Union and management representatives continued bargaining Nov. 30, and will meet again on Dec. 1 — the day the contract is set to expire. “The final days of contract negotiations are always the toughest, and that’s where we’re at,” APWU President Cliff Guffey said.

“But we are determined to meet the challenge and negotiate a contract that is fair to postal workers and that will strengthen the Postal Service. We will continue our efforts to reach a just settlement.”

In the meantime, the Postal Service has extended the timeframe for bidding under the terms of the 2006-2010 Collective Bargaining Agreement [PDF]. Employees will be permitted to continue to bid, and where they are designated successful bidders after Nov. 20, those bids may be counted toward the bid maximum for the next contract.