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Press Release

 

American Postal Workers Union, AFL-CIO

SAVE OUR MAIL SERVICE!

PENSACOLA’S POSTAL WORKERS

ANNOUNCE THE REMOVAL

OF THE DOWNTOWN STATION POST OFFICE

FROM LIST OF CLOSURES

 

WHEN: Friday, January 29, 2010

WHAT: We have received news today that the Downtown Station Post Office has been removed from the list of 168 (originally 3200) being considered by the Postal Service for closure. Six post offices were removed and the Pensacola Downtown Station is one of them.

This decision marks the culmination of months of effort by the local community, elected officials and the local Postal Workers Union. Thanks to everyone for all your efforts.

WHO: Pensacola Area Local American Postal Workers Union

MORE: For more information, please contact:

John S. Olive Pensacola Area Local American Postal Workers Union, AFL-CIO.

(PO Box 17551, 32522, Office, 850-433-8080 or Cell Phone, 850-723-7847).

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President John Olive, left, and Congressman Jeff Miller, right, look over the petitions signed to keep the Downtown Station Post Office open.

January 12, 2010 - Today, President John Olive and Secretary Jovita Olive met with Congressman Jeff Miller at his local office regarding the proposed closing of the Downtown Station Post Office under the US Postal Service’s plans to consolidate. In an update to local officers and stewards, John wrote:

“Our meeting this morning with Congressman Jeff Miller was successful for many reasons. Jovita and I met with the Congressman at his local office for a bit over a half hour to discuss the Postal Service’s plan to close our Downtown Station.

First of all, thanks to Jeff Miller for spending his time with us to discuss what is the most crucial issue we face as a Union today, consolidation.

Congressman Miller is way out front on this issue and so is his staff. We were very well received and the Congressman provided ideas, which he and his staff have discussed among themselves and others, which we had not thought of before. He is very pragmatic but also optimistic for the future.

I’m pleased to report that on the issue of consolidation (closing the Downtown Station) we have a friend in Jeff Miller.

Please be assured that we shall continue to pursue every available avenue to stop the Postal Service from closing the Downtown Station.”

John presented the Congressman with over 700 signatures on petitions asking for the Downtown Station to remain open.  These signatures were obtained in an 11 hour period by asking customers at the Downtown Station Post Office for their help.  Two banks have also offered their help in garnering signatures.  

Congressman Miller urged the union to continue its petition drive and asked that all signatures be sent to him.  He also, as John said, offered other ideas to pursue in our efforts.

LATEST UPDATE

After his meeting with Congressman Jeff Miller on Tuesday, January 12, 2010, President John Olive contacted Pensacola Mayor Mike Wiggins, all City Council members, Escambia County Commissioners, and the Downtown Improvement Board (DIB) regarding the Downtown Station Post Office proposed closing.

All of the City Council members that John spoke to are in support of keeping the Downtown Post Office opened and will help any way they can.

John and Jovita attended the January 14, 2010 meeting of the City Council and the issue was brought up by Councilman John Jerralds. Councilwomen Diane Mack elaborated on the issue. The City Manager was asked by Mayor Mike Wiggins to contact the DIB for the latest on their efforts to find another building to house the Downtown Station Post Office.

Click here to go to the Pensacola City Council meeting video for January 14, 2010.

On the list of agenda items for the meeting, Click the "Mayor and Council Communications" link. You will see the Downtown Station Post Office discussed by the Council.

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WE STILL NEED YOUR HELP!! The most recent list of proposed post offices (December 14, 2009) for closure still includes Pensacola’s Downtown Station.   Please help the Pensacola Area Local keep this station open!! How can you help? We ask every member to once again contact Postmaster Stanley Walker at 850.437.6908 and their government officials (US Congressman Jeff Miller, Senators Bill Nelson and George LeMieux, Pensacola City Council, Escambia County Commission---for a list of their contact info, click here). to express your desire to keep the Downtown Station open.  Please share this contact information and the attached flyer with your family, friends, neighbors and other concerned citizens of our area and ask everyone they know to help us stop the Postal Service’s assault on service to the downtown area. Save the Downtown Station Post Office!!  PLEASE MAKE THOSE PHONE CALLS, AND WRITE THOSE LETTERS TODAY!! Keep checking your Local’s website for other plans to get the public’s help as well.  We appreciate anything you can do. WANT TO HELP MORE?? Pass out the attached flyer to everyone you know.

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How You Can Help Haiti

Next Union Meeting Info

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Pensacola Postal Workers make the Evening news!

PLEASE ACT NOW!!  CONTACT YOUR REPRESENTATIVES TO OPPOSE S. 1507.

We are urgently asking all of our members in every state to take action by doing two things:

1. Call both of your Senator’s offices and ask them to please vote NO on S. 1507.
   Senator Nelson (202) 224-5274
   Senator Martinez (202) 224-3041
2. Also please go to the website below and send an e-mail to your Senator
   http://apwu.capwiz.com/apwu/home/

7-20-10 EXCESSING UPDATE- Excerpts from an email from Secretary Jovita Olive to the officers and stewards of the Pensacola Area Local.  (John is President John Olive, Dan is Executive Vice President Dan Miranda):

I apologize for not writing sooner to update you on the excessing.  As you know, John requested a meeting with the Plant Manager Thursday evening the same day of our last regular monthly meeting (July 8).  No response had been received until the Monday following when management approached Dan and said that they were going to be on the workroom floor at 10PM that evening to speak to the 12 who they had determined would be excessed.

Interestingly enough, in the meantime,  John received a phone message Monday morning at 10:06AM from the Plant Manager's secretary that asked if we could meet between 10AM and 12.  A little late, I'd say and definitely not enough time to gather the officers who wanted to attend.  Naturally, I wondered why they didn't want to meet with the APWU before doing this but it doesn't surprise me, either, that they would jump the gun.  Even after John spoke to Ethel on the phone, she still offered no meeting and it was obvious they were going to continue with their plans for that night.

John, Dan and I arrived Monday evening on the workroom floor at 10PM for the meeting.  At approximately 10:30 we met with Ethel and Elizabeth Papp-Stinson.  They informed us of their plan.  The following are highlights:

1.  The 12 junior employees on the seniority list were targeted.

2.  The number 12 was whittled down to 7 who would be affected.  Management used 3 clerks who went to maintenance, 1 clerk who retired and 1 who was separated to reduce the 12 to 7.

3.  Letters were already prepared for the 7 remaining clerks targeted.

4.  Management would speak to each of the 7 individually, not in the group of 12 as they had originally told us.

Management already decided their course of action without the union's input.  The union of course had several issues with their plan, most importantly, management was not taking into consideration other factors that would further reduce the number of those impacted such as casuals, another clerk transfer to maintenance, maintenance residuals, etc.    And, excessing as a whole would not just affect the 12 junior employees, those 12 could be replaced by other clerks who may volunteer to go.  And, as you would expect, no matter the errors they would be committing, management proceeded.

That evening after we left the building, management presented their excessing letter to one of the 7 clerks with plans to distribute the remaining 6 the following night.

And, now, management is waiting on District or wherever they get their marching orders, to see about reducing the remaining 7 clerks by the other factors (casuals, another clerk transfer to maintenance, maintenance residuals).  I guess had they met with us before they even started messing with the 7 clerks'  lives they could have saved those 7 clerks some grief.  True to form, they don't care.  So now, we wait for their next move.

An important point John wants to stress for us to remember in all this---the union is not the one doing the excessing, the Postal Service is.

Until the next update,
In Solidarity,
Jovita