The Collective Bargaining Agreement (union contract) between the American Postal Workers Union and the United States Postal Service covers the wages, hours, and working conditions of 200,000 postal workers. Our current contract was due to expire at midnight, September 20, 2024.
We opened bargaining with the Postal Service on June 25. Since then, we have met frequently to exchange proposals and make progress toward the good, new contract postal workers deserve. In the last week, the APWU and postal management were “locked down,” engaging in around-the-clock negotiating sessions at the “main table,” the “craft tables,” and in other committees.
During the “lock-down” there has been some modest progress on a number of issues affecting all our crafts, including job security, protecting bargaining unit work, and a narrowing of differences on other important items, including the economic package.
However, the APWU and management were unable to secure a negotiated agreement by midnight, September 20.
As expiration approached, your National Negotiating Committee (NNC) faced two options: either begin the process of mediation with the expectation that we would head to interest arbitration or seek mutual agreement with postal management to “stop the clock,” (meaning the contract does not expire on September 20) and continue negotiations for a period of time.
It was the decision of the NNC to “stop the clock” and continue bargaining. We have secured an agreement from management that the negotiators will meet at least once a week going forward. It is also the position of the NNC that we will reevaluate progress on a regular basis and invoke mediation if further negotiations are not productive.
This decision is similar to the one taken by the NNC in our previous round of bargaining in 2021, when we “stopped the clock” and continued negotiations. In 2021, we reached a tentative agreement in early December, which the membership later ratified with a strong 94 percent “yes” vote.
“The entire APWU negotiating team is united in our efforts to secure the good new contract that our members deserve,” said APWU Industrial Relations Director and Chief Spokesperson Charlie Cash. “We all believe that continuing negotiations is in the best interest of our members as we continue to make progress towards our bargaining goals.”
“The APWU will not be deterred in our quest to win a contract that hard-working postal workers can be proud of,” declared President Mark Dimondstein. “It is crucial that as we continue to negotiate that our entire membership stay engaged, union proud, and union strong in our struggle for justice.”
The APWU will continue to keep the members updated, including regular messages on the negotiation “hotline” at (202) 642-9049, our website (apwu.org), and on our social media channels.