Several questions have been posed on the APWU’s Facebook page regarding the Tentative Agreement for a new contract. Below, union officers address questions on how it would affect Maintenance Craft workers.

Question: Can Postal Support Employees in the Maintenance Craft go to NCED (National Center of Employee Development) and perform ET, MPE and MM work? Must training be offered to career employees first?

Answer: PSEs are intended for use in custodial occupational groups. They cannot be on a PER (Promotion Eligibility Register). There are no Non-Traditional Full-Time duty assignments in the Maintenance Craft.

Question: If there are no higher-level Maintenance Craft positions withheld within 50 miles for excessing maintenance employees, what is management going to do with the higher-level maintenance employees?

Answer: The Maintenance Craft employee(s) could be excessed to lower-level duty assignments within 50 miles (within 40 miles first). Possibilities include returning work that has been contracted out to make a new duty assignment.

Question: Does the Tentative Agreement have any effect on MSS (Maintenance Selection System) scores being on the top of the PER registers above RMSS (Revamped Maintenance Selection System) scores?

Answer: The Maintenance PERs were changed to remove the selection for promotion from identified occupational groups. All selections will be based on installation seniority within the respective band. There was no change to the method of banding under Article 38.5.B.8 or the RMSS agreements, which require that old MSS scores are ranked above new RMSS scores on the PER.