NRLCA and USPS reach tentative agreement
The National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association (NRLCA) and United States Postal Service (USPS) have reached a tentative agreement for the 2015-2018 contract. In a statement issued yesterday (11 February), the NRLCA said that the tentative agreement “provides for significant improvements to and protections for rural letter carriers’ terms and conditions of employment”.
The agreement will now go to a vote by the NRLCA membership for ratification. Assuming ratification, the new contract will expire on 20 May 2018.
NRLCA President Jeanette Dwyer said: “The Union’s persistence and unrelenting negotiation efforts paved the way to a tentative agreement that provides for meaningful wage increases and significant improvements in rural carriers’ rights and benefits.”
In a statement sent to Post&Parcel, USPS said: “While we will not comment on specific contract terms until the ratification process is complete, the tentative agreement does address important financial and operational considerations of the Postal Service and serves the interests of our employees and the American public.”
Among other changes, the tentative agreement includes the following points:
- General wage increases:
- 2015: 1.2%
- 2016: 1.3%
- 2017: 1.3%
- Continued COLA adjustments (in addition to annual wage increases)
- An increase in Equipment Maintenance Allowance
- Health benefits for eligible non-career bargaining unit employees
- Bereavement leave for employees taking time off for the death of a family member
- Mail count opt-in/opt-out rights for Rural Carrier Associates serving auxiliary routes
- Work rule changes, including giving carriers on Long Life Vehicle routes rights to case Delivery Point Sequencing flats
- A new non-carrier bargaining unit employee classification–Assistant Rural Carrier–to perform certain Saturday, Sunday, and holiday duties.
