SWCs, WSCs, Form 150—What Is the Difference?

SWCs, WSCs, Form 150—What Is the Difference?
By John Aceves
Former NAPS Secretary/Treasurer

With all that is going on in the Postal Service, there are many moving parts and constant changes that help drive the “Delivering for America” plan. If you are in the Customer Service side of the house, you have Supervisor Workload Service Credits (SWCs) that are electronically calculated from your workload data and give you the number of supervisors in the unit.

The SWCs system is used to determine the number of supervisors, Customer Service, authorized in post offices and carrier stations. It identifies and measures supervisors’ workload. The primary measure used is the number and type of employees supervised.

The Station Manager Workload Credit (WSC) system is used to determine the grade level of station managers who are to be authorized in post offices and stations. If your workload has increased, conduct your WSCs to see if you qualify for a level upgrade.

For those who may not be aware, during the last pay agreement between the USPS and NAPS, section 413.3 of the ELM, Position Upgrade, was modified from a 2% basic salary increase for position upgrades to a 4% increase.

The postmaster WSC system (Form 150) is used to determine the grade level of post offices. The responsibility for completing Form 150s and calculating workload is shared among the postmaster, Human Resources and Post Office Operations.

The last page of this worksheet reads: “For ZOT review, insert addition WSC Worksheet TABs for each year to demonstrate office has remained in ZOT for two consecutive years. This will require three 150s. Start of first year, end of first and end of second years.”

This process mentions two years rather than three years. However, if you are postmaster and know your workload has increased, complete a Form 150 to see if you qualify for an upgrade. Why should a postmaster wait if their position qualifies for upgraded compensation? The postmaster Form 150 has been used for a few years, so this tells me “some other” organization fell asleep at the wheel regarding the waiting period issue. NAPS has been working to get this changed.

Instructions for all three processes can be electronically completed on the Blue Page under your staffing tools.

Through consultation with the USPS and NAPS Headquarters, the calculation for relief supervisor positions came into play; these changes occurred April 23, 2023. Relief supervisor positions include supervisor, Distribution; supervisor, Maintenance; and supervisor, Logistics Operations. A copy of the letter is on the NAPS website.

This is my quick, condensed explanation of SWCs, WSCs and Form 150s. Get familiar, get training and go to your local branch meeting and state, area and regional training and get experience in your prospective process. Verify your local data!

Happy holidays! Have a safe and happy new year.

Hasta luego.