We Have Reached Agreements!

(This article appeared in the July/August 2025 issue of The American Postal Worker magazine)

The USPS and APWU have reached a Tentative Agreement (TA) that members voted on to ratify. The National Negotiations Committee worked hard for the past two years to achieve a contract worthy of ratification. In early June, we were proud to announce that we had an agreement with management that we were confident members would support. The last few months of negotiations occurred in a political environment that was hostile to unionized workers, but despite those circumstances the APWU negotiated a TA that made improvements for the bargaining unit without any concessions or “givebacks.”

Although we were not able to achieve gains in the Support Services Craft articles covering Operating Services and the Material Support Crafts, the achievements that impact all crafts will be applicable in the Support Services Crafts. The Operating Services craft level three bargaining unit workers will also benefit from the upgrades to level four in 2026. Management refused to agree to the modest changes in the Support Services Crafts article, as they have done repeatedly in past negotiations. We will still fight outside of contract negotiations for the changes we were not able to achieve at the bargaining table.

Hollingsworth Inc. Workers Ratify New Contract

The Support Services Division is proud to announce that on June 9 the Hollingsworth bargaining unit, represented by the Detroit District Area Local 295, unanimously voted to ratify the TA negotiated with Hollingsworth Inc. In the agreement we were able to achieve the two largest raises in the history of negotiations with Hollingsworth Inc. For 2025 and 2026, Hollingworth agreed to raises of 2.5% for each year with the APWU. The wage comparison research for the Hollingsworth jobs conducted by the Industrial Relations Department was instrumental in allowing us to achieve a good raise for the workers.

We were also able to incorporate the Michigan Earned Sick Time Act (ESTA) into the Hollingsworth Agreement. The ESTA allows employees in the state of Michigan to use up to seventy-two hours of accrued sick time for a multitude of health issues sustained by either the employee or a family member. This will protect workers who previously would receive discipline for calling off sick for themselves or to take care of a family member. Other improvements were changes in the grievance process that did not allow the company and union to meet at Step 1 and an incentive for a reduction in attendance points for all employees who had attendance issues on their record.

Human Resources Shared Services Center Reached Tentative Agreement

After nearly a year of negotiating we have reached TA for the Human Resources Shared Services Center (HRSSC) bargaining unit in the North Carolina Triad Shared Services Local 8016. Work rule successes for these negotiations were maintaining telework and changes to choice vacation scheduling to allow a fair opportunity for less senior workers to obtain better vacation periods. With the ratification of the APWU National Agreement, the Memorandums of Agreement (MOUs) related to permanently increasing annual leave carryover and buyback, as well as additional classifications of family for bereavement leave, will apply to the HRSSC TA.

Economically, the five-year agreement includes raises that will be the same as the APWU National Agreement, once both are ratified, as well as COLA for the lifetime of the contract, if the agreement is signed. There is also a $2,500 incentive bonus that will be paid out in three installments (2025, 2027, 2029) over the life of the agreement. The TA will be sent out for ratification soon after the APWU contract ratification. The HRSSC bargaining committee worked hard to help us achieve our goals for these negotiations.

Information Technology/Accounting Services Center and Albuquerque Mail Service

We are still in negotiations for new agreements for IT/ ASC and Albuquerque Mail Service and will keep both units updated on any developments. ■