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 OBAMA's
PROPOSED BUDGET INCLUDES POSTAL
REFORMS
President
Obama's proposed 2013 Budget
includes several significant changes
for the Postal Service. If passed by
Congress the Budget Plan would
affect:
FRHB prefunding:
Change the Future Retiree Health
Care prefunding mandate from a fixed
amount to a calculated amount.
Expand the timeframe for 100% from
10 years to 40 years which would
result in lower yearly payments.
Reduce 2013 and 2014 payments by a
total of $10.6 billion.
Postage Rates:
Obama's
proposal would grant the USPS Board
of Governors the right to make a
"modest, one time" rate increase for
first class and standard mail. 5-Day
Delivery: The USPS would be allowed
to proceed with plans to eliminate
Saturday delivery.
FERS Overfunding:
The plan
would instruct OPM to re-calculate
future USPS FERS contributions while
returning the acknowledged FERS
surplus. This surplus is estimated
at anywhere from $2.6 billion to
$11.5 billion.
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BOARD
OF GOVERNORS TELLS USPS TO DELAY
5-DAY DELIVERY & LOOK FOR WORKFORCE
COST REDUCTIONS
The
USPS Board of Governors met on
Tuesday, April 09, 2013 to discuss
the Continuing Resolution for
government funding passed by the
Congress in March. The meeting was
to discuss whether the Continuing
Resolution would prohibit the USPS
from transitioning to 5-day delivery
or allow it. In a press release, the
Board said that it had instructed
the USPS to "delay implementation of
its new delivery scheduled until
legislation is passed." The Board
also stated that it was
"disappointed with this
Congressional action" which "has
prohibited implementation of a new
delivery schedule for mail and
packages."
The Board
also directed the USPS to seek a
reopening of negotiations
with the unions...to lower total
workforce costs, and to take
administrative actions necessary to
reduce costs.
(What that means is anybody's
guess!)
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CONGRESS
INTRODUCES TWO POSTAL REFORM BILLS:
APWU URGES SUPPORT
APWU President Cliff Guffey is
urging APWU members to contact their
elected representatives and ask them
to support two bills recently
introduced into Congress. Bills
HR 630
and
S
316
seek to restore the USPS to
financial stability by:
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Removing the pre-funding
requirement,
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Allowing the USPS to collect
overpayments made to FERS and
CSRS,
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Re-establish overnight delivery
standards which would make it
harder to close plants,
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Protect six-day delivery,
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Allow the USPS to offer new
products and services, and
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Giving the Postal Regulatory
Commision the authority to stop
small office closures.
President Guffey is asking members
to contact their representatives.
Ask them to co-sponsor and support
these much needed reforms. The APWU
has made it easy for members to
compose an e-mail, or printed
letter, by going to the
APWU Congressional Action Center
website and simply inputting your
zip code.
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MARCH
COST-OF-LIVING INCREASES
Career APWU members will be
receiving two Cost-of-Living
increases in March 2013. Included in
the raise will be the March 2012
COLA, which was deferred until 2013,
and the March 2013 COLA. The amount
of the increase will be $207 per
year, or $7.96 per pay period. The
increase will be effective on March
09, 2013 and will appear in
paychecks beginning March 29, 2013.
The next COLA increase will be in
September 2013 and will also feature
two increases. A Sept 2012 deferred
COLA and a Sept 2013 COLA will be
calculated and added to employees
pay.
Postal Support Employees (PSE) are
not eligible to receive COLA
increases. Instead they received a
2% increase in 2012 and will receive
a 2.5% increase in November 2013.
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NEW
NORTHWEST BUSINESS AGENT APPOINTED
PPWU President Fran Friel has announced the
appointment of Ron Strushensky to the
position of Northwest Area Business Agent.
Ron will represent PPWU members in offices
with 158, 160-165, 167 and 168 zip codes.
Ron is taking over for former Northwest Area
Business Agent Dave Wigley and will fill out
the remainder of the 2-year term. The
PPWU thanks Brother Wigley for his service
and welcomes Ron in the fold. We are
confident that Ron will do an outstanding
job representing PPWU members. If
anyone in the Northwest Area needs to get in
touch with Ron, you can call him at
1-877-700-8240, ext. #92
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APWU
MEMBERS RECEIVE WAGE INCREASE
APWU-represented postal employees will
receive an increase in their annual salaries
effective Nov. 17 — the first in three
years. The raise will be reflected in
paychecks issued Dec. 7 and will apply to
employees covered by the APWU-USPS 2010-2015
Collective Bargaining Agreement. Career
employees will receive a raise of 1 percent.
Cost-of-Living Adjustments (COLAs) will
follow in March, and will include increases
in the Consumer Price Index for January 2012
and January 2013. The across-the-board raise
and cost-of-living adjustments were
negotiated during bargaining in 2010 and
2011. Postal Support Employees (PSEs), who
are not eligible for the COLAs, will receive
an across-the-board increase of 2 percent.
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HURRICANE EMERGENCY HOTLINE
1-888-EMERGNC
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 PAUL
CIRINO
Forever in our
thoughts 0and prayers |
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