New Contract Provisions Offer
Additional Protection Against Excessing

Burrus Update #08-07, March 15, 2007

New provisions of the 2006-2010 Collective Bargaining Agreement provide an additional option to full-time employees in installations of 200 man-years or more who are excessed from their craft or installation. Enforcing these provisions will be important as management implements its decision to assign Mail Handler Craft employees to Automatic Induction (AI) areas on Flat Sorter Machines.

The new provisions permit full-time employees who are identified as excess to the needs of their craft or installation to elect to remain in the craft and installation as part-time regulars.

When excessing occurs, management must first separate casuals to the extent possible in order to minimize the impact on regular workforce employees. If the separation of casuals will eliminate the need to excess a full-time employee, the casuals must be separated. If there is still a need to excess, affected full-time employee have the option of changing to a part-time regular in lieu of being excessed.

The hours of work for such employees should not be less than the hours worked by casual employees performing work for which the employees are qualified. The requirement to minimize the impact on affected employees includes the obligation to minimize the reduction in hours such employee may be assigned to work, particularly if casuals are still employed at the installation.

Part-time regulars have fixed work schedules and are entitled to bid on part-time regular vacancies, residual full-time vacancies, and to apply for best-qualified duty assignments.

The contractual provisions do not permit management to deny employees the option of converting to part-time regular employees.

The national union has challenged the decision of the USPS to assign work in AI areas to the Mail Handler Craft and is awaiting the assignment of a national arbitrator to settle the dispute. The APWU also has filed a lawsuit against the National Postal Mail Handlers Union to require expeditious arbitration of work-assignment disputes.

William Burrus
President

[more contract news]

[back to top]