\u201cIt starts and stops with a complete lack of respect on the workroom floor,\u201d said Roscoe Woods, president of the 480-481 Area Local. \u201cIt is by far one of the worst work environments I have ever seen.\u201d<\/p>\n
Conditions have deteriorated over the past two years. Managers verbally berate employees, and routinely use profanity when addressing them. They often barge into the union office and treat stewards \u201clike garbage,\u201d Woods said.<\/p>\n
Things got uglier after management set up a \u201cMeet and Greet\u201d area late last year, where managers speak with workers at the beginning of their tour to discuss goals and hold service talks. The Meet and Greet was supposed to foster better communication, but it did the exact opposite, Woods said. Managers use it as an opportunity to berate employees and call out individuals for alleged poor performance in front of their co-workers.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s probably turned into the nastiest back-and-forth we have ever had,\u201d Woods said.<\/p>\n
He added that employees are often forced to work alone on sorting machines that normally require two people. When workers ask for a steward, they are denied representation.<\/p>\n
\u201cManagement would berate those employees for not being productive, when they are basically running a 90,000 piece machine by themselves,\u201d Woods pointed out, adding that operating a machine this way jeopardizes safety.<\/p>\n
Management\u2019s response to complaints about safety? Workers \u201care not working hard enough to be unsafe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Preying on PSEs<\/strong><\/p>\n Woods noted that Postal Support Employees (PSEs) and newly-converted full-time regulars are bearing the brunt of the abuse.<\/p>\n \u201cThey tell PSEs that they can get fired in a heartbeat,\u201d Woods explained. \u201cThey don\u2019t ask you to do anything, they just bark orders. If you question anything, they throw you out of the building.\u201d<\/p>\n When PSEs attend union meetings, many ask that their names be left out of the meeting\u2019s minutes for fear of retaliation.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a free-for-all around here and we are done with it,\u201d Woods said.<\/p>\n Taking a Stand<\/strong><\/p>\n After filing multiple grievances and working his way up the ranks of management to the area vice president \u2013 with no results \u2013 Woods amped it up a notch.<\/p>\n The local reached out to Rep. Brenda Lawrence (D-MI), who attended a recent union meeting and heard workers\u2019 concerns first-hand. Woods also sent a \u201cclimate survey\u201d to every member of the local. Within a week, the union received more than 175 responses \u2013 and they painted a \u201cvery dismal picture\u201d of work at the facility.<\/p>\nManagement\u2019s worst offenders are protected and even promoted, he added.<\/h3>\n
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