Consolidated Casing Grievances

Now that NALC President Fredric Rolando and USPS VP of Labor Relations Doug Tulino signed off on a pre-arbitration settlement M-01923 concerning the Consolidated Casing issue. Management will select 31 of the 62 current case consolidation test sites and those test sites will be returned to their original route structure by July 31, 2020 and the remainder by January 22, 2021. What happened to all those grievances that were filed?

When consolidated casing started in Great Neck way back in late September 2019, the National union requested the local unions to file grievances on any violations of the contract or employees’ rights that were being violated.  We were told to file as many grievances as you can.

The first grievance that I filed was sent to the DRT for a decision on 10/2/2019, since then I have sent approximately 30 grievances for resolution to the DRT.

These grievances had to do with a variety of issues including but not limited to: out of schedule pay, management instructing carriers to case their FSS mail, management doing letter carrier craft work, not allowing carriers to do vehicle inspections on office time, taking away the carriers office break as per LMOU, proper lighting (safety),  floor mats (safety), abolishing assignments without posting all the routes under the seniority of the carrier whose route was abolished, not allowing the carriers to case SPR’s,  management instructing the carriers to case their DPS, not allowing carriers to count out there 3rd bundle, carrier cases not being anchored down properly (safety), not allowing the carriers to complete form 3821 when getting cleared for accountable items, carrier cases not even on the 3 pieces of equipment that the carrier has to use to case multiple routes (safety), multiple carriers in one case casing multiple routes (safety), violation of the M-41 & M-39 as it pertains to making route adjustments, route count and inspections grievances. 

I know Carol Brown the Recording Secretary for Branch 6000 who is the union representative of Patchogue that also has consolidated casing has filed just about the same amount of grievances as I.  She and I correspond on many of these grievances before we filed them in our respective offices so that we don’t miss anything that should be put into the case file.  We both have had many meetings and discussions on issues pertaining to consolidated casing so that we both know what the other office is doing and how to strategize our game plan.  The only grievances that we both were able to settle locally were out of schedule pay for carriers, lighting, and the mat issue.     

Most of these grievances that were filed I needed to get statements from the carriers that were being affected by the violation caused by management due to consolidated casing being shoved down our throats.  Most of all the carriers that I asked for statements gave me statements that were put into the case file.  I would like to “thank” all of them for doing that and the cooperation that I received on that!

But just like Mitch in my previous article, whenever I go to Great Neck a few of those carriers that gave me statements have asked me, “any word on the consolidated casing grievances”?  All I say is “no” and that I sent them up to the DRT which is the next level in the grievance procedure.

Now some of these grievances that were sent to the DRT are cut and dry: management performing craft work, not allowing carriers to take their office break during office time as per LMOU, vehicle inspection on street time not office time, routes abolished, auxiliary routes abolished, route changes without conducting a route count inspection as per the guidelines in their own manual the M-39 Management of Delivery Services.  Remember I have multiple statements from multiple carriers on every grievance that I mentioned that was sent to the DRT, yet the DRT impasse all of them.  I did receive a decision on the casing of the FSS mail but that is the only one.

Now I am not a stupid man I know that the DRT received their marching orders from their higher ups and was told not to settle these types of grievances.  I’m not upset with the members of the DRT (union or management) they are just following orders which I completely understand. What I’m upset with is that every case that was impasse way back in October, November and early December, is that not one of these cases have been scheduled for arbitration!   

And now that we have a pre-arbitration decision M-01923 I’m sure these cases will be lost forever.  The grievances for consolidated casing probably are in the Twilight Zone somewhere or were dropped off at Terrapin Station.

With this COVID-19 pandemic there is no way that they will be conducting arbitrations even if the National union and the USPS want to. 

I would like to “thank” all the members of Great Neck and Patchogue for your cooperation and professionalism in this matter.  Stay safe my brothers and sisters!