USPS sets the record straight
Recent assertions have been made that the Postal Service has “declared war” on the custodians who work in its facilities. These assertions are both false and inaccurate.
Here are the facts: The Postal Service is becoming more efficient in all areas of its business, including the way postal facilities are cleaned and maintained.
Last year, USPS launched a pilot program to determine whether there were smarter, easier and more efficient ways to clean facilities. New cleaning methods, supplies and equipment were tested. USPS managers were pleased with the results.
In January 2014, consistent with requirements under the collective bargaining agreement with the American Postal Workers Union (APWU), the Postal Service provided notice of its intention to invoke the negotiated process to change relevant handbooks and manuals to implement the proposed changes.
Adhering to a negotiated process to implement change should not be construed as a “war” on custodial staff. Rather, this process allows the Postal Service and APWU to discuss all relevant issues regarding the proposed changes that USPS believes will ensure its facilities are cleaned in a more efficient manner.
at our plant on t-3 we have 4 custodians and 4 custodian stupidvisors…………they are very good at ordering takeout food…….pizza and chinese seem to keep them busy. they will go look at a dirty bathroom, then they will walk away. keep this in mind, last quarter po lost 342 million. verizon in the same quarter made 22.3 BILLION………does verizon have 4 stupidvisors watching 4 workers? can’t make this stuff up!
Custodians aren’t Veterans any longer…..they have filled the ranks with employees that are designated for removal and allow them to take a last ditch effort and become lazy, over paid, no nothing custodians. The Veterans are the thing of the past…..Management sit around in there cozy office and the facilities are filthy. Thirty years and all we have seen are a bunch of employees that aren’t directed and do nothing. This speaks for the ninety %. and if they get lucky they become 204B’s with no knowledge of what the hell is going on or what there supervising. Other crafts wait in line to switch over since they see they all have the best job going and don’t do a darn thing but sleep on the job, sit around and do nothing and get 50 K a year. Hey Vince what skills does it take to become a lazy custodian but kiss butt and clean coffee spills, a degree. Hell no! a drop out…..
I am all for the argument that veterans should, and are in fact, given priority in USPS hiring, but simply being a veteran does not justify being a leech, not doing the job assigned. A position is there, because presumably, there is work to justify it, so then the work should be done. Contract states, ” a fair days work for a fair days pay”. I am tired of those who justify the job, to a vet., because they are a vet., without also expecting that vet to perform the duties of that job. Sitting around, sleeping, playing card games instead of working is NEVER justified by because someone “served”.
In my 24 years of Postal Service all in the Maintenance Craft as a Custodial Laborer and Maintenance Support Clerk not to mention Acting Maintenance Manager for over ten years. Contract cleaners that were responsible for our 13 stations in the 065 area did little or no work. When the national contract for custodial work contracted out some big corporation was awarded the contract, they subcontracted out to local companies that used slave labor to perform this work, this was in violation of our hiring laws, management turned a blind eye to it by allowing personnel to clean our facility that shouldn’t even been allowed to enter our facilities, no background checks, no oversight of the personnel that came and went, I’ve heard nothing but horror stories about stamp stock missing, shabby work, I personally witnessed this, they would come in (two women cleaning 13 stations), they came in and out within one hour. This went on for over tens years before the Union won the jobs at the stations back, I was personally involved during the process of returning the positions back to USPS Custodians, Management kicked and screamed and even tried to undercut our staffing, when I first was hired our station custodian did 40 hours at each station, they had the nerve to have one custodian to perform 40 hours at three stations making sure that the job could not be performed per the MS-47 Guidelines by jogging the numbers. And YES the Custodian craft is made up of Disabled Veterans/Veterans and yes we do deserve these positions, most of us do an excellent job, plowing, cleaning, being called upon when someone spills their coffee on the workroom floor, cleaning up after pigs that think were there to wipe their asses, being a custodian takes more skill then the other lifeless jobs like Carriers, clerks, mail handlers, with the exception of the VMF mechanics, ET’s, BEM’s, MM’s and other technical positions were are the backbone of the facility operations. The one thing we could do without is more Managers and Supervisors at facilities, they sit around after their children (Carriers) are out on the road and fill their fat faces and look to inflict misery upon the one craft that is called upon time after time. Thank the APWU for sticking to their guns and making management uphold the contract. Place professional supervisors and managers who have outside the postal service experience and you will not have the troubles that we have in the Postal Service, personnel who get promoted because they kiss ass or have a guardian angel have no place in Government service. My opinion is one of fact and first hand knowledge, so before any of the management blog watchers comment on my post, think twice.
TO (Contractor) HAVE U TRIED #XLAX
My stupidvisor says its snowing outside in SOCAL an the sky isn’t blue, do I trust them?
IMO folks BYOTP.
Folks lets remember most of these Custodians are Veterans who served in war and they deserves these jobs making a descent salary with good benefits. Shame on Management if they go to a private Contractor.
Im a staffing advocate and my Field maintenance manager do joint staffing. Every facility i have been to out of 123 are terrible. Reason for that is primarily custodians are being sent to run mail, do several offices without overtime to properly get the facility to a manageable level of cleanliness. So i would think there program will enhance the staffing, provide training and supplies.
Our career custodians play cards and sleep in their supply area and if they have time empty the trash and once a year sweep under the carrier cases
If USPS management really wanted to set the record straight, and convince the reader that there is no war on custodians, they should have stated bluntly that these new cleaning methods would in no way affect staffing levels. But they totally dodged that central issue. I think they’re out to (a) can junior custodians who don’t have layoff protection, and (b) excess as many of the rest of us that they can. Of course, that’s not a war, per se…they just want to enhance our esprit de corps…..
Management changing the cleaning are saying its is more productive, what is good about policing bathrooms in a station or plant the was originaly cleaned daily, another way of trying to reduce staff, and as far as contracting I have worked cleaning area that contract custodians have cleaned also they may show up or take equipment from the area, and management failes to put in the contracts what they want cleaned daily including dusting
The postal service has intentionally created the custodial problem. This is not only an attack on custodians but a direct assault on “disabled Veterans”. Being a custodial groupleader and a Veteran, I get to see first hand what the real intent has become. I can only assume that my service to my country is not even worthy to empty a trash can or sweep the floor.
What a crock of crap! Did Donut-Hole write this between drinks? The Postal Service has been doing its best for years, including violating the contract by unilaterally making changes to the MS-47 Handbook (ahh, Mr. Arbitrator stopped this though, didn’t he?), in an attempt to dump on their own custodial staff and replace them with anyone or no one, all while the rest of us workers have to use bathroom facilities that are (I’ll be nice here) less than satisfactory! And, the quantity and quality of supplies our custodial staff has to work with has dwindled to the minimum. Both the paper towels and the toilet paper are comparable to the Sunday newspaper. Watch out, your fingers might poke through! Forget about wiping up a spill with this wax paper!! Lastly, “Adhering to a negotiated process….” is definitely NOT the way the Postal management I have come to know implements change!!!
Hiring contractors has seldom worked out. I have worked at 2 different offices and have heard custodians complain, they are often sent to clean up after a contractor who is not doing their job. Management never calls the boss of these contractors, they just send postal custodians to clean up the mess.
If management held the contractors accountable, then maybe there would be some cost savings. To many managers just don’t want to be responsible for any extra work. This seems to be a postal wide problem.
USPS statements = nothing but lies.