Weather or Not,
Detroit APWU Stands Firm

(Excerpt from the May/June 2004 issue of The American Postal Worker magazine)

APWU members faced with the loss of their jobs took a few hours off work and several miles of nasty wintry roads to let Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) know that something wasn't right with the plan to close down a Detroit-area Mail Transport Equipment Service Center.

As far as Resource Consultants Inc. (RCI) and its APWU-represented workforce knew, things were going smoothly at the Brownstown MTE center: Productivity was up and costs had been holding steady since an APWU agreement was signed in March 2003.

But rather than exercise renewal options at RCI installations in Detroit and Pittsburgh (also under an APWU contract), the Postal Service on March 2, 2004, announced it was consolidating operations and soliciting proposals to open a new MTE site in Cleveland.

On March 16, the Detroit District Area Local invited RCI employees to take part in the delivery of a letter to Rep. Dingell to express their dismay and seek his assistance. Though it meant they had to make up the hours later in the week, about 100 RCI employees braved the weather and made a boisterous appearance at the congressman's office.

"We're very encouraged by Dingell's response and the letters that he and Sen. Levin wrote to Postmaster General Potter," said Patrick Chornoby, President of the Detroit APWU. "The USPS has not provided us or RCI with a financial rationale for closing the Detroit MTESC, and we're confident that our elected representatives will make the USPS own up to its agreement - and help save 160 good jobs in this area."

[back to top]