USPS declines to extend contract talks; NALC ‘disappointed’ Union to seek agreement in mediation
Jan. 20, 2012 -- Today, the United States Postal Service declined to extend collective-bargaining negotiations with the National Association of Letter Carriers, triggering an impasse that will automatically send the matter to mediation under the auspices of the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service. If no consensual agreement is reached in a 60-day period of mediation, the issues will be submitted for final and binding resolution before an “Interest Arbitration” panel, which under law must consider all the evidence presented by the parties.
Fredric Rolando, President of NALC, issued the following statement:
“I am disappointed by the Postal Service’s decision. We have been making steady progress in negotiations, right up through this afternoon. Our negotiations have been innovative, professional and productive and have been conducted at the highest level.
“Now that the formal litigation process has begun, we will pursue a negotiated agreement through mediation and prepare to vigorously defend our members in Interest Arbitration, if it reaches that step.
“Notwithstanding this turn of events, NALC continues to believe that a negotiated agreement is in the best interests of the parties, the businesses that rely on us and the nation we serve. We will continue to negotiate in good faith as mediation takes place under the law’s dispute-resolution process even as we prepare for binding arbitration, and we will work with Congress on vitally needed reforms. We also will work with our external expert advisers to advance a new business model that will revitalize and preserve the USPS as a vital element of the nation’s business and cultural infrastructure.”
Dear Edwin,
As the Senate reconvenes in Washington today, the NALC is closely monitoring expected Senate action for this and the coming weeks. With Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid announcing late last week that he would be delaying a floor vote for the controversial anti-piracy bills pending before Congress, the Senate schedule now has unexpected floor time that will need to be filled. All indications are that the leadership plans on moving S. 1789, the 21st Century Postal Service Act of 2011, as early as next week. S. 1789, in its current form, is unacceptable to the NALC and to many stakeholders and customers throughout the country.
The bill as reported out of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs fell short of achieving the many needed reforms to ensure a vibrant Postal Service for the future.
The legislation:
Allows for five-day delivery in two years' time if the Postal Service is not turning a profit, but fails to give the Postal Service any flexibility to achieve that profit.
Phases out door-to-door delivery in favor of curbside and centralized delivery.
Fails to recoup the $55 billion to $75 billion in CSRS pension surplus funds.
Does not go far enough in restructuring the Postal Service Retiree Health Benefit Fund.
Includes an anti-labor provision that would direct arbitrators to take into special consideration the financial condition of the Postal Service before rendering a decision.
Unfairly attacks injured postal workers by removing them from the OWCP rolls and forcing them into retirement without implementing a formula that would make these people whole. The reduction in compensation would be severe.
Please call Sen. Bill Nelson at (202) 224-5274 and ask him to oppose S. 1789 in its current form. The legislation is deeply flawed and needs significant changes before the Senate should consider passage of this bill.
Changes to the bill should include provisions from S. 1853, The Postal Service Protection Act of 2011. This bill takes the necessary steps by addressing the issues laid out above to strengthen the Postal Service while maintaining the excellent level of service Americans have come to expect, preserving middle-class jobs and creating new opportunities for the Postal Service moving forward.
Again, please call Sen. Nelson as soon as possible and urge him to delay action on S. 1789 as drafted. We expect the Senate to pass legislation that protects senior citizens, rural communities, small businesses and others and we hope to be at the table as those discussions are held.
Thank you in advance for your urgent action.
In Solidarity,
Fredric V. Rolando, President
National Association of Letter Carriers
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The National Association of Letter Carriers, AFL-CIO 100 Indiana Avenue NW · Washington, DC 20001-2144
202-393-4695 · nalc.org
This is an excellent interview with Fred Rolando that really explains our situation. Please take the time to read it and share it with anyone you think might be interested in it. Thanks
We are getting closer to our goal and this appeal is going out nationwide. Please participate. The site takes a few minutesto log into but it is a few minutes to save jobs and the USPS. Thanks
BOB HENNING
Dear State Chairs and NBAs,
The petition posted to the White House website asking the Obama administration to look at refunding overpayments into CSRS and FERS is currently about 750 signatures short of reaching the threshold to receive a formal response. While the petition drive announced by President Rolando this past Sunday should be your priority, we would like to get the White House petition over the 5,000 signature threshold before its October 26th deadline.
NALC Department of Legislative and Political Affairs
Dear Matthew,
At the National Rap Session in Las Vegas last October, I asked all members of the National Association of Letter Carriers 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 were collected, processed and sent to Congress in just 12 weeks.
Your dedication, determination and hard work made it possible to reach this goal of 1 million signatures. The voices of Americans from every corner of this country have been heard because of the efforts of the brothers and sisters of the NALC.
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 designed to dismantle the Postal Service that are now pending before Congress—H.R. 2309 and S. 1789.
If it were to become law, H.R. 2309 would end Saturday mail delivery service, radically downsize the USPS and force the closure of thousands of post offices.
In the Senate, S. 1789 fails to repeal the pre-funding requirement, phases out door-to-door delivery and eliminates Saturday delivery by 2014.
While the importance of the USPS to America has been demonstrated to Congress and the White House, our battle is far from over and we must continue to fight for a viable, effective Postal Service. So it is up to us to ensure that Congress does not ignore the voices of these Americans. I'm asking every letter carrier to be ready at a moment's notice to take further action on breaking developments to protect the future of the United States Postal Service.
In Solidarity,
Fredric V. Rolando, President
National Association of Letter Carriers
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The National Association of Letter Carriers, AFL-CIO 100 Indiana Avenue NW · Washington, DC 20001-2144
202-393-4695 · nalc.org
Dear Edwin,
A majority of representatives in the House has co-sponsored H.R. 1351, thanks to your hard work and dedication. Reaching this majority was a direct result of the lobby visits, rallies and media coverage you have generated since this legislation was introduced.
However, our fight is far from over, and we must keep up the momentum. It is time to take our message back to the American people and show Congress that the public stands with us on saving Saturday delivery.
Over the next several weeks, the Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction, the "super committee," will produce a plan to reduce the federal deficit. It may include a package of proposals to fix the financial difficulties facing the USPS. Among the proposals they will consider is President Obama’s proposal to allow the USPS to reduce the number of delivery days from six to five.
At the National Rap Session in Las Vegas last weekend, I announced the next phase of the "Save America's Postal Service" campaign: a national petition drive urging Congress to preserve six-day delivery. Through this petition drive, we will build support among the American public and continue to let Congress know that six-day delivery is crucial to the future of the Postal Service.
The only way we will be successful is if every NALC member does his or her part. Every NALC branch is charged with collecting 10 times its membership size in signatures. Your role as an NALC activist will be critical to achieving your branch’s goal.
Completed petitions should be mailed to NALC’s Department of Legislative and Political Affairs and arrive before Monday, Nov. 14.
Click the links to download the petition and other relevant materials:
We will send members of Congress the petitions from their districts. On the Save America’s Postal Service website, we will list the total number of signatures gathered by each branch.
Please work with your branch president and organize at least one signature-gathering event each week between now and the Nov. 14 deadline. Your participation is needed to mobilize NALC members, activists and community allies.
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Postal workers in Jacksonville and across the nation assembled Tuesday in an effort to save their jobs and the cash-strapped U.S. Postal Service. The service is suffering through an overwhelming budget crisis and faces drastic cuts and shutdowns. Postal employees gathered in front of Rep. Ander Crenshaw's office on Riverside Avenue on Tuesday and said they want Congress to approve legislation that would require recalculations of pension payment obligations, which are currently crippling the post office's finances. "Today's purpose is to get Congress’ attention, to stop us from paying future retiree health care costs," postal worker Bob Henning said. Employees also want to continue delivery on Saturdays, which is also on the chopping block. Many offices across the country have already been forced to shut down due to budget constraints. "Employees are upset. No hiring for three years. They wouldn't close post offices and stop the hiring," Henning said.
NALC members join hundred of other protestors in Daytona Beach, Fl Awake the State Rally on March 8,2011. Matty Rose Pres FSALC, Dennis Bonilla Branch 53, Kelly Rose Branch 53, Mark Smith Pres Branch 5951 and John Cowan visiting from NC, Pres Branch 464.
Philip Dine
Dir. of Communications & Media Relations
Office: 202-662-2850
Cell: 202-549-0435 dine@nalc.org
Jim Sauber
Chief of Staff
Office: 202.662.2871
Cell: 202.679.6679 sauber@nalc.org
NALC to defend members, 'America's Postal Service in 2011 contract talks
For a printable version of this release, click here.
Washington -- The National Association of Letter Carriers promised to vigorously represent the country’s most trusted federal employees and to defend the long-term viability of America’s most trusted federal agency, the United States Postal Service, in negotiations for a new labor contract that commenced here today.
NALC President Fredric V. Rolando called on Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe to bargain in good faith and to disavow the regressive and destructive path unveiled last week when the Postal Service unleashed a lobbying campaign to convince Congress to reduce postal services to the nation, to slash the postal workforce by 220,000 employees and to attack the collective-bargaining rights of America’s hard-working letter carriers.
“Despite the Postal Service’s outrageous show of bad faith at the start of these negotiations, we are prepared to negotiate a fair, responsible and innovative labor agreement to reward our members and to position the Postal Service for a stronger and better future,” Rolando said.
“Letter carriers and NALC have worked tirelessly over the past four years to help the USPS overcome the impact of the Great Recession, helping to maintain high-quality service at the most affordable postage rates in the world,” he said. “Even as we press Congress and the administration to reform the crushing retiree health pre-funding mandate that accounts for 100 percent of the Postal Service’s losses over the past four years, we are ready to roll-up our sleeves at the bargaining table to creatively negotiate a contract that helps the USPS better serve the American people and the $1.2 trillion industry it supports—we are not prepared to shut out the lights on one of America’s greatest institutions.”
“We need to strengthen our nation’s only truly universal communications network, not dismantle it,” Rolando said. “We want to work with management to restore the Postal Service to health and to help it grow, offer new services and evolve to meet the changing needs of the country and the American economy.”
On Tuesday, September 27, from 4 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. (local time), members of the four employee unions of the United States Postal Service—
• American Postal Workers Union • National Association of Letter Carriers • National Postal Mail Handlers Union • National Rural Letter Carriers' Association
—will join forces with members of our communities to send a message to the nation and its Congress.
During these informational rallies, we will visit the home office of each member of the House of Representatives.
We will thank those members who have signed on as co-sponsors of H.R. 1351, a bill that addresses the financial crisis facing the Postal Service. And we will encourage those who have not signed as co-sponsors of H.R. 1351 to do so.
Join us!
++ MEDIA ADVISORY ++
Tuesday morning, Sept. 27, NALC President Fredric V. Rolando will be a guest on "The Diane Rehm Show."
The program will air live at 10 a.m. ET on Washington, D.C.'s WAMU-FM 88.5, which is streamed online at wamu.org.
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The National Association of Letter Carriers, AFL-CIO · 100 Indiana Avenue NW · Washington, DC 20001-2144 202-393-4695 · nalc.org · Facebook · Twitter · YouTube
Save the Postal Service
Tuesday, Sept. 27, is a national day of action to save 120,000 jobs at the U.S. Postal Service. Please find one near you and join us.
The same Washington politicians who are attacking working families while refusing to create good jobs are trying to kill USPS jobs and end Saturday mail delivery—or privatize the postal service entirely.
One of our country’s great responsibilities is the safe, efficient delivery of our mail at a reasonable price. The USPS is a trusted American institution, delivering mail, medicine and packages to millions of Americans at a price families can afford.
Yet under the guise of a “budgetary crisis,” some in Congress are going after the USPS, proposing massive cuts and layoffs—including layoffs of 120,000 workers, closing thousands of post offices, eliminating Saturday mail service and closing mail processing facilities.
If these cuts go through, it won’t just hurt USPS workers. It will hurt all of us, every community and every business.
Members of the four USPS employee unions—the Postal Workers, Letter Carriers, Mail Handlers and Rural Letter Carriers—and community allies will rally in every congressional district to let people know what’s at stake for our families and neighbors and to urge lawmakers to save the USPS by supporting H.R. 1351.
Republicans in Congress are hoping if they downgrade USPS, they can privatize some of the services out to their corporate allies. Don’t let it happen. It will result in layoffs, poorer service and increased prices.
A majority of representatives in the House has co-sponsored 
