Management Association Presidents Meet with Postal Leaders
Management Association Presidents Meet with Postal Leaders on DUO Related Issues
On February 23, 2011 the national presidents of NAPUS, the League and NAPS met with Postal Service Chief Operating Officer & Executive Vice President Megan Brennan and Vice President of Delivery and Post Office Operations Dean Granholm to discuss issues surrounding the implementation of the Delivery Unit Optimization (DUO) program in post offices. Additional discussion items included proposed cancellations of cleaning contracts, added reports and CSDC access for NAPUS chapter presidents.
At the meeting, NAPUS President Bob Rapoza told the two Postal Service Vice Presidents that some Districts were not following the DUO checklist requirement which was agreed to between Postal Headquarters and the management associations. Specifically, financial and operational impacts were not fully disclosed during the notification and planning process prior to the implementation of DUO in some post offices. Some Districts have failed to address questions related to DUO’s impact on Function 4 staffing, lunch coverage, box up times and added costs for additional rural route mileage.
Mr. Granholm told President Rapoza and the other association leaders that he would remind Area Vice Presidents that the Postal Service was still committed to ensuring that DUO remains a transparent process, and all previously established guidelines (including the DUO Checklist) must be followed. The association leaders provided Mr.Granholm with specific DUO related issues and the District locations where the problems exist. Mr. Granholm said he would follow up on the issues presented to him at the meeting.
All NAPUS chapter presidents are reminded to attempt to resolve DUO related issues with the local DUO Coordinator and then to the District Manager if a resolution is not reached. All DUO issues that can’t be resolved at the District level should be forwarded to Charlie Moser at the NAPUS National Office.
NAPUS President Rapoza also told the Postal Service Vice Presidents that some Postmasters were receiving letters informing them that their cleaning contracts were being cancelled. He referred to a previous consultative meeting he had with Postal Headquarters officials, where it was agreed that while the Postal Service may cancel cleaning contracts, Postmasters are not required to perform those duties (cleaning toilets, floors and other work performed by contract cleaners.) Postmasters who have cleaning contracts cancelled by the District, should notify their manager that they are not responsible for cleaning related duties in their facility.
NAPUS also requested a status on providing CSDC access to NAPUS chapter presidents, which was approved by Postmaster General Patrick Donahoe last month. Mr. Granholm accepted an updated list of presidents and said that he would send it to the Areas for their action to allow these people access. Ms Brennan and Mr Granholm expressed disappointment to hear that some areas were no longer conducting periodic meetings with management association representatives and said they would remind Area and District officials of the value of resuming quarterly meetings with local management association representatives.
Additional reports are slowly being required in some areas, despite Postal Headquarters instructions to refrain from adding redundant reports to information that’s already available. Specific information on redundant reports will be provided and discussed at the March Consultative Session between NAPUS and the Postal Service.
February 24, 2011
Charlie Moser