Don’t laugh. Standing up for justice is not a laughing matter. A federal statute regarding time fraud is on the books, and it’s clear. The time has come to see to it that it is not ignored. 18 U.S.C. § 1001 reads as follows:

“Except as otherwise provided in this section, whoever, in any matter within the jurisdiction of the executive, legislative, or judicial branch of the Government of the United States, knowingly and willfully – (1) falsifies, conceals, or covers up by any trick, scheme, or device a material fact; (2) makes any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation; or (3) makes or uses any false writing or document knowing the same to contain any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or entry; shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years or, if the offense involves international or domestic terrorism (as defined in section 2331), imprisoned not more than 8 years, or both.”

The reason that no one has been sent to jail, or at the very least, fired, under this statute is because the unions have been twiddling their thumbs in the administrative process instead of using the clout of the membership’s numbers to flex its political muscle. TIME FRAUD IS NOT A GRIEVANCE. IT’S A FEDERAL CRIME.

Filing grievances and EEOs play right into the PO’s hands. The administrative process takes forever, and justice delayed is justice denied. The system is stacked against the grievant and/or complainant. It’s designed to make you think you have rights, while its actual function is to maintain the status quo – that’s why you’re paying thousands of dollars in union dues and you’re still suffering. Have you ever wondered why an employee can pick up a Walmart coupon out of the trash and be summarily fired, while your manager can be caught falsifying thousands of dollars of employee clock rings then be promoted? Wake up.

If you want justice and real job security, you’re going to have to make the jobs of your boss, your union officers, and your politicians insecure. You’re going to have to shine a bright enough light on laziness, complacence, and corruption to place THEIR jobs in jeopardy.

Again time fraud and falsifying government documents is a federal crime punishable by five years in federal prison. But in spite of the fact that the United States Postal Service is stealing millions of dollars PER DAY from its employees, you’re not seeing anyone go to jail, or even fired for the crime. In fact, one acting CSO in the Los Angeles District was even promoted after charges were brought against him for time fraud. The reason for that is your unions have been less than progressive in pursuing your rights. They’ve been satisfied to get one or two people paid a year – just enough to look good on their resume – then letting the PO sweep the matter under the rug.

That’s not an unsubstantiated allegation. The facts are clear. You’re living it. That’s why time fraud continues to be a problem. The postal service knows that the unions are ineffective, so they can rob, abuse, and intimidate you with impunity.

What’s so unconscionable about this situation is that it can be so easily addressed. A thief needs the cover of darkness to commit his crimes, so all the unions have to do is shine a light on what’s going on. Why haven’t they?

The OIG has been ignoring this issue for years, but after I started bringing it out into the open in March (http://wattree.blogspot.com/2010_03_01_archive.html), and continued hammer away at it and demanding that the OIG and PMG be fired, all of a sudden the OIG recognize the need for a national audit. But in February of this year when the theft JoAnn Snow’s time was reported in the Los Angeles district, OIG Special Agent Reid Robbins said that “the OIG’s office generally doesn’t investigate time issues.” Well, I guess they’ve reconsidered that position:

FROM THE USPSOIG:

Having Problems with Your Time and Attendance Records? The OIG Wants to Hear From You.

Recent news stories have identified a few instances where Postal Service employees have had time deleted from electronic time card records. There have also been other time and attendance instances where managers inaccurately calculated employee work hours for out–of-schedule work.

If you are a Postal Service employee and are experiencing similar problems or any other time and attendance issues at your work place, we would like to hear from you. Please take our brief survey or provide comments below.

This topic is hosted by the OIG’s Human Resources and Security audit team.

Don’t be intimidated. Take advantage of this opportunity.

Eric L. Wattree

wattree.blogspot.com

Ewattree@Gmail.com

Contract Negotiations Begin Between U.S. Postal Service and American Postal Workers Union

Negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement between the U.S. Postal Service and the American Postal Workers Union began Sept. 1. The current contract expires Nov. 20, 2010.

“Every contract negotiation brings special challenges, and this will be no different,” APWU President William Burrus said at the opening session. “Mail volume is depressed and revenue is down, but we have faced similar circumstances before.

“The history of the Postal Service is replete with forecasts of doom and gloom, but such dire predictions have not prevented us from exploring every opportunity to achieve agreement.”

“Once again naysayers warn of the imminent demise of the Postal Service,” he said. “They demand wholesale changes to the foundation we have built over our 40-year history, ignoring the fact that each provision in the expiring contract has a history of give-and-take, the basic element of contract negotiations.”

“The road will be difficult and the outcome uncertain, but there are components of an agreement awaiting our discovery. I pledge the best efforts of the American Postal Workers Union to find a way to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement.”

AUTOMATED RURAL JOB BIDDING
ALL RURAL CARRIERS CAN REVIEW AVAILABLE JOBS ONLINE

Last week, the Postal Service reached an important milestone in its initiative to reach out to employees using technology. Now, all rural carrier postings, bids and awards are available online.

Previously, not all rural carriers had access to the online bidding process. But now, all 120,000 rural carriers will have access to the automated bidding system, 24/7.

Craft employees can use any of the following ways to access the automated job bidding systems:

On LiteBlue:

• Go to the employee apps carousel at the center of the home page, or
• Click on the “My HR” tab at the top navigation bar of LiteBlue and then on the “Find Employee Apps” section, or
• Click on the employee apps button at the bottom of every My HR Page.

At HR kiosks, Web–bidding computers, or Interactive Voice Response and TDD/TTY for hearing–impaired employees.

Employees need their Employee ID number and USPS PIN to log on to LiteBlue and automated bidding systems.

MURDER  BY PROXY: HOW AMERICA WENT POSTAL

Postal Workers in Florida Can See New Documentary Murder by Proxy: How America Went Postal on a Big Screen

Los Angeles, CA – August 30, 2010. A new documentary on violence in the USPS, Murder by Proxy: How America Went Postal, will be screened at two Florida film festivals this September. The film was written/produced/directed by Emil Chiaberi and produced by Oscar and Emmy winner James Moll.

Murder by Proxy will be shown at the CENFLO film festival on September 3rd at 2:55pm, At the West Orange 5, Theaters, 1575 Maguire Road Ocoee, FL. Two more screenings will take place on September 6th and 9th at Nomadic Tendencies (US branch of Strasburg International Film Festival) located at Muvico Baywalk 20, 151 2nd Ave N, St Petersburg 33701.

In July “Murder By Proxy” was screened for survivors of the 1991 postal massacre in Royal Oak, Michigan, where it was received with a strong reaction from Royal Oak postal workers. Inquiries have been pouring in from USPS employees from different parts of the country asking when they can see the film in their area. Now Florida postal workers who are based in or around St. Petersburg and Ocoee will get the chance to see the film on a big screen.

Murder by Proxy: How America Went Postal is the first documentary to examine the phenomenon of workplace massacre through the lens of the growing socio-economic strains that have swept over this country—beginning in the Reagan era and extending to the present. In the face of an ever changing economy, the film follows the plight of one of America’s working class heroes’, Charlie Withers, a 39 yr. veteran letter carrier from Royal Oak, MI, the home of the films focused incident.

The analysis of work conditions at USPS is central to the film, which sheds light on the toxic postal culture through the prism of catalyst and accountability. And for good reason: the modern, stress-driven, homicidal rampage was born in the postal system—forever changing the meaning of the phrase “going postal”. The USPS presents an ideal case study because it’s been a breeding ground for the same volatile conditions that are now found in most US work environments. “In many ways, the story of work related postal violence chronicles the erosion of America’s working class”, says director Emil Chiaberi.

Today, the USPS is under intense pressure to reduce spending. As a result, workers are once again experiencing the same volatile conditions that led to the 1991 Royal Oak shooting and other related episodes of violence. “It seems like we’ve learned little from the past,” says Charlie Withers, whose investigation of the hostile conditions in Royal Oak’s Post Office resulted in Congressional hearings. He adds: “I think this film is very timely…hopefully, it can help prevent future tragedies.” With the grassroots uprising of support, already formed by responses pouring from the postal unions, workers are eager to help educate those ignorant or dismissive of the destructive effects of volatile management practices. There is a drought of corporate responsibility for this workforce, as lives are sacrificed and the postal service becomes an increasingly exasperated and toxic culture of greed, and violence.

Following the September screenings in Florida and Germany MURDER BY PROXY: How America Went Postal will be shown in several domestic and international Film Festivals. Please visit our website form more information.

ABOUT MURDER BY PROXY: How America Went Postal

Written/Produced/Directed: Emil Chiaberi
Produced by James Moll
Edited by David A. Davidson

Running time: 76 minutes
Language: English
Release date: 2010
Official Website: www.murderbyproxyfilm.com - view trailer at website

ABOUT EMIL CHIABERI

Emil Chiaberi grew up in the Soviet Union and now lives and works in the United States as a filmmaker and CEO of an emerging biomedical company. From serving in the Soviet Army to managing a 100+ employee business, his array of personal and business experiences have made him a keen observer of the connections between cultural phenomenon, psycho-spiritual crises and their relationship to social violence. Emil’s first film, Murder by Proxy, explores these connections.

ABOUT JAMES MOLL

Oscar and Emmy winning filmmaker James Moll has been producing and directing non-fiction films for more than ten years. Moll’s feature documentary credits include Running the Sahara, Inheritance, Price for Peace, and The Last Days, which chronicles the lives of five Hungarian Holocaust survivors.

In addition to his work as a filmmaker, Moll established and operated The Shoah Foundation (currently the USC Shoah Foundation Institute for Visual History and Education) with Steven Spielberg for the express purpose of videotaping Holocaust survivor testimonies around the world.

What:
The U.S. Postal Service will pay tribute to Mother Teresa, who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1979 for her humanitarian work. Noted for her compassion toward the poor and suffering, Mother Teresa, a diminutive Roman Catholic nun and honorary U.S. citizen, served the sick and destitute of India and the world for nearly 50 years.

Who:
James H. Bilbray, member, Board of Governors, U.S. Postal Service John E. Potter, postmaster general and chief executive officer, U.S. Postal Service Archbishop Pietro Sambi, apostolic nuncio of the United States The Most Reverend Barry C. Knestout, auxiliary bishop, Washington, D.C. Reverend Monsignor Walter R. Rossi, rector, Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception Sister Leticia, provincial superior, Missionaries of Charity Mitzi Betman, vice president, Corporate Communications, U.S. Postal Service Thomas Blackshear II, artist, Mother Teresa stamp

When:
Sunday, Sept. 5, 2010, 3:15 p.m.

Where:
Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
Great Upper Church
400 Michigan Avenue, SE
Washington, D.C. 20017-1566

Background:
Mother Teresa, an ethnic Albanian, was born Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu on Aug. 26, 1910, in Skopje in what is now the Republic of Macedonia. Drawn to the religious life as a young girl, she left her home at the age of 18 to serve as a Roman Catholic missionary in India. “By then I realized my vocation was towards the poor,” she later said. “From then on, I have never had the least doubt of my decision.” Having adopted the name of Sister Mary Teresa, she arrived in India in 1929 and underwent initial training in religious life at a convent in Darjeeling, north of Calcutta. Two years later, she took temporary vows as a nun before transferring to a convent in Calcutta. She became known as Mother Teresa in 1937, when she took her final vows.

The stamp features a portrait of Mother Teresa painted by award-winning artist Thomas Blackshear II of Colorado Springs, Colorado.

Literate by Choice

Just like you are doing right now reading is a thinking process to interpret words to gain meaning about a topic. Writers write to provoke change using their persuasive language to get their point across and convince others of their point of view. The larger the audience the greater the opportunity the writer has to influence public opinion. There are enough books about the Postal Service to easily compile a heritage (“A”) list to better understand the sacrifices of our predecessors. And a required reference (“B”) list to help us understand past, present and future operational risk management.

True professionals gather, analyze, and implement lessons learned to provoke critical thinking on the front lines, or in a support role to achieve the competitive industry advantage. The first step is to read, then discuss our readings with each other. We glance at the side of a cereal box, review the narrative on the movie case, look at the newspaper, and translate the directions on how to put something together. We can find out what impacts our mail business everyday through this form of comprehension too. I offer the following brief summaries and recommend the following titles as requisite reading.

Title: The Role of the United States Postal Service in Public safety and Security; Implications of Relaxing the MailBox Monopoly.

There are 46,000 Zip Codes! Universal service is critical to binding the nation together in the timeliest and efficient manner possible. We are an essential part of the National Response Framework; we participate as an Emergency Support Function, play a vital role in the Cities Readiness Initiative, and take part in the Department of Homeland Security National Infrastructure Protection Plan. “We Deliver” and must look for other opportunities for business and revenue growth which will help keep universal service of the “most trusted” government agency alive and well in the 21st century.

Title: Going Postal (Pinnacle true crime)

Visit 12 states with “isolated incidents?” from 1983 to 1996. The GAO issued recommendations for changes including one that suggested the USPS “Select and train managers who can serve as facilitators/counselors and who have the skills experience, and interest to treat employees with respect and dignity, positively motivate employees, recognize and reward employees for good work, promote teamwork, and deal effectively with poor performers.” Statistics report a higher rate of taxi drivers and liquor store clerks murdered on the job. “They didn’t bother to mention that cabbies and clerks weren’t being slaughtered by fellow cabbies and clerks.” Data also details post offices don’t have a high rate of homicide, but they have an exceptionally high rate of employees who kill coworkers.

Titles: Deep Inside LiteBlue & Thinking Inside the LiteBlue Box

A deck plate perspective and representative sample of workplace leaders with an industrial age mentality utilizing a confrontational style of leadership and independently choosing to show limited technical expertise. An absence of postal pride leads to a decline in business performance standards. Two manuscripts loaded with hot minute topics impacting teamwork on the workroom floor. Proof there is a desperate need to drive fear out of the organization.

Title: Preserving the People’s Post Office

This book should be obligatory reading for all postal employees aspiring to management, or leadership positions with USPS. Nothing is more important than understanding where the numbers come from and how to keep them alive through employee cooperation, teamwork, participation and treating others with dignity and respect. It builds a compelling case for “never privatizing” the USPS.

Title: Any Mail for Me?

This is a superb story about five thousand years of mail for kids of all ages. Back-in-the-day messages were tattooed on shaved scalps of slaves whose hair was allowed to grow before being sent on an errand to deliver the message. Today, thousands of century’s later mail is the best way to talk to anyone else without knowing what was said. It is much more personal than email and word of mouth.

Title: The Last Monopoly: Privatizing the Postal Service for the Information Age

This is a very good topic for discussion about the notion among postal employees. There is a lot of information for privatizing the United States Postal Service and getting rid of the monopoly. “Employee owners approach their jobs with a far different attitude than most working people. They feel personally responsible for their company’s performance, they are loyal to their company, and they are responsive to their needs. That situation, in turn, creates a productive sense of teamwork between management and non-managerial employees.” That’s what the author said.

Title: The Tainted Eagle

A transparent story with actual documentation displayed inside. A letter carrier shop steward that communicated, investigated, represented, and followed up union business for the membership. He exhausted the entire system and was engaged in a very long contest for justice which was even minimized by people who should have been on his side. Read this book to see what he has done, and continue to follow his story to see what he is doing today.

Title: Beyond Going Postal: Shifting from Workplace Tragedies and Toxic Work Environments to a Safe and Healthy Organization

We all want to run our business more efficiently so it’s time to bring in one particular expert who can help! This is a real modern day account of the cultural reality inside the United States Postal Service in the year 2010. It depicts the reality of a leadership tone that has a significant influence on productivity in the postal work environment. It doesn’t matter if you are a craft employee, resource worker, supervisor, manager, or labor leader. You will relate to this bottom up perspective from an author who walks the talk, been there, done that, and got 20/20 hindsight to prove it.

Title: There’s Always Work at the Post Office: African American Postal Workers and the Fight for Jobs, Justice and Equality

If we don’t fight for change it won’t happen as apparent from this very well researched book. In 1961 President Kennedy said “Let the public service be a proud and lively career.” The author does a superb job presenting an important history lesson for all of us. Find out about the history of 9 postal unions; NALC, UFPC, NPMHU, NAPOGSME, NFPOMVED, NASDM, NPU, NA, NRLCA. You’ll have to dive into this book to get the real lowdown. Recall the 1970 strike with the euphemism for the strike weapon being “imposition of economic sanctions.” Learn about the wildcat powder keg, collective begging, and review the contributions of APWU Moe Biller and William Burrus.

Those titles are just a few of the many available to all who care about their working environment and the arduous conditions associated with delivering the mail. Knowing what has occurred in the past prevents all of us from repeating the same mistakes. The choice to read will motivate us to represent the serious philosophical spirit of those who have gone before us. We don’t want to be illiterate by choice.

Ronald Williams, Jr.
Postal Employee

Copyright 2010 R. Williams, Jr. and Postal Employee Network

I like what news correspondent Tom Brokaw said at a past commencement speech, “It’s easy to make a buck, but it is tougher to make a difference.” I say that message needs to go out to all our high paid executives and our national labor leaders. Tom Brokaw continued to say a gentleman took his statement a little further with words to the effect, “If you make a lot of bucks, it’s easier to make a bigger difference.”

I can’t tell if our bosses are engaged with the issues of dignity and respect. It is my opinion that these matters have a lot to do with an employee’s working conditions. Postal management has multiple policies about dignity and respect and harassment posted on bulletin boards everywhere. Those policies will be rendered useless decreasing the value of the workplace if they are not aggressively enforced. Many people feel the only outlets are EEO or filing a grievance through processes that can make employees feel like they are on the slow boat to China.

The strength of strong labor organizations helps solidify a collective agreement which conveys better wages, greater benefits, and redress procedures. We can promote activity in the community; utilize union services, take a tax deduction on our dues, and we have a voice in making the workplace safe. Without a collective agreement we all would be at the mercy of managers to play favorites and change the conditions of employment.

Effective union leaders will let you know it costs money to operate a labor organization and to get things done. With our money, unions pay for operating expenses, contract negotiations, and grievance handling all the way to the national level. There are costs associated with publications, professional fees, legislative activities, education, training, and community service programs. Dues don’t cost, they pay for what we expect as a return on investment. I read on the Department of Labor website that the difference between union and non-union pay is $154.00 a week and that is a difference of $7,392 per year.

Our unions are controlled by us! Many people believe that just because we have a no strike clause the employer holds all the cards and all we can do is some collective begging. Again, according to the Department of Labor statistics “almost all contract settlements (98%) are reached without workers resorting to strikes. Strikes are very uncommon today. Only one work day out of a thousand is lost due to a strike.”

The squeaky wheel gets oiled or replaced! One of the top issues in this federal agency that needs to be drilled down on, brought to the surface, and taken to a public forum by union leaders and management officials is dignity and respect in the workplace. I hear that many employees are afraid to speak up for fear of retaliation, which leads to poor attitudes, no forum for constructive, NOT destructive dialogue. We have to intelligently put pressure on those who own the bakery to remind them that we are the bakers and civilly help them understand that the recipe card they are working off to cook in this business is going to be the basis for a lot of people getting sick. That means management has to be accountable to deal with complaints, inappropriate conduct, and unacceptable behavior.

On the street level I see minimal emphasis on training, limited concern for people skills, some poorly managed processes and limited edition teamwork. Bosses who don’t like feedback make everything urgent even though some things are not necessarily important creating a ball of confusion. Example; If the person in charge has to relocate employees, and in the same breath brags about how well the bathroom remodeling project is coming along might be suggesting we should follow the money, and we will get the answer to the motivation.

Recent reported incidents involving current or former employees that might indicate a wider organizational problem include:

June 2009: North Carolina, postal worker fatally shoots himself at work in the employee locker room.

Oct 2009: Georgia, postal worker pulls gun on his boss.

Oct 2009: Arizona, postal worker charged with assaulting two bosses.

May 2010: Florida, laid-off postal worker involved in a bizarre alcohol induced freeway shooting rampage.

May 2010: California, fired postal worker crashes his vehicle into his ex-supervisor.

June 2010: District of Columbia, postal executive arrested for altercation with a facility manager.

June 2010: New York, postal worker stabs boss multiple times with a pair of scissors.

July 2010: Georgia, postal worker stabs supervisor multiple times with a knife and screwdriver.

Articulate your own images and consider this not-so-cheesy solution to go with that whine. I once took a “how to get your story in the media” seminar presented by local radio and television personalities. They unanimously informed the attendees that the bottom line is “if it bleeds it leads” in the headlines. They also said that the second best way to get their attention is to attach your story to a celebrity since we are a society infatuated with celebrities. It would be nice to see our labor organizations get together for the sake of pride and deference, find a celebrity with mail associated star power to get behind our message, order up 500,000 royal blue t-shirts, and show our strength in numbers in a non-violent national campaign. Let’s talk about all the things that contribute to a hostile workplace. Not only will it help us, it will create a wider discussion about American workplace violence. We know how to bind the nation together, now let’s unite ourselves together by coming to the workplace table with more than a fork. Let’s not just look for the big bucks, let’s make a bigger difference in our organizational culture with our union and management bosses out front.

Written by postal employee Ronald Williams, Jr. for PostalEmployeeNetwork.com (PEN)
Do Not Repost without consent from PEN and R. Williams, Jr.

LOS ALTOS, CA (KGO) — A USPS truck set on fire and melted after its driver turned on the ignition in Los Altos on Thursday afternoon. The letter carrier escaped not injured.

Investigators are trying to determine if the truck was parked over a broken gas main along La Barranca Road.

Read Full Story: Peninsula News

How well is USPS doing to meet its service delivery commitments — internally and with its customers? With the new Service Delivery Calculator (SDC), the Postal Service will soon have more accurate and timely answers to this critical question.

SDC is a tool USPS and its customers soon will use to more accurately document service commitments, standards and actual delivery dates for all domestic mail classes.

The SDC replaced several older systems and combines everything they did in a single source of information. Another SDC advantage is its ability to provide real-time data, giving USPS flexibility to quickly make immediate changes in delivery commitments — updating, for example, Express Mail delivery commitments when a natural disaster strikes. The tool also lets ACE users view and print the Express Mail service directory.

DPMG and COO Pat Donahoe says SDC will be in full operation by the end of August. He advises area and district offices to prepare by making sure retail acceptance records are up to date and changes in commitments or cut off times are accurate.

“Providing this real-time data will give the most accurate information to our customers and can eliminate service failure situations that lead to postage refunds,” said Donahoe. “Overall, it’s a single corporate data source that improves efficiency.”

Washington, DC –The Postal Regulatory Commission invites press and interested parties to a briefing on the actuarial report of The Segal Company regarding calculation of U.S. Postal Service pension liability for former Post Office Department employees. Questions will be entertained following the briefing.

What: Public briefing on the actuarial analysis of liability related to funding of Postal Service pensions. The Commission report finds that an adjustment of roughly $50-$55 billion in favor of the Postal Service would be equitable.

Who: Commissioners and Commission staff The Segal Company representatives

When: 10:00 a.m. Monday, August 16, 2010

Where: Hearing Room, Postal Regulatory Commission – 901 New York Avenue, NW, Suite 200 – Washington DC 20268

Background: On June 30, 2010, the Commission released an independent actuarial report, prepared by The Segal Company, on the allocation of the costs of Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) benefits paid to former Post Office Department (POD) employees. Segal finds that the current allocation overstates U.S. Postal Service responsibility for CSRS payments to former POD employees, and estimates assets currently allocated for that purpose fall short of an equitable allocation by roughly $50 to $55 billion.

The Commission finds that the Segal Report provides a persuasive statement of the relevant generally accepted actuarial practices and principles and how they should be used to develop the current postal surplus or liability.