Aim is to Continue High Quality Universal Postal Service and Middle-Class Jobs
WASHINGTON, Oct. 16, 2011 – The National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) today announced the retention of investment bank Lazard Group, LLC and former assistant to President Barack Obama for Manufacturing Policy, Ron Bloom, as financial advisors in connection with issues relating to the United States Postal Service (USPS).
Fredric V. Rolando, President of the NALC, announced the retention of its advisors to 1,500 regional and local NALC leaders gathered in a national conference to consider the current USPS financial crisis and the long-term strategic, structural and business challenges facing the USPS.
President Rolando issued the following statement:
“The nation’s letter carriers are committed to preserving six-day-a-week universal postal services to every address in every village, town and city of the nation. NALC and our financial advisors are prepared to work cooperatively with the USPS, the Congress, the White House and all other postal stakeholders and constituencies to resolve current cash flow and financial issues and develop a viable long-term, pro-growth business plan for the Postal Service.
Our efforts will be fact-based, non-political, non-ideological, and focused on the continued provision of universal service to the public and the preservation of hundreds of thousands of good middle-class jobs. We are confident that Lazard and Mr. Bloom-both of whom have extensive experience helping to revitalize numerous large and complex business enterprises around the world-can provide valuable assistance to all stakeholders who share our commitment to maintaining and growing this vital national resource.”
The Postal Service is the hub of a $1.2 trillion mailing industry that employs eight million American workers centered on its unique ‘last-mile delivery network.’ NALC is currently engaged in collective bargaining with the USPS. The current five-year collective bargaining agreement expires on November 20, 2011.
About the National Association of Letter Carriers
The National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) represents letter carriers across the country. Its 280,000 members make it the largest of the four unions representing employees of the United States Postal Service. Founded by Civil War veterans in 1889, the NALC is among the country’s oldest labor unions.
@Truepatriot If you work 6 days a week it’s because you chose to be on the overtime desired list and worked your day off. For the extra money. So you think it’s alright to sacrifice the 60,000 t6’s that do our routes on our days off. You have carried after a weekend connected to a holiday so you know very well that it takes overtime all week to catch up the missed day of mail. This fact alone will eat up half of the 3 billion dollar so called savings. I know the other half would be lost to competition. This is the band aid fix you speak of. Saturday off every week would be nice but you have to think of how many lives will be affected if you fall for managements and Issa, Ross bull shit. Let’s not give away our service so we can go to a Bears game.
Mismanagement or not delivery on a Saturday sinks us further into the hole. The costs of labor, fuel and daily risks are unaffordable. Every poll not intercepted by the NALC has shown that the citizens of this country are willing to go without mail delivery on Saturdays in order to help us stay viable. The problem were in is not a band aid or two problem, but one that requires serious reconstructive surgery. Today it is 42 cold and windy degrees in Chicago and once again a perfectly efficient 8 hour day has been sabotaged by managements insistence in doing things the long and tedious way. Why? Why the need to sabotage the delivery on a daily basis? Why are these decision makers still employed? Why is their pay not completely based on performance instead of the enforcement of failed methods of delivery? Do they really think that I will run non stop on my feet in these conditions all day long every day six days a week while treated as a discardable piece of equipment? How ignorant and unrealistic.
@Truepatriot Who is at the helm of this sinking ship? Is it the titanic like management says or the bounty like I say? You can either be forced to be drowned by the 5day iceberg or force the officers off the ship to a deserted island to fend for themselves. LET THEM EAT EACH OTHER! I am glad our union has taken this step to use an alternate source of accountability to point the finger at the real culprit of our mis-managed postal service.
Remember the NALC sold us up s&@t creek during the last contract. Remember how the NALC handled the DPS implementation. File a grievance they say, fill out a 3996 they say, get paid and make that money they say. What about what is best for the PO in the long run. DPS if you really look at all the overtime it has caused the PO since it’s start has been a failure. It adds an hour of fumbling time on the street yet takes most carriers 10 to 15 minutes to case. In Chicago all pur equipment has been taken away most routes are double addresses per pigeon hole, just to keep carriers from casing anything other than residual mail. A typical day starts at 7:30 am you are done casing residual by 8-8:30am, but the hot case, accountables, express trucks aren’t ready until 10am on average. They ask us to move to a 354 operation and just sit, yes sit at our cases doing nothing while we could have been setting our routes up for an efficient and timely delivery that would get carriers back within their 8 hour day. You cannot move the starting time any further because in the winter it is pitch black outside by 5 pm. The NALC says fill out a 3996 letting management know the obvious. I think we’ve knocked down an entire rainforest in just the printing out of 3996’s. When will the NALC grow a pair and say enough is enough We have to save this company and damn all of managements sabotage games. I sure do wish I could get this reform committee to listen for a couple of hours while I simply explain what the PM and Unions make idiotic smoking circles with. We will not be getting a bail out. The current president has already pledged this on camera to the American people and as much as I need my job I do not believe it would be right to bail the PO out, only to have us toss more revenue in the burner. I hope president Rolando wakes up one day with a sence of moral duty and tells the membership what the inevitable is. I hope he stops blowing smoke in our eyes with stupid rallies and finally tells the membership what we will be doing. I recently received a thick book in the mail from the NALC that tells me what to do in order to get the best route adjustment possible. You have to be kidding. What a waste of paper and time and a most obvious smoke screen . Mr. Rolando do you really think we are concerned about an extra block here or there when congress is debating ending everylast one of us ” the real carriers” into poverty. Middle class in this country with a mortgage a car note and a family of four is about $80,000 a year. We make $50,000 a year $30,000 really after taxes, medical and retirement savings. Guess what, just about every politician is saying we are overpaid. They want to compare what we do and what we need as benefits to other federal employees that do not spen 8 to 10 hours in extreme heat and extreme cold and in the rains and with a cold and with headaches and muscle aches and with deteriorating health from working this way for decades. They want to compare our medical needs to those of pencil pushers that sit in a/c and heated buildings all day every day. Ill agree to raising the carriers medical costs if they’ll agree to give us workers comp every time our bodies break down due to the conditions we work in. How many carriers do you know that enjoyed decades of life after retirement? Enough said.
5 day delivery= $3,000,000,000.00 savings a year. We are broke, BBRROKE!!!!!!!!!!
What part of that do you not understand. We arent falling back, we are for a fact in the hole for billions and billions of dollars. There is absolutely no way that the PO should still be debating a five day week. It should be a done deal on top of cutting back the excess management and craft employees. I am starting to side with Issa listening to so many horribly fiscally irresponsible brain farts. You must buy everything on credit and have a it will all work out gambling mentality to even suggest not eliminating a day or two of delivery. We need to get this company back in the black. Write to your congressmen and push them towards these methods of savings before they have no choice, but to accept the Issa mentality as a last resort.
Let’s get 100% curve side delivery going enough of this $ wasting going up stairs, downstairs, and then to the side of one single address. Have all city addresses place their mail boxes by the curve. Grab your mail, DPS drop and keep walking. Less hours needed= less employees needed= less vehicles needed= less maintenance people needed= less management needed= less injuries on the job+ five day delivery Giving employees two consecutive days to rest their knees, shoulders, backs etc meaning much fewer call ins and we are looking a whole lot better without destroying the post office.
OPPS! CUBICAL people that is! OR RATHER SHOULD BE WAS!
There is 1 person who NEVER touchs the mail to every 3.8 people ( WORKERS ) that DO!! CUT THE FAT!! GET RID OF YOUR OVERBLOATED MANAGEMENT , Mr. DONAHOE! CUT THE WORTHLESS CUBIC PEOPLE!
What we get is that 6 day can be saved, and is needed since the 2 routes adjustments since 2008 cut about 20% of carrier routes already. And, pay attention ‘joemama’, cut managements ranks drastically: the worker/management ratio is the problem. Too damn many management people; they’re just trying to save their jobs and avoid doing anything physical.
I see some of you get it .
president rolando needs to find a better slogan with 6 day delivery LISTEN ROLANDO 5 DAY DELIVERY SAVES 3 BILLION , GRAB AND GRASP THIS MONEY SAVINGS BECAUSE IF YOU AND THESE UNION LEADERS ARE GOIUNG TO END UP WITH 4 DAY DELIVERY, EVERYONE NEEDS TO GET SMART AND SAVE MONEY THIS IS A BUISNESS
We are being sold out as we read this by our union leadership in order to protect their desk jobs. Make it clear to your local union that you will not tolerate sacrificing the many to save the few tactics. The union is about to agree on severe cuts to our already mediocre salaries and benefits in exchange for preserving the membership dues that a six day delivery carrier force provides. Email the NALC and let them know you will not stand for this. If it takes a five day week to get Americas attention so be it.
The USPS must reorganize to exist . The core reason for existence prior to the 21st century was to connect individuals and business via written paper message known as Mail. The primary product which created revenue to operate within cost structure was FIRST CLASS MAIL which has diminished to the point revenue cannot be generated to cover cost. The USPS can exist by devising a new business model centered on delivering bulk business-advertising sales papers and parcels. UPS and Fed X presently use USPS to deliver parcels that would create a negative return. USPS must adopt cost effective operation methods such as those of UPS and FED X by limiting number of days aweek that low revenue products are delivered. Sat. USPS mail street delivery is a wasted cost which achieves no monatary return. Eliminating Sat. mail delivery would reduce cost by eliminating the need to use 292,000 vehicles using petroleumn products as well as carrier personnel cost. Unions and politicans who have no concern for what the cost is must give heed to reducing cost from USPS headquarters to local office management. Who pays for all USPS MONATARY LOSSES?
Does the cost have to paid or just a printed statement based on numbers operating in the RED that are made known but who pays? Congress, PRC, gives authorization to write off or from TAXPAYORS FEDERAL TAXES.
joemama IS george bush
You low lifes only know how to hate when you don’t reconize the truth . Go ahead and call me names , it just proves how ignorant you and the rest of amerimillegalimigrant is .
There are lazy people in private industry, so also in our USPS crafts, and management?,the worst, most of management were the biggest grievance filers and lazy bastards, when an organization moves up lazy, arrogant and abusive people into management, that is the formula for what happened to us the USPS, waste, overpaid 100k managers and higher, if the managers and some craft workers were in UPS or FEDEX, they would be filing bankruptcy, or already be out of business, you do not need a college degree, but it would be nice if craft was offered courses to move up, money for schooling, some arrogant managers got their degrees at the time and expense of the USPS, good workers get more work, and bad ones in any craft get less,and the good ones get intimidated by the bosses, you have to be lost to work here, normal people would not take the bull flung at one daily.
@joemama YOU PEOPLE What do you mean. YOU PEOPLE? Joemama you must be a worthless inbred kissass manager or a worthless SCAB! SUCKA!
joemama get a life you worthless piece of shit. You are on this website with your ignorant answers. Go to school get a education quit bitching and leave the post office you sorry ass excuse of a subhuman.
Mr. Bloom’s first suggestion to NALC should be to not give any more union funds to Issa.
Hiring big guns? Union?———You gotta “feeds the system” to get, or pay to play, or just pay.
I PAY UNION DUES ! I just admit there a waste of money . This has been planned by the post office for years . The union is not proactive . The fight was never fought . IT’S TO LATE . This is the last generation that will retire . The government has worked it out where you will die first . There is no other way to pay for this mess . You people are now waking up to the reality on your death bed . SUCKAS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I PAY UNION DUES
DEAR MR. UNION PRESIDENT
KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK
YOU ARE EARNING YOUR MONEY TODAY
SOLIDARITY WILL PREVAIL
ONE MAN WILL NOT CHANGE THE COURSE OF THE USPS
WE WILL FIGHT, WE ARE STRONG
. It’s about time for an audit from an outside source. Ross Perot was sub contracted to do an efficiency study in 1986. Management buried the 6 million dollar study because it suggested the postal service cut the fat from the top down. In 86 the stamp was 22 cents with a 1 to 55 management to craft ratio. Today at 44 cents we have 4 craft employees to every management position. Either the press or a government accountability agency not involved with USPS needs to audit these facts. Donnahoe MUST be audited. He must be held accountable for his mis-information and manipulation of the facts. Last I heard it was a federal offence to lie to congress.
The only fix for this is to separate management and craft. Management should have no authority over craft at all. Let us see if they can work for their salaries. They will be responsible for customer service and increasing revenue for their check. If they can’t generate at least their salary in revenue then they are terminated. Just like in the private sector which they are trying to turn the postal service into. Create a new t6 position for daily operations and have the 6 most senior carriers switch off every day. This way we will be managed by our peers and not make work inbred micro- managers. The current management scam has no accountability and thinks the postal service needs them. WE DON’T! The other crafts can do the same. Eliminate 110,000 managers equals 7 billion 150 million dollars in savings. Create 10k new t6’s to replace management costs only 500 million. It can be done. This is what our union should be pushing for. Then we won’t have to negotiate with a middle man like we are with management. It will be with an arbitrator. It goes to arbitration every contract anyway.
Damnit Mr Mama….
I missed the party?…must have been because I was Working!!!
Joe….ur a very jaded scab I see…and you know what…that’s ok with me.
The simple fact of the matter is a SCAB doesn’t reap the rewards of a settled grievance…BWAAAHAAAAHAAAAAAAAAA….OT Bypass? Pay the bypassed employee for the opportunity missed?…there’s ur union dues right there….who IS the DUMMY?
Your friend and steward,
Andy ; )
.joemama = Maybe some of the letter carriers can get a job with you, say how much does a troll get paid?
The jury is still out on this consequences thing?
The American people are going to be the real losers in all this.
The supervisors all say if you dont like it? file a grievance. Theres no accountability on their part, imo, they love to get in place the union sellouts so they can do what they want when they want to whom ever they want.
That will be a big plus for them getting rid of the oldtimers that know the games they play.
For me the party is just getting started, just look at whats happening in the streets around the world. Cant wait for 2012 to come around.
There will always be consequences in life? Even for them that stick their heads in the sand.
Joemama, funny you have taken every union negotiated pay raise and cola throughout your postal career and never have you paid a penny in dues and then have the audacity of saying quote “Here goes your gravy train ! You people have not done anything for the last 50 years but file useless grievances”. Have you no sense of decency, sir, at long last? Have you left no sense of decency?” Sucka!!!
Union officers are desperate to prevent being returned to their carrier positions!
Non partisan . What a bunch of BULLSHIT . Obamas former ASSistant . Get your heads out of your ass . Here goes your gravy train ! You people have not done anything for the last 50 years but file useless grievances . They are not worth the paper they are written on . No consequences for not following descisions . WAKE UP THE PARTY IS OVER !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!