APWU Members at B&B Trucking Ratify Tentative Agreement

Members of the Great Lakes Area Mail Haulers Local APWU  have voted to ratify a Tentative Agreement reached on March 29.  Contract ratification ballots were mailed to the 100 APWU members of the local; 62 were returned, with 34 voting in favor of the agreement and 20 voting against. Eight ballots were disqualified.

Richard Phillips was assigned by Support Services Director Stephen Brooks to chair the APWU Negotiation Team, which included David Holder, Raoul Quiambao, and Terry Jakushevich. Phil Tabbita provided technical support.

The previous contract between the Great Lakes Area Mail Haulers Local APWU and B&B Trucking expired March 31.  Negotiations and the ratification process continued through an extension period ending April 30, 2014.

The new contract will be in effect from May 1, 2014, through March 31, 2018.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE 2014 - 2018 AGREEMENT

Article 1 – AGREEMENT – The parties have agreed to extend the terms and conditions of the 2010 Agreement until May 1, 2014, to allow time for the Ratification of the Agreement to occur.

Article 3 – UNION RECOGNITION - New language will be placed into the title of this Article, adding the word “Union.”  Also, the previous language, “it is the parties’ intent,” will be eliminated, which will add greater strength to the statement: “The Company will continue to make every reasonable effort to preserve truck driving work for members of the Union’s bargaining unit.”

Article 4 – EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY – The previous statement, “The Company does not discriminate…” will be replaced with a stronger statement: “The Company will not discriminate…”  Also, the limitation of listing only disabled veterans “of the Vietnam era” will be eliminated, so all disabled veterans will be covered.

Article 5 – EMPLOYMENT STATUS - New language will be placed into the contract stating: “Casual employee(s) will not be assigned work in lieu of hiring Full-Time and Part-Time Employees.”

Article 6 – NEW HIRE EMPLOYEE ORIENTATION PERIOD - New language will clarify the Orientation Period as lasting 120 calendar days, with a possible 30 calendar-day extension, if the company and the union agree, in order to provide additional training to a new employee rather than terminate them.  Other new language will focus the intent of the Orientation Period as training and explaining company policies and procedures.  Provisions regarding transfers to Regular Full-Time status with a shortened Orientation Period will also be placed here.  Also, clarifying language will be inserted regarding limitations on probationary employees filing grievances for discipline, yet allow them to file or be part of a Class Action for other contract issues.

Article 7 – SAFETY AND HEALTH – New language will expand and clarify exactly who drivers report safety concerns to, and will afford the union to be provided copies of all written responses.  In addition, new language will state that the parties will review responses to safety complaints.  Also, new language will clarify just how drivers are to contact Dispatch in the event a damage/repair issue arises during their run.  Moreover, a new provision will relieve drivers from liability for any damage to the vehicle that results if they agree to perform minor repairs.

A new section clarifying Inclement Weather will be placed into the contract that will address:

1. The company will not place drivers in undue peril because of bad weather, and agreement that drivers must adhere to directives of local, state, and/or federal authorities.
2. The responsibilities of the drivers to be available for work if they are unable to report and the weather conditions improve.
3. The policy to follow if the driver is on their route when inclement weather and/or directives from local, state, or federal authorities impedes or prevents their progress.

The parties also agree that the Safety and MVR Award Program will continue.

Article 8 – SENIORITY – A provision regarding seniority tie-breakers for employees hired on the same date will be located here (based upon Social Security numbers, from lowest to highest).  Also, language will be placed into Article 8 stating the seniority of drivers in Class A bid jobs will be separate from that of drivers in Class B bid jobs.  Additionally, new clarifying language will be place into the list of events that could lead to employees losing their seniority, to state that the company will have to contact employees who are recalled from layoff by either a completed phone call with the driver, or US mail with delivery receipt.  (The company wanted this to be by e-mail or a message on the employee’s message machine.)

Article 9 – JOB PREFERENCE – New language will reduce the bidding cycle from the current bi-annual events (February and August), to be once each year, in August.  Also, the union will be provided copies of the bids at least five (5) days in advance of posting.  Plus, more information will be posted on bids to provide drivers more information on what they are actually bidding on.  Other changes in existing language were agreed to, which will allow drivers to understand bidding better.

Other new language will address the posting of Class A and Class B bid jobs.  Current language that states that Class A bid jobs are separated from Class B bid jobs will continue.  Recognizing the changes the USPS has in store, new language will restrict the company from developing mixed assignments, except under strict guidelines, as well as protect current Class B bid jobs.

Article 11 - TRANSFERS – Existing language regarding transfers between Class A and Class B drivers was moved here from other Articles.

Article 14 – BEREAVEMENT LEAVE – The existing language will continue, with the addition of a grandchild as a new qualifying family member for Bereavement Leave.

Article 16 – LEAVE FOR UNION BUSINESS – The existing language will continue, with additional protections for union representatives who meet with the company during grievance meetings.

Article 17 – TO REPORT AN ABSENCE – The existing language will continue, with additional clarifying language that will require the company to provide informational cards to drivers regarding call-ins.

Article 18 – ATTENDANCE POLICY – New language will be placed in the Agreement regarding Failure to Respond to the Company when called.  The company wanted this to be an immediate response, as well as to apply to employees, whether on or off duty.  New language will apply only to on-duty employees, with a clause that call-backs will “normally” be within ½ hour of the company’s call.

New language will also clarify how absences can be recognized by the company as “excused.”
Other new language will change the company’s review of attendance from a yearly calendar method, to be on an “annual” basis, starting each July 1st; when each employee will be receive 3 occurrence credits, which will reduce most employees to a 0 occurrence footing.
New language will also clarify how employees may use vacation and banked holidays to receive pay.

Article 20 – WAGES – New provisions regarding Extra Work will clarify how drivers are scheduled, as well as how extra work assignments will be made.  Also, new clarifying language regarding Reporting Pay will establish the rate of pay as the rate of the call-in assignment.  In addition, a new Travel Time provision will be placed in the Contract, stating that the drivers will receive pay in accordance with the applicable route contract (including H&W) pay.

Plus, a new provision regarding Payroll Checks will allow drivers to report mistakes on their paycheck, with the company correcting mistakes and generating new checks within 2 business days of being notified.

Article 21 – VACATIONS – New clarifying language will address vacation selections made between December 1 and January 15 as being in units of full weeks (Sunday thru Saturday), with the drivers receiving notice of approved or denied leave by Feb. 1.  For vacation selections made after January 15th, drivers will be able to request vacation in units of either full weeks or single days, with notice of approved or denied leave by 7 days after the company’s receipt of the request.

New language regarding Vacation & Holiday Pay Rates will be in the Agreement.  The company pushed to have this pay based upon the timing of the employee’s anniversary for the past year.  Instead, new provisions will establish that employees will receive pay based on the majority of the hours paid in the pay period in which the vacation or holiday occurs.

Article 22 – HOLIDAYS – New clarifying language will establish Holiday Scheduling.  This will allow drivers to be aware of how they may request to have a Holiday off, as well as establish the “pecking order” for those who must work on a Holiday.

Article 23 – HOLIDAY BANKING – New clarifying language will establish Holidays that may be “banked” as the 6 major holidays (New Years Day, Memorial Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day).  Also, a new provision will increase the number of “banked” holidays an employee may carry over from year to year from the current 5, to be 6.

Article 26 – RETIREMENT PLAN BENEFITS – A new provision will reinforce the fact that participation in the company’s 401(k) is voluntary.  New employees will be automatically enrolled in the Plan, with participation based on 1% of gross pay per pay period; however they will be provided information on how they can opt out.

Article 27 – LIFE/SHORT TERM DISABILITY INSURANCE – New provisions regarding Life Insurance will increase the benefits from the present $15,000, to be $20,000, without medical qualification or benefit reduction at age 65, with the company paying the premium.

New provisions regarding the Short-Term Disability will clarify the waiting periods of 0 days for accidents and 8 days for illnesses, with the employees paying the premium.

Also, new language will establish that participating employees in both the Life Insurance and Short-Term Disability Insurance will be provided a certificate of coverage, with the entire policy being made available to employees upon request.

Article 29 – REPORTING AN INJURY – New clarifying language will establish when and how employees are to report injuries, as well as require the company to provide forms for such reports.

Article 34 – PERSONNEL FILES – New language will allow employees to review their personnel files for any reason, up to twice each calendar year.  In addition, although the current language states the company may be charged for copies, new language will establish that the company may elect to waive such charges.

Article 43 – JOB PERFORMATNCE EVALUATION – New clarifying language changes the intent of an employee signing their Performance Evaluation from the current language that states they understand what the evaluation states, to new language that will state that the employee is only signing a receipt that the document is a performance evaluation.  Employees will still have the opportunity to contest the evaluation, and new language will require the company to provide training if the employee requests.

Article 44 – DISCIPLINARY PROCEDURES – New language will state that the company will attempt to minimize the amount of time an employee is in a non-pay status during an investigation.  Other new language will require the company to confirm all writing warnings, suspensions, and discharges via U.S. mail, with delivery receipt, rather that the company’s present position that all they have to do is send an email or leave a message on an employee’s answering machine.

Article 54 – DISPUTE RESOLUTION – Bid changes were negotiated into this Article in an effort to provide quicker grievance handling.  These changes include clarifying language regarding the timeframes the union and the company must follow in grievance processing.  Also, in the event the union decides to take a grievance to arbitration, a new arbitration panel will be established in order to speed up the selection of an arbitrator and the scheduling of a hearing date.

Article 64 – DURATION OF AGREEMENT – This will be a four- year contract, expiring on March 31, 2018.