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It's Our Turn

It’s Our Turn
By Kevin Moore
Georgia State Branch 912 Secretary/Treasurer and Postmaster of Fortson

This past year, we have heard the word “essential” almost daily. EAS Postal Service employees are essential in providing services to our customers. We are essential in carrying out the directives of our executive leaders.

We were an essential part of getting ballots delivered and returned for the presidential election in November. And we are essential in continuously coming to work during the COVID-19 pandemic. In other words, we are essential. So why are we nonessential when it comes to a fair pay package?

Our resident officers and Executive Board fought for a fair pay package for EAS employees in 2018. During the fact-finding process, the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service agreed with NAPS that EAS employees were not receiving compensation comparable to the private sector or sufficient to attract and retain qualified and capable supervisors and provide reasonable pay differentials between supervisors and the clerks they manage.

The judge presiding over NAPS’ lawsuit against the Postal Service decided to not rule on the case, saying it was not a judicial matter. It was a way out for the Postal Service and we were left out again. However, we have new life.

A special thank-you to Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-VA) and Rep. Mike Bost (R-IL) for introducing H.R. 1623 on March 8. The “Postal Supervisors and Managers Fairness Act”

would revise the consultative process and allow for quicker talks. Best of all, it would bind the Postal Service to follow the recommendations of a Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service panel in the case of fact-finding.

This would be a win for EAS employees. My question to you, as a NAPS member, is this: Are you going to sit on the sidelines or are you going to join the fight?

It’s easy to join. All you have to do is go to the “Legislative Action Center.” It will take you directly to the H.R. 1623 page; simply fill out the information on the right side and hit “send.”

Doing so, you will have effectively let your representative know that you would like their support on this bill. As leaders, we all have a mouth and can talk, so talk to all your members! Use this as an opportunity to recruit new members. Talk to your friends, family—heck, even strangers on the street (socially distanced and wearing a mask, of course)—and ask them to do the same. It’s our time. As the old saying goes, “Actions speak louder than words.”