USPS has finally reached a labour agreement with its largest postal union, the American PostalWorkers Union AFL-CIO (APWU), after extended contract negotiations following the expiration of the
previous Collective Bargaining Agreement.As part of the agreement, wages will increase by 3.5% over the duration period of the contractwith a 1% rise in 2012, a 1.5% rise in 2013 and another 1% increase in 2014.
Upon ratification by union membership, which is expected to take place within two months, thenew tentative four-and-a-half-year contract will run through May 20, 2015, and affect approximately205,000 employees.
USPS said the terms of the new contract provide the conditions for a more flexible andcost-effective workforce to respond to the changing mailing trends in the USA. “Reasonable wagesand benefits are critical to helping the Postal Service fully meet its financial obligations andremain strong in the future,” the organisation stated.
Protection against layoffs continues for all career employees who were on the rolls as ofNovember 20, 2010, APWU said.
New provisions on subcontracting give the APWU the opportunity to develop proposals to competewith subcontractors for work. They also stipulate that the work must be performed byAPWU-represented employees if they can perform it less expensively than the subcontractors.
The tentative agreement changes the definition of “full-time” in a way that gives the PostalService and its members greater flexibility. The “full-time” designation will thus apply to anyposition of 30 or more hours per week and to any position of 48 hours or less per week. This allowsfor non-traditional full-time schedules, including four 10-hour days, three 12-hour days, and four11-hour days.
APWU President Cliff Guffey commented: “Despite the fact that the Postal Service is on the edgeof insolvency, the union and management have reached an agreement that is a ‘win-win,’ proposition.The new contract will safeguard jobs, protect retirement and healthcare benefits, and provide a3.5% wage increase over the life of the contract. The first raise will be in November 2012.”
“Avoiding layoffs was a top priority,” Guffey added, noting that more than 100,000 postal jobshave been eliminated in the last three years.
There will be no changes to the healthcare benefits of APWU members in 2012. Each year from 2013through 2016, there will be a slight shift in employees’ share of contributions toward healthcarecoverage which will amount to an increase of several dollars per pay period each year.
USPS said the drop in the economy along with the shift to digital communications hasdramatically reduced its mail volumes from a volume peak at 213 billion pieces in 2006 to 170.6billion in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2010. Revenues shrank from $72.6 billion in 2006 to$67.1 billion in 2010. The 2010 net loss amounted to $8.5 billion.
The US postal operator stressed that it deals with the challenges of competing with the privatesector while continuing to operate under federal regulations and congressional oversight.
Negotiations with the other postal union, the National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association(NRLCA) came to an impasse when the contract expired on November 20, 2010, expiration. Since nonegotiated resolution has been reached, the parties will continue to follow the current agreementuntil a third-party determines the outcome of a new contract, USPS said. Unlike in the privatesector, when negotiations come to an impasse, federal employees are not permitted to strike. Anarbitrator determines the final outcome and is not legally required to consider the Postal Service’s financial obligations when taking a decision.
The APWU represents 205,000 employees who work as clerks, mechanics, vehicle drivers, custodiansand in some administrative positions. Employees represented by the NRLCA deliver mail in primarilyrural and suburban areas. The NRLCA represents 67,000 career employees and 48,000 non-careeremployees who substitute for career employees on their days off. Employees represented by bothunions received more than $20 billion in wages and benefits last year.
Two other unions represent most other postal employees. More than 203,000 employees representedby the National Association of Letter Carriers, AFL-CIO (NALC) deliver mail in metropolitan areasand 48,000 employees represented by the National Postal Mail Handlers Union, AFL-CIO (NPMHU) workin mail processing plants and Post Offices.
The NALC and NPMHU will begin negotiations this year approximately 90 days prior to the contractexpiration on November 20, 2011.
