e-Team Report, July 1, 2011

Benefits, Pay and Ultimately Postal Jobs Threatened with Introduction of Issa Bill

H.R. 2309, introduced by Rep. Darrell Issa (CA), the Republican chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, and co-sponsored by Rep. Dennis Ross (FL), the Republican chairman of the Subcommittee on Federal Workforce, U.S. Postal Service and Labor Policy,Rep. Darrell Issa’s H.R. 2309 would:

• Do nothing to correct USPS overpayments to its pension accounts. 
• Do nothing to correct the congressional mandate that requires the USPS to pre-fund the healthcare benefits of future retirees. (No other government agency or private company bears this burden, which costs the USPS $5 billion annually.)
• Force postal workers to make up the difference:
  • Ensure that Postal wages are “comparable” to the private sector. (Rep. Ross claims postal employees enjoy a “compensation premium” of 34%.)
  • Empower a board to unilaterally cut wages, abolish benefits, and end protection against layoffs.
• Create a commission that would order:
  

   $1 billion worth of post office closures in the first year, and

   $1 billion worth of facility closures in the second year.

  Would that include your office or your facility? Would that wipe out your job?

• Increase employees’ costs for healthcare and life insurance, and eliminate the right to bargain over these crucial benefits.

Rep. Issa says his bill is designed to avoid a “bailout,” but the USPS doesn’t rely on taxpayer funding, and doesn’t need a bailout. As noted above, the federal government is holding billions of dollars in excess postal payments to FERS (Federal Employees Retirement System) and CSRS (Civil Service Retirement System).

One of the many Tea Party Groups that have formed in recent years, The Tea Party.Net, is now urging all of their members to both send a letter and e-mail to their legislators asking them to support the recently introduced Issa Bill. They are asking their members to support this bill citing what they label as “Postal Reform.” In less than one week this one Tea Party Group has organized over 13,000 of their members to send letters and e-mails to their members of Congress in support of Issa’s bill. This simply shows why we need to fight even harder against Issa’s bill along with urging all of our members to contact, fax, meet, mail and e-mail their representatives today in favor of H.R. 1351!

The APWU is urgently asking our member to please take a minute to reach out to your U.S. representative and ask him or her to support H.R. 1351. If you have not taken a minute to contact your members of Congress asking them to cosponsor H.R. 1351, please do so now.

Sixteen U.S. Senators Call for Department of Justice Review of New State Voter ID Laws

This week, sixteen United States Senators called on the Department of Justice (DOJ) to review multiple pieces of proposed and passed legislation at the state level that could potentially disenfranchise thousands of voters in each state. The Voting Rights Act gives the DOJ a large authority to review voting laws before they are implemented. Specific covered jurisdictions have the burden of proof to show that any changes in voting laws will not have any type of discriminatory impact on minority communities. The DOJ oversees to make sure that new voting laws do not discriminate against any protected class in the Voting Rights Act. Overall, the DOJ under Voting Rights Act requires that all individuals who are a qualified to vote will be held to the same standards, practices and all procedures.

In 2008 President Obama won NC by a slim 14K votes. One NC group estimated that there are currently 147K legally registered to vote African Americans in NC that do not currently have an ID that would qualify them to vote in the next election. In 2004 John Kerry won New Hampshire by a close 9K votes. This simply shows how legislation like this can easily change the tide of voting in a state for a presidential election.

Since the start of this year six states have already passed voter ID laws at the state level. As of today at least three more state are in the process of voting on or drawing up legislation to pass similar bills. To find out if your senator is taking action or read the co-signed letter from the sixteen Senators to the DOJ, please click here.

Over One Million Signatures Delivered to Ohio Secretary of State To Put a Referendum on November Ballot to Repeal SB5

Wednesday, approximately 1,298,301 signatures were delivered to the secretary of state's office in Columbus to place SB5 repeal referendum on the November ballot, marking another large step for labor in Ohio. Nearly 1 out of every 6 registered voters in Ohio voluntarily signed the petition. County board of elections will now need to validate those signatures before the July 26 deadline. When enough signatures are collected SB 5 will then not take effect until after the November election. To read more please click here.