Building ‘Strong, Action- Oriented’ Communities

(This article first appeared in the March-April 2018 issue of the American Postal Worker magazine)  

By Executive Vice President Debby Szeredy 

During November 2017, I met with locals and members who are still on the Phase Two Consolidation List and have shown interest in not only saving their plant, but also building a strong membership and community engagement.

The locals I met with included the Central Michigan Area Local; Pocatello Local (ID); Mid-Hudson Area Local (NY); Dayton Ohio Area Local; Youngstown Area Local (OH); Central Kentucky Area Local; Northern Indiana United Area Local; Lafayette Area Local (IN); Kokomo Area Local (IN); and the Muncie Indiana Area Local.

They were given a developing strategy for building their power. We hope to see great local and community movements in 2018. There are more Phase 2 locals and members to strategize with in the next few months, so get ready.

Management has caused delayed mail service, making a mockery out of the work we do for our communities! The Postal Service’s plan is less jobs and less mail processing facilities.

Get Involved!

2018 is the time for every member to get involved in activities to save the people’s Postal Service. What can you do?  

Sign-up to be part of a Contract Action Team (CAT) for the 2018 Contract Campaign. If your local is on the Phase Two Consolidation List, volunteer to help build a community movement to stop future consolidations. Get involved politically by building a legislative group to visit and call legislators to get support for bills that help save and expand our Postal Service. You can also help stop voter suppression and participate in Vote-by-Mail campaigns.

Do you need some ideas on how to get started? Check out the Executive Vice President’s resources, as well as the National Contract Campaign page on the APWU website, apwu.org.

Every crisis is an opportunity and we must build strong, action-oriented communities. That starts with each and every one of us saying, “Yes! This year, I will get involved and become part of the solution to save my job, benefits, family and future – while preserving public services for myself and my community."