The Union's Position

From the moment management announced its plans to abolish and repost bid jobs the union has challenged management to justify its actions in writing. We have spent hours meeting with our regional and national contract experts. And this local's top officials have entreated our union's highest national officials to bring our collective weight to bear on an intransigent management. No less than National President John Hegarty himself met with Senior Plant Manager Judy Herrick to inform her that what she's doing violates the National Agreement. But management has dug in its heels.

Therefore, this union will file a grievance for every single job that's abolished or reposted and will demand that all jobs be restored and that out-of-schedule premium be paid for the total number of hours that a mail handler has worked outside of his or her normal bid job. Every member will be given a copy of the grievance that has been filed on his or her behalf.

Management knows that this case will be settled before an arbitrator - and that arbitration is often many months away. In the meantime, management believes it will reap whatever benefits it can derive from changing our jobs and disrupting our lives. Management knows it has a 50-50 chance of winning at any arbitration and that it's willing to take the gamble.

When the case does come up for arbitration, management will attempt to sway an arbitrator by pointing to any financial gains that are won at the expense of every mail handler. It's hoping that even though management will use you up and then throw you away an arbitrator will agree that it has a right to "maintain the efficiency of the operations entrusted to it."

We believe that it's time for our entire union to recommit itself to being a union and to realize that we will win only if every union member fights management's ill-conceived, heartless, one-sided plan.