October 2006

Dan’s Tool Box

by Dan Van Minnen

I would like to express my thanks to the membership for giving me the opportunity to represent you in Philadelphia.  I was proud to be a delegate and represent our local at the 2006 National Convention.  I received the plaque given to our Local for recognition of being a 91% Organized Local from Organizing Director Frank Romero.  Only 10 locals are given this recognition nationwide and we were one of them.  Way to go Aurora, CO Local 6315!  It was an honor as I was humbled to represent our Local in this light.  

I would like to express my thanks to the membership for giving me the opportunity to represent you in Philadelphia.  The business at the Convention was primarily about the upcoming negotiations and the resolutions that we addressed, over 280 of them.  These are not resolutions that will impact the negotiations that we are currently involved with but future negotiations.  The delegates were told expect a fight and with everything that is at stake the National needs our help.  The USPS has a plan and their vision of the future does not include us in the picture as the APWU.  Our struggle continues with the upcoming election so please get out and do your part by voting.  Find out about the issues and get out the vote.  For up to date status on what is going on with negotiations check out the website at apwu.org and click on more contract news.  We have also been updating the bulletin boards with information from the AFL-CIO about the candidates and some of the news wire flyers that we receive from National so just keep checking your union bulletin board and web site.

Hopefully, by now everyone is aware that we are in a transition of Leadership in Aurora.  Management has decided to award the Post Master position to someone else.  We will see how he leads and hopefully it will be with mutual dignity and respect.  If he comes to the table to bargain in good faith we will accomplish many things for our plight. It will be sad to see Greg Christ leave; he got around the city at least to meet the workers and find out the problems more in six months than the past PM Victor Benevides did in five years.  To me that says a lot.  To bad he could not clean house on some the front line supervisors that nobody wants to take a chance on hiring so they are stay stuck here for us to train in Aurora.  I don’t have to mention names to you I know you have someone in mind I’m sure.  Maybe it is your Station Manager that over supervises the station and all employees.  Hell we have Station Managers that try to supervise your Union Officials as well but always fail because of either their arrogance or plain inability to supervise and manage.  Wouldn’t it be nice just to negotiate locally in good faith with management?  I mean the step 2 process would be minimal and we could all hold hands and sign Com-by-ya.

A recent change that I have noticed has been the over supervising citywide when it concerns employee attendance and tardiness.  The Postal Attendance Terrorist (PAT), Andy Weaver and his sidekick Little Joe Gutierrez are up to their old tricks of trying to issue frivolous discipline routinely.  Then they want to walk around like they are looking out for the business.  HA, HA!  If they were indeed looking out for the business then Joe would have a better sick leave balance then most employees citywide and Andy could provide customer service not only to our customers but us as employees as well as his job title describes.  I don’t mean to single out anyone so I choose two particular individuals in my station where I work, I am sure that you have someone in mind at your station but that is what keeps our days interesting.

In closing, I would like to thank the APWU Clerk and Maintenance Craft employees at both the Tower and Gateway stations for your requests and updates of contractual violations throughout your station.  Remember that management violates the contract constantly.  We just need to challenge that.  I know that we are doing the best with what we have and that we are all trying to work smarter.  Management has reaped the benefits of that over this past contract and is looking to cut deeper so pay attention, request your steward and keep on your toes because Function Four and Management are NOT our FRIENDS!  Just ask for the one of the Good Guys because they are your APWU representative.