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April 14, 2008
APWU Members Lead the Charge In Defense of FMLA
APWU members rose to an important challenge in recent weeks: Postal workers submitted more than half of the postings to a Department of Labor Web site that features comments regarding proposed revisions to the Family & M...
April 9, 2008
Executive Board Endorses Barack Obama for President
The APWU National Executive Board has voted unanimously to endorse Barack Obama for president. “Sen. Obama’s message is one of hope and change,” said union President William Burrus. “His message is special, and the timin...
April 8, 2008
Union Members Urged to Help Save FMLA Protections
Time is running out for union members to voice objections to new regulations proposed by the Department of Labor that would undermine employees’ medical privacy protections and make it more difficult for workers to exerc...
April 3, 2008
Ten More U.S. Representatives Co-Sponsor Mail Network Protection Act
Since Congress returned from its Easter recess on March 31, 10 additional members of the House of Representatives have taken a stand against wasteful, inefficient, and detrimental subcontracting by signing on to the Mail...
April 2, 2008
APWU Board Assails McCain For Crossing Strikers’ Picket Line
The APWU National Executive Board has adopted a resolution criticizing Sen. John McCain for crossing a picket line of striking members of the Writers Guild to appear on the Tonight Show at the end of January. “This callo...
April 2, 2008
Federal Court Dismisses APWU Suit
A federal court has dismissed a lawsuit by the APWU and the Consumer Alliance for Postal Services (CAPS), which sought access to the meetings and records of the Postal Service’s Mailers Technical Advisory Committee (MTAC...
March 28, 2008
Bush Keeps Trying to Chip Away at Workers’ Rights
The headlines last July seemed to say it all: “Labor Department Study Affirms That FMLA Is Working as Intended.” So union activists were dismayed when seven months later the Department of Labor proposed sweeping new regu...
March 25, 2008
PRC: Postage Hike Exceeds Limit on Worksharing Discounts
Although a review by the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) of proposed USPS postage increases found that the rate hikes are within the price cap permitted by 2006 postal reform legislation, there was another less public...
March 17, 2008
Inspector General: USPS Wasted $17.8 Million on FedEx Contract
An audit by the USPS Office of the Inspector General (OIG) has concluded that during Fiscal Years 2005 and 2006, the Postal Service’s Pacific Area incurred approximately $17.8 million in unnecessary costs by the use of “...
March 14, 2008
Mail Network Protection Act Steadily Gaining Co-Sponsors
As of mid-March, 55 members of the House of Representatives have signed on as co-sponsors of an anti-subcontracting measure supported by the APWU. The Mail Network Protection Act (H.R. 4236), which was introduced in Nove...
March 6, 2008
Union Activists Urged to Fight Proposals to Gut FMLA
APWU President William Burrus has issued a call to action, asking the union’s officers and activists to fight proposed new regulations that would weaken the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993. “The FMLA is the one of t...
March 3, 2008
Dispute Filed Over Postal Service Data Security Breaches/Missing Laptops
The APWU has filed a national-level dispute over the Postal Service's data security breaches involving missing or stolen laptop computers containing personal and confidential information of APWU bargaining unit employees...
February 29, 2008
1912 Textile Strike Put Women in the Line of Fire
Early in the 20th Century, fully half of the 80,000 people living in Lawrence, MA, labored in its textile industry. The typical workplace was dimly lit, dangerously cramped with machinery, cold in the winter, and hot in...
February 28, 2008
Anti-Subcontracting Measure Attracting Support
Several more “co-sponsors” have signed on to show their support for the Mail Network Protection Act (H.R. 4236), which would require the Postal Service to bargain with postal unions before it engages in significant subco...
February 28, 2008
APWU Requests Investigation Of Private Contractors’ Use of USPS Property
APWU President William Burrus has asked USPS Inspector General David Williams to conduct an audit of the postal practice of permitting subcontractors to park trucks and store equipment on USPS property free-of-charge. Th...
February 27, 2008
APWU Continues the ‘Family’ Tradition
The Fort Wayne Area Local’s organizing drive last year yielded 135 new members.Organizing Committee Co-Chair Amy Sutcliffe, left, and Stephanie DeBolt prepare a bulk mailing during the campaign. In 2007, when the APWU l...
February 21, 2008
New Law Enhances FMLA Leave for Military Families
Recent amendments to the Family and Medical Leave Act will allow postal workers and others covered by the law to take up to 26 weeks of leave to help eligible family members recover from a military service-related injury...
February 21, 2008
Latest CPI Increase Means $479 Annual Pay Hike
The Consumer Price Index rose in January, the last month of the most recent six-month Cost-of-Living measuring period under the 2006 National Agreement. The rise in the CPI gives APWU-represented employees an annual rais...
February 20, 2008
Some Custodial Employees To Receive Arbitration Payment This Week
The APWU has been notified by the Postal Service that approximately half of the eligible custodial employees will receive their share of a recent $48 million dollar settlement this payday, on Feb. 22, 2008. Each eligible...
February 14, 2008
USPS Notifies Union of Payroll Glitch
Pay increases associated with the Feb. 16 upgrades will be reflected in March 7 paychecks, but the USPS has informed the APWU that the new level adjustments have not been implemented because the Postal Service has failed...
February 13, 2008
Automatic Disqualification of Diabetics Lifted
Motor Vehicle Services employees won an important pre-arbitration settlement [PDF] Jan. 31, when the Postal Service agreed to rescind a policy that prevented insulin-dependent diabetics with valid Commercial Driver’s Lic...
February 6, 2008
Union Presidents, USPS Officials Discuss Postal Service’s Future
The Postal Service will broadcast a video in every postal facility beginning the week of Feb. 11, featuring a discussion with the presidents of the four craft unions. The conversation, moderated by Anthony J. Vegliante,...
February 6, 2008
APWU Members Can Access, Update Personal Information Online
APWU members can now access and change their personal contact information with the union online when they visit www.apwu.org. The updating process is simple and secure. Look for Members Only just under the blue page head...
February 6, 2008
Upgrades Reflected in March 7 Paycheck
The March 7 paycheck for all APWU-represented employees will reflect an upgrade negotiated in the 2006-2010 Collective Bargaining Agreement.
January 31, 2008
Anti-Subcontracting Bill Picking Up ‘Co-Sponsors
The Mail Network Protection Act (H.R. 4236), which would require the Postal Service to bargain with postal unions before it engages in significant subcontracting, has been steadily gaining sponsorship in the House. The l...
January 30, 2008
Union Wins $48 Million Settlement in MS-47 Handbook Grievance
The APWU and the Postal Service finalized a $48 million payout Jan. 29 to “remedy” the USPS violation of staffing procedures for custodial employees. The settlement will be in the form of lump-sum payments of $2,700 to m...
January 28, 2008
Union, USPS Sign Agreement For Offices Without a Local Union Structure
The APWU signed a landmark agreement Jan. 25, for Members-at-Large who work in small post offices and are not represented by a local union. The agreement, the Local Memorandum of Understanding for Offices Without a Local...
January 22, 2008
APWU, NALC Sue USPS and Inspector General Over Invasion of Medical-Records Privacy
The American Postal Workers Union and the National Association of Letter Carriers have filed suit against the Postal Service and the Office of Inspector General for systematic and widespread intrusions into the medical r...
January 18, 2008
NLRB Issues Complaint Against DHL in PA
The National Labor Relations Board issued a complaint on Jan. 10 against DHL Express in Allentown, PA, charging the company with committing unfair labor practices during an APWU organizing campaign last year.
January 18, 2008
Postal Service Says It Will Request Proposals to Outsource Some BMC Activities
The Postal Service has notified the union that it intends to issue a Request for Proposals for the outsourcing of some Bulk Mail Center activities.