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Voluntary Early Retirement
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Issues Voluntary
Early Retirement News - 2008-2009
Home
News & Events Current
Issues Voluntary
Early Retirement News - 2008-2009
News & Events Current
Issues Voluntary
Early Retirement News - 2008-2009Follow APWU |
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Voluntary
Early Retirement News
(July 1, 2008 through July 31, 2009)
USPS ‘Clarifies’ Some
Early-Retirement Deadlines
(04/23/09) The Postal Service has informed the APWU that the deadline
for eligible employees who wish to apply for Voluntary Early Retirement
(VER) effective June 30 or July 31 is June 19. The USPS has also designated
June 19 as the “irrevocable” date, by which employees who
have applied for retirement but wish to withdraw their applications must
do so. [read
more]
USPS ‘Officially’ Notifies Union About VERA
(03/30/09) The Postal Service on March 30 provided official notice
to the union about Voluntary Early Retirement Authority (VERA) information
that had appeared days earlier on its employee Web site, LiteBlue.
The APWU had criticized the Postal Service for failing to provide notice
to the union of the new VER timeline and which categories of employees
would be excluded from the offer. [read
more]
USPS Releases VERA Info, Fails to Notify Union
(03/27/09) Although the Postal Service has failed to provide official
notice to the union as of March 27, management has posted information
about Voluntary Early Retirement (VER) on its employee Web site, LiteBlue.
According to the posting, VER will be offered to all eligible employees
except Electronic Technicians (ET), Maintenance Mechanics, Mail Processing
Equipment (MPE) Mechanics, and Part-Time Postmasters. [read
more]
USPS Announces New VER,
Management Staff Reductions
(03/20/09) In response to significant deficits caused by a substantial
reduction in mail volume, the Postal Service has requested and received
approval to offer Voluntary Early Retirement (VER) to 150,000 employees
nationwide, APWU President William Burrus reports in an update for
union members. The application deadlines, effective dates, and the
categories of affected employees will be announced in the near future."Retirement
is a personal matter, and the union defers to the decisions of employees
who meet the qualifications," Burrus said. "However, the
APWU continues to challenge the Postal Service’s authority to
offer VER without including severance pay." [read
more]
Voluntary Early Retirement Incentives
(10/21/08— Question submitted to "Ask the President")
You have written about union demands that the Postal Service offer incentives
to employees who are offered early-outs. Do you expect to accomplish this within
the one-year time frame (ending June 2009) that the Office of Personnel Management
(OPM) has given the Postal Service for Voluntary Early Retirements (VERs)?
[President
Burrus’ Response]
Tour 2, Early-Outs, Four-Day Workweeks
(10/15/08) The national union has received information from local presidents — but
not from postal management — of USPS plans to eliminate Tour 2 at mail
processing facilities across the country, APWU President William Burrus said
in a recent Update for union members. The lack of consultation violates
the employer/union relationship, he said, and the union will “respond
appropriately” to the threat to Tour 2 and to other management initiatives.
[read more]
Early-Retirement Info Wrong, Burrus Tells USPS
(09/10/08) APWU President William Burrus has notified the Postal
Service of significant errors in information the USPS provided to employees
eligible for Voluntary Early Retirement (VER) and has requested management’s “immediate
attention to these matters” so that employees do not suffer irrevocable
harm as a result. [read
more]
Burrus Says: ‘DON’T
GO!’
VER Expanded to Maintenance, MVS
(09/04/08) With news that the Postal Service will
offer Voluntary Early Retirement (VER) to Motor Vehicle
Services and Maintenance Craft employees – except
Electronic Technicians – APWU President William
Burrus is reiterating his advice to union members: DON’T
GO!
[read
more]
VER Eligible? ‘Make USPS Pay’
(08/19/08) The Postal Service offer of Voluntary Early Retirements
is a response to the significant decline in mail volume and the resultant
cash-flow emergency, President Burrus told delegates. The opportunity
to retire early may be tempting, he added, but it is not being offered
for the employee’s benefit. [read
more]
Burrus to VER-Eligible Employees: ‘DON’T GO’
(07/15/08) With news that eligible employees will soon be receiving
notice from the Postal Service about an offer of Voluntary Early Retirement
(VER), APWU President William Burrus is advising union members to delay
making a decision as long as possible. “The decision about when
to retire is a personal one that is influenced by family obligations
and lifestyle,” Burrus said. “But the attractiveness of
ending a career early should be weighed with consideration of factors
that may not be readily apparent.” [read
more]
Who Will Be Eligible
For the ‘Early-Out’ Offer?
(07/15/08) The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) approves requests
by federal agencies and the USPS to offer Voluntary Early Retirement.
According to OPM, to be eligible, employees must be at least 50 years
old and have at least 20 years of creditable service, OR must be of
any age and have at least 25 years of creditable service.
[read more]
Burrus: Employees Would Be
Best Served by Postponing Early-Out Decisions
(07/11/08) Postal workers who are considering early retirement
should take a “wait-and-see” attitude before making a decision,
APWU President William Burrus said in a recent Update for union
members. Compelling reasons include pending discussions regarding eligibility
and incentives, an uncertain economy, low mail volume, and the Postal
Service’s need to reduce the workforce, he said. [read
more]
APWU Meets with USPS,
Seeks Bargaining Over Early-Outs
(07/09/08) APWU President William Burrus met with postal officials
July 8 regarding USPS plans to offer early-retirement opportunities
to 40,000 employees. “I conveyed our strongly-held belief that
the Postal Service is required to bargain with the union over Voluntary
Early Retirement opportunities,” Burrus said.
“I also reiterated our request for all pertinent information,” he said, “including the Postal Service’s request to the Office of Personnel Management requesting authority to offer early-outs, and OPM’s response.” Under the law, federal agencies, including the Postal Service, must receive approval from OPM to offer Voluntary Early Retirement (VER) opportunities to their employees. [read more]
APWU, USPS to Meet July 8 Over Possible 'Early Out' Offer
(07/07/08) APWU President William Burrus will meet with USPS officials
on Tuesday, July 8, to address the union’s demand for bargaining
over possible management plans to offer Voluntary Early Retirement
to APWU-represented employees. The union learned unofficially on July
3 that the Postal Service had requested authority from the Office of
Personnel Management (OPM) to offer early retirement to 40,000 postal
employees.
No specifics of any early-retirement plan are available. “As information is provided, we will share it with our members,” Burrus said. [read more]
APWU to Meet With USPS Over Possible 'Early Out' Offer
(07/03/08) The union has learned unofficially that the Postal Service
has requested from OPM the authority to offer early retirement to 40,000
postal employees. In response to an inquiry from his office, APWU President
William Burrus writes in an Update to union members, a meeting
with Postal Service headquarters has been scheduled for Monday, July
7, regarding these reports. [read
more]
