Successful Convention, Maintenance Craft Conference

We successfully completed the 2024 APWU Maintenance Craft Conference held in Detroit, MI. We attended the Maintenance Council meetings on Thursday, July 11 before the Maintenance Craft Conference, held Saturday, July 13, 2024. The National Business Agents (NBAs) held Maintenance Regional Breakouts on Sunday, and Maintenance Division Workshops (Preserving Maintenance Jobs and Article 12 in Maintenance) were held on Friday. Several guest speakers addressed members at the craft conference before meaningful, lively debate about Maintenance Craft issues took place among the body. We ended the Maintenance Conference in solidarity, ready for the National Convention, which began on July 15.

Assistant Maintenance Division Director (A) Terry Martinez welcomed delegates to the session, and introduced the Division leadership, including Director Idowu Balogun, Assistant Director (B) Jason Treier, and NBAs John Gearhard, Jeffrey S. Beaton, Louis M. Kingsley Jr., Curtis Walker, Carlos Paz, Craig Fisher, Dave Sarnacki, Hector Baez, and Kenneth Lester.

National Executive Council Address Members

Director Balogun introduced APWU National President Mark Dimondstein, who attended the session with Executive Vice President Debby Szeredy, Secretary-Treasurer Liz Powell, Industrial Relations Director Charlie Cash, Central Region Coordinator Amy Puhalski, Northeast Region Coordinator Tiffany Foster, Eastern Region Coordinator AJ Jones, Western Region Coordinator Omar Gonzalez, and Legislative & Political Director Judy Beard. President Dimondstein spoke about the ongoing national contract negotiations and the importance of union solidarity. He concluded by recognizing the leadership and hard work of myself and all Maintenance Division representatives in the current issues facing APWU Maintenance Craft employees.

Maintenance Division Officer Report

Director Balogun discussed the current priorities of the Maintenance Division. The number one priority is finalizing a settlement on the national Part-Time Regular (PTR) Cap dispute, which we hope is near. Other notable issues and disputes the officers are working on include:

• Employees receiving incorrect pay and step increases due to pending qualification promotions, the Small Delivery Unit Sorter (SDUS) Clerk Maintenance Successful Convention, Maintenance Craft Conference Operator dispute, Promotion Cancellation, Maintenance Management Orders (MMOs), and APWU concerns regarding the Shared Community Toolbox initiative.
• MS-47 Handbook revisions (including e4776 Eagle Clean implementation and Self-Laundering MMO), FMO changes, Mail Processing Equipment Relocation Teams, and the In-Service National Questions & Answers.
• New national level disputes regarding the revised MS- 47 Handbook and FMO changes that will affect field maintenance and MSC staffing in every District.

Maintenance officers also discussed pending national level subcontracting cases, Article 19 notifications, and contract negotiations.

2024 “Florence Summergrad” Bulk Mail Center Conference

The Bulk Mail Center (BMC) Conference convened on July 11, 2024, at the Huntington Place Convention Center. Twenty of the 21 BMCs were present at the conference, and over 84 delegates were in attendance. Director Balogun made a motion to name the conference after Ms. Florence “Flo” Summergrad, which the body unanimously adopted. Nine agenda items were submitted; one Maintenance Craft, five Clerk Craft, and three MVS Craft, all of which were addressed by their Division Directors. The conference concluded and we informed all delegates that the next BMC Conference would be scheduled in Los Angeles, CA, as requested.

New Southern Region National Business Agent

The highlight of the National Convention for the Maintenance Craft was the Constitutional Resolution to create an additional Southern Region National Business Agent, increasing the number of NBAs from two to three. The resolution was discussed among the delegates, and ultimately adopted.

Director Balogun’s Concluding Remarks

Thank you for attending, it was a great conference with over 400 people in attendance from the Maintenance Division. We were also glad to have an almost 30 percent increase in new attendees. It was a very successful deliberation. We are currently involved in national contract negotiations and actively discussing maintenance proposals with our counterparts at the Maintenance Table. I am very proud and energized that the future of the Maintenance Division looks so bright! ■