House Panel Approves Bill To Cut Postal, Federal Pensions

APWU News Bulletin 05-2012, Feb. 9, 2012 | PDF

A House committee approved legislation on Feb. 7 that would cut pensions for postal and federal employees, while increasing the contributions the workers must make toward their retirement. The party-line vote was 22-16, with Republicans voting in favor of the retirement cuts and Democrats voting against.

“This bill is an outrageous attack on postal and federal employees,” said APWU President Cliff Guffey. “Some politicians are quick to cut benefits for middle-class workers, but they fight to the death to protect tax breaks for the super-rich.”

The legislation (H.R. 3813) was shepherded through the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee by a pair of politicians who are well-known opponents of postal workers: Committee Chairman Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Rep. Dennis Ross (R-FL). The two are co-sponsors of H.R. 2309, a bill that would destroy the Postal Service as we know it.

Increases Costs, Cuts Benefits

H.R. 3813 would increase the amount postal and federal employees contribute to their retirement by 1.5 percent, with the increase phased in over three years, beginning in 2013.

Employees with less than five years of service would face an increase of 3.2 percent. (Employees in the Federal Employee Retirement System [FERS] currently pay 0.8 percent of salary into the pension fund. Employees enrolled in the Civil Service Retirement System [CSRS] currently pay 7 percent to their retirement system.)

It also would reduce pensions for employees with less than five years of service by calculating annuities based on the average of employees’ high-five salary years instead of their high-three years, which is the current method. In addition, their pensions would be calculated at a lower rate of 0.7 percent per year, down from 1 percent.

The measure would eliminate the supplemental annuity provision, which augments benefits for employees who retire before they are eligible for Social Security benefits at age 62.

Following committee adoption of the bill, the House Rules Committee voted to merge it with the H.R. 7, a $260 billion highway bill, which the House is expected to consider during the week of Feb. 13.

APWU members are encouraged to contact their representative as soon as possible and urge them to oppose the bill as it is currently written.

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Senate to Vote on Postal Bill
APWU Members Must Take Action NOW!

APWU News Bulletin 03-2012, Jan. 27 2012 | PDF

The APWU has learned that the Senate will consider postal legislation very soon, and President Cliff Guffey is asking union members to contact their senators immediately and tell them that the 21st Century Postal Service Act (S. 1789) is unacceptable in its current form. “The stakes couldn’t be higher,” Guffey said.

As currently written, the bill would give the USPS some short-term financial relief, but also would inflict long-term damage to the nation’s mail system, he said.

“The bill would force the Postal Service to close hundreds of mail processing centers, shut thousands of post offices, and cause massive delays in mail delivery,” the APWU president said. “By failing to give more substantial financial relief, the bill would weaken the Postal Service, kill jobs, and drive customers away,” he added.

“APWU members have done an outstanding job of expressing our concerns to their senators and representatives,” Guffey added. “At this critical time, union members must  continue to let them know where we stand.”

The union is seeking support for amendments to:

• Set strict service standards. (This is crucial, because the Postal Service is planning to degrade delivery standards in order to eliminate more than half of all mail processing facilities.)
  
• Allow the USPS to recover overpayments the Postal Service made to its retiree pension funds.
  

• Call Your Senators: 202-224-3121 (Capitol Switchboard) [Click here for direct #s] Tell them you oppose S. 1789 as it is currently written

  Adequately address the requirement that forces the USPS pre-fund future retiree health benefits. (This mandate is the primary cause of the agency’s financial crisis. No other government agency or private company bears this burden, which costs the USPS approximately $5.5 billion annually.)
  
• Establish new ways to generate revenue, such as providing notary services, issuing licenses, contracting with state and local agencies to provide services, and allowing the USPS to offer services that mail systems in many other countries provide, such as digital services.
  
• Prevent the closing of small post offices by giving the Postal Regulatory Commission (PRC) binding authority to prevent closures based on the effect on the community and employees.
  
• Protect six-day delivery.
  
• Eliminate the provision that would drastically reduce the compensation of workers who are injured on duty once they reach retirement age.
  
• Repeal the provision that would require arbitrators in postal contract negotiations to consider the financial health of the USPS. (Postal unions note that arbitrators routinely do so, and criticize the provision as an attempt to skew contract negotiations in favor of management.)

“We must not allow this bill to destroy service to the American people,” Guffey said.

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