APWU                                                   APWU     

St. Paul, MN Area Local                                                                                June 7,  2010__

www.stpaulapwu.org                                                                                   651-778-1637__

VACANCY IN THE OFFICE OF

PRESIDENT

                Tom Edwards has resigned as President of the St. Paul, MN Area Local APWU AFL-CIO.

            The Constitution of the St. Paul, MN Area Local provides a mechanism for the filling of a vacancy on a permanent basis.  Article 9, Section 5 of the Local Constitution states in part:

Section 5          “In the event of a permanent vacancy in any General Office, the Secretary shall post on all bulletin boards fifteen (15) days in advance, a Notice of said Election and the President shall call a meeting of the Executive Board for the purpose of filling the vacancy as soon as practicable.  A two-thirds (2/3) majority vote of the Executive Board present shall prevail in the selection.  Where there are more than two (2) candidates for the vacancy, the candidate receiving the lowest vote will not be eligible for the next ballot.  

            The above procedure governs the filing of the office of President.

The election for President will take place at a Special Executive Board Meeting to be held on Wednesday, June 23, 2010 at 9:00 a.m.

If you are interested in the office of President, your name must be submitted in writing to the Secretary of the St. Paul, MN Area Local by the close of business on Monday, June 21, 2010 and should be sent to: 

Post Office Box 65065, St. Paul, MN  55165.

            Article 8, Section 1 of the Local Constitution outlines the duties of President and states:

Section 1          The President shall be the Administrative Officer of this Local; preside over all meetings; and enforce the Constitution and By-Laws.  The President shall appoint all Committees and their Chairman, with the approval of the Executive Board, and the President shall be a member ex  officio of all Committees unless otherwise decided by the membership of this Local.  The President shall counter-sign all checks and disbursement vouchers and sign all documents authorized by this Local.  The President shall appoint a Warden at each General Meeting from among those members present at that meeting.  The President shall, by virtue of the office, be a delegate to all State and National Conventions.

Jesse Lopez

Secretary

St. Paul, MN Area Local

American Postal Workers Union

APWU                                                   APWU     

Tom Edwards,  President              St. Paul, MN Area Local                     June 3,  2010____

www.stpaulapwu.org                                                                                   651-778-1637__

ATTENTION – ATTENTION

SPECIAL GENERAL MEMBERSHIP MEETING!!!

       DATE:         THURSDAY, JUNE 10, 2010

TIME:          6:00 P.M.

        PLACE:          LABOR & PROFESSIONAL CENTER

                           (Trades & Labor Building/411 Main Street)

                                (One Block West of St. Joseph’s Hospital)

THE BUSINESS OF THIS SPECIAL MEETING WILL BE TO DISCUSS THE PURCHASE OF THE NEW UNION OFFICE.  THERE IS AN URGENCY TO TAKE ACTION ON THE PURCHASE OF THE NEW UNION OFFICE. 

        PLEASE DISREGARD THE BULLETIN DATED MAY 27, 2010.

PLAN NOW TO ATTEND!!

APWU                                                                         APWU

Thomas Edwards, President         St. Paul, MN Area Local             May 27, 2010

www.stpaulapwu.org                                                       651-778-1637

   Attention Members 

The membership at the May 25, 2010 General Membership Meeting has approved the sale of the St Paul Area Local Union Office (located at 654 East 6^th Street, Saint Paul).  As such, the Union needs to move forward on purchasing a new office for the local and its members closer to the new P&DC in Eagan. 

The topic of the purchasing of a new building will be discussed and acted on at the June 22, 2010 General Membership Meeting (@ 6:45 pm).  The meeting will be held at the Saint Paul Regional Labor Federation building located @ 411 Main St., Saint Paul MN 55102.  Please attend this important meeting.

In solidarity,

Tom Edwards

President, St. Paul Area Local APWU      

APWU                                                                         APWU

Thomas Edwards, President        St. Paul, MN Area Local             May 10, 2010

www.stpaulapwu.org                                                        651-778-1637

MANAGEMENT BEGINS NATIONAL REASSESSMENT PROGRAM MEETINGS WITH EMPLOYEES CONCERNING WORK STATUS LAST WEEK WITH THE FIRST ST. PAUL AREA LOCAL MEMBER BEING SENT HOME FOR “NO WORK AVAILABLE”!!!

          The St. Paul Area Local has been notified that management intends to start meeting with employees under the National Reassessment Process for employees with Limited Duty work restrictions.  Management attempted to meet with employees the first week of May with objections from the APWU on how they were informed of the meetings.  Last week, management did hold a meeting with a Limited Duty employee and the employee was told that there was no work available and was sent home.  Management has informed us that these meetings will be conducted this week and into the future.

          Therefore, the St. Paul, MN APWU is asking that all limited  duty employees, when contacted by management concerning their work status, to immediately ask for a Union Steward to ensure that all your rights are being asserted from the beginning of this process.

          There has been some confusion from the members concerning the terms “Limited Duty” and “Light Duty”.  Limited duty applies to medical work restrictions resulting from a work related injury.  Light duty applies to medical restrictions resulting from a non-work related injury.

          The National Reassessment Program deals only with those employees who have medical work related restrictions.

          For those employees with Light Duty restrictions, while not being a part of the NRP process; the St. Paul Area Local believes that management will also be addressing light duty employees and accommodations.  So, for those employees in a light duty status, the APWU asks that when management wants to meet with you concerning work within your restrictions that you also seek a union steward.

***************************************************

(Over)

Assigning the Unassigned Regulars

On a daily basis, unassigned regular employees would be scheduled in the rotation with the “bid” regulars (in areas that utilize a daily rotation) or be assigned to a daily assignment by their seniority.

·        Per the LMOU, as an unassigned, you become part of the section you are assigned to, with your seniority, for the purposes of annual leave, overtime and holidays.

·        For daily reassignments, out of section, as an unassigned, you are considered junior.

·        If management puts you on a 1723, elsewhere, that is not your unassigned assignment.

Dawn Ecker

Vice President

***************************************************

Pool Clerks

          It has come to our attention that there are security violations regarding the transfer of accountability to the pool clerks when scheduled to work the window at the stations.  Offices have been using the funds from the cash retained drawer, instead of cash retaining funds from the previous day.

          The funds must be able to be transferred (AIC647) from one employee to another and entered into POS systems, using PS Form 3294-C.  The funds are NOT at any time to be taken from the cash retained drawer.   If there are insufficient funds to open a drawer, the pool clerk should be scheduled to perform other duties within the station until said funds are available to be transferred. The pool drawer must be counted out daily, if the employees will not be utilizing the drawer within one (1) week.

          Cash drawers must be locked in the safe at all times when not in use.

          When a violation occurs, please request a steward to obtain the form to report a security problem or poor financial practice and make a copy for your records.  Make management accountable and see to it that they respond as to what corrective action was taken.

Karen Reynolds

Clerk Craft Trustee

APWU                                                                         APWU

Thomas Edwards, President      St. Paul, MN Area Local             April 27,   2010

www.stpaulapwu.org                                                          651-778-1637

Give a gift that’s priceless!

Join us for our Annual Blood Drive

Tuesday May 11, 2010

1:00 – 6:00 p.m.

411 Main Street

To schedule an appointment that is convenient for you, please call Lynn at 651-222-3787, extension 16.

APWU                                                                         APWU

Thomas Edwards, President      St. Paul, MN Area Local         April 21,     2010

www.stpaulapwu.org                                                        651-778-1637

Excessing: Know Your Rights

Burrus Update 06-2009, May 14, 2009

In response to significant reductions in mail volume and revenue, postal management is aggressively adjusting employee complements. These modifications are generating thousands of excessing notices to local unions and employees, indicating that junior full-time employees will be reassigned to other crafts or more distant facilities.

Our Strength

Two of the strongest worker protections in the APWU Collective Bargaining Agreement are:

The contractual guarantee of 40 hours of work per week, which applies to full-time employees, and, [Article 8.1, page 24]

Protection from layoffs for employees who have achieved six years of “continuous service” or who were in the APWU bargaining unit on Nov. 20, 2006. [Article 6.A, page 10; Layoff Protection Memo, page 286]

However, postal management has the legal and contractual right to “hire, promote, transfer, assign and retain employees in positions,” subject to the limitations of the contract. [Article 3.B, page 6] This includes the right to reassign employees in order to reduce the number of employees in a Section, Craft or Installation. [Article 12.4 and 5, page 54 and following, JCIM Article 12.4 page 3 and following] These reductions of employees are initiated in the form of excessing notices to the union at the regional [Article 12.4.B, pp 54-55 and 12.5.B.4. page 57; JCIM Article 12 page 3 and following] and local level [12.5.B.4. page 57; JCIM Article 12 page 6], which are subsequently issued to individual employees. [Article 12.5.B.5, page 57; JCIM Article 12 page 6]

Given the limits on the employer’s right to lay off employees, for most workers the notice of excessing is the most traumatic job action they will face. When informed that their place of employment will shift to a location hundreds of miles away, most employees consider the disruption to their personal lives — schools, churches, and family ties, as well as their economic and emotional investment in a community.

Postal management is hoping that many employees will respond to the pressures of excessing by quitting.

Our Ability to Fight

Following are the contractual provisions governing excessing of employees to another craft within the installation. Management must:

Separate casual employees if their elimination will create available hours that will constitute full time assignments; [Article 12.4.D, page 55 and 12.5.C.5.a.(2), page 65; JCIM Article 12 page 7]

Reduce PTF work hours (if applicable) to minimize the impact on full-time positions; [Article 12.5.C.5.a.(3), page 65; JCIM Article 12 page 7]

Terminate work opportunities for light-duty employees temporarily assigned from other crafts; return limited-duty employees to their respective crafts, and place limited/rehab employees working within their craft in the proper seniority order for excessing, [JCIM Article 12 page 7] and

Permit senior employees in the same craft or occupational group who have not been identified for excessing to volunteer to be reassigned in lieu of excessed employees. These volunteers will replace on a one-to-one basis the most senior employee(s) identified as excess; [Article 12.5.C.5.b(3), page 67; JCIM Article 12, page 13]

Full-time employees who are notified that they will be excessed to another installation have the right:

To remain within their present installation as Part-Time Regular, [Article 12.5.C.5.b.(5), page 68; JCIM Article 12, page 13] or

To remain within their present installation as a Part-Time Flexible employee; [Article 12.5.C.5.b.(5), page 68; JCIM Article 12, page 13]

If It Happens to You

The Postal Service must send potentially affected employees a notice at least 60 days in advance when excessing outside the installation may occur. As the excessing proceeds, some employees will receive follow-up letters, providing them with a choice of new duty assignments, or informing them when and where to report for their new assignment in their new facility. [Sample USPS letters: Offer of Withheld Residual Vacancies to Impacted Employees | Employee Notification, Involuntary Reassignment, Within the Craft, Outside the Installation] Throughout this process, employees should inquire about their rights and options.

In particular, if you learn that your new installation is outside your commuting area and/or at least 50 miles farther than the distance between your present duty station and your current residence, you should request the following documentation from management, in writing: [When Excessing Occurs, page 14; OPM Publication 164, Question 43, page 25]

An official notice of excessing, including the new office and duty assignment;

Five days of administrative leave to visit the community of the new installation; [When Excessing Occurs, page 15] An itemized list of allowances permitted for relocated employees, including moving expenses, mileage, per diem payments etc;

An indication of whether the reassignment is 50 miles outside the commuting area of their present facility, and, if so, whether the employee is entitled to Discontinued Service Retirement. [When Excessing Occurs, page 7; Publication 164, Question 5, page 4 and following]

A determination of whether the employee qualifies for severance pay and if not, why not; [When Excessing Occurs, page 11; Publication 164 Question 5, page 5 and following]

A copy of the package explaining the relocation benefits that are available and how to apply for them;

A copy of the residual duty assignment to which the excessed employee will be reassigned, including the hours, days, and duties of the assignment; (Employees must meet the minimum qualifications of the new duty assignment at the time of excessing.) [Article 12.5.B.8, page 58; JCIM Article 12, pages 5, 9, 12], and

Identification of the last day on which the employee may elect to transfer to PTR or PTF and remain within the installation, and what the hours and days of the PTR assignment would be. (In the Motor Vehicle Craft, the option to remain within the facility is to remain as a PTF.) [JCIM Article 12 page 14]

Employees are advised to call management’s bluff and demand all their contractual rights, as well as the information outlined above. [Sample letter (editable MS Word document)] You should modify the letter provided above to address your unique circumstances, and your need for specific information .

Clerk Craft employees who elect to remain in their facility as Part-Time-Regulars enjoy all bidding rights to return to full time. However, they do not have a contractual right to eight hours of work or pay, and cannot return to full time until all excessed employees with retreat rights have had an opportunity to exercise those rights. PTFs have a guarantee of 2 or 4 hours of work or pay, depending on office size.

Excessing in the Maintenance Craft [Article 38.3.K, page 211; JCIM Article 12, page 8] and the Motor Vehicle Craft [Article 12.5.C.7, pages 71-72; Article 12.5.C.5.b.1.a, page 66; Article 39.1.B.8, page 234; Article 39.1.D, page 236], is governed by rules that are specific to each craft; [Article 12.5.B.9, page 58; JCIM Article 12, page 8] however, the rules governing Severance Pay, Discontinued Service, and Relocation expenses apply to all APWU bargaining unit employees. For craft-specific rules regarding excessing from the craft or installation, consult a steward or local union representative.

Limited Duty Employees

The excessing of employees who have been injured in the performance of their jobs and have an accepted claim (limited duty/rehab) involves special contractual and legal considerations:

Limited-duty employees who have been assigned within their craft will be excessed pursuant to their pay level and their seniority. “Reasonable accommodation” provisions apply.

Management must identify the specific residual duty assignment to which the employee will be excessed, including the hours, days of work, and duties of the assignment; the employee must be able to perform the core duties of the assignment.

If the duty assignment is outside the installation and medically suitable work is not available in the craft of the excessed limited-duty employee, management is required to apply the provisions of Section 540 of the Employee & Labor Relations Manual (ELM), the EL-305 Handbook, Injury Compensation, and/or the EL-307 Handbook, Reasonable Accommodation.

If it is determined that such work is not available for a limited-duty employee in the office where the excessed employee is reassigned, the employee should apply for OWCP (Office of Workers’ Compensation).

William Burrus

President

APWU            St. Paul, MN Area Local               APWU

Tom Edwards, President                                                          3/23/10

www.StPaulAPWU.org                                                   651-778-1637

Maintenance Flash Bulletin

          As we continue to wait and see what exactly management is talking about with their letters of excessing and staffing packages, some of our junior members, and even some senior members, should consider what we all know as certain.  We are an impacted plant.

          Did you know that as an employee of an impacted plant, your name goes to the top of the list for assignments as a transferee?  Your sick leave usage, safety, or disciplinary record are not taken into consideration.  You don’t have to be a member of one of the occupational groups that has been identified for excessing; you qualify because you are from this impacted plant.

          If you ever thought about transferring to a warmer climate or maybe going back to an area you came from, now might be your chance.  You won’t be able to take your seniority with you, but if something has been stopping you from going and living where you would rather be, you should check out “e-reassign” today.

          Some of you who are junior BEM’s, ET’s, or MPE’s might want to grab the bull by the horns and consider assignments elsewhere as a transferee.  No one is going to lose their job with excessing, but some people are going to be displaced.

          Your union is working hard on getting the number of people impacted down to a minimum, and it is your decision if you want to wait and see what management offers you, but if you ever thought about going to a sunnier locale, the next 30 to 90 days might be your golden window of opportunity.

Dave Geissinger

Maintenance Craft Director 

APWU            St. Paul, MN Area Local               APWU

Tom Edwards, President                                                          3/19/10

www.StPaulAPWU.org                                                   651-778-1637

Pool Clerks and Station Relief Clerks

          In a labor management meeting we had with customer service, several issues as they relate to pool and station scheduling were discussed.  The following are some of the highlights.

          Some of the station schedules that are sent to the pool reflect incorrect information as it relates to the current bids.  Management is going to create one type of spreadsheet that is used by all stations and ask that the correct information be on them.

          Stations are requesting pool clerks for different hours than the vacancy they need to fill.  This should not occur.

          Stations are requesting pool clerks where there are no vacancies.  This creates overstaffing at one station and probably short staffing another.  This should not occur.

          Scheduling unassigned pool clerks prior to pool clerks who properly hold a pool duty assignments should not occur.  All unassigned who have been detailed to the pool will have their detail end on 3/26.

          Once pool clerks are assigned at a station, management at that station has called to say they don’t want or need them.  Once assigned they should stay assigned to that station.  Also, clerks should not be calling the pool asking to be reassigned.

          Pool Scheduling – Pool supervisors will be scheduling pool clerks based on where the vacancy is, the starting time of the vacancy and the starting time of the pool clerk by seniority.  There is a memorandum by management and the union that addresses this.

          There will also be a new form sent to every pool clerk to rate their preference to which stations they prefer to work.

          All pool and relief clerks, be aware that once you receive Wednesday notification you are entitled to out-of-schedule compensation for any hours worked outside of your bid hours.  If you are filling a vacancy of five days or longer, in such case you should be assuming the hours and days off of that vacancy, and you would not be entitled to out-of-schedule compensation.  If management changes your schedule after the Wednesday posting, you are then entitled to overtime and guarantee pay.

          You are not required to use your own vehicle to travel from station to station once on the clock.  Management must either provide you a vehicle or any other means of transportation at their expense.  If you do use your vehicle you are entitled to mileage.  Also, unless you have a rider on your auto insurance police for business use, you will not be covered if you have an accident while on the clock driving your vehicle and the Postal Service will not cover you either.

          Some additional items of concern are; management’s ability to get in touch with the pool supervision when there is a need for a pool clerk because of leave. We have been told that management has been sent several phone numbers for them to call in order to obtain a pool clerk.  The availability of vehicles when a pool clerk is asked to go somewhere else after reporting to a station, management doesn’t believe this should be a problem because pool clerks should be staying at the station they were scheduled.  If you are filling a vacancy for a part time regular position you will be scheduled for eight hours.  You should not be sent somewhere else either before or after working the part time hours.

          If you have any questions, please contact a steward.

Judy Fricke

Industrial Relations Director

APWU                                                                         APWU

Thomas Edwards, President      St. Paul, MN Area Local         March  18,   2010

www.stpaulapwu.org                                                        651-778-1637

The Children Need Our Help

          “To be moved by the suffering of a child is a function of our compassion and humanity.  Those who take action to alleviate such suffering represent the great and good among us.”  Author Unknown

Brothers and Sisters, the Local once again is seeking your help and kindness.

          At every national convention, locals from across the country team up with the APWU National Auxiliary to support a local charity.  This year the charity will be the Children’s Hospital of Michigan.

          A child’s imagination often runs wild when stressing about an upcoming procedure.  To help ease the child’s fear, a Child Life Specialist may utilize a teddy bear. So this year, the St. Paul Area Local is asking its members to bring a teddy bear (new please) to the General Membership Meetings between now and June or to the 5^th floor stewards office, the local’s goal is 200 teddy bears, more would be great.  All donations must be collected by August 13, 2010.

          We are well aware of the economic situation across the country, but hope that you, the members, will consider donating to this worthy cause.  Let’s show the children we care!

Respectfully and in solidarity,

Tom Edwards

President

APWU                                                                         APWU

Thomas Edwards, President      St. Paul, MN Area Local         March  15,   2010

www.stpaulapwu.org                                                        651-778-1637

How to Schedule an in Service Exam

          With so many changes going on it is important to know that you can test without it being a requirement of a bid duty assignment.  This is an advantage especially for typing.  You may find it easier to take a typing test when you don’t have the added stress of it being required as part of a bid duty assignment.  The following steps will allow you to sign up to take a typing test.

1.     Log on to “liteblue.usps.gov”

2.     Home page, right hand side, scroll down to “Northland Performance Cluster”

3.     On the left hand side, click on “Job Opportunities”

4.     On the right hand side, scroll down to “Internal Testing Opportunities”

Here you will find a listing of exams and a phone number for Patty Alver. You can call her to notify her of your interest to take an exam.  Please note that on this page there is a note that if you fail this exam you must wait 120 days to re-take.  This provision is for those who are taking the test as part of a requirement of a bid.  If you take the typing test as an in service exam, which is not part of the bidding process, you do not serve the 120 day restriction.

Currently typing tests are administered through contracting. You will be given choices of where you want to take the test.  Normally, the choices will be close to your current home address.  If when you take the test, you have any problems while taking the test, and ultimately fail, contact the union immediately.  We will investigate any problems you encountered and if necessary, file any appropriate grievances for you to retake the test.

Judy Fricke

Industrial Relations Director

APWU                                                                         APWU

Thomas Edwards, President    St. Paul, MN Area Local         March 16,    2010

www.stpaulapwu.org                                                        651-778-1637

            MVS Members               

Election Results

       The results are in.  On Saturday, March 13, 2010, the Local held a special craft election per Article IX, Section 5 of the Local Constitution for the Motor Vehicle Services Craft Trustee.  At the close of business on March 12, 2010 there were no written nominations from members of the Motor Vehicle Craft filed with Local Secretary Jesse Lopez.

       Steve Henjum was nominated by Cook, and as there were no other candidates present at the nomination meeting, it was moved and seconded that Mr. Henjum be duly elected by white ballot.  Motion carried.

       Thanks and appreciation to the Election Committee Chair, Mr. Pat Hawkins for a job well done!

       Congratulations Steve!