Fredric V. Rolando, President
National Association of Letter Carriers
NALC: Reduced delivery standards will harm USPS
Reduced delivery standards will harm USPS: NALC President Fredric Rolando responded to the Postal Service’s announcement that it plans to reduce delivery standards with the following statement. “We are very concerned about the proposal to reduce delivery standards. High-quality service is essential to preserving the value of our networks and to any future growth strategy. Degrading standards not only hurts the public and the businesses we serve, it’s also counter-productive for the Postal Service because it will drive more people away from using the mail. Changes in service need to be part of a coherent business plan that takes advantage of new opportunities, such as delivering the items people increasingly order online. We urge the Postal Regulatory Commission to review the proposal carefully and act to protect the long-term viability of America’s Postal Service.”
source: NALC
Can Letter Carriers deliver mail in the dark?
Filed under: letter carriers, mail delivery, NALC, postal, postal news
From NALC Branch #1100 in California
Well winter is here and it is getting dark early. Which means you could be expected to work in the dark. This causes issues every year. The rule to keep in mind is that if it is safe you are to deliver the mail. So what is safe? Safe depends on you and your route.
Arbitrator’s have ruled that darkness in and of itself is not unsafe. Darkness can contribute to an unsafe situation. For example you are on a walking route, it is not well lighted, you trip over a crack in the side walk and a few feet later you stumble over something else. You may want to declare that swing as unsafe and move to the next swing. As you deliver on the next swing the same rule applies. If it is well lighted then deliver the mail. If you stumble due to poor lighting then stop. Move to the next swing.
There are several things you can do to keep safe while delivering when it is dark. If you are on a walking route and it is not well lighted then you don’t cut lawns. You want to walk where it is safest. This is normally the driveway and sidewalk. If the area is not well lighted then you probably can not finger the mail while walking since you may not be able to see the addresses well enough. Additionally if it is not well lighted you cannot see where you are walking with your peripheral vision so you actually need to watch where you walk.
With FSS everyone is delivering in the dark and too many hours. Everyone needs to case in the dog warning cards. It becomes more difficult to tell where the barking dog is when it is dark. If you choose to bring back the mail let your manager know. At some point it is unsafe to be out late, it may be unsafe to be on someone’s porch at 8 or 9 pm. Remember with the exception of the month of December, Letter Carriers cannot be required to work in excess of 12 hours per day. Regardless of the month, Letter Carriers cannot be required to work in excess of 60 hours per week. You are the only one that can keep yourself safe. This article is not to supersede any past practices in your city nor any local agreements. Several of our cities have agreements regarding delivery cutoffs.
See full article from NALC Branch #1100 -California
NALC President’s New Approach To Health Benefits Will Save USPS $20 Billion Over 10 Years
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Nov. 21, 2011 — NALC President Fredric V. Rolando held a well-attended press conference today at the National Press Club in Washington. He announced a new approach to health benefits that would save the U.S. Postal Service $20 billion over a decade, and he also spoke more broadly about the need to develop a positive business plan for the future of the Postal Service.
Here are his remarks:
Thank you for coming here today.
My name is Fred Rolando. For 20 years, I delivered the-mail in South Florida, and for the last two years, I have had the privilege of leading a union that represents nearly 200,000 men and women who deliver letters and packages all over America.
As a long-time employee of the United States Postal Service, I would like to share with you some thoughts about how my union—the National Association of Letter Carriers—intends to deal with the very real challenges that the Postal Service faces. Read more