EWG to Conduct DBCS Inspection
By Gary Scott, President
The Ergonomic Work Group, comprised of national representatives of the Postal Unions, USPS and OSHA, is in Denver to conduct DBCS inspections. The reason they are here start with the NIOSH reports initiated in Denver by anonymous employees working in the Denver GMF. The anonymous employees requested NIOSH to evaluate the potential for ergonomic hazards associated with working the DBCS. The NIOSH report suggested methods that should be applied to alleviate potential hazards these machines present. OSHA voiced concern that the USPS had taken no action following the NIOSH report. The APWU requested OSHA to conduct an evaluation of the DBCS and offered to assist OSHA in any manner possible. The EWG teams will be focusing on the tasks performed, equipment configuration, employee training records, maintenance and support equipment. The inspection should be completed by Thursday evening. The DMAL-APWU has agreed to have ERRP ‘Core Team’ members available throughout the inspection to provide the best input possible. Random employee interviews will be conducted and all crafts are expected to be approached. It is our hope that members participate and give the most complete information possible so the report reflects the best suggestions possible for the work force. Please don’t fear this process. This inspection is years late but is intended to improve working conditions for those who work on this equipment.
A closing session will be conducted and a preview of the recommendations will be done. The final written report will be provided to APWU Headquarters with discussions to follow.
I want to applaud DMAL member Loyd Reeder for his persistence and commitment to improving the work place. Loyd has worked tirelessly in spreading his message around the nation and hopefully help will be on the way to our army of members stuck working this very ‘ergo’ flawed machine. The push back expected will be management’s reluctance to enforce work standards for the sake of productivity. It is expected that management will claim that employees were not following training protocols or using equipment correctly as the reasons for the ergonomic problems.
How many of you have been instructed to rotate or stop flipping? Not many I believe. Soon you can expect stand-ups and discipline for not following procedures designed to prevent ergo problems. I wonder how many injuries may have been prevented had management followed NIOSH’s recommendations.
Local Safety & Health Committee Vacancy
By Gary Scott, President
The Denver Metro APWU is currently seeking an APWU member to serve on the Local Safety & Health Committee in the Denver GMF and the MPA. Article 14 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement provides that all members have rights and protection regarding safety and health in the workplace. Safety and health issues are a constant issue day in and day out. Some offices/tours are making exceptional strides in addressing the issues before they emerge, and of course there are offices out there that are falling apart. In installations with two or more APWU crafts, up to two persons may be designated by the union. The intent of the CBA is to insure broad exposure to employees, to ensure new ideas are being presented to the committee and to make certain that employees in all areas of an installation have an opportunity to be represented.
A Maintenance Craft employee has already been selected to serve on the Denver GMF Safety and Health. A Clerk Craft or MVS Craft member would be preferable to balance the committee. All interested members please contact me at 303-365-1524 ext. 19.
DMAL/APWU Accomplishments
By Paul Pearman, DIR
I am giving a quick look at three major areas grieved and how much money management continues to pay out for the unnecessary violations of the contract since April 1, 2007.
1. Supervisors Performing Bargaining Unit Work
Area | Paid Out |
GMF/MPA | $27,600 |
Stations/Associate Offices | $6,190 |
2. Overtime Bypasses
GMF/MPA | $17,863 |
Stations/Associate Offices | $7,985 |
3. Maximization of PTF’s
Associate Offices | Priceless |
Questions & Answers
Q. What can be done about Supervisors continually doing our work?
A. In a book called the JCIM, it gives negotiated and agreed upon remedies for many contractual violations. In this case the remedy is: “the bargaining unit employee(s) whom would have been assigned the work, shall be paid for the time involved at the applicable rate”. We all know this violation happens continuously, and blatantly. We have checked other avenues to see if because of the blatant violations that a greater penalty could be imposed. Unfortunately because of the negotiated JCIM answer, that is the greatest penalty we can charge.
If you witness a supervisor performing craft duties, give a written statement to your steward stating when, where, what, and how long you observed the violation.
Q. When overtime is needed, how should it be called?
A. When an opportunity exists for overtime for qualified and available full-time employees, doing similar work in the work location where the employee regularly work, the qualified and available full-time employee on the appropriate Overtime Desired List will be selected to perform work in order of their seniority on a rotating basis. (JCIM)
Q. What is the remedy if an employee on the overtime desired list is improperly bypassed?
A. in the overtime desired list employee is improperly bypassed and another employee on the overtime desired list is selected out of rotation, the bypassed employee is provided a similar make-up opportunity is available within ninety days of when the error is discovered; if no similar make-up opportunity is available within that ninety days, the employee is compensated at the overtime rate for a period equal to the opportunity missed.
If the overtime desired list employee is improperly bypassed for another employee not on the overtime desired list, the bypassed employee will be paid at the overtime rate for the number of hours equal to the opportunity missed. When a question arises as to the proper administration on the “overtime desired” list at the local level, a steward may have access to appropriate overtime records. (JCIM)
Q. May a full-time employee on limited or light duty be scheduled to work overtime?
A. Whether a full-time limited or light duty employee should be scheduled for overtime is dependent upon whether or not the employee’s medical limitations would allow the employee to perform the needed duties. (JCIM )
From the Ask President Burrus page:
Q. I am what I call a “rare” postal employee in that I am a conservative. I don’t like my union dues being used to support political candidates who I disagree with. Isn’t there a form I can fill out requesting that my dues not be used for things that I oppose? Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mind paying my dues. I do mind, however, giving financial aid to candidates that I would not normally support.
Name withheld – Indianapolis Area Local
A. President Burrus: Thank you for expressing your concerns regarding the use of union dues to support candidates who you disagree with. I can assure you that your dues are not used in support of any candidates, those you agree with or those you disagree with.
The union’s Committee on Political Action (COPA) is the fund that is used to provide financial support to candidates, and contributions to this account are completely voluntary and totally separate from union dues.
I respect your right to support or oppose candidates based upon your personal beliefs, and assure you that your union dues are not used against your interests.
I would welcome the opportunity to engage you in dialogue about candidates you support or oppose, but that should be a private conversation unrelated to your union affiliation.
Help! I Can’t Reach my Claims Examiner
By Phil Desautels, Human Relations Director
Have you tried repeatedly to contact someone in the U.S. Department of Labor regarding your federal workers compensation claim, only to be stonewalled? Here are some helpful tips on how to unlock the doors blocking your path.
Don’t wait on the phone. Use e-mail. OWCP assigns e-mail addresses to individual claim examiners. An example would be
smith.john@dol.gov. Sometimes you may have to use a middle initial.
Once you have found the correct e-mail address, you will be able to reach your assigned claims examiner instantly, no more three days waiting to call you back, if ever. No more waiting weeks for a letter.
If, after you contact your claims examiner by e-mail, and you’re told that you can only contact him/her by phone or in writing, don’t you believe it! Why would that be false? The official OWCP policy regarding e-mail is as follows:
“It is the policy of the Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP) that e-mails and facsimiles are accepted in the District Offices and in the National Office. We will continue to send materials sent directly to our district offices (including e-mail, faxes and other communications such as Federal Express packages) to our London, Kentucky facility for scanning in the electronic case file.”
Also, under federal law, e-mails are “official” federal records as defined by the Federal Records Act requiring preservation in your federal claims file. (Claims examiners cannot delete your e-mails) Title 44USC, Section 3301.
Human Relations
By Phil Desautels, Human Relations Director
When I look around at the membership, I see a lot of us are getting to the age when we really need to think about retirement. Ideally, you should start planning for retirement the day you are hired. But in the real world, we tend to not think about it until later in our careers. On that note, I’m going to write a series of short articles in this newsletter to get everyone to start thinking about retirement.
So, here it goes with the first one, titled: Ten Retirement Mistakes
1. Retiring on the spur of the moment because of a difficult assignment or personality clash on the job.
2. Failing to discuss retirement plans with your spouse or significant other.
3. Retiring without having something better to do.
4. Expecting to live comfortably on your annuity without making realistic calculations of how much money it will take to maintain your standard of living.
5. Failing to stay abreast of developments and changes in federal retirement entitlements and trends.
6. Retiring without reviewing all retirement options, and the pros and cons of each.
7. Basing retirement decisions on the advice of friends rather than consulting with the experts.
8. Selling your house and moving to an area without being sure of the cultural, social and economic realities of the move.
9. Believing that your active productive life is over just because you are retiring.
10. Failing to review all your service and entitlement to be sure you get proper credit. Believing that the estimate you receive from the Postal Service is the actual amount of your annuity.
APWU 2007 Official Election Results
By Sonda Goss, Exec. Vice-President
The final ballot count on APWU National Elections resulted in the election of all but one Denver Metro APWU endorsed candidates. However, the election turnout in our local was a disappointment. It appears that less than 25% of our members voted. The results for National Officers were:
President: | William Burrus |
Health Plan Director: | William “Bill” Kaczor |
Regional Coordinator: | Omar M. Gonzalez |
Director Maint. Division: | Steven G. “Steve” Raymer |
National Business Agent, Maintenance Division: | Charles “Chuck” Sundgaard |
Director Retirees Dept: | Judy Beard |
New to Colorado Voters –
Permanent Mail-In Ballot Option
By Gary Scott, President
This summer Governor Ritter signed Senate Bill 07-234, which will dramatically change how most elections and campaigns are run in the state. The bill creates a new type of voter in Colorado – a permanent mail-in voter. By signing up as a permanent mail-in voter, one agrees to have their ballots mailed to them for every election. In 2002, California passed a similar measure, authorizing voters to sign up as permanent absentee voters. The results in California, has been a surge in ballots cast before Election Day. If a similar surge in mail-in voting occurs in Colorado, the impact on political campaigns will be extensive, forcing major changes to get out the vote efforts, and even the way the media covers races. Only time will tell the full impact of this new option for voting, but the evidence clearly suggest Colorado is in store for significant changes, with regular mail-in voters benefiting the most. Because of the potential benefits to the Postal Service and the APWU, our political action team led by Tina Desautels, sprung into action to provide testimony at the State Capitol that led to the successful bill signing at the Governor’s office. The DMAL received VIP invites to attend and take pictures with Governor Ritter.
The mail-in ballot applications are available in all DMAL offices and steward rooms. Please stop by to pick one up and never stand in line to vote ever again.
2008 Bid Annual Round the Corner
by Brian Thomason, Clerk Craft Director
Yes, it’s that time again to start planning your Bid Annual for 2008 leave year. I have met with management and hope to have the final bid annual forms approved very soon. Once I get approval, they will be disseminated immediately. The deadline to return the bid annual form will be December 17, 2007. Bid annual request forms received after this date will not be considered nor approved
/rb
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