NEWSLETTER OF THE NJI&BMC BRANCH OF LOCAL 300

                                        “LETS TURN IT AROUND”             

 

   VOLUME 17, NO.7                                                        80 COUNTY ROAD J.C.N.J 7097

   MAY 15, 2001                                                                (201) 653-1767, IN HOUSE 5082

   GRADY R. FITZGERALD, BRANCH PRESIDENT        FAX NUMBER  (201) 714-4869

                             BRANCH WEB SITE ADDRESS                                               

                           http://www.l300nji-bmcbranch.org/

 

FACILITY NEWS

 

 

    IT IS WITH DEEP REGRETS THAT LOCAL 300 ANNOUNCES

THE PASSING OF LONG TIME LOCAL 300 REPRESENTATIVE WALLY MERWIN

 

Brother Merwin served the Union in many positions, Shop Steward, Chief Steward and was a long time New Jersey State Representative who in that capacity served on both the Local Executive Board and the Local Union Council. He was an elected Delegate to Mail Handler Conventions in 1992,1996, 2000 and was also an elected Delegate to the Laborers Convention in 1996.All in all; Wally was an active Representative for over 25 years. He will be sorely missed by all of us.

 

Let me comment a little about Wally the man and Representative who we all knew and loved. Wally was a family man who raised three children by himself. He was one of the most popular and knowledgeable Representatives that our Local ever had. If we can look at in football terms he had the tenacity of one of his hero’s, Giant linebacker Lawrence Taylor. Wally defended the members, much like Taylor defended the goal line and like Taylor, Wally always made the tackle. When one of our members was in a jam they always called for Wally, fully confident, that he would do the best job that could be done. Wally commanded the respect and admiration of both the members and management.

 

If you looked at Wally, from the standpoint of baseball he would be called, a go to man, the guy you called upon, when you really needed the win. He was our Mariano Rivera, Joe Torre and Don Zimmer all in one package.

His knowledge of the contract and his unique ability to pull a win out of what, looked like a sure loser. This ability made him a legend in his own time. As the Branch President at the Bulk I often relied on Wally’s knowledge and opinions. When Wally told me I was wrong or had made a mistake I always took that seriously and we sat down and discussed it. While we didn’t always agree we gave it some serious discussion. Sometimes Wally was right and sometimes I was right. Sometimes we worked out something were we could both agree.

Wally was well respected and by far the most popular man in the Bulk.

In addition to his knowledge of Union affairs, Wally was also a master of many subjects. When I wanted to buy a gold bracelet for my daughter for Christmas Wally brought me to some place in China town. We walked in and the girl behind the counter yelled Wally!!  Ran out and gave him a hug asked to see her favorite tattoo Wally quickly rolled up his sleeve and I got a great price on the bracelet. Wally knew something about everything from electrical work, plumbing, questions about your car, he installed and took down pools, cut down trees and if a member ever needed a ride Wally was always the first one to offer, when a member needed a ride, even if it meant going way out of his way. What ever you needed to purchase Wally knew where to get the best price.

 

 The man was nothing short of remarkable and I say that seriously. He never ceased to amaze you. I have known Wally for about 25 yrs and over those yrs I have never heard (with the exception of his political rivals) speak a bad word about him. Everyone loved Wally, both on and off the job. When Wally got sick both the American Legion, where Wally was very active threw a party for him and filled the house a week later, The Friends of Wally Merwin with only two weeks to plan, organize and run the party turned out approximately 250 people to honor Brother Merwin.

 

As far as Wally ‘s lifestyle he had a blast over the 25 years of knowing him I can honestly say that he fully enjoyed life, while it wasn’t always easy for him and like all of us he had his hard times but you never heard a complaint out of him. For years he worked two jobs, ran the “Wally Mart”, took a shot on a business, drove a school bus for years he did whatever he had to do to provide for his family.

 

We partied hard over the years in Stella’s bar. As many, of us can attest to. We had fun and hours of long nights filled with fun and laughter. Wally gave us many good memories to remember. He was always quick witted and quick to crack a joke, he had a lot of Ralph from the Honeymooners in him. Especially, if you were wrong he was the first to let you know it. But ever if you were wrong he usually won your case for you.

At the American legion he was the same was the same way. Liked by all and always giving of himself for others and liked and loved by all there. He partied hard and was always the center of attention. A fun guy, a fun life. A full life, but never the less a life cut short by that dreaded disease Cancer. And we all know and have heard the saying the good die young. This was a classic example of this

BROTHER WALLY WE WILL MISS YOU!!!

REST IN PEACE BROTHER MERWIN OUR GOOD FRIEND!!

Grady R. Fitzgerald NJI-BMC Branch President

Reflecting the sentiments of our members and Wally’s friends.

     BRANCH PRESIDENTS REPORT TO THE MEMBERS

 

Sometimes we all have to take a few minutes and look around where we work, think about all the changes taking place. Think back of how the place used to look and how much mail there was back then and look at how much mail we have today. Sometimes we have to read the papers, talk to our friends and neighbors and see what’s happening in other industries. Things are changing all over. Nothing is like it was ten or even five years ago. You may find that adjustments need to be made. Some things are better, but most are worse. That’s life.

 

 Now you can spend all of your time complaining and blaming others or you can see if there is anything you can do to make things a little better. Sometimes things are happening so fast and in so many areas that you may be overwhelmed and you may feel helpless. We live in a very fast paced society. Many times the television says one thing and the newspaper says something entirely different. Sometimes you don’t know what to believe. Then of course, there are the know-it-alls on the workroom floor who profess to know everything. There also are the rumormongers who take pleasure in spreading misleading and false information. Unfortunately, at the Bulk we have more then our share of all of the above. Then, there are those of us who on occasion make mistakes. This is something that we all have done on occasion. Are any of us perfect? Are any of us without fault? Sure we have a few who profess to be both perfect and faultless. My point in all of this is simply to show you that no one is perfect and we all make mistakes on occasion. As adults we should always try and put things in perspective. It’s always easy to point the finger and blame others. All that does is make you angry and often accomplishes very little. On the other hand you can approach things from a rational standpoint and ask if the problem can be corrected and you will find that in many cases things can get corrected.

 

Lets take the recent casual award. Were some mistakes made? Most definitely! Can they be corrected? We will certainly do our best to make sure that they are. Will bashing the Union help? No! Will patience help? Most definitely! I can tell you that the Union, both here at the Bulk and in the NYC office have been working feverishly to get these problems corrected and are very close to doing so. So please just be a little more patient and we will get everything straightened out. It was out hard work that won the grievance in the first place. We made some mistakes basically because three pages of names failed to be received by Postal Management when they were faxed to them from the NY office. However, that problem, as well as any others, is being corrected. So please have patience.

 

Most people on the floor have no idea what Union representatives have to contend with on a daily basis. They just come to work hit in, put in their hours and go home. They don’t have to worry about light duty people being sent home (it isn’t them, so who cares) or jobs being abolished or flexi workers getting shorted hours. Or what affect the drop in mail volume will have on craft jobs. The Union Representatives, have to worry about that! If a manager disapproves their leave slip they don’t blame the manager, they blame the Union. If the fire alarm system is inoperable or malfunctioning they don’t blame management, they blame the Union. Somehow everything is always the Unions fault. Often times these are the same people who fail to follow the Unions advice. If we ask them to contact their Congressional Representatives, they tell us what’s the use? Then when Congress shafts them they say why didn’t the Unions do something about it. If we ask them for a donation to the Unions Political Action Committee there’s always an excuse.

 

Well let me give you a little advice, those who always have excuses, blame others, bash the Union and refuse to do their fair share by paying dues and are only interested in themselves will all wind up in the same place, the unemployment line. If we continue to fight amongst ourselves and remain divided we are playing right into managements hands.

 

United we stand; divided we fall isn’t just a savvy Union saying it’s a fact of life. Read the article below. I’ve been telling you about the threat of the presort industry for years. How many of you have written or called your National leaders about it? Well don’t worry pretty soon you’ll have plenty of time on your hands. Maybe if half the energy that was put into the complaints about the casual award were put into complaints about the presort threat maybe we wouldn’t have to worry about it. Ah what the hell, it’s all the Unions fault anyway. Right?     I’m just venting a little Brothers and Sisters. I see the big picture and I’ve been trying to get you to see it too because it isn’t pretty.

 

                                                               Grady R. Fitzgerald

                                                         NJI-BMC Branch President

*                      *                        *                             *                           *                          *

CONTRACT RIGHTS

 

USING ANNUAL LEAVE DURING CHOICE VACATION PERIOD

     Can mailhandlers use leave during the choice vacation period when they don’t have a bid vacation? YES! In Article 30 of the contract, the Local Memorandum of Understanding Item: C states Singular or multiple day incidental annual leave shall be granted, at least until the specified vacation percent for the period is reached. (If there are vacancies on the posted vacation list.) This shall not bar request for individual day (s) thereof from being submitted for approval on a day-by-day basis. Annual leave for part of a day should be acted upon as expeditiously as possible by immediate supervisor….  []

 

LOCKER INSPECTIONS ARE TAKING PLACE

 

IF YOU HAVE ANY PERSONAL ITEMS POSTED IN YOU LOCKER THAT ARE PRIVATE YOU SHOULD REMOVE THEM AS ALL LOCKERS ARE BEING INSPECTED BY MANAGEMENT ALONG WITH REPRESENTATIVES OF BOTH UNIONS.

 

                        NEWSLETTER OF THE NJI&BMC BRANCH OF LOCAL 300

                                        “LETS TURN IT AROUND”             

 

   VOLUME 17, NO.6                                                      80 COUNTY ROAD J.C.N.J 7097

   APRIL 21, 2001                                                           (201) 653-1767, IN HOUSE 5082

   GRADY R. FITZGERALD, BRANCH PRESIDENT        FAX NUMBER  (201) 714-4869

BRANCH WEB SITE ADDRESS

http://www.l300nji-bmcbranch.org/

 

FACILITY NEWS

 

As most of you have probably heard management is seriously considering a Three Tour Operation in the Bulk building. We believe it will happen. When?? We have not yet been officially notified but we believe that it will happen sometime after May of this year. I’m hesitant to toss out any of the many scenarios that have or are being considered. To say that Management will probably go one way will only add to the confusion and rumors. I will tell you that as soon as I hear what they plan to do I will get a Voice out that day. To let you, the members, know ASAP. I understand that this is a very important issue to many of our members as we manage our lives, childcare, family obligations, and other jobs and so forth around our hours of work. Any disruption of our hours of work will no doubt have an affect on our lives. The Union will do anything that we can to keep such disruptions to a minimum. You must understand that the language in the National Agreement gives the Company broad latitude in how they run their operations. Any change of over an hour in any tour requires that Management negotiate with the Union. During such negotiations we will argue that employees currently holding bids be allowed to move to the new hours.

 

Two small casual grievances were resolved at Step III of the grievance procedure. In each case people on the ODL will receive a little less then an hour at the overtime rate. These grievances were prepared by Local 300 Vice President Paul Hogrogian and processed by Foreign Tour III Shop Steward Mike Jacobus. I was told management was going to convert ten flexi Mail Handlers on the 24^th. March. But they decided to wait until May when they’ll convert the thirty-five (35) that they owe us at one time. The reason I’m reluctant to comment on discussions regarding the proposed move to three tours or other matters is due to the inconsistencies in when it‘ll take place. What you’re told today can be totally changed tomorrow.  So as soon as we hear something concrete, hopefully have it on writing, I’ll immediately let you know.

 

While some people are quick to blame the Union for all the change that is taking place. Let me tell you we don’t like the changes any better then you do. But this is the real world and change is something that is going to take place whether you like it or not. All we can do is try and make sure that we get the best we can for our members and let you know about it as soon as we can. I believe we’re doing a good job under the circumstances getting the information to you as soon as we can.

 

If you have any questions you can always stop me when you see me-or-you can e-mail me from our web page, as some of you already have.

 

   CONGRATULATIONS TO ALL THE WINNING CANDIDATES!

    AND TO ALL OF YOU WHO CHOSE TO MAKE AN EFFORT TO VOTE IN OUR BRANCH’S FIRST ELECTIONS OF SHOP STEWARDS!!!

 

 

BULK TOUR II                                      BULK TOUR III

1. Andre Haynes   149                                 1. Tommy Reid                116

2. Charlie Price     125                                 2.  Craig Terry                 113

3. Tom Mullahey     84                                 3.  Draeke Waller            100

4. Robyn Lee           76                                 4.  John A. Helbig              88

5. Jeffrey Morgan    61                                 5.  Wally Merwin              83

6. Tony DeStefano   52                                 6.   Walter Washington    60

7. Gwen Green         48                                 7.   Matt McDonald          59

8. Jose Gonzalez       48                                 8.   Carolyn Serles            54

9. Wendy Mason      44                                  9.   Jimmy Phillips           37

10.Germaine Curry  43                               10.   Leroy Canton             31

11.Ralph Stafford     41                               11.    Monica Lewis            18

12 Gregory Cherico  37

13. Jerome Golden   27                               

                                                                         FOREIGN TOUR III

14. Patti Kiely          19                        

15. Brian Josephs    18                                 1. Al Conyers                      42

16. Alfrieda Bligen   10                                2. Mike Jacobus                  39

17. Mark Velger         5                                3. Lenora O’Neal                28

18.Deborah Hymes    5                                4. Jimmy Montagne            18

 

MILITARY TOUR II                              BULK TOUR I

1.Al Possiel                55                           Ray Conkle         11 yes   12 no

2.Kelly Rush              41

3. Ike Kohn                31                                      

                                                                     MILITARY TOUR III

4. Bob Anderson        27

5. Kevin O’Malley     14                          John McCarthy    10 yes      2 no

 

FOREIGN TOUR II

1. Dave Lake                          48yes    8no

2. Dave “Fritz” Iglesias         48yes   17no

3.Yolanda McCrea               46yes   10no

4. Rozalind Marino              45yes    13no

5. Steve Megargel                 41yes    16no

 

AND SPECIAL THANKS TO OUR ELECTION MONITORS. THEY DID A GREAT JOB RUNNING THE ELECTIONS FAIRLY AND ABOVE BOARD.  

Al Carlow, Mike Nielan, Linda Smith, Marty Valent and Bob DeVries, you did a great job!

 

The whole election process was a victory for our Union and a big step forward. It brought increased membership participation and responsibility and accountability of our stewards to you the members!

 

I will be recommending to Local President Larry Adams that the Alternate Stewards be named from the expressed wishes of the members and be appointed from the highest vote getters on each tour where we have alternate stewards.

I would also like to thank Larry for agreeing to honor the wishes of the members by promising to honor the results of the straw poll vote.