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What's A Grievance | 3.5
16 Plays2 months ago
On this short mid-week episode, we speak on what is an actual grievance in the postal service. There seems to be a lot of confusion on what is a grievance and what is not. On this short episode we aim to clear that up and point you in the right direction.
#postalbluepodcast #nalc #apwu #mailcarriers #postoffice
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Transcript
Introduction & Podcast Promotion
00:00:04
Speaker
Welcome to another Amazing Studios session. Subscribe to the Postal Blue Podcast on all streaming platforms and check out Amazing Studios on YouTube for video content. Also follow the Postal Blue Podcast community on X, formerly known as Twitter. We appreciate all the support we're getting and thanks for listening.
Purpose of the Episode
00:00:25
Speaker
What's going on everybody. This is your boy LA styles aka ice. Excuse my voice. It is late. But I did have a message sent to me about addressing this issue just for clarification purposes. This is not a full episode.
00:00:41
Speaker
Right. This is not a full episode. This is a point five joint. Excuse me. This is a point five. Right. This is informational and educational purposes in between a full episode. Right. These are short stories. Right. So and it's keeping it short. This is addressing what's a grievance. Right. You have a misunderstanding between possibly on the curious on the craft side. My bad.
00:01:10
Speaker
On the craft side, on management side as well, but in this particular case, we're speaking about the craft side.
Navigating the NALC Website & Importance of Information
00:01:17
Speaker
Not everything is a grievance, right? I'm going to read you something from the nalc.org website. You can go over to the nalc.org website. I will say this.
00:01:32
Speaker
The site seems kind of too much. It seems like it has a lot going on and I can't find things when I want it. You guys might be having that issue as well, especially if you knew, but it's over there. So when we address certain things, especially especially if it's out of the contract, we will try to tell you where you can get it from or where you can go directly to to see it or read it for yourself. OK, going forward.
00:01:56
Speaker
We will give you guys that information. I apologize if we've came across any of that already without giving you where you can find that information for yourself. Right. Knowing is half the battle. Right. So I don't ever want you to personally take our word for for its goal. You know what I'm saying? So that's something that we're going to do going forward. If I give you something out of the contract,
00:02:25
Speaker
I'm going to tell you where we're going to tell you where you can find it at in the contract.
00:02:31
Speaker
right for yourself. So we're going to start adding that to to the shows. If you're picking something directly out of the contract, that's that you guys can go
Understanding Grievance Procedures
00:02:41
Speaker
to. OK, so directly on NALC dot org, it says, what is a grievance? And it's going to sound like kind of like legal jargon, jargon a little bit. You know what I'm saying? Lawyer talk. I will break it down very simple after this. We're going to try to keep this short. All right. Very short.
00:03:01
Speaker
All right, what is the greetings? This is on the NALC.org. Make sure you go check it out NALC.org. There is a one, I'm gonna read one too, but the other craft is because there's a general one that's on the APWU. Matter of fact, let me let me go read that one first.
00:03:16
Speaker
I'ma read that one first. APWU.org, right? If everybody know, all of the crafts are under the APWU. There's a lot of things in our contracts that's very, that's either the exact same or extremely similar, right? Of course there's differences, key differences, because our job descriptions are different. But there's a lot of things that go for everybody across the board, right? So know the difference.
00:03:45
Speaker
Right, so on the APWU.org website, right?
00:03:49
Speaker
This is called a Grievous procedure, but it has the base, the base of what the Grievous is at the top part. Well, a little bit after the top part. And I go into what it say on the NALC part. Grievous procedure, Article 15, but we're not going to go through the whole procedure and let y'all, and let y'all feel like y'all need that information. But that would typically be for stewards. I mean, I guess it could be for
00:04:15
Speaker
I'm going to go through the procedure too. Article 15 of the Collective Bargaining Agreement governs the grievance procedure between the APWU and the Postal Service. A grievance is defined in Article 15
00:04:36
Speaker
as a dispute difference, disagreement, or complaint between the parties related to wages, hours, and conditions of employment. That definition is very broad. You should never let a postal supervisor or manager tell you that you don't have a grievance. If you have questions about whether or not you have a grievance, you should request union time
00:05:05
Speaker
from your immediate supervisor to meet with a local steward. The grievous procedure consists of four steps. Step one, where an individual meets and discusses the issue with the supervisor. Step two, where a union official meets a postal service official.
00:05:24
Speaker
if the issue was not resolved at step one. Step three, where a national APWU representative meets with an area postal official if resolution does not occur at step two. And step four, finally binding arbitration in front of a neutral arbitrator selected jointly by the parties to hear the grievance. So if you ever hear that someone said we send it up at whatever step that you send it up at is going to the next step.
00:05:54
Speaker
Right, those are the four steps. So if you're gonna fight something all the way it has to it's going up those four steps if there's not more But if this is up to date, this is going up those four steps. Okay, cool. 60 seconds pass What does it grief is we're back on the NAOC org. Okay
00:06:10
Speaker
Article 15 Section 1 of the National Agreement provides the following definition of a Grievous. A Grievous is defined as a dispute, difference, disagreement, or complaint between the parties related to wages.
00:06:32
Speaker
hours and conditions of employment. A grievance shall include, but is not limited to, the complaint of an employee or of the union which involves the interpretation, application of, or compliance with, the provisions of this agreement or any local memorandum of understanding not in conflict with this agreement.
00:06:58
Speaker
article 15.1 says forth a broad definition of a grievance. This means that most work-related disputes may be pursued through the grievance slash arbitration procedure
00:07:11
Speaker
The language recognizes that most grievances will involve the national agreement or a local memorandum of understanding. Other types of disputes may be handled within the grievous procedure.
00:07:38
Speaker
Right. Matter of fact, let's include directly because it's kind of part of alleged violations of postal handbooks and manuals. Article 19 provides that those postal handbooks and manual provisions directly related to wages, hours or working conditions are enforceable as though they were part of the national agreement. Changes to handbook and manual provisions directly relating to wages, hours or working conditions may be made by management at the national level.
00:08:08
Speaker
and may not be inconsistent with the national agreement, right? NAOC may challenge such proposed changes at the national level. Locally developed policies may not vary from national established handbook and manual provision. This is what we're going to do. Right. So to break that down, right.
00:08:34
Speaker
There's an agreement, right? Talk about the contract. There's an agreement negotiated between the Postal Service and the APWU, right? And the APWU has multiple unions under its umbrella, right? Including in this instance, the NALC, right? Which is the representation for carriers.
Negotiation & Contract Signing
00:08:56
Speaker
OK, so the carriers have a they own individual contract with the postal with the Postal Service and the clerks have their own contract. The truck drivers have their own contract and mail handlers have their own contract. I don't know what's going on with my voice right now. Excuse me. So. Simply put, both sides had to sit down to a in the table at a table and negotiate terms.
00:09:23
Speaker
What they want, what they don't want, what they willing to go for, what they willing to not go for. Regular, typical negotiation BS, you know what I'm saying? Cool. Then when the two sides came to something suitable for both that they can work with, they signed it. That's the contract, right? In that it breaks down, between that and the M, it breaks down. For everything that they agreed upon, it pretty much breaks down
00:09:54
Speaker
how you're supposed to go about doing things, such as overtime. It addresses overtime and how you can give out overtime. Then there's a detailed version that breaks down exactly how overtime's supposed to go, right? And it's like that for every single thing that we agreed upon that was settled in the contract between us two. So it's long pause if need be, right? So
00:10:21
Speaker
A grievance is when that's suspected of being violated. Anything in there is suspected of being violated. Now you can file a grievance just like you can file a lawsuit in real life. You can suit anybody, right? And say, I got a lawsuit on Donald Trump.
00:10:40
Speaker
That don't mean you gonna win your lawsuit. That don't mean you got a good case. That don't mean anything just cause you sue somebody just cause you can do it, right? So yes, you can file a grievance or attempt to file a grievance for anything, but everything is not a grievance.
00:10:56
Speaker
It has to be a violation of the contract. Everything, let me tell you, is in the contract. Even dignity and respect covers a lot. That's in the contract. Dignity and respect is what it's called. It's in the contract. You could just use whatever search engine you look in and look up USPS dignity and respect, right? I'm not mistaken, which I'm pretty sure I'm not, but let's just say I could be because there's always a chance.
Defining Grievance & Workplace Respect
00:11:21
Speaker
Look up USPS dignity and respect. I'm pretty sure it's in all of our contracts under the APW. We have to treat each other and talk to each other a certain way. And if we don't, and if we do not, if you want to use profanity, if you want to yell, if you want to, um, if you want to be different, use disrespectful term terminology, if you want to, um, be little, be mean people or the workroom floor, you violate dignity and respect.
00:11:51
Speaker
Right, you violate dignity and respect, therefore you just called the grievance, or whoever it was just called the grievance, somebody could file that, a grievance. Why? Because now you create a hostile work environment for one, and, which is an EEO offense as well, but.
00:12:07
Speaker
you uh you violate the contract by having a hostile work environment and we can't have a hostile work environment one and two dignity and respect you use calling people out of their names or the floor whatever the case is and you can't do that right that's a grievance you cannot follow grievance just because you don't like
00:12:24
Speaker
what someone says. They didn't curse at you, they didn't yell at you, they didn't use disrespectful terms, intentionally demean you or anything of that nature. That's not a grievance because you don't like how management gave you overtime or how they said, hey man, you got two hours on 91. I said, man, I don't like you just because you feel some type of way. I mean, I don't like how the way she said that, man, I don't follow a grievance. That's not a grievance.
00:12:51
Speaker
Right. So know what a grievance is. Typically, if I'm not mistaken, and I'm going to keep saying that because anything's possible. If I'm not mistaken, it's any violation, violation of the actual contract, of the actual agreement, the national agreement.
00:13:10
Speaker
That's that's an actual grievance. That's something that you can file paperwork on and win Because he has a grievance other net you're just following the grievance just to be following the grievance And again, if you don't know what a grievance is or you think you might have a grievance and not sure
00:13:25
Speaker
versus jumping out the window, ask for store time if you're on the clock and talk to your steward, if they have time that day or the next day or whatever the case is. Or if you and your steward crew are very cordial and they don't mind talking about that type of stuff in their free time, call them up or text them an ax. You know what I'm saying? That's how I learned a lot.
00:13:50
Speaker
I'm gonna shout out Rob from when I was a CCA. I think he was at West Milwaukee at the time. And I used to text Rob a lot when I was a CCA. And it was things that I thought was grievances, right? And I was wrong about. Working over this, working on that, so on, so on, so on. So I thought was grievances.
00:14:12
Speaker
but they weren't. Now there's some things, there's a lot of things though at the time there were grief that was grievances. And I learned what those things was. And although Rob might've got tired of me contacting him or texting him. You know what I'm saying? I learned and I'm thankful that he did give me information. That's what started me in really learning to...
00:14:37
Speaker
Getting the ball rolling with me to learn more about figuring out the contract stuff. And then that's what also prompted me because I'm not the only one that had questions. I wasn't really asking for me a lot of the time. I'm asking because I'm seeing things going on and we unsure. Am I supposed to have a story at the time? Right. So that's why I try to give the information as well, no matter what side I'm on, because I remember
00:15:01
Speaker
how I felt when I didn't have the resources to know if I was being violated or not. And Mike can tell you, we got violated a lot. We missed so many grievances back in our CCA days of the two years. It was crazy when I have an in-house tour because we was doing the most. Right. But again, I think Rob and everybody else that
00:15:29
Speaker
that I talked to with his mostly Rob. So definitely shout out Rob. I learned a lot from him. And again, that's what got the ball rolling with me to learn more and more and more. And just ask, man. Just ask. Don't be afraid to ask. Always ask questions. We humans, we assume a lot. And again, we do get emotional, especially with some of us being overly emotional, especially if you are CCA or PTF.
00:15:58
Speaker
Nowadays, you really won't know until something happens. But when you think something might have happened that it shouldn't have, talk to your store, reach out, get the information, pay your dues, or if you don't pay your dues,
00:16:17
Speaker
If you want to learn more or be more involved, go to your union meetings, right? Typically happen once a month, probably different days of the month for different branches in different cities, different states, things of that nature.
00:16:34
Speaker
go to your union meetings. Contact me, Stuart, get the information. Sometimes your safety captains also know a lot of information.
Guidance on Seeking Advice & Role of Safety Captains
00:16:41
Speaker
Shout out safety captains out there. Shout out stewards out there. Shout out supervisors that also give the information as well. Shout out managers if there's any out there that give the information as well to their new hires.
00:16:56
Speaker
Right. This is how we keep our retention up and we retain employees, which we desperately need right now. Right. So that's all I got to say about that. Again, not everything is a grievance. Not everything is a grievable offense. You can file the grievance, you know what I'm saying, if you want to. But
00:17:16
Speaker
If it's not an actual violation, then I don't see anything happening from it. You know what I'm saying? It don't make sense for something to happen from it if it wasn't a violation. Again, longest, if you guys are being respectful, they're not, again, I say you on the craft side, longest management, not calling you out your name, typically demeaning you, using a certain type of language, belittling you, and things of that nature.
00:17:42
Speaker
it's most likely not a grievance just because you don't like that person which typically means we are emotionally invested in a situation and we already got something against that person because we usually got built up whatever animosity for whatever dealings past dealings you guys have so now every time they talk to you you feel some type of way i think i said on another episode that
00:18:03
Speaker
Management can give you instructions. They can't ask you questions. They can't talk to you. It still is a job. You know what I'm saying? You still do have somebody to report to in a sense. So you can't make that personal. You can't make that personal. You're going to dread coming to work every day if you attempt to make that personal.
00:18:22
Speaker
Right. Learn how to disconnect that and then follow the black and white. Follow the guidelines. Put your paperwork in or ask questions first. Get the information and then if you got something legit, then put your paperwork in. Okay. Violations of the contract.
00:18:41
Speaker
Violation is a contract. Typically, if you don't know what's in the contract, you might not know what a violation of the contract is, the national agreement. Check with the stewards. So again, sometimes you can check with the safety captains. A lot of safety captains are almost like stewards in a sense, in a sense, right? They know information. Even things with safety is an agreement, right? They can violate safety and that'll be a grievance.
00:19:08
Speaker
Right, so all your everything is in the contract. It writes down. It's notated what was what house up to supposed to be what's supposed to be done and how things are supposed to be done. Anytime it's not on that schedule, then most likely it's agreed. And the guy say most likely because a lot of stuff determined, but most likely. And I'm like 98 98 percent sure it's going to be agreed. I'm just leaving it 2 percent open as a window.
00:19:34
Speaker
But yeah, if they violate the contract, it's a grievance. But know what they're violating or acts. If you feel like you're violated, acts. If you feel like you violated. I repeated that for a reason. With that, I want to keep this short. I'm gonna get up out of here. Y'all have a good one, man. This is the middle of the week. I'm gonna try to get this up
Conclusion & Listener Engagement
00:19:53
Speaker
for Thursday. For you guys, it is Wednesday night, 8.14. Y'all make sure y'all subscribe to the Postal Blue podcast on all, excuse me,
00:20:02
Speaker
Look, and I'm up late at night doing this, man. My voice is trash right now. I'd have had like over a 12 hour day. So I'm crazy. And that's of work, not just whatever being up. So make sure you follow the postal blue podcast. Make sure you are on all streaming platforms. If you use the foundation app, foundation,
00:20:23
Speaker
has an app, you know what I'm saying? You can actually earn Satoshis, which is the smallest form of cryptocurrency with Bitcoin, smallest increments of Bitcoin. Satoshis, you can earn Satoshis listening to podcasts. So you can earn Satoshis listening to us, because we're over there, post the Blue Podcast on Foundation, along with all other streaming services. Right? Y'all go do that.
00:20:47
Speaker
Make sure you share. Sharing is caring. Check us out on YouTube. Amazing Studios. All the podcasts will be over there as well under Amazing Studios on that channel. Subscribe to Ice Coffee. Subscribe to Unjustified Behavior. With that, y'all have a good one. I'm about to chop this up. It's 1130 at night, and I'm out of here. Peace. Subscribe to the podcast for all future episodes, and make sure to share with someone.
00:21:14
Speaker
We appreciate everyone, and there's a lot more to come.