Source: Lamont Brooks, Director-Clerk Division
We just received the following notification to APWU President Mark Dimondstein and are in the process of making a Request for Informations based on the subject matter.
Director of Industrial Relation, Charlie Cash has been designated by APWU President Mark Dimondstein as the overall APWU lead officer with the understanding that each specific Craft has their own separate issues and concerns, with the ability to file their own national disputes, as necessary.
We will be working through this process as a collective team and have made it clear to the Postal Service that they MUST comply with the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
The USPS has not been forthcoming with much information as they don’t know what this all entails. We have asked questions and they have not been able to provide answers or provide any supporting documentation.
Right now it is basically in a conceptual form.
Any Article 12 contractual rights must be complied with and the APWU Regional Coordinators will be involved every step of the way.
The Clerk Craft dealt with a similar USPS nationwide initiative in 2017-2018 and we prevailed as a team working from the workroom floor to the APWU national union.
While I personally think this battle will be harder, I will never underestimate the resolve of the membership when tested.
This is the time to put aside any differences and join together as one.
While it may look bleak, stay encouraged.
Please address any specific Craft concerns to the respective Division Director and any overall issues with DIR Charlie Cash.
As for the Clerk Craft, I request that you share all information/inquiries to both Charlie Cash and myself so that we are all on the same page, as to determining the proper course of action.
I can assure you, we will exhaust every option available to protect our work and the APWU bargaining employees we represent.
Sometimes it takes issues like this to wake up leaders, our membership. and to get everyone involved.
As for the Clerk Division, we are looking at a possible five to six step approach, to be shared at a later date, after further collective internal APWU discussions.
This will take a collective effort on our part.
We will share more information as we receive it.
Please disseminate to the field.
In union solidarity, the struggle continues.
Lamont Brooks Director Clerk Division