2022 No. 8 – September 16, 2022
You are reading the eighth Contract Update produced and distributed by the NPMHU during the course of 2022 negotiations. These updates, along with the Union’s magazine and monthly bulletins, will keep mail handlers throughout the country informed and involved in the issues raised during this round of bargaining.
In accordance with mutually agreed upon ground rules, on September 6, 2022, the NPMHU Negotiations Team and USPS representatives turned in their last non-economic proposed changes to the National Agreement. After nearly three months of exchanging proposals, and some counterproposals, both parties are discussing the minute details of their proposals.
Taken in combination, the USPS and the NPMHU have submitted more than one hundred proposed changes to the contract. Most of the proposals have been submitted by the NPMHU. With this many proposals, both parties are sure to be busy for the coming days.
What’s Happening Now?
Though the non-economic proposal deadline has passed, negotiations on this new contract are far from over. Both parties are spending the coming days negotiating the finer points of the new contract round-the-clock. Taking up residence in a local Washington, DC hotel, both parties will spend countless hours at the bargaining table and in small-group meetings hoping to reach tentative agreements on key issues.
Beyond the negotiations of the Main Table and continuing subcommittees, the small groups continue vital work in making sure that all the intricate details of each proposal are well understood and acknowledged. While they are certainly the less visible portion of bargaining, the subcommittees oversee a multitude of important topics and issues including: 204Bs, Article 16, Article 11, and MHAs.
During intense bargaining, the NPMHU Negotiations Team continues to advocate for the changes that have already been proposed. Of most importance, the union negotiators are insisting that their counterparts from the USPS come to the table prepared to bargain in good faith. Such bargaining should include agreement on reasonable proposals beneficial to both parties. President Hogrogian, as chief spokesperson for the NPMHU, continuously pushes for tentative agreements.
The NPMHU hopes that USPS will come to the final sessions of bargaining with an open mind and a genuine will to sign a complete contract. Notwithstanding this expectation, to this point USPS representatives are maintaining their air of resistance and lack of transparency. Even when proposals would have no adverse impact on the Postal Service, or would be beneficial to all parties, USPS negotiators refuse to come to tentative agreements.
This entire week, negotiators have gathered daily to discuss contract language. With the added attendance of Acting VP of Labor Relations Thomas J. Blum of the USPS negotiations team, bargaining has ramped up to full speed, and the NPMHU Negotiations Team has spent countless hours over the past week to ensure that all proposals are duly considered and discussed.
Beyond the Main Table, President Hogrogian and other NPMHU representatives are meeting with Deputy PMG and Chief Human Resources Officer Doug Tulino to discuss the various economic proposals that the NPMHU has submitted. While no agreements have yet been reached, President Hogrogian has noted that these meetings have been encouraging.
As the contract deadline approaches, the NPMHU remains more prepared than ever to settle the new contract. It hopes that USPS will come back to the bargaining table genuinely prepared to reach an agreement. At all times, the NPMHU Negotiations Team remains committed to do what is best for mail handlers, the NPMHU, the Postal Service, and the American mailing public.
