I Apologize

by  Boogie Whitfield

Vice President

Aurora Local APWU

Please accept my sincere apology for waiting so long to thank you for choosing me as your APWU Vice President. I wanted so badly to thank you before now but things just didn't work out. I genuinely appreciate the support of those of you who voted for me. I will work hard to gain the confidence of all the members. Some of you have known me for years and you know what I am all about. All of you should know that my heart and soul is in standing up and fighting for the right thing. It is what I have done all of my life. You have chosen me as your vice president and I wholeheartedly accept the position and the challenge.

Transferring to the Aurora Main is better than I expected to be. Although transferring right after the Thanksgiving Holiday and just before Christmas was not wise, but I had to take the opportunity. I do have more family time and time for other interests. For me, other interests happen to be responding to several EEO complaints and federal court proceedings against the post office. Combined with my catering business, I have been swamped. Not to worry, I have not neglected my responsibilities to the union and you. I just have not had a chance to keep you informed. Those who have recently filed grievances with me are fully informed. Believe me, being involved in EEO complaints and federal court proceedings absorbs time, however time well spent.

Just a year ago I was asked to become a steward and was given the opportunity to do so at the Gateway station. Time has passed quickly. My learning process began there and I am galvanized about the chance to work with a different management team at the Main Office where I know my learning process will take me to new heights. In the short period I have spent working at the Main Office I have learned that there is very little differences between this management team and Gateway’s management team, and that would be their appearance.

You have given me the opportunity to learn more about the post office, postal management, and the political spectrum. The chance to be involved excites me. I truly believe the aforementioned elements will be very important to the future of the APWU and its members. I’m happy that our input and involvement could help protect our way of life. Upcoming challenges will afford learned lessons and experience which will help me better serve you -- the membership.

I am very excited about the future. I am looking forward to meeting new people of the APWU family that I hope will make me and the Union even stronger. I have settled into my new job with the help of the employees at the Main Office. Things should prove to be interesting in my efforts to convey to management that the employees are intelligent adults and not children and should be treated as such. Management continually tells us of what they expect and management should know, we have expectations of them. We expect them to be fair and we expect them to treat us with dignity and respect. Respect is earned. If you want respect, earn it by giving it.

Again, I am very sorry for waiting so long to convey these thoughts to you. I’ll try very hard to not let it happen again and will do my best to keep you informed. If I don’t know the answer to your questions, I will get the answer. So, now that the rebel, troublemaker, jerk, idiot, anarchist, malcontent, mutineer (some of the names bestowed upon me by management, and I am sure I missed a few) has found a new home, the Boogie man can go to work.

Boogie Whitfield

Do the right thing, for the right reason

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