{"id":6263,"date":"2013-07-02T07:37:25","date_gmt":"2013-07-02T12:37:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/?p=6263"},"modified":"2013-07-02T07:37:25","modified_gmt":"2013-07-02T12:37:25","slug":"apwu-department-of-labor-usps-settle-nationwide-electrical-safety-complaints","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/postalemployeenetwork.com\/news\/2013\/07\/02\/apwu-department-of-labor-usps-settle-nationwide-electrical-safety-complaints\/","title":{"rendered":"APWU, Department of Labor, USPS Settle Nationwide Electrical Safety Complaints"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"APWU-News\"<\/a><\/p>\n

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The union has signed an unprecedented nationwide agreement<\/a> [PDF] with the Department of Labor and the Postal Service that settles a series of OSHA complaints initiated by the APWU regarding violations of safe electrical work practices.<\/p>\n

The agreement marks the OSHA\u2019s first \u201centerprise-wide\u201d settlement and follows a four-year campaign by the APWU and OSHA (Occupational Safety and Health Administration) to force postal management to address egregious electrical safety hazards at postal facilities across the country.<\/p>\n

As a result of the settlement, the USPS has completely revised its policies and procedures on electrical work.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe APWU is pleased to be a part of this landmark commitment to worker safety, which will ensure the protection of Postal workers from electrical hazards,\u201d said APWU President Cliff Guffey.<\/p>\n

Responding to APWU complaints, beginning in 2009 OSHA inspected 42 postal facilities and found that the USPS failed to provide employees working on electrically energized equipment with adequate training and protective equipment. OSHA issued citations for \u201cwillful and serious\u201d violations of its electrical safety standards, and sought fines of more than $6 million.<\/p>\n

Postal practices exposed workers to the risk of severe electric shock, burn or death, OSHA concluded.<\/p>\n

The USPS contested the citations, so in the summer of 2010, the Department of Labor filed a motion to consolidate the complaints for trial before the OSHA Review Commission. The Department of Labor sought a unified resolution that would cover all postal facilities, noting that OSHA had already issued fines of more than $3 million for violations at 17 facilities.<\/p>\n

The APWU was granted \u201cparty status\u201d to participate in the litigation of the case.<\/p>\n

The settlement agreement, dated June 28:<\/p>\n