General Membership Meeting Minutes

Meeting was called to order at 7:00 PM at 918 Benjamin NE, Grand Rapids; meeting was opened with US Pledge of Allegiance and Invocation.

Roll Call of Officers:
Present:
Ray Novakoski, President
Richard Page, Executive Vice President
Sandy Henkel, Treasurer
Linda Norman, Associate Office Director
Jim Myszka, Maintenance Craft Director
Mike Long. Sergeant at Arms
Catherine Beemblossom, Acting Secretary
Absent:
Jim Sweeney
Scott Larabel, MVS Craft Director (Attending Training)
Bill Scutt, Clerk Craft Director

October General Membership Meeting Minutes accepted as typed and posted.

New Members:
Amy Sue Van Duinen, Clerk, Lowell.
Tammy Thompson, Clerk, Zeeland.
Nanette Wheeler, Clerk, Belmont.
Ed Smith, Clerk, Grand Rapids.
Dianne E. Wissman, Clerk, Grand Rapids.
Patricia Levine, Clerk, Grand Rapids.
Bills:
Fifth Third Bank, service charge for being over the limit for writing checks due to the "Big Check" disbursements.

Officer's Reports:
Treasurer's Report: Report read. Motion to accept. No discussion. Carried.

Steve Austin questioned the policy for the Treasurer's Report to be published in the Newsletter. Haven't seen it in quite a while. Sandy stated that she has missed the deadline and would take responsibility to be sure that in the future the report would be submitted to the Editor in time to be in the paper.

Associate Office Director's Report: Linda Norman reported on the success of Labor/Management meetings held in Holland, Grand Haven, and Comstock Park last month. Future meetings to be held at the other offices as soon as she can get them scheduled. Working very diligently on grievances. Heavy workload.

Maintenance Craft Director: Jim Myszka reported that the 916 tests had been administered. Management to fill three residual custodial positions. Three new ET and one new MPE positions have been posted. Ray Mulder will gone for the next three months on sick leave and has plans on retiring shortly after that. Dave Baldwin will fill his position while he is gone. Arbitration last week, Bill Scutt was the advocate and I felt that he did a great job on it.

Clerk Craft Director's Report: Catherine Beemblossom reported for Bill Scutt. Bill has been meeting with Dennis Creamens on the representative grievances from the "Big Posting" due to the restructuring. Those grievances were for having no primary duty assignment on the bid jobs, comments reading "other duties as assigned" and the absence of work clothes allowances on certain jobs. Meetings are going well. Nothing resolved at this time. Bill also wanted to remind everyone that "direct orders" given by management are to be followed unless it imposes on your safety. You can grieve the issue, but you must follow the direct order. Arbitrations are being lost on this subject. Also, we lost an arbitration for a removal due to attendance problems.

Legislative Report: Catherine Beemblossom reported for Jim Sweeney. Announcement to the membership to read Jim's article in this month's newsletter regarding the candidates running in the November 5th elections. Also, reminder for everyone to vote on November 5th.

Executive Vice President's Report: Postponed until the end of the meeting. Dick was called away on an emergency.

President's Report:
Thank you for sending Dick and myself to the President's Conference in Seattle, WA October 25-29. Training for the purpose of organizing and building local unions. Nationally there are 85,000 non-members within APWU bargaining units. Stated that within the Labor Movement the APWU files the most grievances. Requested that local union officials go through past grievances pending, to weed out some of the grievances that have become moot subjects in order to help unclog the system. Bill and myself have been in the process of doing this. Postal Automated Redirection System (PARS) is in the testing stages. CFS units could be affected by possibly eliminating 50% of the jobs. Lansing will be combined with Kalamazoo when the new PARS in place. We are slotted for a new low cost tray management system.

Big announcement at the Presidents Conference on Monday by President Bill Burrus. Contract extension to the year 2005 being discussed to include a 1.3 pay raise based on the 2003 base pay scales. No COLAs will be lost like they would if we were to arbitrate. Should we extend the contract it would put us one up on the Mail Handlers and Carriers and they would more than likely follow suit. Moratorium on excessing out of plants. Withholding of residual jobs already at a 500-mile radius could become nation wide. Negotiating the revision of Article 12 and rules of excessing into the extended contract. Also, looking at possible level adjustments in CFS Units as well as Maintenance. Burrus also stated that even if we do not get the extension there will probably be a memo for the purpose of excessing these employees into higher level jobs when the PARS is on line. Right now there are no level 4 clerk jobs for them to be excessed into. This would solve that problem. More information will be provided as negotiations continue. It was also stated at the conference that the travel for the national officers is being cut back in an effort to save money that is being lost due to the decrease in our membership both past and present. Therefore, we may not see them as much at state events. Another way of increasing revenue is being researched, and that is to find ways of making more money from building at Head Quarters, which currently generates about one million a year; and by improving the utilization of the health plan building. Another bill on postal reform will be forthcoming; and the first of next year a report is to be released on consolidating post offices throughout the nation. Next conference is being scheduled for March, in St. Louis.

In the home front we have been scheduled for quite a few arbitrations. I will be arbitrating in Flint this week and Bill has had two arbitrations last week and is scheduled for another in Flint this week. It is proposed that the Grand Rapids Bulk Mail unit will be receiving a new automated mail verification system (Merlin) in December. This machine will count and ensure that all mail pieces meet regulations and any rejected mail pieces would then be subject to increased postage. It will require a maintenance route. Should not cause us to lose any jobs in the clerk craft.

In closing, I remind you to get out and vote on Tuesday November 5th.

Committee Reports:
Cans for COPA: $42.00 turned in by Catherine Beemblossom from downtown. Bill Scutt turned in $38.00 dollars from the P-1 Annex. Total of $80.00.

Activities and Entertainment: Jenn Amos reported that the Casino trip went very well. No Christmas party this year. Committee has decided to give out twenty hams at the December General Membership meeting. Also, on December twelfth Ray will be dressing up as Santa Clause and visiting with the employees at the GMF, P-1 Annex and possibly the AMF. Details are still being worked out. Looking for more ideas for future events. Please write them down and direct them to Jennifer Amos at the GMF union office.

Dental Program: Mike long reported that open season is from October 15th until November 15th. Information in the union office and also on the WMAL web site.

Correspondence: None received.

Unfinished Business:
Motion by Austin, Henkel to accept the treasurer's report from last month without reading it. No discussion. Carried.

New Business:

Executive Board Recommendations:
To authorize the Health Plan Director eight (8) hours Leave Without Pay for Health Fair at the Post Office and eight (8) hours of LWOP for Other Federal Plan. Carried.

To pay for a new vacuum at a cost of $94.70 to be classified as office equipment for the union office on Benjamin. Discussion. Carried.

Motion by Austin, Hendrix to make it a policy to rebate union dues to the Retiree Chapter President beginning in 2002. Friendly amendment by Kramer to begin it for the year 2003 instead. Amendment accepted. Discussion. Carried.

Motion by Long, Amos to pay the Web Meister the monthly cost of Internet Access. Discussion. Carried.

Motion by Hundley, Austin to mail checks to members and non-members that were not picked up during the disbursement of the "Big Check". Discussion. Motion withdrawn by the maker.

Motion by Austin, Durbin to have the "Big Check" committee set up two more dates for disbursement of checks from the "Big Check". Friendly Amendment by Norman to have the dates be the next two General Membership meetings in December and January. Discussion. Call for the question to end debate. Carried. Original motion defeated.

Motion by Henkel, Norman to reimburse dues to John Alvin as he has transferred to the Mail Handler Craft. Discussion. Carried.

Motion by Henkel, Austin to have the local establish childcare at membership meetings at a cost of $2.00 to the member and to include a cost of $30.00 to the local for materials to keep the children entertained during the meetings. Friendly Amendment by Beemblossom to have the local establish a Committee for the purpose of coming up with a proposal for childcare during the meetings. Friendly amendment accepted. Discussion. Carried.

Motion by Hendrix, Austin for the local to establish a committee for the purpose of sending greetings and condolences to the members whenever it is appropriate on a regular basis. Discussion. Carried.

Motion by Austin, Beemblossom to extend the meeting until after the drawings. No Discussion. Carried.

Labor/Management
What position is Linda Jones currently holding? Rumor of 37 clerk positions being eliminated by December. Is there any truth in that?

Executive Vice President Report: Dick returned before the close of meeting to report on an accident that happened at the GMF earlier in the evening. A bread cart on one of the Bar Code Sorters was not properly bolted to the floor and becoming top heavy it tipped over on an employee pinning him to the machine. He was rushed to emergency at Butterworth Hospital where he was treated and released. He will be off work for a couple of days. Luckily nothing was broken or seriously damaged. Dick made sure that management stopped the operation until the bread cart could be securely fastened to the floor.

Drawings:
COPA: 25.00 to Dick Page; $25.00 to COPA.

Special drawing for ten turkeys: Amy Puhalski, Gordon Meredith, Jackie McKensie, Linda Norman, Dick Page, Rose Terrils, Ed Lesiewicz, Rick Hundley (donated his to Christmas family sponsored by the POWER Committee), George Hendrix, Sonya Burgers.

$10.00 Door Prizes: Steve Austin, Marilyn Bulsok, Don Kramer (donated his check to COPA) and John Myszka.

Meeting Adjourned at 9:13 PM.

Respectfully Submitted,

Catherine Beemblossom for
James Sweeney
Recording Secretary

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