Local Memorandum Of Understanding
Between
Huntingdon Valley Post Office
And
Branch 157 National Association Of Letter Carriers
2001 - 2006
ITEM A
ARTICLE 1
RECOGNITION
This Memorandum of Understanding is entered into on November 1, 2002 at
Huntingdon Valley Post Office between the representatives of the United States
Postal Service, and the designated agent of the National Association of Letter
Carriers pursuant to the Local Implementation Provision of the 2001 - 2006
National Agreement. This Memorandum of Understanding constitutes the entire
Agreement relating to local conditions of employment.
ITEM 1
WASH UP TIME
Each letter carrier will be granted a reasonable amount of time to wash up prior
to leaving for the street, lunch, and his end of tour. A supervisor shall be
notified when an extra amount of wash up time is needed.
ITEM 2
REGULAR WORK WEEK
All regular carriers will be on a fixed or rotating work schedule, as presently
exists. Any contemplated changes the Union will be notified and these changes
will be made by mutual agreement.
ITEM 3
CURTAILMENT OR TERMINATION OF POSTAL OPERATIONS
It is recognized by both parties that on occasion emergency conditions may exist
which would cause management to consider curtailing of services, such as,
weather extremes, civil defense alerts, bomb scares, no heat in winter, no
lighting, or excessive temperatures. In such cases, management will take into
consideration the following factors in order:
A. The safety and health of the employee.
B. The emergency as stated by and acted upon by other governmental authorities.
C. Management will consult with the Union before implementation of any action.
If local conditions warrant the non-delivery of mail or closing of the office,
the employee will not be charged with Annual Leave unless requested by the
employee. (Work must be made available.)
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ITEM 4
FORMULATION OF LOCAL LEAVE PROGRAM
1. Annual Leave will be granted in any increments up to and including units.
2. Annual Leave will be granted throughout the year.
3. All requests for annual leave will be approved or disapproved within 24
hours. A triplicate 3971 will be marked by the supervisor received. The
duplicate 3971 will be returned to the letter carrier at the end of the 24 hour
period, marked approved or disapproved. Where no action has been taken within
this period, the request for leave will be automatically approved.
4. Disapproval of any request for Annual Leave must be explained to the
employee, in writing, by the disapproving supervisor and stating "Service
Needs", will not be an acceptable explanation.
5. Once Annual Leave has been approved on Form 3971 by a supervisor, the same
may not be rescinded by any supervisor except in a serious emergency situations.
6. Emergency Annual Leave may be granted at any time throughout the year
including December. Emergency Leave is defined as leave which is requested when
unforeseen events necessitate the absence of the employee from his duties. It
does not necessarily include events and activities planned in advance. An
employee who is unable to report for duty because of an emergency, shall notify
the Post Office as soon as possible. Employees requesting such leave will not be
carried AWOL or TARDY pending approval.
7. All applications for LWOP and SWOP shall be granted in accordance with ELM
language 514.22.
8. Blood Leave - it is agreed that employees excused from their regular tour of
duty to make donations to the Red Cross or other non-profit Blood Bank will
receive Administrative Leave in accordance with the ELM.
9. Union Activity - Any Union Official requesting Annual Leave or Leave Without
Pay to attend a Union activity throughout the year will be given the same
consideration as other leave. It will be without loss of his choice vacation
time and it will not be charged to either prime time or non prime time.
10. Carriers may be permitted to celebrate their birthdays by requesting a day
off.
11. The practice of excusing employees from duties on all Religious Holidays and
other special occasions to the maximum extent possible.
12. All Full Time Regular and Part Time Flexibles will receive a vacation during
the choice period.
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ITEM 4
EXCHANGE OF VACATION
Exchange of Annual Leave periods will be permitted only after all Carriers
senior to the exchanges in the station have been offered said period.
ITEM 4
CANCELLATIONS
When notified five (5) days in advance Cancellations of choice vacation periods
will be posted for five (5) days. If less than five (5) days remain before the
beginning date of the cancelled period, the vacation will be posted for the
amount of time remaining. Cancellations of choice vacation periods may first be
bid by carriers junior to the carrier who cancels his vacation. If no junior
carriers bid on the cancelled vacation a senior carrier can bid, in this
instance seniority will prevail.
ITEM 5
DURATION OF CHOICE VACATION PERIOD
The prime vacation period will be the third full week of May thru to the last
week of September each year.
ITEM 6
BEGINNING DAY OF VACATION
Vacations will start on Sunday and end on Sunday.
ITEM 7
SELECTION OF WEEKS
Employees may, at their option, select two choices during prime time in units of
either 5 or 10 working days. The total not to exceed the 10 or 15 days. (2 weeks
plus 1 week or 3 in a row.)
ITEM 8
CONVENTION (NATIONAL & STATE), JURY DUTY AND MILITARY LEAVE
Carriers in need of these types of leave during the period(s) for either the
Non-Prime Time Selection Period(s) (August 1-7 or November 1-7) or the Prime
Time Selection Period (February 14-28) are required to notify Management as soon
as practical. Carriers having the seniority to get the leave are slotted in
based on the applicable percentage (%) and the number of Carriers permitted off.
In the event they do not have the seniority to be scheduled off, the leave will
be granted over and above the percentage (%). This is at no loss to the
Carrier(s) other selection(s) during the choice period.
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ITEM 8 (continued)
CONVENTION (NATIONAL & STATE), JURY DUTY AND MILITARY LEAVE
If a cancellation occurs involving the same period, then they move automatically
into that vacant slot. Jury Duty of less than a week does not apply to this
procedure. The above procedure, also applies for requests made after the
Selection Period(s).
One (1) Carrier over and above the percentage (%) will be allowed to attend
State or National Convention.
ITEM 9
NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES OFF
The number of Carriers off each week during prime time vacation will be 15% of
the Station complement as of February 1 of each year. Percentages of .5 or
higher will be rounded off to the next higher number.
a. Short Term Annual Leave Slips will be submitted seven (7) days in advance.
Approval/disapproval will be based on twelve percent (12%) during Prime Time.
ITEM 10
OFFICIAL NOTICES
Supervisors in cooperation with NALC Steward will announce to the carriers no
later than February 1, that picking for vacations will be from February 14 thru
to February 28. A notice announcing the vacation period will be posted no later
than February 1.
When the number of carriers off each week is determined, the supervisor will
make a chart with 1 space for each carrier permitted off, for each week of the
vacation period. Starting on the first day of the picking period, the senior
carrier will select his vacation and the remaining carriers will make selections
in descending seniority. The supervisor will contact each carrier who is IOD,
extended illness, detailed, etc., and no carrier will be permitted to select
until the carrier senior to him has selected. Carriers not prepared to select
when contacted will be bypassed till they are ready to select, but not to exceed
48 hours.
The vacation schedule will be posted on the bulletin board. A duplicate copy of
the employee's vacation period will be returned signed by management at the end
of the bidding period, March 1.
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ITEM 11
BEGINNING OF NEW LEAVE YEAR
No later than November 1 of each year management will notify all carrier craft
employees of the beginning of the new leave year. A written notice of this will
be posted on all employee bulletin boards. This notice will be announced to the
carriers for three (3) consecutive days.
ITEM 12
NON PRIME TIME
On October 31st of each year this installation will determine the active carrier
force. 10% of the active carrier complement will be permitted leave consistent
with the following guidelines:
A. Leave will be approved on a first come first served basis except where
requests are submitted on the same date at which time seniority will prevail.
B. Leave requests can be submitted at any time up to 5 days in advance. Leave
will be granted subject to the above provisions provided the allotted number of
carriers are not already off.
C. Percentages of .5 or higher will be rounded off to the next higher number.
On November 1 thru 7 leave slips will be accepted for the period January 1 thru
to the beginning of prime time.
On August 1 thru 7 leave slips will be accepted for the period from the end of
prime time till December 31.
All leave slips accepted during the periods in the above will be considered as
received on the same day and seniority will prevail.
1. CHRISTMAS WEEK 15%
From December 25 thru to January 1, no matter when it falls.
2. EASTER 15%
From Sunday before Easter to Easter Sunday.
3. THANKSGIVING 12%
Friday and Saturday.
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ITEM 13
HOLIDAY SCHEDULE
The following sequence will be followed when scheduling employees to work on a
holiday or designated holiday provided that such scheduling produces a work
force which meets the operating skill requirements of the holiday or designated
holiday.
A. All casual and part time flexible employees to the maximum extent possible,
regardless of the necessity to pay overtime premiums.
B. All full time regular employees who volunteer to work either their holiday or
their non-scheduled day shall be combined into a single group, ranked, in
seniority order and selected to work by this list.
1. During the polling carriers may volunteer to work for Premium (Overtime) Pay.
If additional scheduling is needed after the Holiday Schedule has been posted,
the volunteers will be selected by seniority.
C. All full time regular employees who did not volunteer to work shall be
selected by inverse seniority.
D. If additional employees are needed and not filled by section B-1 above, they
will be selected by inverse seniority.
ITEM 14
OVERTIME DESIRED LIST
The overtime list will be on an office wide basis, according to craft, for full
time regular letter carriers.
Overtime for part time flexibles will be distributed as equitably as possible.
Letter Carriers will be allowed to remove their names from the overtime desired
list once (1) during the quarter. This must be done in writing, and will go into
effect the next working day.
ITEM 15
NUMBER OF LIGHT DUTY ASSIGNMENTS
There will be no limit or restriction as to the number of Light Duty Assignments
within the Letter Carrier Craft depending on the number of hours available for
either temporary or permanent light duty.
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ITEM 16
LIGHT DUTY WHICH CONFLICTS
Any Light Duty which conflicts with the regular carrier force will be dealt with
in accordance with Article XIII of the National Agreement.
ITEM 17
IDENTIFICATION OF LIGHT DUTY ASSIGNMENTS
It is agreed that light duty assignments for letter carriers may include but are
not limited to:
A. Casing and strapping out of a route or routes.
B. Casing curtailed and/or backlogged mail on other routes.
C. Any other duties which in the future could be deemed as light duty in the
carrier craft.
ITEM 18
REASSIGNMENTS
It is agreed that this Post Office will be known as an Installation. It is
further agreed that when it is necessary to reassign within this Installation,
employees who are excess to the needs, management will meet with the Union, to
present the facts. This will be done prior to making a final determination.
ITEM 19
PARKING
Every effort will be made to provide parking for all Letter Carriers.
ITEM 20
COVERED IN ITEM 8
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ITEM 21
REPRESENTATION
A copy of posted notices or communications issued by the employer to employees
relating to policy or matters which effect the employees and/or the Letter
Carrier Craft will be furnished to the Steward prior to, at the time of
issuance.
The Stewards will be afforded prompt, proper, and due recognition by all
supervisory personnel and management officials in carrying out their duties,
responsibilities, and obligations under this Memorandum of Understanding and the
national Agreement.
The parties of this agreement will meet each quarter, except in the fourth
quarter, the meeting will be held in November along with the Christmas meeting.
The meetings will convene at 9:30 A.M.
There will be no more than two members of each craft at any Labor
Management Meeting.
Two additional meetings may be held each year with one member of each craft on
the clock. Dates will be set by mutual consent.
It is agreed that agenda items for discussion at all Labor Management Meetings
will be exchanged by the parties to this agreement at least one full work day
before the scheduled meeting. Items not placed on such agendas will be discussed
at the end of the meeting. If no agendas are exchanged it will be understood
that the meetings will not be held.
All items will be initialed by Postmaster or designee within 7 days. The
Postmaster will provide the Branch President with the minutes of the meeting.
Branch 157 will be consulted prior to the designation of employees to all local
committees where applicable by the Postmaster and/or his staff. Letter Carrier
members of all committees will be designated by the President of Branch 157.
Committee meetings will be held on the clock.
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ITEM 21
REPRESENTATION (continued)
Upon request to the appropriate supervisor the steward may be permitted to enter
into any work location where a problem has been reported involving personnel
policy and practices or any other matter effecting terms or conditions of
employment of an employee or employees he represents, for the purpose of
resolving the problem with the employee or employees and/or the supervisor or
supervisors involved.
Such attempts at resolution will be conducted on the clock during the steward
(or his alternate) regularly scheduled work day.
Stewards and supervisors will be cooperative to the fullest extent in furthering
the good of the service and the employee's welfare by keeping employees
currently informed of any changes in policy or procedure by the method of
periodic discussions on the workroom floor. Employees will be on the clock for
the time necessary.
Representatives of Branch 157 will have the right to use the Post Office
telephones for the purpose of performing and engaging in Official union duties
and any business related to the collective bargaining agreement and the Local
Memorandum of Understanding. Request will not be unreasonably denied.
ITEM 21
ROUTE INSPECTIONS
All carriers will be notified 2 weeks in advance of route inspections and at
that time, will be given a copy of printed instructions and sample forms.
ITEM 21
UNIFORMS
Carriers will be permitted to take their outer shirt off when working within the
confines of the building, out of public view.
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ITEM 21
COMFORT AND LUNCH STOPS
When there are no suitable places to take a comfort and/or lunch stop on a
route, a letter carrier will have the right to travel outside his route where
accommodations are available. Such travel will be discussed with the supervisor
so that suitable locations may be designated.
ITEM 21
SOCIAL & RECREATION COMMITTEE
An employee social & recreation committee will be established. Meetings will be
held with the Postmaster or his designee on the clock with a representative of
Branch 157. The meeting will be held quarterly.
ITEM 21
AIR CONDITIONING
The air conditioning will be properly maintained and serviced and will be turned
on 2 hours prior to the letter carriers reporting for work.
ITEM 21
INSPECTION OF OPF
1. A Letter Carrier will, upon request, have the right to inspect his Official
Personnel Folder.
2. Upon the employees request, the Branch President and/or his designee, may
accompany the employee during the inspection.
3. Employees will be able to obtain copies of all material placed in his/her
folder.
ITEM 21
DISCIPLINE PROCEDURE
No disciplinary action shall be taken against an employee on the
unsupported basis of an anonymous complaint or where a complaint is unwilling to
testify against the employee at a hearing.
When an employee's efficiency is questioned by management, the employee shall be
counselled and afforded training with regard to the alleged deficiency,
following such training, management shall conduct a special inspection to
determine if the alleged deficiency has been corrected.
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ITEM 22
SENIORITY LISTS
An updated seniority list of all letter carriers at this installation will be
posted on employee bulletin boards. The list will be updated once every six
months (January 1 & July 1) or when there is a personnel change, whichever comes
first.
ITEM 22
POSTING AND BIDDING
A. In instances where several assignments are posted, a letter carrier may bid
for as many assignments as posted stating his preference in the following
manner:
1. First choice, second choice, third choice, etc.
B. Letter Carriers applying for an assignment shall make a sealed bid in writing
to the supervisor in charge of the Installation during the period for which the
notice is posted, and opened in the presence of a Union Representative of Branch
157.
C. The senior applicant for a vacant assignment will be placed in the assignment
within 15 days of the closing of bids, unless on leave except in December, when
the successful bidder will be placed on his new assignment on the first work day
of January.
D. Utility T-6 and reserve (float) letter carrier vacancies will be posted for
bid in the same manner and subject to the same provisions as provided in this
article of the Local Memorandum of Understanding.
E. All full time carrier vacancies will be posted for 10 days.
ITEM 22
ASSIGNMENTS
When there is a change of more than 1 hour in the starting time of a route the
decision to post or not to post will be done by mutual consent.
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ITEM 22
REGULAR CARRIER WORKING HIS NON-SCHEDULED DAY
In the event a regular assigned carrier is requested to work on his nonscheduled
day, he will be assigned to work his own route. A reserve carrier (float) is
covering one of the routes on the utilities string, he will be bumped on a daily
basis, regardless of it being a holddown. This bumping will also happen to a
part time flexible who may be filling in for a vacancy or a holddown. Below is
listed the exception to the duration clause and the bumping procedure to be
followed:
ARTICLE 41, SECTION 2 B 5
A. Full time reserve and unassigned carriers who have insufficient work for
eight hours bump part time flexibles on temporary bid assignments.
B. Full time regular carriers who are called in to work their own route on their
non-scheduled day, bump their utility or T-6 carriers, who then bump a reserve,
unassigned, or part time flexible carrier holding a temporary bid assignment on
one of the four routes on the utility or T-6 string. However, there is no
bumping if there is an open route on the string.
C. There is not eight hours of work in the delivery unit for a reserve or
unassigned who may bump the junior part time flexible holding a temporary bid
assignment.
D. A reserve or unassigned carrier is the successful bidder of a permanent
vacant duty assignment.
E. A part time flexible carrier is converted to a permanent route vacancy.
F. Reserve and unassigned carriers bid on permanent route vacancies.
Reserve carriers, by virtue of having craft, full time duty assignments, may not
be arbitrarily moved from their permanent or temporary bid assignments.
Unassigned carriers may be assigned to permanent route vacancies after their
temporary bid assignments have ended.
G. If nothing is available in the utility string, he will choose vacant
assignments with his seniority.
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ITEM 22
ASSIGNMENTS
PART TIME FLEXIBLES
Part time flexible employees may use their seniority to bid for their vacation
period and for available temporary assignments of five or more days. As
successful bidders, they assume the hours of duty and the schedule of work days
of the full time carrier whose assignment is being covered.
SECTION 3-0
When a letter carrier route or full time assignments, other than the letter
carrier route(s) or full time duty assignment(s) of the junior employee(s), is
abolished at a delivery unit as a result of, but not limited to, route
adjustments, highways, housing projects, all routes and full time duty
assignments at that unit held by letter carriers who are junior to the carrier(s)
whose route(s) or full time duty assignments was abolished shall be posted for
bid in accordance with the posting procedure in the article.
BREAKS
On July 21 of each year the Union will determine whether both breaks are on the
street or one is in the office and the other on the street.
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Pursuant to Article XXX of the National Agreement the Articles negotiated at the
Local Level and those Articles brought forth from previous Local Memorandums of
Understanding constitute the entire Agreement between Branch 157, National
Association of Letter Carriers and the Huntingdon Valley Post Office.
Michael Todd Jack Geoghegan
Postmaster President
Huntingdon Valley Post Office N.A.L.C., Branch 157
Huntingdon Valley, Pa. Philadelphia, Pa.
November 1, 2002 November 1, 2002
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