APWU
Mike Morris, APWU Industrial Relations Director

Mike Morris
APWU Industrial Relations Director

Safety & Health News Archive

Another Ricin Incident Hits Spokane

(05/15/13) Preliminary lab tests indicated the presence of ricin on two suspicious letters in Spokane WA, the Postal Service told the APWU on May 15. The letters are being analyzed and tested further for hazardous material, according to a Mandatory Stand-Up Talk management presented to workers. One letter was addressed to the Spokane Post Office; the other was addressed to a federal judge in Spokane. [read more]

Ricin Suspect Released,
New ‘Alleged’ Incident Reported

(04/23/13) The suspect in the ricin case was released on April 23, and the Justice Department is moving to drop charges against him, according to published reports. Contradictory accounts of another incident also were reported on April 23. [read more]

Union ‘Eagerly Awaiting’ Results
Of Follow-Up Tests on Tainted Letters

(04/17/13) The union is eagerly awaiting the results of follow-up tests on letters that indicated the presence of ricin, APWU Eastern Region Coordinator Mike Gallagher said on April 17 after a teleconference with postal officials from the Capitol Metro Operations Area and the Capitol District. Two letters tested positive for the deadly toxin in preliminary tests on April 16. One letter was addressed to President Obama; the other was addressed to Sen. Roger Wicker (R-MS). [read more]

Ricin Update

(04/17/13) Postal officials have assured APWU President Cliff Guffey that they will update union officials today, April 17, about incidents involving mail that tested positive for ricin, a deadly poison, in preliminary tests on April 16. The APWU complained that union officials and postal workers learned of the incident through media reports and that information was not provided to the union until many hours later. [read more]

APWU Learns of Ricin Incident
Through Media Reports
Union to Pursue Matter Vigorously
 (04/17/13) APWU officers learned through the news media on April 16 that a letter that may have been contaminated with a deadly poison had been found in the mail. Preliminary tests performed at the Maryland mail facility where the letter was found were positive for ricin, according to published reports. Additional tests will be performed at an FBI laboratory, with results expected within 24-48 hours.
[read more]

OSHA Cites Maine, Michigan Facilities
For Unsafe Working Conditions

(03/08/13) The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) issued a citation to the Postal Service for unsafe working conditions at its Scarborough ME facility and fined the agency $27,500 on Feb. 1. The Postal Service failed to mark aisles in work areas where mechanical handling equipment such as forklifts and tow-motors routinely travel, in violation of OSHA Standard 29 CPR 1910.176(a), OSHA charged. [read more]

Union, Management Reach Agreement
On Locally Acquired Equipment Policy

(02/26/13) In response to demands by the APWU — and approximately a year of negotiations — the Postal Service issued new guidelines on Jan. 29, 2013, governing the procurement of postal equipment by managers at the local level. The APWU pursued the issue at the National Joint Labor Management Safety and Health Committee after safety concerns arose following the purchase of equipment by a local manager in Seattle. After the manager had a “tabbing system” installed, workers discovered that the equipment could not be “locked out;” a preventive maintenance schedule had not been established; the equipment had not been subject to a safety inspection prior to acceptance, and employees had not been trained to properly use the equipment. [read more]

OSHA Cites USPS for
Unsafe Working Conditions

(02/11/13) The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited the USPS for unsafe working conditions following the death of mechanic Steny Wing Hoi Yu, who died July 27 from injuries he sustained while working at the Detroit NDC. [read more]

OSHA: Employers
Must Post Summaries
Of Injuries, Illnesses

(02/05/13) OSHA, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, has reminded employers, including the Postal Service, of their obligation to post annual summaries of injuries and illnesses sustained by workers at their facilities, reports Gary Kloepfer, the union’s safety and health officer. [read more]

Union, Management
Clarify Diabetes Policy

(01/28/13) The Joint Labor Management Safety and Health Committee (JLMSHC) has agreed that the Postal Service must accommodate diabetic employees, including, if necessary, with “a private area to test blood-sugar levels or to take insulin.” [read more]

OSHA Cites USPS
For Safety Violations in RI

(01/16/13) The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration has cited the USPS for safety violations at its Providence, RI operation including three violations concerning the organization’s failure to protect employees from multiple potential hazards from using powered industrial trucks. [read more]

Leather Gloves Needed for Employees Working with Fiber Optic Cables

(11/19/12) A hazard assessment has revealed that employees who work with fiber optic cables are subject to cuts to their hands and fingers from tiny glass fragments, Maintenance Craft Director Steve Raymer has reported. The assessment was conducted after workers reported injuries when working with the cables.

To abate the hazard, employees who work with fiber optic cables should be issued leather gloves, the national-level Joint Labor-Management Safety Committee concluded. The committee made the decision at a meeting on Nov. 7. Maintenance Craft employees should request leather gloves when they are assigned to work with the cables if the gloves are not issued by local management.  [read more]

OSHA Cites Tucson Postal Facility for
Exposing Workers to Potential Injuries
 Imposes $70,000 Fine

(10/02/12) The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited the Cherrybell Stravenue Processing and Distribution Center in Tucson Sept. 25 for a willful safety violation for the improper operation of a powered industrial truck. The OSHA investigation was prompted by a complaint that an untrained, uncertified supervisor had operated a powered industrial truck during an evening shift when two of three certified truck operators did not report for their shift. The truck, which is used to move large quantities of mail, requires training and certification to operate. [read more]

APWU, OSHA Investigate
Employee Death At Detroit NDC

(07/31/12) The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and the APWU are investigating the death of APWU member Steny Wing Hoi Yu, who died July 27 from injuries sustained in work-related accident at the Detroit NDC on July 23. [read more]

OSHA Finds DBCS Ergonomic
Risk Hazards At Kalamazoo

(06/15/12) The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) uncovered risk factors for feeder and sweeper tasks associated with Delivery Bar Code Sorters during an inspection at the Kalamazoo, Michigan Processing and Distribution Center on Feb. 2, the union has learned. [read more]

2012 Death on the Job Report

(05/07/12) The AFL-CIO Safety and Health Department released its 2012 Death on the Job Report May 2, 2012. The final fatality data reported 4,690 fatal work injuries in 2010, up from 4,551 in 2009 and an increase in the fatality rate from 3.5/100,000 workers in 2009 to 3.6/100,000 in 2010. Click here to view the report on the AFL-CIO website.

Union Wins Settlement
In Accident Report Privacy Dispute

(04/05/12) On March 28, the APWU reached a Step 4 settlement with the Postal Service that requires management to better protect employees’ privacy when workers report accidents. The dispute arose when the union learned that the USPS had replaced the paper version of the Accident Report form (PS Form 1769) with an electronic version of the document, e-1769. [read more]

OSHA Affirms Whistleblower Protection
For Employees Reporting Workplace Injuries

(04/03/12) Reporting work-related injuries and illnesses is “a core employee right,” the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) has pointed out, “and retaliating against a worker for reporting an injury or illness is illegal discrimination.” [read more]

OIG Issues Report
On USPS Health and Safety Program

(12/30/11) An audit report conducted by the Postal Service’s Inspector General’s Office (OIG) on the USPS Health and Safety Program, released Nov. 14, is limited in both scope and depth and is thus of little value in assessing the agency’s overall efforts to promote a safe workplace, the union has determined. [read more]

Safety Hazard on APPS Prime Function
May Cause Serious Injury and Loss of Life

(12/15/11) APWU members are advised not to use the “prime function” to pre-load belts on APPS (Automated Package Processing System) machines. According to Management Maintenance Order (MMO) 153-11, the load and incline belts may start operating without warning lights and horns. [read more]

Safety ‘Happy Talk’ Just Isn’t Enough

(This article first appeared in the May/June 2010 issue of The American Postal Worker magazine.)

Postal officials frequently brag about their commitment to workers’ safety, but their actions don’t always line up with the “happy talk.” A recent example is management’s refusal to grant the union access to the USPS Safety Toolkit, a computer-based program that is integral to management’s safety, health and environmental program. Initially, the Safety Toolkit (STK) was a simple system management used to store documents related to safety, health, and environmental issues. Over time, however, it has evolved into a sophisticated system that is an essential component of the safety program itself. [read more]

APWU Urges Locals to File OSHA Complaints Over Electrical Hazards

(10/27/09) The APWU has sent a letter to local presidents in regard to electrical hazards related to the Postal Service's failure to comply with OSHA Subpart S Electrical Standards. The letter explains the Union's efforts to force the Postal Service to comply with these standards, and includes a complaint package that contains everything locals need to file OSHA complaints regarding these hazards. The union is urging locals whose members are exposed to these hazards to file complaints with their local OSHA offices.

Click here for a copy of the letter, the complaint package and a fillable OSHA-7 complaint form.

APWU Urges Locals with DBCS Machines to File OSHA Complaints

(03/30/09) The APWU has sent a letter to local presidents in regard to ergonomic issues related to Delivery Bar Code Sorter (DBCS) operations. The purpose of this letter is to explain the attached information and the APWU’s intent to have multiple OSHA complaints simultaneously filed by locals with DBCS machines, nationwide. APWU has made many attempts to discuss and correct known ergonomic risks and hazards associated with the operations of the DBCS machines. Although we have had some success, the Postal Service continues to refuse to discuss identified ergonomic risks and hazards. [read more]

OSHA Releases Ergonomic Strategic Partnership Report for Denver P&DC

(05/21/08) The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration's (OSHA) Strategic Partnership Program has released their Ergonomic Verification Report for the Denver P&DC's Ergonomic Risk Reduction Process. The Verification Team visited the Denver site on Oct. 25-27, 2007. The overall evaluation of the process as it is functioning at the Denver P&DC was overwhelmingly positive. You can read the OSHA report and an APWU Summary of the report by clicking the preceding links.

APWU Guide to
Local Negotiations 2011

(05/20/11) The APWU Industrial Relations Department has produced a Guide to Local Negotiations that contains a wealth of information to assist locals in bargaining over Local Memorandums of Understanding (LMOUs) under the 2010-2015 National Agreement.
[read more]

Union, Management Agree
To Timeline for Local Negotiations

(05/18/11) In the wake of the ratification of the 2010-2015 Collective Bargaining Agreement, the APWU and USPS have agreed to a timeline for local negotiations, Director of Industrial Relations Mike Morris, has announced. [read more]

New USPS "Observation of Work Practices" Forms Appealed to Arbitration

(05/05/08) The APWU has appealed to national-level arbitration the creation of two new USPS "Observation of Work Practices" forms. It is the union's position that the observation forms are redundant and also conflict with Chapter 8 of the ELM and Section 8-14 of the Handbook EL-801, Supervisors Safety Handbook. Furthermore, it is the union's position that these forms are records covered under the Privacy Act; however, the Postal Service was unable to identify the System of Records under which these forms would be protected.

Click here for a copy of the Appeal to Arbitration and the Union's 15-Day Statement

Implementation Process Agreed To For
Off-Site Safety and Health Inspections

(04/25/08) Pursuant to the Memorandum of Understanding MOU Re: Off-Site Safety and Health Program found on page 324 of the 2006 National Agreement requiring the National Joint Labor Management Safety and Health Committee to create an implementation process to ensure employees in off-site locations are fully protected by the Postal Service’s Safety and Health Program, the parties agreed to the following implementation process ... [read more]

Click here for a listing of detached mail units (DMUs)

MRSA – Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus Facts and Information

(10/31/2007) Staphylococcus aureus, often referred to simply as "staph," are bacteria commonly carried on the skin or in the nose of healthy people. Approximately 25% to 30% of the population is colonized (when bacteria are present, but not causing an infection) in the nose with staph bacteria. Sometimes, staph can cause an infection. Staph bacteria are one of the most common causes of skin infections in the United States. Most of these skin infections are minor (such as pimples and boils) and can be treated without antibiotics (also known as antimicrobials or antibacterials). However, staph bacteria also can cause serious infections (such as surgical wound infections, bloodstream infections, and pneumonia). [read more]

National Safety-and-Health Program Renewed

(09/10/07) The APWU and USPS announced Sept. 10 that they have renewed their commitment to the Voluntary Protection Program, which is designed to improve safety and health at postal facilities and to reduce accidents and injuries. In an Aug. 30 agreement, the union and management agreed to extend the process for three years. [read more]

Efforts to Reduce Ergonomic Injuries Show Positive Results

(This article first appeared in the September/October 2007 issue of The American Postal Worker magazine.)

Postal Service employees are experiencing fewer ergonomic injuries since the formation of an OSHA-organized labor/management partnership in 2003. The partnership among the Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration, the APWU, the National Postal Mail Handlers Union, and the USPS not only has helped to reduce the number of injuries, it has saved money. [read more]

Postal Service Issues New Safety Talk on Recognizing Suspicious Materials

(10/13/06) The Postal Service has issued a new safety talk concerning Suspicious Mail and Unknown Powders or Substances to be given on Friday, October 6, 2006.  This is one of a three-part series to be given each first Friday of October, November and December of 2006.

Avian (Bird) Flu

(06/05/06) The Postal Service has issued an updated “Safety Talk” covering the mailing of birds and avian flu. In addition, the following information is provided to give you further information and to address concerns regarding protecting yourself.... [read more]

USPS Revises Standard Operating Procedures for Handling Hazardous Materials

(02/23/06) The Postal Service has revised its Standard Operating Procedures for the Handling of Hazardous Materials. The new procedures are effective immediately and may not be altered in any way by local management. These procedures apply to acceptance, handling and transportation of mail containing or believed to contain hazardous materials, and provide detailed instructions for the actions that must be taken to minimize potential hazards during processing, distribution and transportation.

USPS Instructs Facilities Not to By-Pass
Biohazard Detection Systems On Their AFCS

(12/14/05) The APWU recently became aware that postal facilities with the Biohazard Detection System (BDS) on their Advanced Facer-Canceler Systems (AFCS) machines have made local decisions to by-pass the AFCS and utilize alternate canceling equipment (such as a Micro Mark or NEC).

The APWU notified postal headquarters of this serious breach of security. In response, USPS headquarters issued a December 9, 2005 policy to all Managers and Operations Support (Area) instructing them to ensure that all stamped mail meeting the processing specifications for the AFCS be processed on the AFCS.

Hurricane Katrina

(09/09/05) Safety and health in the wake of a natural disaster is a major concern. The storm and subsequent flooding in Florida, Alabama, Mississippi, and Louisiana has and will continue to place postal workers in dangerous environments for many months to come. These dangers will be present not only at work but in other public places and at home. The following information is provided to heighten your level of awareness and provide some basic guidelines for protective measures you should take.... [read more]


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