Governor Quinn Signs Law to Strengthen Mail Carrier Safety
New Law Increases Penalties for Crimes Against Mail Carriers
ROCKFORD ¬– June 15, 2012. Governor Pat Quinn today signed a new law that will protect postal workers and letter carriers by allowing judges to consider harsher penalties for violent crimes against employees of the United States Postal Service. The Governor signed the law at Illinois State Association of Letter Carriers’ annual convention in Rockford.
“The hard-working men and women of the United States Postal Service deserve our gratitude,” Governor Quinn said. “This law will help make sure that they are able to continue doing their jobs safely.”
Senate Bill 3665, sponsored by Sen. Jacqueline Collins (D-Chicago) and Rep. Jerry Costello III (D-Sparta), allows judges to consider a victim’s employment in the United States Postal Service (USPS) as an aggravating factor in violent crimes like assault, battery and robbery. Upon conviction, a judge could impose more severe sentences on the offender.
This law is an initiative of the National Association of Letter Carriers, which is working with the USPS to inform postal workers in Illinois about the appropriate steps to take in the event of a crime being committed against them or in their vicinity.
As U.S. government employees, USPS workers are already protected by federal law; however, in the event federal prosecutors don’t pursue cases involving crimes against postal workers, this law will allow state courts to consider USPS employment in their proceedings.
The new law goes into effect January 1, 2013.
“Guest” Union dues CANNOT be used for political purposes. We take up a collection at every union meeting for political purposes. My local donates to whoever votes for our positions. We donate to those that vote in favor of OUR jobs. My local donates to a Dem. and a Rep. as my local is large enough so there are two members in congress that represents us.
Safety for mail carriers… safety for all employees with those cowardly managers/ stupidvisors that hide behind their pathetic badges to harass people thinking their crap don’t stink. Unions going by way like Wisconsin unions – goodbye. Look for your local union’s financial statements, there aren’t any!! No show where the money goes. Have not been much help for the employees, after collecting thousands of dollars from each one over the years. Enough taking dues money to waste on demon-crats. Unions no longer good for employees, they are on the losing end with O-bama, nobama.
No-Bama has run this country into the ground, dumb and dumbest still support him. Health premiums gone up, groceries, gas, etc. But that idiot Obummer wants to hand everything free to ILLEGALS. No consideration to better the lives of the legal citizens. Bad union representation, isthe same as bad presidentialrepresentation for the citizens. Obummer must be gone, gone, gone. No more GRATIS for illegals. Dumb and dumbest need to vote smart, no-Bama. No-Bama will run every last thing into the ground!!! Pity those not old enough to get a retirement check. You can thank that Hope(less) and Change (for the worse) guy – duh….
APWU NATIONAL EXECUTIVE BOARD
Cliff Guffey
President
(202) 842-4250
(202) 842-4297 (FAX)
Greg Bell
Executive Vice President
(202) 842-4250
(202) 842-4297 (FAX)
Elizabeth Powell
Secretary-Treasurer
(202) 842-4215
(202) 842-8530 (FAX)
Mike Morris
Director
Industrial Relations
(202) 842-4273
(202) 371-0992 (FAX)
Rob Strunk
Director
Clerk Division
(202) 842-4220
(202) 842-8517 (FAX)
Sharyn Stone
Central Region Coordinator
55 E. Jackson Blvd.
Suite 400
Chicago, Il 60604
312-986-8645
312-986-8747 (FAX)
(312) 786-0390 (TDD)
Mike Gallagher
Eastern Region Coordinator
1401 Liberty Place
Sicklerville, NJ 08081
856-740-0633
(856) 740-0742 (FAX)
(856) 740-0715 (TDD)
John H. Dirzius
Northeast Region Coordinator
5 N. Village Ave., Suite 3
Rockville Centre, NY 11570
(516) 678-1327
(516) 766-0967 (FAX)
(516) 678-1813 (TDD)
Princella Vogel
Southern Region Coordinator
15055 Woodham Dr., S. 100
Houston, TX 77073-6024
(281) 821-9000
(281) 821-9028 (FAX)
(281) 447-5378 (TDD)
The greatest sense of security and safety is a nice handgun and the ability to use it.
Hear Hear! I’m with you, Wingman. Well said.
I want to add in addition to my first post that there are abusive bosses out there in the Service – make no mistake! Never at any time should a craft employee be expected to tolerate abusive behavior from inconsiderate stupid psychotic supervisors or postmasters. If a supervisor, manager or PM can’t handle the workload without being a tyrant they must go. I’ve been through a really bad situation with a supervisor who was off her goddamn trolley and the PM didn’t want to attract any more negative attention to himself so he let her run amok until I became a union steward and started filing behavior grievances and joint statements. It took a while, but she was forced out with retirement because she had been there a long time and the PM got his ass booted to a podunk office for the rest of his time. You can fight these people and win if you document, document, document, get witnesses and don’t back down. We all have a right to work in a professional respectful office and those who can’t provide it mustn’t be allowed to supervise or manage. In fact, removal is the appropriate response.
Protecting carriers like everything else in today’s Postal Service is strictly knee jerk. Yes, there are violent crimes against carriers, sometimes random, such as a robbery, but sometimes personal, where the carrier is confronted by adversaries in his or her personal life while on the route.
Still, the biggest acts of violence continue to be within the walls of the Service itself. I’m not going to slam the entire management for workroom conditions, because I know several fellow employees who have been, shall we say, unstable, or particularly affected when management goes to them with an issue, no matter how mundane or justified. I’ve, as a steward and president had to step in a few times when the carrier was simply overreacting and behaving like a total ass.
Still, with the micromanaging campaign letter carriers are dealing with getting more oppressive every day, some with a low tolerance for being watched more than usual will predictably become more stressed. We should be expecting management to do this with the funding problems we have as incompetent nincompoops try to squeeze every penny when the wound is bleeding the worst in Congress and L’Enfant Plaza. Carriers should bear in mind that most companies have supervisors and bosses breathing down your neck all day long, while we enjoy relative peace with the exception of a supervisor tailing us for half an hour once a week. Is that so hard to deal with if you’re not doing anything wrong?
It is nice to know that for our brethren in Illinois there is additional protection available for them. Perhaps that will spread to other states as well.
Guffey is trying his best, to stop all of you from going, dumb bastard, yet the mail handlers union wanted to see their members have a soft landing, knowing that all hell will break loose , and downsizing will come, Obama and some Dems have screwed up, now we will see the GOP, and they will cut even more and not just the USPS, so down the line will not be better, but progressively worse, and Guffey, Bell and all their hordes see one thing, their lavish lifestyle, not your agony, email and call these morons every chance you get, the union is going down eventually, so these pig-heads with the support of Business agents and local presidents, will continue to dash any hopes of incentives and maybe the VER itself,sad day for us, but for the National APWU, in LA, in August, Party Time !
Tom, you are thinking with your head for starters, and not your heart. The truth is better overstood when its stated eloquently, as you did.
The merits of whats stated are creating a hostile work environment, workplace incivility, violation of safety and health very important issue, and a number of others charges are appropriate.
Study to be informed than teach others.
solidarity forever,
E. Maiden Johnson
Sorry, computer glitch ;(
@Tom-are you crazy?
What, are you crazy Tom ??
What about mental safety from abusive management?