August 5-9, 2024 Boston Convention and Exhibition Center
be counted. We steadfastly did this again in 2022. These were two of the three highest turnout elections in decades, along with the 2018 midterm elections. They were also two of the elections where the most people had access to mailed ballots. In 2020, shortly after Postmaster General Louis Dejoy took over, we asked him to establish a joint task force with us to prepare for election mail. This task force was created in 2020 and was re-established prior to the 2022 elections. The group has addressed issues, established extraordinary measures necessary to handle election mail, and played a big role in the Postal Service’s success in each of the last two elec- tions. The task force has been meet- ing to discuss the 2024 election to take steps to ensure that success is duplicated in 2024. A major theme that came up throughout the 2022 convention was that we cannot rebuild the labor movement without rebuild- ing our democracy, and vice versa. Expanding and protecting voting rights ensures that every worker has a chance to let their voice be heard, both at the ballot box and on the workroom floor. Voting pro- letter carrier and pro-worker politi- cians into office makes reforms like the PSRA and PRO Act possible. As we look ahead a few months and prepare for an election that in many ways seems like a repeat of 2020, we will again help to de- fend democracy, delivering ballots to ensure every vote gets counted. But we must also commit to vote ourselves. No matter whom we vote for or why, it is essential that we recommit ourselves to democracy by participating in it. Registering to vote, educating ourselves on the issues and casting our ballots are essential to this commitment. Please urge your families, friends and neighbors to vote as well. The process is just as important as the results. What is voting if not an em- bodiment of empowered solidarity?
will aggressively work to educate all NALC members on the importance of contributing to the PAC. I know our members always do the right thing, and I’m convinced that we have an opportunity to rapidly grow the LCPF through education. This will allow us to amplify and expand our influence on debates that affect the wages, benefits and working conditions of letter carriers, as well as the health of the Postal Service. It will also allow us to fight for other important legislation, in- cluding the Protecting the Right to Organize Act and other labor law reforms, as well as expand vote-by- mail and strengthen American de- mocracy. These efforts are essential to improve the ability of unions to grow and to raise living standards for all workers across America. They are also essential for the pursuit of economic and racial justice. Our legislative and political orga- nizers (LPOs) have been focused on growing our power through LCPF. Currently, 88 percent of NALC mem- bers do not give to LCPF. Imagine our influence if even a quarter of those members chose to give. Our LPOs have been and will be traveling to our branches nation- wide to execute their main goal— signing members up for LCPF. We are stronger together, and we must unite to increase LCPF participation so we can deliver results for letter carriers. Defending democracy At our last convention, we spoke extensively about the crisis of de- mocracy we were facing. Voting rights were under attack, and it felt like even the most factual piece of information could be politicized to an extreme. And the country had just witnessed one of the most divi- sive elections of our lifetimes, and its aftermath at the Capitol. As letter carriers, we not only wit- nessed the election, we played a vi- tal important role in making sure ev- ery voter had access to a ballot and that those ballots were received to
Activist A NEWSLETTER FOR BRANCH LEADERS OF THE NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF LETTER CARRIERS Vol. 31, No. 1 Winter 2024 Brian L. Renfroe, President NALC
A message about the Activist from President Brian L. Renfroe I am excited to introduce the revitalized version of the NALC Activist.
This educational publication is de- signed specifically for branch officers and stewards and includes important information to help you succeed in repre-
INSIDE THIS ISSUE USPS by the Numbers .....................3 Bulletin boards ............................... 7 The foundation of OWCP related grievances...................................9 Managing the stress of leadership .. 10 Does your branch have an HBR and MBAR? ...................................... 12 MDA fundraising and strategic planning.................................... 13 What does the successful steward do besides file grievances? ............ 15 senting our members. The Activist will be published quarterly and will provide you with the tools and knowledge you need to build stronger, more effective branches. We will cover workplace issues, contract questions and the latest information for local leaders. The new and improved Activist complements the plethora of resourc- es already available for our members, including various materials on nalc.org, The Postal Record , the NALC Bulletin , NALC’s podcast “You Are the Current Resident,” NALC’s social media accounts and NALC’s mobile app. I encourage you to utilize all these resources as you work to educate our members. This publication is created to help you. If you have feedback or suggestions for future Activist content, please contact us at social@nalc.org. Thank you for all you do for the mem- bers of NALC.
Photo: Jcomp/Freepik
Getting ready for local negotiations
W ith national contract negoti- ations still underway, branch leaders should be making preparations for bargaining local mem- orandums of understanding (LMOUs). Whether a negotiated national agreement between NALC and USPS is reached or is awarded by an arbitrator, LMOU negotia- tions will likely occur approximately two to three months after the date of ratifica- tion or award. Regardless of which way a new national agreement is reached, there are things that can be done in the next few months to enable branches to be better prepared when the time for LMOU bargaining arrives. Select LMOU committees Now is a good time to begin setting up branch LMOU committees. How many committees you will need depends
upon the size of your branch and how many installations it represents. Smaller branches representing a single instal- lation might be able to get by with one committee, whereas a large branch may want to establish separate committees for each of its installations. At this point, the function of the com- mittee is to do the important background work and information gathering that will be used to develop bargaining positions. The members chosen for these commit- tees are not necessarily the same ones who will actually sit at the negotiating table during the bargaining sessions, but they may be. Committee members should have a solid understanding of the current LMOU and the bargaining history behind it, so it may be necessary to have a few
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The steward’s right to information T he National Agreement gives shop stewards the right, in the course of grievance investigation and process- and through an unfair labor practice charge filed with the National Labor Relations Board.
The National Agreement and the JCAM clearly explain the union’s right to infor- mation and management’s obligation to produce information promptly upon request. Note that the union has the right to review management documents and to obtain copies. Continued on page 4
ing, to both review and obtain copies of rele- vant information held by the Postal Service. The right to information is found primarily in Articles 17.3 and 31.3. In addition, the union has a legal right to employer informa- tion under the National Labor Relations Act. So, the right to information may be en- forced both within the grievance procedure
The NALC Activist
32 The Postal Record August 2024
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