Submitted by Jimmy Warden
NAPS Secretary/Treasurer
The spring 2023 Executive Board meeting was called to order at 8:31 a.m. on March 29 by Executive Board Chair Chuck Lum. New England Area Vice President Bill Austin gave the invocation; the Pledge of Allegiance was led by Northwest Area Vice President John Valuet.
Eastern Region Vice President Richard Green and Central Area Vice President Dan Mooney were appointed sergeants-at-arms. Secretary/Treasurer Jimmy Warden conducted the roll call; all board members were present.
President Ivan D. Butts welcomed the board. He affirmed this year’s LTS was one of the best held; there was great engagement. NAPS members are sending photos from their visits on Capitol Hill; many visits were conducted with elected officials.
He said bipartisan support of legislation this year will be very important. Butts asked board members to keep NAPS Headquarters apprised of local events. “We want to keep our legislative agenda moving forward,” he stressed.
Executive Vice President Chuck Mulidore welcomed the board and said he appreciated everyone’s attendance and support. He commended them for their support of SPAC; each board member qualified to attend the SPAC reception at LTS. “That shows great leadership,” he said.
This year’s SPAC reception was the largest ever, with 180 attendees. To qualify to attend, members have to achieve the President’s Ultimate
($1,000+) or VP Elite ($750) SPAC levels.
Mulidore said it was encouraging to see all the photos coming from members’ Hill visits. He reiterated how meaningful it was that the congressional speakers who addressed members at LTS had just gotten back in town from a recess and came directly from the airport to LTS.
He advised board members that some chairs in the Margarete A. Grant Executive Board Conference Room had been replaced and the lighting updated.
Warden welcomed board members and commented on the successful LTS. He said there was excellent engagement, participation and morale from everyone who attended. Warden said he looks forward to a successful board meeting.
Lum thanked board members for their support. He said sitting in on the consultative meetings with the Postal Service has been an eye-opener; he has seen how the resident officers push for and support NAPS members. Lum said he continues his efforts on membership and has been reaching out to nonmembers; many are not aware of NAPS and what it offers.
Immediate Past President Brian Wager moved, seconded by Western Region Vice President Marilyn Walton, to accept the minutes as previously submitted to the board. The motion passed unanimously on a voice vote.
Warden gave the financial report:
This is a 2022/23 fiscal year-to-date decrease of $2,261,187.46 or 22.08%. Of the decrease, $2,000,000 was from withdrawals to cover expenses; $261,187.46 was stock market losses and fees.
As of March 10, 2023, the NAPS General Fund Signature FCU Checking account balance was $435,509.89; the Signature FCU Money Market account was $70,248.98, for a total of $505,758.87.
As of Jan. 31, 2023, NAPS Property, Inc. (NPI) had $95,032 in cash on the balance sheet. There is $57,779 in outstanding liabilities (security deposits, prepaid rents and accrued expenses), leaving $37,253 unencumbered.
Election Law terminated its lease for Suite 350—400 square feet at $23/per square foot, effective Oct. 31, 2022. The lease was scheduled to expire May 31, 2024.
Election Law simultaneously brokered a 38-month lease for Public Interest Legal Foundation for Suite 100—4,086 square feet at $21.50/per square foot, with two months abated.
Additionally, effective March 1, LocalWorks leased the full 1727 side of the 3rd floor, Suite 305—7,250 square feet. This is a license agreement with profit sharing. It’s assumed to be low risk, but also has no defined income model. After a period of nine months, this tenant will be reevaluated for a five-year term, based on income derived from this arrangement.
The current cash projections as-sume continued vacancy on the 2nd floor, as well as suites 105 and 350. An outside broker has been contracted to lease out the space at the market rate of $29 per square foot. The overall pace of leasing activity remains slow.
Eric Berlin, NAPS’ broker at Cushman & Wakefield, said the market in Old Town Alexandria is not doing well; vacancies are at 12%. It is the lowest of all submarkets, but no positive. Every building around King Street Metro has a vacancy.
Berlin said most tenants are downsizing or, when their leases come up, are not staying in the same footprint. New buildings that are Metro-accessible will survive, but everything else is in trouble. Buildings are starting to be foreclosed on by lenders. The outlook is terrible, he affirmed, and is going to take years to all shake out.
The cash forecast for the balance of the fiscal year assumes contributions of $45,000/month from the landlord to cover the deficit created by the delinquency from LRB, current vacancies and building operating expenses. However, to the extent vacancies are leased out and/or LocalWorks becomes profitable, these contributions may decrease.
As of Feb. 28, 2023, NAPS Headquarters social media results were as follows:
Facebook had 3,843 followers (up from 3,310 in February 2022, or 16.1%). Posts continue to garner an average of about 300-1,000 views; the most engaging posts get about 1,000-4,000 views organically.
The post with the highest reach during 2022 was from Aug. 13 (about 4.2k+ reach/views): “Not only did the court overturn the federal district court judge’s dismissal of our lawsuit filed in 2019 over the pay consultation process from 2016-2019, the court also recognized NAPS’ rights we correctly have been claiming for over 40 years. Specifically, that claim is NAPS represents all EAS employees! Read more.”
The next highest posts/reach:
The competition for organic views on Facebook’s timeline remains intense as the platform continues to attract a significant amount of traffic. Every year, NAPS’ page competes with numerous organizations, individuals and pages to appear on people’s timelines while scrolling through the platform. To expand NAPS’ reach, boosting posts can be an affordable option. It is a cost-effective approach that can increase the number of people who see the posts.
Most of NAPS’ web traffic from social media continues to come from Facebook (90%+); it’s still very important to be on other platforms for visibility (Instagram and LinkedIn).
Instagram had 395 followers (up from 331 in February 2022, or 19.33%).
LinkedIn had 218 follower (up from 75 in February 2023, or 190.67%).
Twitter had 703 followers, but, as of Nov. 2, 2022, per President Ivan D. Butts, the account no longer is in use.
Web traffic for 2022 showed a 29.87% overall increase in users over 2021. The number of overall page views increased by 33.32%. The data also shows that users who are visiting the website are clicking through about the same number of pages when they visit the website as the pre-vious year; the bounce rate has remained pretty flat.
Email remains a significant factor in boosting website traffic and readership. The news pages and magazine articles regularly published online and distributed through email also are among the most popular pages. Reposting the printed magazine articles on NAPS’ website is crucial because it offers current and potential association members an additional means of accessing the information. Furthermore, it provides the website with consistent and fresh content, which is essential for Google and search purposes.
In 2022, four of the top 25 pages (16%) were from The Postal Supervisor. So far this year, eight of the top 25 pages (32%) are from The Postal Supervisor.
It may be worthwhile to create an ongoing content plan for publishing more original news, blog articles or other types of original content on the website. While the magazine articles are popular, it’s worth exploring the possibility of producing exclusive content specifically for the website, if feasible.
This approach could help expand NAPS’ messaging, increase website traffic and further attract potential members. Additionally, digital communication easily can be tracked.
As of the January 2023 DCO (reflecting DCO membership through PPs 3 and 4), NAPS had 25,971 members (24,513 active and 1,458 associates; 94.39% and 5.61%, respectively). Total membership from a year ago (PPs 3 and 4 2022) was 25,299 (23,921 active and 1,378 associate); an overall total SPLY increase of 672 members or (2.59%).
As of the January 2023 DCO, the total number of active EAS nonmembers was 10,687. This number is based on the USPS payroll files of nonmember EAS employees who are coded non-postmasters. Based on current membership totals, there are approximately 30.34% nonmembers.
NAPS continues to encourage membership growth by providing sponsors of new members a $25 NAPS check. The “High-Five Club” has been established; members can receive an additional $25 check for signing five new members within a 90-day period.
A promotion report is sent out to the Executive Board every pay period stating who received a promotion ef-fective that specific pay period, allow-ing branches to then reach out seeking membership. In addition, a postmaster promotion report is sent out monthly annotating new and present postmasters who received a promotion the prior month.
Local and state branches continue to receive their NAPS Nonmember and Change Summary reports, along with their DCO and Mail Address re-ports on a monthly basis.
NAPS has no contracts pending expiration.
Eric Berlin, senior director, and Jessica Miller, managing director, of Cushman & Wakefield, addressed the board. Berlin has been in the realty business in Old Town since the mid-80s. He said many association buildings are being sold and companies are right-sizing. There has not been a bounce-back after the pandemic.
Market vacancies are at 20%; Old Town, Alexandria, is at 11.7%. Vacancies in the surrounding areas are as follows: Northern Virginia at 19.6%, the I-395 corridor at 23.1% and Huntington/Eisenhower at 40.5%. Historically, Old Town was 7-8%.
Many buildings are going residential; subleases are high. Many companies that signed leases prior to COVID-19 now do not need the square footage and are subleasing. The cost to build out space is three to four years of rent on a 10-year lease due to the rise in construction costs.
A question was asked regarding licensing agreements, which is a shared-profit arrangement. Rent isn’t charged; income starts when companies lease.
There are a lot of brokers in the market, but many don’t follow up. “We are in a period that is totally different from any event in the past,” Berlin said. “It is believed the pendulum won’t fully swing back to pre-pandemic time. Presently, this is the best time to buy a building—not sell.
“There is a building boom in the area, but it’s all residential. Amazon will have its own building, to be completed soon. The company then will vacate the space it now rents, which will add to the vacancies in the area.”
Regarding marketing efforts, a subleasing marketing flyer has been developed, with floor plans and photos. One positive is Old Town’s inventory is shrinking regarding commercial space with continuing residential conversions.
Sheri Davies of ConferenceDirect addressed the board. She said LTS room pickups increased this year: 1,202 in 2020; 997 in 2022; and 1,313 in 2023.
LTS sponsorship revenues: $9,500 in 2020; $29,675 in 2022; and $24,000 in 2023. The board members thanked Davies for her work in helping make this year’s LTS such a success.
The Postal Service Health Benefits Program was discussed via Zoom with Karla Kirby, executive manager, Postal Service Health Benefits; Dana Cot-man, director, Benefits and Wellness; Tomica Duplessis, Paulita Wimbush and Bruce Nicholson, director, Labor Relations Policy Administration.
The Postal Service Reform Act of 2022 mandated implementation of the Postal Service Health Benefits Program, referred to as PSHB. A FAQ sheet is being finalized by Postal Headquarters and will be shared once finalized.
PSHB highlights:
Key milestones:
Requirement is based on primary insured. Everyone will have to go in during open season to enroll in a plan, regardless if they wish to stay with the plan they currently have and will (is) also be part of the new PSHB. Open season is from 11/24 to 12/24. The new plan will take effect 1/25.
Medicare, if retired, will be when you hit 65. You will have three months prior to and after your 65th birthday to enroll. The special Medicare enrollment period will be 4/1/24 - 10/24 if 65 to opt in without penalty.
The website, www.keepingposted.org, offers updated information on health benefits and a consumer guide to compare plans. New regulations should be out in the next couple of weeks from OPM, which then will work on the specific postal policies.
The PSHB Team at Postal Headquarters is looking to:
Kellie Calderon, director, USPS Compensation Programs, with Paulita Wimbush and Tomica Duplessis, discussed the highlights of the HERO Program via Zoom:
For employees, the pilot focuses on learning and understanding the new system. The program follows the SMART goal system, contributes to performance conversations and looks for improved performance.
Evaluators are equipped with tools and training to have discussions and difficult conversations and to avoid bias decisions.
Rating anchors are 1-5: 1-unsatisfactory; 2-minimally successful; 3-fully successful; 4-exceeds fully successful; and 5-outstanding. Merit-based salary increases and variable bonuses pay out.
Merit-based salary:
Cell 1-5—Box 1-zero; Box 2-2%; Box 3-3%; Box 4-3.5%; and Box 5-4%.
Lump sum bonus:
1-10—Box 1-4 is zero; Box 5-2%; Box 6-2.5%; Box 7-3%; Box 8-3.5%; Box 9-4%; and Box 10-5%.
Lump sum payouts begin when functional area scorecard meets or exceeds target.
April 3 is the start of mid-year and goes to the end of the month. There are three weeks to do the mid-year—April 3-21 for individual evaluations, evaluator is from April 21-28. The system locks on April 28.
After the 2022 pilot, a survey was taken. Most liked the system and creating individualized goals, as well as having meaningful conversations. The dislikes were the system was not easy—too many clicks and goals were not individualized. Some managers did not have any conversations or the conversations were not effective.
From the survey, under goal-setting, 70% met with them; 10 did not. Regarding whether HERO was easy to use—60% liked; 20% did not. Regard-ing training and tools, there was about a 50/50 split—50% said FAQs, help desk and job aids were helpful.
FY22 payouts in HERO: Average merit base salary—$2,534, average lump sum payout—$1,947. It has not been determined if it will be expand-ed in 2024. The individual rating is the average of the midyear and end-year rating.
Discussions are mandated in HERO. The 1% penalty for not completing discussions or ratings does not apply. Detail assignments must be entered into HERO if more than 30 days. If a detail is more than 90 days, the employee will be evaluated. Details must be authorized. Whatever program an employee is in most of the year will determine. The Postal Service is looking to move away from PES.
The following motions and recommendations were submitted by the board:
Motion #1—Made by Mulidore, seconded by R. Green, that:
“The Executive Board pass the Fiscal Year 2024 budget as presented by Secretary/Treasurer Jim Warden.”
Voting “yes” were Mulidore, R. Green, Laster, Studdard and Davis. Voting “no” were Butts, Roma, Johnson, Walton, Austin, Perez, Dallojacono, Griffin, Trayer, Moreno, Mooney, McCartney, Bock, S. Green, Pashinski, Valuet and Wagner. Abstaining was Warden; Elizondo was absent.
The motion failed 5-17.
Motion # 2—Made by Johnson, seconded by Moreno, that:
“The fall Executive Board meeting be reduced by one day, thus creating a potential savings of funds to NAPS.”
A motion to amend then was made by Mulidore, seconded by Trayer, to amend the original motion #2 to be effective at the conclusion of the current Executive Board housing contract with the Embassy Suites Hotel. The amendment passed on a voice vote.
Voting “yes” on the motion were Mulidore and Studdard. Voting “no” were Butts, Warden, Roma, R. Green, Johnson, Elizondo, Walton, Austin, Perez, Dallojacono, Griffin, Laster, Trayer, Moreno, Mooney, McCartney, Bock, S. Green, Davis, Pashinski, Valuet and Brian Wagner.
The motion failed 2-22.
Motion #3—Made by R. Green, seconded by Moreno, that:
“The fall Executive Board meeting be reduced by one day, thus creating a potential savings of funds for NAPS.”
A motion to amend was made by Mulidore, seconded by Laster, to also state:
“Subject to a review and presentation to the NAPS Executive Board no later than April 15, 2023.”
The amendment failed on a voice vote.
A motion was made by Wagner, seconded by McCartney, to make a further amendment to state that:
“The reduction of one day of the fall Board Executive meeting become effective at the 2023 NAPS fall board meeting.”
After discussion, R. Green withdrew his original motion; the amendment to the amendment was withdrawn.
Motion #4—Made by R. Green, seconded by Roma, that:
“Starting with the 2023 fall board meeting, NAPS will go to a virtual environment for the fall board meeting. Also, the resident officers will enter into negotiations with the Embassy Suites Hotel and ConferenceDirect to determine mitigation cost to change the contract and provide a report to the Executive Board no later than May 15, 2023.”
Voting “yes” were Warden, Roma, R. Green, Elizondo, Walton, Perez, Griffin, S. Green and Pashinski. Voting “no” were Butts, Mulidore, Johnson, Dallojacono, Laster, Trayer, Moreno, Mooney, McCartney, Bock, Studdard, Davis, Valuet and Wagner. Absent was Austin.
The motion failed 9-14.
Motion # 5—Made by Warden, seconded by Johnson, that:
“Based on the fiduciary responsibility bestowed on me when taking my NAPS oath of office and based on the opinion of our investment bankers in respect to the volatility and path of the stock market in the upcoming year, as well in addition to the direction that will be taken by our association in pursuing our lawsuit for proper pay of our members, I move that the resident officers contact our event planner, ConferenceDirect, to seek getting out of part of our contract with the Embassy Suites for the fall 2023 and 2024 board meetings.
“Said meeting(s) will then be conducted via Zoom. Number of days to be determined by the president. Potential cost savings would be at a minimum $180,000. The resident officers will request that ConferenceDirect seek minimal damages by breaking the contract and seek a contract with the Hilton Hotel for spring 2026, 2027 and 2028 board meetings to possibly offset any damages that may be incurred with Embassy Suites as it is the same hotel corporation.
“The object should be to break the contract without penalty. Conference-Direct will submit a report of a possible contract to the resident officers by April 14, 2023. Findings will be presented to the Executive Board by April 19, 2023, for decision. The Executive Board will then have as an agenda item on the spring 2024 and, if needed, spring 2025 board meetings, to discuss whether to continue this practice or return to an in-person meeting for the 2025 fall board meeting.
“The objective of this motion should be to not incur any cancellation fee or, at the least, minimize any cancellation fee, as well as have a positive impact on our investment portfolio substantiating our fiduciary responsibilities.”
Voting “yes” were Butts, Mulidore, Warden, Roma, R. Green, Johnson, Elizondo, Walton, Austin, Perez, Dallojacono, Laster, Trayer, Moreno, Mooney, McCartney, Bock, Studdard, S. Green, Davis, Pashinski, Valuet and Wagner. Voting “no” was Griffin.
The motion passed 23-1.
Motion # 6—Made by Butts, seconded by R. Green, that:
“NAPS Headquarters erects and maintains a memorial plaque in memory of the 23 EAS employees on record killed in the line of duty or associated with their duty as leaders in the United States Postal Service.”
The motion passed unanimously.
Motion #7—Made by Trayer, seconded by Elizondo, to:
“Increase the amount of substitution pay for retired executive board members, resident officers excluded.
“WHEREAS, The largest number of EAS employees represented by NAPS are eligible for the Supervisor Differential Adjustment (SDA), and
“WHEREAS, The USPS March 11, 2023, SDA increased in all EAS categories for working EAS to an average daily rate of pay of $299.89 and where the mid-range average daily pay of an EAS-17, per the USPS Jan. 14, 2023, EAS Annual Salary Chart is $292.81, and
“WHEREAS, NAPS Executive Board retirees, except resident officers, forgo accepting full or part-time work/pay during retirement in order to perform their Executive Board duties and responsibilities by attending NAPS events to support and represent the members of their respective areas and regions, and
“WHEREAS, The minimum retiree Executive Board substitution pay should be commensurate with the approximate average daily pay of all EAS employees represented by NAPS; therefore, be it
“RESOLVED, That the daily substitution pay rate of NAPS retired Executive Board area and region vice presidents board be increased to $300 per day to be commensurate with the approximate average of EAS employees entitled to receive SDA and does not increase the current board allowance account amount, and be it further
“RESOVLED, That the $300 daily substitution pay rate only applies to the Allowance Accounts of the respective area and region vice presidents and does not change the current $250 daily substitution rate paid by NAPS Headquarters to retired board members for attending LTS, national conventions or when given a presidential assignment.”
Voting “yes” were Butts, Mulidore, Warden, Roma, Johnson, Elizondo, Walton, Austin, Perez, Trayer, Moreno, Mooney, McCartney, Bock, Studdard, Davis, Pashinski, Wagner. Voting “no” were R. Green, Dallojacono, Griffin, Laster, S. Green and Valuet.
The motion passed 18-6.
Motion #8—Made by Elizondo, seconded by Roma, that:
“WHEREAS, NAPS historically has maintained a strong financial foundation, and
“WHEREAS, The pandemic and other global issues have negatively affected the NAPS portfolio, and
“WHEREAS, This impact has driven NAPS Headquarters to use portfolio monies to supplement the funds needed to run the organization, and
“WHEREAS, The NAPS Executive Board will begin addressing this situation that is depleting our investments, therefore be it
“RESOLVED, That for NAPS fiscal year 2024 (June 1, 2023 - May 31, 2024) the expense account of every Executive Board member be reduced by 10%. At the beginning of NAPS Fiscal Year 2025 (June 1, 2024) the expense accounts for all Executive Board members will be returned to previous levels.”
Voting “yes” were Butts, Mulidore, Warden, Roma, Elizondo and Davis. Voting “no” were R. Green, Johnson, Walton, Austin, Perez, Dallojacono, Griffin, Laster, Trayer, Moreno, Mooney, McCartney, Bock, Studdard, S. Green, Pashinski, Valuet and Wagner.
The motion failed 6-18.
Motion #9—Made by Griffin, seconded by Mulidore, that:
“Starting June 1, 2023, all Executive Board member expense accounts be reduced by $1,500 yearly.” Voting “yes” were Butts, Mulidore, Warden, Elizondo, Griffin and Davis. Voting “no” were Roma, R. Green, Johnson, Walton, Austin, Perez, Dallojacono, Laster, Trayer, Moreno, Mooney, McCartney, Bock, Studdard, S. Green, Pashinski, Valuet and Wagner.
The motion failed 6-18.
Motion #10—Made by Griffin, seconded by Dallojacono, that:
“The Executive Board be given local perdiem meal expense for all board meetings, national conventions and LTS events and any other presidential assignments designated or required by to be attended by board members. Any expense over the local perdiem needed or used by board members should come out of respective board members’ expense accounts. In addition, former board members registered and approved by the resident officers be given the same local perdiem.”
Voting “yes” were Butts, Mulidore, Warden, Elizondo, Dallojacono, Griffin, McCartney and S. Green. Voting “no” were Roma, R. Green, Johnson, Walton, Austin, Perez, Laster, Trayer, Moreno, Mooney, Bock, Studdard, Davis, Pashinski, Valuet and Wagner.
The motion failed 8-16.
Motion #11—Made by McCartney, seconded by Wagner, that: “The secretary/treasurer provides the Executive Board quarterly line-item YTD reports reflecting actual vs. approved budget expenditures.” Voting “yes” was Wagner. Voting “no” were Butts, Mulidore, Warden, Roma, R. Green, Johnson, Elizondo, Walton, Austin, Perez, Dallojacono, Griffin, Laster, Trayer, Moreno, Mooney, McCartney, Bock, Studdard, S. Green, Davis, Myrna and John Valuet.
The motion failed 1-23.
Motion #12—Made by McCartney, seconded by Butts, that:
“Effective at the 2023 fall Executive Board meeting that the Executive Board receive $100 per day subsistence for any NAPS Headquarters-required attendance. Any group meals during these events, excluding any scheduled NAPS Headquarters meal event, be charged to individual allowance accounts.”
After discussion, the motion was withdrawn.
Motion #13—Made by R. Green, seconded by Butts, that:
“The NAPS resident officers complete a thorough review of the budget and report back to the Executive Board by no later than May 5, 2023, with a list of potential cost reductions for the Executive Board to consider.”
Voting “yes” were Butts, Mulidore, Warden, Roma, R. Green, Johnson, Elizondo, Walton, Austin, Perez, Dallojacono, Griffin, Laster, Trayer, Moreno, Mooney, McCartney, Studdard, S. Green, Davis, Pashinski, Valuet and Wagner; Bock was absent.
The motion passed 23-0.
Motion #14—Made by R. Green, seconded by Roma, that:
“As NAPS is involved in litigation against the USPS and there is/may be no end in sight, that NAPS creates a legal defense fund with branches paying $1.00 per pay period per member to fund future legal action against the USPS. These monies will be placed in a separate GL and only can be used for legal action against the USPS.”
After discussion, the motion was withdrawn.
Motion #15—Made by Mooney, seconded by Moreno, that:
“Any line item (GL) that is over-spent in excess of 10% over what was budgeted be explained to the Executive Board at the first board meeting following the close of the fiscal year. If a line item was not budgeted any money, but money was spent in that line item, that reason also would be explained at the same time.”
Voting “yes” were Butts, Warden, Roma, R. Green, Johnson, Elizondo, Walton, Austin, Perez, Dallojacono, Griffin, Trayer, Moreno, Mooney, Mc-Cartney, Bock, S. Green, Pashinski, Valuet and Wagner. Voting “no” were Mulidore, Laster, Studdard and Davis.
The motion passed 20-4.
Motion #16—Made by Dallojacono, that:
“Article VII, Section 1(c) of the NAPS Constitution & Bylaws be changed from:
‘NAPS Executive Board members shall relinquish any offices they might hold in a state or local branch at the time of their election or appointment to the Executive Board,’ to read:
‘At the time of their election or appointment to the Executive Board or within five days of the adoption of this provision, whichever is later, NAPS Executive Board members shall relinquish any office they hold in a state or local branch of NAPS and any membership in any other postal management organization.’”
The motion was given to the Duties & Responsibilities Committee, which then gave it to the Constitution & Bylaws Committee.
Recommendation #1—Submitted by Pashinski, seconded by Walton, that:
“The NAPS president creates a standing Budget Committee, with a description of committee’s oversight, to include major events and major purchases to recommend expenses that could be cut or delayed until a later time.”
The recommendation passed on a voice vote, but the outcome of which was questioned. A vote then was taken by a hands-raising vote. The recommendation passed 16-8.
Recommendation #2—Submitted by Griffin, seconded by Perez, that:
“The Executive Board proposes to raise the national per-capita tax (dues) to $143 per year, effective Jan. 1, 2025.”
The recommendation passed by voice vote and was sent to the Constitution & Bylaws Committee.
Recommendation #3—Submitted by Griffin, seconded by Wagner, that:
“Now that the spring 2024 board meeting will be via Zoom, the meeting be extended one day (to include Saturday, depart Sunday) to ensure that all business is taken care of and not rushed in preparation for our 2024 National Convention.”
After discussion, the recommendation was withdrawn.
Recommendation #4—Submitted by Griffin, seconded by Mooney, that:
“The NAPS DDF provider be scheduled to present one day at the 2024 spring Executive Board meeting. Expenses be limited to travel, accommodations and expenses the day of the presentation, prior day (arrival) and following day (departure).”
After discussion, the recommendation was withdrawn.
Isaac Cronkhite, USPS chief Processing Operations officer and executive vice president, explained the structure of Mail Processing Operations. The structure was not positioned to transform change in the beginning; the system was broken. An example is running trucks on time, but the trucks need to have mail.
Mail processing now is two regions—East (Eastern and Southern) and West (West and Central). The two regions have 13 regions, with divisions within the regions. COVID-19 had a great impact—there was 40% increase in package volume and employee availability was affected.
The first focus in January 2021 was to stabilize two issues. First was staffing—conversions were done to career positions. Second was to run a consistent operating plan; everyone cannot run the same operating plan. So, site-specific operating plans were developed. Each site developed its own plan and now is held accountable to that plan.
Presently, the plants are stabilized; now begins optimization. The heart of optimization is developing a winning culture. Overtime in the plant is at 3%; plants are somewhat overstaffed. Prior, there were 75,000 career and 25,000 part-time employees, totaling 100,000. Currently, there are 120,000 employees, which is why overtime is 3%; 1.6 million hours below budget.
There also is a savings of $80 million in the S&Bs. Plant is successful and meeting budget. Truck routes are being established to have more direct lines of travel and eliminate dock transfers; looking to eliminate annexes.
RP&DCs to eliminate NDCs; there is a concern with space allocations. It has been said staging areas have minimal space allocated. Response staging is one of the key elements in standardizing. Buildings will have more than sufficient staging areas. Cronkhite said staging is a major component in the standardization process. HCR (highway contract route) contracts have been cancelled to insource transportation.
Cronkhite believes there will be some staffing proposals coming in the future, with a stable complement that would give additional supervisors as complement increases. They are looking at relief supervisors and to get away from 204 (b)s.
Also looking at a proposal to adjusting plant rankings. Annexes are a problem with the ratio. The new network design will be a better help.
Cronkhite said communication will improve with NAPS regarding issues with plants. There is a concern regarding employees working in unauthorized positions. NAPS asked if this was approved? Cronkhite said he does not believe they are authorized, which is why they are looking at the ranking. Once completed, they will address this issue.
NAPS’ Disciplinary Defense Fund provider Al Lum and Mulidore updated the board on the DDF.
During NAPS’ FY23: 51 cases—35 closed; 16 pending.
Total MSPB cases: 42—25 settled (59%); 1 won (2%); 2 lost (5%); 2 withdrawn (5%); and 12 pending (29%).
Total Debt Collection cases: 8—1 settled (12%); 4 won (50%); and 3 pending (38%).
Total ELM 650 cases: 1 pending.
The three most charges are first, performance; second, falsification; and third, attendance. The board was told the number of cases filed from each NAPS area.
Lum discussed methods to send appeals. The appeals still can be mailed (Express), but may be faxed or scanned in an email. Photos should not be taken; they need to be scanned. Copies need to be clear. If the file is large, it needs to be mailed. He highly recommends using Express Mail. If sending by Express Mail, the tracking number should be emailed to him at lrag.po@gmail.com. The address is: Labor Relations Admin Group LLC, PO Box 25822, Brooklyn NY 11202; fax, 718-425-9873.
Lum noted that many branches are using old DDF forms and sending cases to the incorrect address, which delays filing cases. If a case is filed late, the court will not accept it. It is the responsibility of the branch to send the case to the correct address.
In order to file a case with the MSPB, Lum needs:
1. MSPB Form 185
2. Letter of Decision
3. A copy of the notice of the proposed adverse action.
4. A completed NAPS DDF representation request form.
Do not send the entire case file; the assigned advocate will contact the sender for the case file.
For ELM 650 appeals, Lum needs:
1. A completed NAPS DDF representation request form.
2. A copy of the decision letter.
3. A copy of the notice of the proposed adverse action. Do not send the entire case file; the assigned advocate will contact the sender for the case file.
For debt collection petitions, Lum needs:
1. A completed NAPS DDF representation request form.
2. A copy of the notice of Involuntary Administrative Salary Offset under the Debt Collection Act.
3. A copy of the letter of debt determination. Do not send the entire case file; the assigned advocate will contact the sender for the case file.
Lum stressed it is extremely important to send these documents as soon as possible; there are deadlines for filing. For MSPB cases, it is only 30 days from the effective date; for ELM 650 appeals and debt collection cases, it is only 15 days.
NAPS Director of Legislative & Political Affairs Bob Levi addressed the board. He reported that about 200 surveys have been received from delegates attending the recent LTS:
NAPS provided 20 laptops for delegates who had scheduled Zoom meetings with their legislators; at times, all 20 were in use. It was suggested the laptops be set farther apart to avoid hearing others’ conversations. The surveys provided positive feedback regarding having both Republican and Democrat lawmakers speak at LTS.
At LTS, $13,187 was raised for SPAC. The online SPAC raffle before LTS raised $15,105, for a total of $28,292.
Recommendations for the 2024 LTS include:
The NAPS Executive Board next held its consultative with Postal Service representatives Bruce Nicholson, Tomica Duplessis, Paulita Wimbush and Melissa Pfluke. Written responses from the Postal Service are to come.
Amy Bartosh from PNC Bank addressed the board. She said inflation is still high at 5%; interest rates just increased 0.25%. The government is focused on inflation, as well as the recent failures of two banks and events in Europe.
There may be another interest rate increase in May. Numbers are strong regarding employment. There have been more price increases on services than goods. She believes early 2024 will be the start of a recovery phase.
Bartosh next reviewed NAPS’ investment portfolio with the board.
As a point of personal privilege, Central Gulf Area Vice President Dwight Studdard asked board members to make personal donations to Pioneer Area Vice President Ed Laster to help in his efforts to feed families in need in his community.
Bruce Moyer, NAPS legal counsel, addressed the board. He told the board this year is his 25th year serving NAPS. He began as legislative counsel, then, 10 years ago, also became legal counsel.
He referenced the Montgomery case (Scialla and Simpson). The plaintiff filed for further review with the U.S. Supreme Court. Moyer said the court receives about 6,000 cases a year and accepts only about 75. The legal team feels strongly the court will deny the case.
The Executive Board then went into executive session for Moyer to provide an update on NAPS’ pending lawsuit against the Postal Service.
Following are the Executive Board Committee reports:
PFP Committee—Dan Mooney (chair), Brian Wagner, Richard Green, Dee Perez and Troy Griffin. At the previous board meeting, it was recommended the committee meet quarterly with Don Flak, USPS executive director, Performance and Field Operations Support.
Flak and the committee met Tuesday, March 28, to discuss data regarding scorecards. The data wasn’t received until Friday, March 24. The committee reviewed the data before the meeting. The committee discussed their concerns with Flak, including if a goal is measured at the district level, then only the installation head could mitigate the goal. Each indicator was reviewed.
The committee relayed that the S&DCs are a concern regarding DPH with the additional street time added. Flak said they are looking at it. He said he would look further into the committee’s concerns and respond back.
SWCs Committee—Tommy Roma (chair), Tony Dallojacono, Troy Griffin, John Valuet, Ed Laster, John Aceves and Jimmy Warden. The SWCs system has been revamped. The committee is waiting on verbiage to meet every six months to review. The new SWCs instruction sheet is in the process of being updated to reflect the changes. Roma thanked everyone for their patience, affirming NAPS finally has succeeded.
Ethics Committee—Craig Johnson (chair), Richard Green, Tommy Roma and Marilyn Walton. No ethics issues were presented to the committee.
Constitution & Bylaws Committee—Jaime Elizondo (chair), Bill Austin, Dan Mooney, Myrna Pashinski and John Valuet. The committee received a resolution from the Duties and Responsibilities Committee for consideration, as well as a board motion for the 2024 National Convention.
Duties and Responsibilities Committee—Shri Green (chair), Ivan Butts, Luz Moreno and Pamela Davis. A motion was submitted to the committee, which then submitted the motion to the Constitution & Bylaws Committee.
Legislative Committee—Marilyn Walton (chair), Chuck Mulidore, Dee Perez, Kevin Trayer and Bobby Bock.
Walton reported that, at the 2022 fall board meeting, the committee’s project was to prepare and distribute a legislative guide for local and state legislative representatives. After including the team’s content input, it was published with added graphics from Bob Levi. The final product was completed for distribution in November. So far, positive feedback has been received.
Since last October, Walton has been working with the California Postal Legislative Coalition. The coalition reminds people to vote and on time. California has seven new congressional representatives. Walton said it will be important to make contact with the new members and ensure they understand NAPS’ position on postal legislation.
The coalition used the fall months to plan its 24th annual meeting. There were over 100 attendees at the February meeting, including national legislative directors from the unions, UPMA and NARFE. NAPS Director of Legislative & Political Affairs Bob Levi and National Postal Mail Handlers Union Legislative Director Katie Maddocks teamed up for their legislative presentation.
This year’s coalition discussion was led by the NALC and APWU. Levi featured several original members on his NAPS Chat podcast.
Walton said she has been helping Felecia Pennington, California’s new legislative consultant, update the new listing for California’s 118th congressional delegation—52 representatives and two senators—to ensure all Hill visits are covered and confirmed.
At this year’s California State Convention, Walton said they are focused on working to meet or exceed last year’s contribution. She also will be working with additional Western Region states to encourage more participation in SPAC.
Along with the SPAC contribution campaign, they also are promoting membership and encouraging retirees to maintain membership in NAPS. The Western Region’s goal is to increase SPAC contributions and membership.
Trayer reported that, since the previous board meeting, he has been busy bringing awareness to the negative impact the S&DC initiative will have in the Michiana Area. Trayer’s 25-year relationship with Rep. Fred Upton (R-MI) has helped greatly in opening doors as he worked to make contacts with the media and local government agencies.
Upton met with Trayer and Kalamazoo Branch 142 Vice President Anthony Bradley last fall. They briefed Upton on the PMG’s plans to consolidate delivery operations in Kalamazoo and Lansing into two mega delivery units. Upton then expressed concern about employees’ safety and service and delivery delays to affected communities.
Trayer said Upton agreed with NAPS’ position regarding the lack of transparency to communities and the USPS management staff in these two sites. He had his staff immediately schedule a press conference with local and national media outlets. He also sent an invitation to local and county leaders. The turnout was fantastic. It opened doors to NAPS to meet with city, county and state leadership.
Trayer was invited to speak at several board and council meetings, as well as the Kalamazoo County commissioners’ meeting, which wrote a letter on traffic concerns. Trayer and NAPS Michigan State President Tony Viers also were invited to speak at the Michigan Townships Association meeting in December in Frankenmuth, MI.
Every one of these meetings resulted in letters being sent to Postmaster General Louis DeJoy, opposing his plan as being highly inefficient and delaying already-poor services. They were concerned DeJoy had not followed Public Law 109-435, which clearly states communities impacted by such moves should be able to give public input.
As a result of redistricting, Trayer said he has an opportunity to start a new relationship with Republican Rep. Bill Huizenga’s chief of staff in the Holland, MI, office. Huizenga’s chief of staff told Trayer to mention when he goes to these events that he was their first constituent to visit since opening the new office.
Trayer said he has been quoted in four newspaper articles, one press conference that included two television stations, newspapers and radio station WMUK, where he was interviewed in person; WMUK is an NPR affiliate station.
Trayer said the entire NAPS Executive Board and NAPS members need to call out the PMG for the lack of transparency. Portage City Mayor Patricia Randall asked, “How do think slowing down delivery services and raising prices is a good business plan?”
Trayer said he is getting started in Indiana, as well.
Perez said this past October was challenging due to many congressional seats up for reelection. The Postal Service did whatever was humanly possible to deliver every ballot on time and was successful in performing its objective for the American public.
As a Level-21 postmaster and New York Area vice president, Perez said he was involved in this process and fully engaged in his area of responsibility as their representative. He messaged through his email distribution list all of NAPS’ legislative concerns, as well as specific concerns about the S&DCs.
Perez, chair of the Executive Board Postmaster Committee, has held Zoom meetings with NAPS guest speakers to discuss important legislative topics that will benefit NAPS and its membership.
Perez has promoted political participation and engagement in the New York Area by emailing branch managers to update the names of those currently serving as legislative chair of each branch. This information was used to schedule Capitol Hill visits during LTS.
Bock reported that, since the previous board meeting, he has been working with Florida and Georgia to increase SPAC contributions. He has attended over a dozen NAPS functions, which gives him an opportunity to speak about SPAC.
This year, Florida came in third place for SPAC funds raised, missing second place by a couple thousand dollars. This coming year, Florida is going back to its raffle, which has been very successful.
Bock has visited new Rep. Cory Mills at his local office and attended his town hall meeting. After the town hall, Bock had a couple minutes to speak with him. He also is in the process of educating Mills’ staff on postal issues.
Postmaster Committee—Dee Perez (chair), Kevin Trayer, Kelly McCartney, Tony Dallojacono and Pamela Davis. The committee has brought postmasters together and welcomed them into the NAPS family with open arms with constructive Zoom meetings.
Perez established a regional area of responsibility for each member of his committee that covers the entire nation. He has held quarterly Zoom meetings, as promised, and encouraged NAPS Postmaster Committee Chair Jimmy Salmon to urge his committee members to contact their respective Executive Board members with their concerns while keeping Perez in the loop. If there is a postmaster policy concern, NAPS leadership will be consulted.
Thus far, feedback from the postmasters on this committee has been positive. The committee has established in each of their regions an overall genuine sense of being a part of the NAPS family.
Communication from NAPS Headquarters has been shared with members, in addition to various reminders of daily and weekly topics for those who are active while also educating retired postmasters. This is done so retired members can better understand active members’ concerns and not feel out of touch.
Perez has held five Zoom meetings since the fall board meeting:
Currently, the committee is working on a video to remind any member who wishes to sponsor a new member what their responsibilities are when signing them. A team with Dallojacono, Trayer, Salmon, Warden and Perez will produce the video, which will be 10 minutes and discuss forms 1187 and 1188, the NAPS DDF, NAPS vs. UPMA and the NAPS lawsuit. Once completed, the video will be shared with the Executive Board.
The Postmaster Committee encourages board members to share the video and show it at regional and state conventions and training seminars to encourage members to correctly sign new members. The link will be publicized on the NAPS Facebook page and in The Postal Supervisor.
The committee is monitoring the new S&DCs currently open in Atlanta, Texas, Utica (NY) and Michigan regarding how they will affect postmasters. Perez attended the grand opening of the Utica S&DC on Feb. 22, 2023, with seven New York Area members. The facility still was undergoing renovations; only one ZIP code was in the facility, which anticipates a total of 13 ZIP codes.
New York 3 District Manager Marcellina Del Pizzo invited the NAPS members to come back in June when she anticipates the center will be fully up and running.
Trayer has been a pioneer in leading the S&DC charge in his area with local community stakeholders, as well as informing his local congressional representatives. Davis also has been involved with her Texas Area S&DC and is monitoring the activities taking place that would affect postmasters and supervisors.
The committee feels corrective action currently being issued to EAS employees is punitive and not corrective in nature. All too often, postmasters and supervisors are issued corrective action when they have nothing on file, then are faced with adverse action being given.
If Labor and Human Resources are the guardrails to keep discipline in line by being corrective and not punitive by abiding by the just-cause rules, these occurrences would be less frequent. Regardless who the managers of Labor and Human Resources are, they are being told to issue a certain degree of corrective action, even if it is excessive. The committee feels corrective action is being rubber-stamped by these departments instead of issuing the actual levels of proper corrective actions.
Committee members have been encouraged to meet with their Labor and Human Resources managers to have this conversation. The intent is to have districts understand the need to be consistent and fair when issuing corrective action. A rubber stamp of approval because a higher-level manager deems it necessary is not acceptable. This practice needs to stop.
Perez thanked his committee members for contributing to the committee’s success. He also thanked participants in the Zoom meetings who voiced their concerns and opinions on various topics. The committee has attained its groundbreaking objective and will continue to share information while including postmasters in the NAPS family.
Training and Advocacy Committee—Myrna Pashinski (chair), Brian Wagner, Richard Green and Chuck Lum. The committee received a letter from a member in the Dakotas asking for changes to the Officer Training Manual regarding placement of branch funds.
The state had an investment account that wasn’t in a FDIC-protected institution; the member was concerned the branch would get in trouble. They also wanted NAPS Headquarters to include a list of authorized investments.
The committee held a Zoom meeting to discuss how to respond to this request. Wagner spoke with the member and Pashinski meet with them at LTS. The actual request was to change wording in Section 7 to include language on other investments. The committee will work on proposed language and present it to the board.
Plant Committee—Chuck Lum (chair), Shri Green, Luz Moreno and Dwight Studdard. The committee had no updates to report.
Membership Committee—All Executive Board members are responsible for increasing membership. There was a lot of discussion on reaching out to nonmembers. Boots on the ground is the best way to reach out to nonmembers, tell them about NAPS and ask them to join.
There was discussion regarding the upcoming Career Conferences and support NAPS Headquarters will give local branches to attend. Increasing membership also was discussed to help the FY23-24 budget.
On Friday, the discussion was de-voted to discussing the proposed FY23-24 budget. R. Green began a conversation about board members’ fiduciary responsibilities, confirmed by Walton. There was discussion about registration fees for LTS and national conventions as they cover a small fraction of the meetings’ costs.
Under new business, board members were informed 1187s need to be sent to the new email address, join@ naps.org. Clear copies must be received; photocopies are not acceptable.
Questions were asked whether NAPS could reach out to the Postal Service Board of Governors for their position on the S&DCs. NAPS’ concern is there needs to be transparency; information is slow. Telecons are held every two weeks.
In Athens, GA, and Bryan, TX, there currently is no impact on supervisors. NAPS supports the process, but wants transparency. Current postal leadership is doing things differently, but their intent is for the good of the agency. S&DCs may not necessarily save money, but will streamline the system. In the Texas S&DCs, things are going smoothly.
It was discussed that if a branch submits a receipt for the $100 cost of a NAPS table at a Career Conference, NAPS Headquarters will reimburse the $100 and will supply pens. Roll-up banners will be available for purchase (click here to learn more). The majority of employees who attend the conferences are craft.
Butts thanked everyone for pressing through to accomplish the meeting’s business. He wished everyone safe travels home and ensured the board will continue doing the work of the association.
The closing prayer was led by Wagner. Lum made a motion to adjourn; the motion was adopted.
Categories: The Postal Supervisor
