From the President’s Desk
By John Ancona, President

Below please find an article from the American Postal Worker magazine.  I feel it fully explains the NTFT issues.  At this difficult time in our postal careers, I feel this article needs exposure to our members who have so many questions and concerns.

The Reality of 
Non-Traditional Full-Time Assignments
The American Postal Worker Magazine

Non-Traditional Full-Time (NTFT) Duty Assignments have caused confusion in some offices, and to understand what they are, how they should work, and how they came about, we have to review some recent history.

These new assignments were born in May 2011, when 76 percent of the members of the APWU ratified the 2010-2015 Collective Bargaining Agreement.  Prior to that, the Postal Service was excessing clerks at an astounding rate.  When employees were notified they were about to be excessed, they had to choose between accepting a new duty assignment – sometimes hundreds of miles away – or remaining in their installation as part-time regulars (PTRs) or part-time flexible (PTFs).  Thousands upon thousands of clerks received excessing notices with no more than 60 days to make the life-altering decision.

There were plenty of horror stories: Some clerks opted to remain in the installation as PTFs – and then were scheduled just two or four hours per pay period, depending on the size of their office.  Some who were excessed lived out of their cars, others commuted hundreds of miles a day each way.  Some rented apartments because they did not want to sell their homes in a poor housing market.  Others were excessed to new installations only to be excessed from the new installation.

In cases where grievances were filed and the union prevailed, clerks were frequently returned to their former installation only to be excessed again.  Some of the excessing led to family separations and divorce.  Some people lost their homes.  In short, excessing was having a devastating effect on union members.

Replaced with Casuals
All too frequently, after clerks were excessed, management backfilled their assignments with casuals, who worked six hours per day.  But the union was unable to challenge the replacement of the career employees with casuals because the casuals weren’t working full-time schedules.

As excessing continued unabated, the membership sent union contract negotiators a stern message: Stop the pain of excessing!  To accomplish this goal, the union negotiated a provision that limits excessing to no more than 40 or 50 miles.  That goes a long way toward easing the inconvenience and disruption.

However, during negotiations, management argued that in most excessing situations, work remained in the losing installation, but it didn’t amount to 40 hours per week or it didn’t match the limitations on scheduling in the old Collective Bargaining Agreement.

So the APWU and USPS negotiated a provision that gave potentially excessed employees another option: non-traditional dull-time duty assignments that would provide the USPS the flexibility to create jobs that would reduce or eliminate the need for excessing.

How it Works
Before creating NTFT duty assignments, the Postal Service should notify the APWU of potential excessing outside the craft or installation.  Then, to reduce the impact, management should discuss with the union the potential for creating NTFT duty assignments.

Once the NTFT duty assignments are created, clerks who were full-time as of of May 23, 2011, have the option to bid on schedules of less than 40 hours rather than face excessing.  Employees who are not impacted may choose the non-traditional schedules for other reasons, and that would also reduce the number of affected employees.

What is a NTFT duty assignment?  It’s not a traditional duty assignment, which consists of five 8-eight hours.  NTFT assignments can range from six to 10 hours per day and 30-48 hours per week.

In accordance with the Memorandum of Understanding on NTFT assignments, which can be found on pages 188-190 of the contract, in Function Four (retail), the Postal Service may create as many clerk NTFT duty assignments in a facility as are operationally necessary.  In Function One (mail processing), up to 50 percent of the duty assignments may have non-traditional full-time schedules.

In all instances, the Postal Service must make every effort to create “desirable duty assignments” using all available work hours.

Operational Needs
There is nothing confusing about the requirement.  It doesn’t give the USPS the right to totally revamp the workforce in order to meet a savings goal or conform to a computer-generated staffing model.

Some examples of valid operation needs are: The USPS cannot provide proper service to ratail customers without making a scheduling change; cannot get mail to carriers early enough without a schedule change; is unable to finish processing mail in time to meet transportation needs without a schedule change; or there is an operational window to complete a task that requires a schedule change.

Another important operational need might be that excessing is likely, and creating NTFT duty assignments would afford potentially excessed employees an opportunity to bid on NTFT positions and avoid excessing.  In other words, if there is not enough work for eight hours per day for five days per week, but there is enough work for at least 30 hours per week, there may be an operational need to create NTFT assignments to reduce or eliminate the excessing. 

Even in these scenarios, if done correctly, it may be necessary to change or repost only one or two jobs occupied by junior employees.

What is Desirable?
Whenever the Postal Service creates NTFT duty assignments, management must make “every effort” to create “desirable” duty assignments from “all available work hours.”

Local managers cannot be excused from the requirement to post desirable schedules simply because someone above them in the management hierarchy insists that All NTFT assignments must be limited to 30 hours per week.

To create the desirable assignments, all work hours – including overtime, hours worked by Postal Support Employees (PSEs), hours worked by part-time flexible from other offices, hours spent by supervisors improperly performing bargaining unit work, cross-craft hours, etc – must be considered.

Prior to posting NTFT assignments, management must meet with local union officers and give them the opportunity for input in the creation of the assignments.  We have developed an online tool to assist local presidents in these efforts, which is available on the union’s website, www.apwu.org. 

In many cases, the Postal Service missed an opportunity to improve employee morale by violating the contract.  Instead, management has created unnecessary employee anxiety and generated numerous potential grievances.

Human Relations
By Phil Desautels, Director Human Relations

In the January-February 2012 Postal Workers Magazine, National Human Relations Director Sue Carney wrote about the new changes the Department of Federal Employees Compensation (FECA) is putting out concerning Form CA-16 (Authorization for Examination and/or Treatment), and Form CA-7 (Request for Compensation).
As Sue only gets one page, she is forced to paraphrase.  This may make the information she wrote about a little unclear.  It is very important that you understand the information, and I will try to explain it.  You never know when an injury will occur.

CA-16’s are used for treatment when someone suffers a traumatic injury (A traumatic injury is an injury that occurs during one shift). If you suffer a traumatic injury, you should ask management to issue you a CA-16 within 48 hours of the injury.  Management will not offer it to you.  If you ask for a CA-16 after one week, management has the right not to issue it.

Once you obtain a CA-16, you should give it to your doctor.  Your doctor can then be paid for services; regardless if your claim is approved or denied.  My advice is that you should always file a claim immediately.  Contact me at 303-365-1524 ext. 12, for proper filing procedures.  Management will only give you a CA-1 (Report of Traumatic Injury), which is not sufficient to obtain a successful claim.
Since OWCP is not going to issue claim numbers promptly, here is what you can do: 
1. Call Health Management at 303-853-6140 or,
2. Call OWCP at 720-264-3000.
Tell your doctor to hold the CA-16 until you can get the claim number.  

OWCP also announced changes to compensation procedures (loss wages).  This issue can be challenged individually, if you are inclined to do so, through the Department of Labor.

There are many scenarios surrounding compensation.  OWCP is attempting to only process compensation requests after the Leave Without Pay is taken.  This is in violation of Federal Employees Compensation Act.  The best advice I can give you is to attach your doctor’s orders for your absence, and a copy of PS Form 3971 (Request for Leave) with each compensation request.

If you file for compensation every two weeks, I suggest you do so on the Wednesday preceding the end of the pay period.  Likewise, if you’re doing follow-up visits with your doctor after surgery, schedule the appointment during the first week of a pay period.  This will allow you time to get medical reports and leave slips for your continuing compensation.

Even though OWCP is in conflict with the FECA, please don’t think you will be unaffected.  This policy will delay payments.  It is imperative that you plan properly! 

If anyone would like to talk to me further on this subject, or other injury compensation issues, retirement, benefits, etc., please do not hesitate to contact me at 303-365-1524 ext. 12.

/jd
opeiu #5
afl-cio