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Ask the President
Question:
In light of the reduction in the number of postal workers, I am requesting your staff to “explore the option” of offering a dues payment to start a union pension plan. I believe it would:
Retain postal workers in the union;
Stephen, Houston Area Local
President Burrus:
Thank you for your e-mail regarding the creation of a union pension plan. I congratulate you for thinking of creative ways to address the severe problems facing the Postal Service.
Although I have serious reservations about creating a union pension plan in response to declining mail volume, your idea is worthy of praise because you are thinking about the future.
Pension plans are means of saving and investing today’s income to be accessed at a later date when income from employment is reduced. Many laws have been enacted to protect enrollees, and participation in such programs has been encouraged through exceptions to the tax code.
The Electrical Workers program you cite is funded through supplemental dues paid by union members. The union does not fund the program. Given the current economic climate, an increase in members’ dues to fund a new pension program is not feasible at this time.
The national union has established a voluntary pension program for local union officers and stewards who are full-time or part-time or employees of the union. This plan is designed to help local officers re-coup losses from leave without pay that they incur as a result of their participation in union activities. Since rank-and-file postal workers are not employees of the APWU, they are not permitted to participate in this plan.
As always, your input is appreciated.
June 29, 2009
If you have a question that you would like President Burrus to respond to on this page, please write to him at askthepresident@att.net. He will periodically respond to APWU members’ questions about union matters that are of general, nationwide interest. When submitting a question, please include your name and employee ID number. If you are a retiree, please include your name and the last four digits of your Social Security number. Responses will list only your first name and local. (Names will be withheld upon request.) Note: Questions about grievances or contract interpretation must be directed to the appropriate union representative — such as your steward, local president, or national business agent. Contact information for your local union officers and the Regional Coordinator and National Business Agents who represent you is available in the Members Only section. Select “My Local and Personal Info,” then log-in and visit the links under “My Local Profile.” Information about how to reach APWU national officers, as well as their areas of responsibility, can be found on the Contact Us page. |
Recent Questions & Answers
[ 2008-9 | 2007 | 2006 | 2005 ]
USPS Finances, Payroll, and H.R. 22
(06/15/09) Employees are hearing that the Postal Service will not have
sufficient funds to pay employees come September. Many of us are
worried that we will not get paid. Is the rumor true? What is the
union planning on doing to prevent this from happening?
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(04/09/09) Did the Postal Service really give our payroll records
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(04/01/09) ... I have received a number of inquiries from local
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(03/26/09) I have heard rumors about the possibility of the
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(02/24/09) Please enlighten us regarding the MVS Memo that has everyone outraged.
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(01/16/09) Would you be able to address any of the rumors that are floating
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(12/29/08) ...I would like to voice my opinion on the 2006 PTR
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(12/02/08) ...Employees can be threatened, mistreated and abused by managers,
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Converting PTFs in Small Offices to Full Time
(11/04/08) ...I am a PTF, and as you know, being a PTF is sometimes difficult...
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Voluntary Early Retirement Incentives
(10/21/08) You have written about union demands that the Postal
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Making Regular, Excessing
(09/17/08) Why does the union give management ways to get around rules that
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Memories of a First Convention
(09/03/08) As a first-time and excited delegate to the 2008
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‘Gone Postal’ Softball Team
(08/06/08) A manager at the Amarillo Processing & Distribution Center put
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Privatizing Retail Operations
(06/30/08) …It seems to me that the Postal Service is
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Shaking off Negativity
(06/18/08) What do you do to shake off all the negativity you
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Code of Conduct for Managers
(06/02/08) Why can’t the APWU negotiate a national agreement
on the Code of Conduct of Managers and their abuse of power against
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Commemorative Stamps and Rate Changes
(05/15/08) Please ask Postmaster General Potter this question: If the Postal
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APWU National Executive Board
Endorsement Of Sen. Barack Obama for President
(05/05/08) Regarding the National Executive Board’s endorsement
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President Burrus'
Response
Clerk Jobs to the Mail Handler Craft
(04/22/08) It seems the Clerk Craft is losing a lot of newly created jobs to
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Priority Scheduling for Overtime
(04/09/08) I am wondering if your answer from February 2007 still holds true
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(02/29/08) While this Web site may be helpful to the whining dues-paying members
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(02/13/08) At a conference in Niagara Falls NY you made many references to
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Assessing Postal Labor Costs
(01/29/08) Management claims that labor expenses are the “key drivers
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The Political Endorsement Process
(01/01/08) I would like to know whether the APWU remembers NAFTA and GATT.
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Burrus' response
