The Industrial Relations Department plays a major role in our organization's ongoing struggle for better wages and improved working conditions and benefits.
Resources from the Industrial Relations Department
Latest News from the Industrial Relations Department
June 4, 2019
Contract Mediation Ending
On June 3, President Mark Dimondstein and Industrial Relations Director Vance Zimmerman reported to the APWU National...
June 3, 2019
Fighting Back Against Hostile Work Environments
(This article first appeared in the May/June 2019 issue of the American Postal Worker magazine) “A workplace free of...
May 21, 2019
Don’t Let the Postal Service Take Your Pulse!
It is that time of the year when the Postal Service wants to take your pulse! Like previous years, the 2018 Postal...
May 3, 2019
Contract Update
The APWU is continuing to move forward towards interest arbitration. Preparation of hearing presentations, evidence,...
About the Industrial Relations Department
The Director of Industrial Relations is charged with responsibility for labor management, national negotiations, mechanization, safety and health for all divisions of the union, and the administration of the collective bargaining agreement.
The Industrial Relations Department's responsibilities and duties include the following activities:
- Administration of the contract negotiation process
- Interpretation and application of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (specifically Articles 1 through 36)
- Appointment and payment of arbitrators
- National-level grievances and disputes
- Compliance with arbitration awards
- Safety and Health
- Appeals to the "Administrative Dispute Resolution Process" (e.g., Step Promotion, Lump Sum, National Level Settlement)
- Family Medical Leave Act appeals and related issues
- Unfair Labor Practice charges
- Legal issues such as Privacy Act, Merit System Protection Board (MSPB) law and procedure, Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) and Veterans Preference Act
- Collective Bargaining Reports (CBRs)
- Administration of computerized systems concerning the grievance-arbitration process and other provisions of the National Agreement through APWU Search, the Arbitration Payment and Scheduling System (APSS), the Step 3 Case Administration System (Step 3 CAS) and the Step 4 Case Administration System (Step 4 CAS)
- Tracking and reporting on the Consumer Price Index
- Research of arbitration, court and administrative decisions