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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (July 21, 2017)
PAGE 8 | July 21, 2017 | NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS HOW NALC BRANCH 82 IS SURVIVING RIGHT TO WORK Letter Carriers Branch 82 keeps numbers up with shop floor action By Alexandra Bradbury How does Letter Carriers Branch 82 in Portland, Oregon, keep its membership at 95 percent de- spite being an open shop? Postal unions, like all federal employee unions, are open shop. That means workers can get the benefits of union repre- sentation while opting out of paying dues. Yet the postal unions generally maintain high rates of voluntary union membership—and Letter Carriers Branch 82 in Portland does even better than most. From 90 percent membership five years ago, it has “slowly up- ticked,” says Organizing Chair Willie Groshell, to around 95 percent of the 1,200 represented carriers. How did they raise that num- ber so high? It’s mostly the work of volunteers like Groshell, who delivers the mail full-time. (Three top officers make up the branch’s full-time staff.) Most new hires sign up right away at orientation, where the branch vice president spends up to two hours with them—the union has this right guaranteed in its contract—talking through the union’s history and what to expect. One perk is getting im- mediate access to the union’s uniform closet, since the Postal Service won’t provide a uniform allowance until your probation is up. But beyond that, “it’s an easy sell for us in Branch 82, because we defend our contract ex- tremely well,” Groshell says. Plenty of Grievances One key is a robust network of stewards who involve almost all members in filing and pursu- ing grievances. Every year, Groshell estimates, 98 percent of Portland letter carriers get the equivalent of their entire dues back in grievance settlements. Short-staffing is the rule in post offices across the country. But “we are, I think, the only place in the country that has spe- cific language about delivery af- ter dark,” Groshell says. “If we have to be out after sunset, it triggers a grievance payment of $50 for each incident.” That adds up, especially in the winter when the sun sets early and there are lots of holiday pack- ages to deliver. vince them we were just here to talk,” Groshell said. “But once they started talking, in most cases there were maybe one or two things in the past that had upset them.” Some were ready to sign up on the spot. Others needed to see the next step: the union fol- lowing up to address their problems. “We had to let them know this wasn’t just a one-time thing,” Groshell said. “The key to any organ- How does Portland Letter Carriers Branch 82 keep its membership at 95 percent de- izing is communication. You have to be honest, spite being an open shop? (NW Labor Press file photo.) you have to follow Enforcing those penalties re- mail plant workers, drivers, and through on whatever you say quires “eyes and ears on the post office clerks—for a joint in- you’re going to do, and you work room floor almost every ternal organizing push. Mem- have to tell people the truth, place, every day,” Groshell says. bers went out in pairs to visit rather than what you think they The large stations with 100 or non-members at their homes. want to hear.” more letter carriers have four or The point was to listen. “We Overall, he says, the activity more stewards apiece, and even weren’t aggressive,” Groshell was fun. It strengthened the re- smaller stations mostly have at says. “We just started having lationship between the two least one. “We control the envi- conversations to find out, ‘Why unions, and gave members and ronment on the work floor.” aren’t you a member? What are non-members the chance to talk your concerns?’” in the relaxed, frank way that’s Answers ran the gamut. One easier when you’re not at work. Union in Action Sometimes exerting that con- or two said they’d never been trol requires collective action. A asked. Some had transferred in An Everyday Priority few months ago, for instance, from other parts of the country Now the union keeps stew- carriers at Groshell’s station and fallen through the cracks. ards in each station apprised Others were standoffish at which of their co-workers are were told they must deliver three “full coverages” in a single first. “It took a while to con- non-members, and encourages day. A full coverage is an adver- tisement that goes to every household, along with the mail. Two of the three were maga- zine-thick. That’s a lot of weight to carry around all day. There was general “panic and angst,” Groshell says. So he en- couraged everyone to fill out a safety concern form. Some were nervous, but one by one, people filed up to drop their forms on the manager’s desk. About half the carriers on shift that day par- ticipated. And that was all it took. Within minutes the manager agreed to postpone the heaviest item till the next day. Palpable relief and power zipped around the work floor. “It’s moments like that that really do bring people on board, that get people to understand what we can do collectively,” Groshell says. “You’ve got to find those opportunities, and when they’re there, you’ve got to try and take them.” One weekend a couple years ago, Branch 82 partnered with the Postal Workers local (APWU)—which represents them “every so often,” Groshell says, “to ask them why.” The idea is to have “respect- ful, productive conversations,” he says. “You’re not going to get people to join by belittling them. At the same time we want to make sure they can’t hide in the shadows.” It also matters who’s doing the asking. In annual training on non-member sign-up, stewards are encouraged to recognize workplace social circles. “We talk about figuring out who the people in the station are that have the relationship already with the non-members, and en- couraging those people to be the ones having the conversations,” Groshell says. Nonetheless, changing some- one’s mind takes time; it can stretch over many conversa- tions. “Most people don’t just sign up after you talk to them once,” Groshell says. “It’s been made an everyday priority. Everybody knows who the non- members are, and everybody feels empowered to engage them. We try to weave it into the culture.” (Editor’s Note: Alexandra Bradbury is editor of Labor Notes. To see that publication, go to http://labornotes.org.)
