National Association of Letter Carriers

Another weekend ... another holiday !!! Enjoy this one. Be safe on the roads. And may all of you and your families have a happy and healthy 2018 ...

You've done it again ... you always do. Congratulations on another Holiday season well executed. Going into this Christmas weekend, may you and those closest to you have the happiest of holidays ...

The application for the 60th annual Massachusetts AFL-CIO Scholarship remains available ... remember, your registration deadline is this Friday, December 15th. Please click here and get it to your guidance counselor by this Friday !!!

Two "Customer Connect" Teleconferences have been scheduled for early January 2018. Dates & times can be accessed here. This info will also be posted in the Carrier and Steward Resource sections of the site.

Time has come again to contact your senators regarding a crucial issue. This time it's a tax bill - S.1 and it's a killer. Go to the NALC national Website for more details. We have a Congressional Contact sheet here with phone numbers and Website addresses.

On Wednesday, December 20th, Holy Family Parish of Amesbury is once again hosting the "Support the Troops" Christmas Dinner. Sponsored by Amesbury's VFW Post 2016 and local businesses, this is a complimentary dinner for all active duty, reserve & veterans of our Armed Forces. A printable .pdf with all the details is available here, and directions are below.

We have the application for the 60th annual Massachusetts AFL-CIO Scholarship here for the download. Registration deadline is Friday, December 15th - so don't put it off !!! Please click here for the .pdf file.

"There are 7.5 million private sector jobs that depend on the postal system, and these jobs are at risk unless Congress takes action on postal reform."
Art Sackler, manager - Coalition for a 21st Century Postal Service

We get it. Mr. Sackler gets it. So why can't Congress? This tired old story (now, eleven years in the making ...) is available from the AP & PBS right here.

No doubt we've all seen the horrific news footage from the Santa Rosa, CA fires. This story contains footage you may not have seen. If you are proud of the service that we provide our customers, take a minute or two to view this footage. For context, the San Jose Mercury News story is here. Direct You Tube link to the video is here. Drone video is by Douglas Thron.

"Any employee who deliberately delayed mail delivery or knowingly misreported mail delivery should be terminated for violating the trust of America's hardworking taxpayers and postal ratepayers."
Senator Jon Tester (D-MT)

And to paraphrase a quote from the movie Casablanca - "I'm shocked, shocked to find that deceit is going on in here ...". FedSmith.com has details of the sordid story right here.

As the pre-funding burden continues to pummel it's bottom line, the Postal Service looks to the Postal Regulatory Commission for some relief in the way of a revised pricing system for stamps. While certainly a significant slice, this is not the whole pie. For more details, access the story from FoxBusiness.com right here.

As of today, the tenative contract for the 2016-2019 period has been ratified by the NALC membership. The USPS will be officially notified of this decision. More details will be coming as to implementation, back pay, etc. - check the NALC Website for updates.

As postal employees, we have seen just how damaging Washington policies can be to our livelihood. And present White House proposals may be the most injurious yet. On Tuesday, July 18th, make your opinions known to those elected to represent YOUR interests. You can download an informational PDF by clicking here to help organize your talking points. And you can get all your Congressional contact information by clicking right here.

In conjunction with the Maudslay Arts Center's Silver Jubilee, there will be a Salute to Veteran's concert on August 27th at 2 p.m. Don Campbell, a local singer-songwriter and composer will provide the entertainment. All vets will be admitted free of charge. You may click on the image to access a printable .pdf suitable for posting. Come out to salute our vets and their families and enjoy an afternoon of music in the park.

We have a summary of the 2017 Tentative Agreement between the NALC and the USPS available for you to consider. Click here to access this PDF. Give it a look this weekend and make an informed decision when you vote.

Summer days are upon us ... do not forget the seriousness of heat stress in the coming months. Here are links to two .pdf files dealing with summer working conditions. You can print these out for posting in your station and/or quick reference handouts.

USPS "Safety Depends On Me ..."   -   OSHA "Quick Card" on Heat Stress

Be well ... and stay hydrated !!!

It is unfortunate and disappointing that the administration would so recklessly attack the livelihoods of active and retired federal retirees who have devoted their lives to our country.

NALC President Fredric Rolando

"A New Foundation for American Greatness". Really ... that's the title on the budget. And more disturbingly, that's what they truly believe. Although declared "dead on arrival" by Congressional leaders on both sides of the aisle, it's worth knowing what was proposed and how it would affect the Postal Service. Just to know how ugly the fight may get. Click here to get to the NALC Website News section. A summary with comments by President Rolando is there for your information.

The National Association of Letter Carriers and the United States Postal Service, after 15 months of negotiations, have come to what is being characterized as a "tentative" agreement on the new National Agreement. More details are available on the NALC Website by clicking here.

The 25th annual Letter Carriers' "Stamp Out Hunger®" food drive is upon us. Hopefully the weather will hold out just long enough tomorrow for you to comfortably complete these very important appointed rounds. In the 24 previous years, Letter Carriers have collected and distributed over 1.5 billion pounds of food to local food banks and pantries across the United States ... an accomplishment to be quite proud of. Thank you in advance for your efforts this year.

A legendary problem and no laughing matter. The figures from the Postal Service are troubling. 6,755 attacks in 2016 for letter carriers alone (trust me ... UPS and FedEx are not immune). Have a safe Dog Bite Prevention Week next week. Be aware, keep your pepper spray handy at all times, and never assume just because Fluffy isn't growling he won't attack. CCA's ... you can learn from your senior brothers and sisters on this, because it's a very fortunate carrier who doesn't have a dog attack story to tell you. More from the PBS.org story on the subject can be acccessed here.

From the February Wake Up!, we are offering Wake Up! publisher Dan Wheeler's informative article "Guide To Route Inspection Carrier Consultations". This has been added as a .pdf file available in the Carrier Resource sections of both the main and mobile Websites. A very important piece of the route inspection puzzle and a highly recommended read.

Yep ... everyone has them. Some, perhaps, carry more weight than others. Some embrace reality in a more persuasive manner. Here is a two-for-one. Congress.gov has the text of the bill right here. Familiarize yourself ... keep an eye on NALC.org ... consider giving to the LCPF.

N.B. - By making a contribution to the Letter Carrier Political Fund, you are doing so voluntarily with the understanding that your contribution is not a condition of membership in the National Association of Letter Carriers or of employment by the Postal Service, nor is it part of union dues. You have a right to refuse to contribute without any reprisal. The Letter Carrier Political Fund will use the money it receives to contribute to candidates for federal office and undertake other political spending as permitted by law. Your selection shall remain in full force and effect until cancelled. Contributions to the Letter Carrier Political Fund are not deductible for federal income tax purposes. Federal law prohibits the Letter Carrier Political Fund from soliciting contributions from individuals who are not NALC members, executive and administrative staff or their families. Any contribution received from such an individual will be refunded to that contributor. Federal law requires us to use our best efforts to collect and report the name, mailing address, occupation and name of employer of individuals whose contributions exceed $200 per calendar year. Any guideline amount is merely a suggestion, and an individual is free to contribute more or less than the guideline suggests and the Union will not favor or disadvantage anyone by reason of the amount of their contribution or their decision not to contribute.

With inspections looming, please be advised that the 2012 Route Inspection Guide and the Route Protection Program (Chapters 1 - 3) are available 24/7/365 in the "Carrier Resources" section of this Website. Tons of valuable information to help you understand the inspection process from both sides is offered in these publictions. Very much worth your time - especially if this will be your first time going through the procedure.

"One of the cornerstones of Trump's campaign was that he was not going to cut Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. He wasn't ambiguous about this. It does not make sense to me to have a key adviser to the president having views directly in opposition to what the president campaigned on."

Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT)

Here is a story from the Washington Post regarding President Trump's pick for Director of the OMB. Rep. Mick Mulvaney (R-SC) was confirmed in a 51-49 vote on Thursday morning. NALC President Fredric Rolando had this to say on Wednesday about Mulvaney's impending nomination:

"Based on his record in Congress, having Mulvaney as OMB director would jeopardize the health and retirement security of the millions of Americans who rely on Medicare and Social Security - in stark contrast to President Trump's promise not to cut benefits for either. Mulvaney maintains that Social Security is a "Ponzi Scheme", and he has supported privatizing Medicare by turning it into a voucher program. He also advocates raising the age of eligibility for both entitlement programs."

We're taking this opportunity to post the updated list of Congressional contact information. This .pdf file will be available in the "Carrier Resources" section of this Website. Just in case we need it ...

Ugly. Cringe-inducing. Heart-stopping. And in the end, just beautiful. The New England Patriots, in the first-ever Super Bowl overtime, defeated the Atlanta Falcons to win their fifth title. To reach the 34-28 final, the team overcame a 25-point deficit late in the game, with action pushing into the historic OT period. For more details, check out the Boston Globe and the Boston Herald Websites.

A narrow subset of commentators, however, who seek to privatize some or all of its functions, have been writing "sky-is-falling" pieces that mislead about Postal Service finances while ignoring the broader context of its value to our society.

NALC President Fredric Rolando

Yes, "alternative facts" seem to be everywhere these days ... and they're nothing new to us. Here is a link to a January 26th opinion piece featuring President Rolando discussing the value of the USPS (and letter carriers) to the nation at large. This story is a rebuttal to this TownHall.com coulmn from January 22. Thank you, President Rolando, for keeping these guys honest !!!

And the flea flicker is alive and well. The New England Patriots beat the Pittsburgh Steelers tonight 36 to 17, winning the AFC Championship and advancing them to Super Bowl Fifty-One against the NFC Champion Atlanta Falcons. The Big Game will be seen locally on WFXT Fox 25 on Sunday, February 5th at 6:30 pm. This will mark the ninth Super Bowl appearance in team history and the seventh in the Belichick era alone. You have two weeks to make your party plans ... GO !!!

Great job, A.P.W.U., and thank you National Labor Relations Board !!! The Postal Service's marriage with Staples has hit the rocks. Bloomberg News has the story right here.