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Report to the Membership
2016 NPMHU National Convention Chicago, IL.
August 22,2016
Day 1
Opening ceremonies began approx. 10:00 when the City of Chicago Fire Dept. Pipe and Drums serenading the audience with the old patriotic songs God Bless America and America the Beautiful. President Paul Hogrogian then asked for moment of silence for all the Brothers & Sisters who have passed away.
Following this LIUNA General President Terry O’Sullivan addressed the crowd with an emotional speech on both labor issues as well as the upcoming election. For those of you who have heard Terry speak know that this fired up the crowd and was instrumental in motivating the delegates to begin the convention. Nothing got the crowd more fired up then when Terry referred to the Donald as that “Silver Spoon, Richie Rich Sissy”. For those of you who have never heard Terry speak I suggest you do so, you will not regret it.
The theme for this year’s convention was the Power of You which is self-explanatory especially with the Presidential election taking place this year.
U. S. Representative David Joyce (R) from Ohio’s 14 Dist. was next to speak. He spoke about the need for Postal Reform and stated that he got it. He understands our needs and the needs of both the Postal Service as well as the American public in keeping the Postal Service from those that want to dismantle it. It was encouraging to hear a Republican willing to work across the aisle to help fix the problems which plague the Postal Service not destroy it. Representative Joyce gets it, unlike some others who simply want to destroy it and give our work to the likes of UPS or FedEx.
A Report was then given by Credentials Committee, Rules Committee and the Election Committee. An introduction was then made for the Judges of Election appointed for the election of the Judges of Election. A little confusing right, I know but in order to conduct an election of the Judges of Elections which are elected and not appointed an election must take place. Is your head spinning yet? I know mine was. The Judges appointed were Y. Johnson (300), Ira Edelstein (318), G. Newsome (306). At that point there were nominations for the position for Judge of Election. There were several nominations made and an election was held during the evening of Day 1.
August 23, 2016
Day 2
The results of the Election for the Judges of Election were announced as Rick Coleman (303), Chawanda Parson (316) and T. Reed (300)
The next order of business was nominations for office of National President, Secretary Treas., Central Region Vice Pres., Eastern Region Vice Pres., Northeastern Region Vice President, Southern Region Vice Pres., and finally Wester Region Vice Pres.
National President Hogrogian and Secretary Treas. Mark Gardner were both elected by acclamation as were Dave Wilkins Northeastern Region VP, and Lawrence Sapp Southern Region VP. Out of the Eastern Region there were only two candidates Local 308 Pres. John Gibson and Falandria Jackson Local 305 Pres.
The others Regions all faced multiple challengers and therefore had to withstand a primary election. Emerging out of the primary for Western Region was Don Sneesby (316) and Eddie Cowan (303). Out of the Central Region was June Harris (306) and Jim Hagarty (307).
The delegates were then introduced to a true friend of the NPMHU Congressman Danny Davis from Il. 7th Congressional Dist. Mr. Davis spoke about issues important to working men and woman such as minimum wage and Jobs. He spoke about his own personal experience working for the Postal Service and how he knows about the importance of unions. Congressman Davis fights for the working men and woman of this country and is highly respected among his peers on Capital Hill. I have had the honor of hearing Congressman Davis on a number of occasions and always left believing that there is actually someone fighting for the citizens of this county and not just the millionaires and billionaires. I only wish that I could vote for Congressman Davis since I can not I wish him a long and happy tenure representing all of us working people.
The afternoon session began with a video presentation of the opening of contract negotiations with the USPS and the NPMHU. President Paul Hogrogian gave us some insight into the progress which was made and stated that the NPMHU was very close to a settlement but he also stated that if they could not agree they would not hesitate going into interest arbitration on our behalf. Paul had stated that the union was strong and prepared to meet any challenge before us from the USPS as far we can. Following Paul's report was a report by Secretary/Treas. Mark Gardner on the financial state of the NPMHU. Mark stated that the union was showing significant growth since the inception of the Mail Handler Assistant (MHA) following the Fishgold Award. Mark went over the loss of Mail Handler positions from 1994 thru 2010. He also mentioned the two VERA's where there was a loss of membership. However there has been significant growth due to the creation of the MHA's. Mark went on to say that the union was in sound financial position to meet any challenges the postal service may throw our way. Our next speaker was Senator John Tester(D) from Montana who emphasized his support for the issues facing the postal service such as the pre-funding requirement into the retirement funds. We also had a video presentation from Congressman Gerry Connolly(D) from Va. showing his support for legislative issues we support. Another speaker was Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth from Il. 8th Dist. Ms. Duckworth for those of you that don't know is a disabled veteran of the Iraq war. Ms. Duckworth was a helicopter pilot who was injured when a RPG hit her helicopter. Ms. Duckworth is a recipient of the purple heart which she earned when she sustained injuries from that attack. Unlike a certain someone running for President of the United States who was simply handed one. Congresswoman Duckworth spoke about her commitment to the working men and woman and also to the veterans returning home from overseas.
August 24, 2016
Day 3
Much of the morning was spent voting for the positions of Regional Vice Presidents. The convention was called to order at 02:00 pm. Guest Speaker Congresswoman Robin Kelly (D) from Il. 2nd Congressional Dist. spoke to the delegation. Representative Kelly informed the delegates that her brother was a Postal Worker and that there was no need to lobby her for her support since she gets that from her brother constantly. She spoke about some of the bills currently in the House such as HR 5714 and HR 5707. Both of these two bills concern some of the issues facing the Postal Service. HR 5714 has been adopted by the committee and must now be put up for a vote. HR 5714 is the Postal Service Reform Act of 2016. This bill was introduced by Rep. Jason Chaffetz. HR 5707 is the Postal Service Financial Improvement Act of 2016. This bill was sponsored by Stephen Lynch (D) Mass. 8th Cong. Dist. Cong. Lynch also has family members that work for the Postal Service and he is a true friend of the NPMHU. HR 5707 is still currently in committee. Following Rep. Kelly's address the Report of the Constitution Committee given by Chairman Jefferson Peppers (306) Central Region VP. Many of the changes adopted were dealing with time constraints involving election of officers, challenges to election results or appeals to decisions involving elections results. Time constraints were extended due to the Postal Services adoption of Delivery Standards being relaxed. As we all know this caused mail to be delayed. Other changes were typographical changes due to misspellings or grammatical changes. There were also additional language added to ensure that checks being written must have names, amounts and dates entered prior to being signed. Seems kind of silly to actually have to put this in writing when it appears to be common sense, but I guess this was being done in one of the Locals. All of the recommendations by the committee were adopted following some discussion.
August 25, 2016
Day 4
The Convention was called back to order. The delegates were then informed of the results of the primary elections. Central Region Jim Haggarty Local 307 & June Harris Local 306, Eastern Region John Gibson Local 308 & Falandria Jackson Local 305. An invocation was then given by Sister Roxie Olds Pride Local 311. Following the invocation guest speaker Fred Rolando National President of the NALC was introduced. Fred gave a rather lengthy talk about the importance of working together. Brother Rolando spoke about the formation of what is referred to as the Grand Alliance. This alliance was formed between all the stake holders, all four unions, Postal Service and some of the larger mailers such as Amazon, and eBay. He also mentioned the grassroots involvement of all the members politically and how critically important it is to get the legislation passed. All the parties understand that the goal is to keep the Postal Service strong and by joining together there is a much better chance of success. Following Brother Rolando was the introduction of all the proposed changes to the Constitution that were not adopted by the Committee. This is when the delegates get the opportunity to introduce from the floor those changes not adopted. One of those changes was the reintroduction of the .80 per member. Delegates spoke for and against the proposal and a friendly amendment was proposed to reduce the .80 down to .40 per member. This proposal failed as did all the other proposed changes not adopted by the Committee. Following was guest speaker Representative Jason Chaffetz (R) from Utah's 3rd Congressional Dist. Rep. Chaffetz is the Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Rep. Chaffetz spoke about HR 5714 Postal Service Reform Act of 2016 which he introduced July 11, 2016. This bill is now up for a vote in the House and if passed must then go to the Senate. Rep. Chaffetz while a Republican understands the importance for fixing the problems currently facing the Postal Service and has taken steps to correct them. While HR 5714 does not address all of the concerns facing the Postal Service it is a good start. Representative received a resounding applause from the delegates as a thank you for all the work he has done. He has increased the optimism for the possibility that while Democrats and Republicans have different views on getting things done it is still possible. Following Rep. Chaffetz Legislative Director Bob Losi gave a report. Bob informed the delegates of the schedule for the Presidential debates. There are three scheduled debates; Sept. 26th at Hosta Univ., Oct. 9th St. Louis and the last Oct. 19th in Nevada. Bob informed the delegates that there are currently 54 seats up for re-election in the Senate and 22 in the House of Representatives. He reminded the delegates of the Hatch Act which prohibits politicking on Government property. He asked all the Local's to commit to additional members for campaigning, Local 308 agreed to one additional member for this purpose. After Bob's report the Report of the Legislative Committee was given by Chairman Rudy Santos Local 320 and Western Region VP. There were eight (8) legislative resolutions proposed dealing with such topics as Trade and Globilaztion, Voting Rights, Raising the Minumum Wage, Board of Gov., Postal Reform, Campaign Fin. Reform, Voter Registration Reform, Hillary Clinton for Pres. endorsement. All of those proposed resolutions passed unanimously.
August 26, 2016
Day 5
The Convention was called back to order. A report was then presented by the Chairman of the Resolution Committee Lawrence Sapp Local 318 Southern Region VP. There was a total of nine (9) resolutions proposed for adoption. Those adopted were involving Dignity and Respect, Nabisco Boycott, Support U. S. Mail, Grand Alliance, Oppose Downsizing, Privatization, Black Lives Matter, Buy Union Buy American, Union Shop. For full information on these resolutions go to http://convention.npmhu.org/news/npmhu-passes-seventeen-resolutions. Simply copy and paste the link into your browser. All of the resolutions proposed by the committee were after some discussion adopted by the delegates. The delegates were then given the opportunity to bring to the floor any of those proposed resolutions not recommended by the committee. Only the resolutions proposed by the committee passed all others were rejected. A video guest speaker was then introduced to the delegates. Senator Robert Memendez (D) from New Jersey. The next order of business was to vote on the location of the next NPMHU Convention scheduled for 2020. After serious debate and discussion the field was narrowed to two cities Denver, Co. and Seattle, Wa. Denver, Colorado will be the site of the next convention. 2016 NPMHU National Convention was then adjourned.
Report to the Membership
2016 NPMHU National Convention Chicago, IL.
August 22,2016
Day 1
Opening ceremonies began approx. 10:00 when the City of Chicago Fire Dept. Pipe and Drums serenading the audience with the old patriotic songs God Bless America and America the Beautiful. President Paul Hogrogian then asked for moment of silence for all the Brothers & Sisters who have passed away.
Following this LIUNA General President Terry O’Sullivan addressed the crowd with an emotional speech on both labor issues as well as the upcoming election. For those of you who have heard Terry speak know that this fired up the crowd and was instrumental in motivating the delegates to begin the convention. Nothing got the crowd more fired up then when Terry referred to the Donald as that “Silver Spoon, Richie Rich Sissy”. For those of you who have never heard Terry speak I suggest you do so, you will not regret it.
The theme for this year’s convention was the Power of You which is self-explanatory especially with the Presidential election taking place this year.
U. S. Representative David Joyce (R) from Ohio’s 14 Dist. was next to speak. He spoke about the need for Postal Reform and stated that he got it. He understands our needs and the needs of both the Postal Service as well as the American public in keeping the Postal Service from those that want to dismantle it. It was encouraging to hear a Republican willing to work across the aisle to help fix the problems which plague the Postal Service not destroy it. Representative Joyce gets it, unlike some others who simply want to destroy it and give our work to the likes of UPS or FedEx.
A Report was then given by Credentials Committee, Rules Committee and the Election Committee. An introduction was then made for the Judges of Election appointed for the election of the Judges of Election. A little confusing right, I know but in order to conduct an election of the Judges of Elections which are elected and not appointed an election must take place. Is your head spinning yet? I know mine was. The Judges appointed were Y. Johnson (300), Ira Edelstein (318), G. Newsome (306). At that point there were nominations for the position for Judge of Election. There were several nominations made and an election was held during the evening of Day 1.
August 23, 2016
Day 2
The results of the Election for the Judges of Election were announced as Rick Coleman (303), Chawanda Parson (316) and T. Reed (300)
The next order of business was nominations for office of National President, Secretary Treas., Central Region Vice Pres., Eastern Region Vice Pres., Northeastern Region Vice President, Southern Region Vice Pres., and finally Wester Region Vice Pres.
National President Hogrogian and Secretary Treas. Mark Gardner were both elected by acclamation as were Dave Wilkins Northeastern Region VP, and Lawrence Sapp Southern Region VP. Out of the Eastern Region there were only two candidates Local 308 Pres. John Gibson and Falandria Jackson Local 305 Pres.
The others Regions all faced multiple challengers and therefore had to withstand a primary election. Emerging out of the primary for Western Region was Don Sneesby (316) and Eddie Cowan (303). Out of the Central Region was June Harris (306) and Jim Hagarty (307).
The delegates were then introduced to a true friend of the NPMHU Congressman Danny Davis from Il. 7th Congressional Dist. Mr. Davis spoke about issues important to working men and woman such as minimum wage and Jobs. He spoke about his own personal experience working for the Postal Service and how he knows about the importance of unions. Congressman Davis fights for the working men and woman of this country and is highly respected among his peers on Capital Hill. I have had the honor of hearing Congressman Davis on a number of occasions and always left believing that there is actually someone fighting for the citizens of this county and not just the millionaires and billionaires. I only wish that I could vote for Congressman Davis since I can not I wish him a long and happy tenure representing all of us working people.
The afternoon session began with a video presentation of the opening of contract negotiations with the USPS and the NPMHU. President Paul Hogrogian gave us some insight into the progress which was made and stated that the NPMHU was very close to a settlement but he also stated that if they could not agree they would not hesitate going into interest arbitration on our behalf. Paul had stated that the union was strong and prepared to meet any challenge before us from the USPS as far we can. Following Paul's report was a report by Secretary/Treas. Mark Gardner on the financial state of the NPMHU. Mark stated that the union was showing significant growth since the inception of the Mail Handler Assistant (MHA) following the Fishgold Award. Mark went over the loss of Mail Handler positions from 1994 thru 2010. He also mentioned the two VERA's where there was a loss of membership. However there has been significant growth due to the creation of the MHA's. Mark went on to say that the union was in sound financial position to meet any challenges the postal service may throw our way. Our next speaker was Senator John Tester(D) from Montana who emphasized his support for the issues facing the postal service such as the pre-funding requirement into the retirement funds. We also had a video presentation from Congressman Gerry Connolly(D) from Va. showing his support for legislative issues we support. Another speaker was Congresswoman Tammy Duckworth from Il. 8th Dist. Ms. Duckworth for those of you that don't know is a disabled veteran of the Iraq war. Ms. Duckworth was a helicopter pilot who was injured when a RPG hit her helicopter. Ms. Duckworth is a recipient of the purple heart which she earned when she sustained injuries from that attack. Unlike a certain someone running for President of the United States who was simply handed one. Congresswoman Duckworth spoke about her commitment to the working men and woman and also to the veterans returning home from overseas.
August 24, 2016
Day 3
Much of the morning was spent voting for the positions of Regional Vice Presidents. The convention was called to order at 02:00 pm. Guest Speaker Congresswoman Robin Kelly (D) from Il. 2nd Congressional Dist. spoke to the delegation. Representative Kelly informed the delegates that her brother was a Postal Worker and that there was no need to lobby her for her support since she gets that from her brother constantly. She spoke about some of the bills currently in the House such as HR 5714 and HR 5707. Both of these two bills concern some of the issues facing the Postal Service. HR 5714 has been adopted by the committee and must now be put up for a vote. HR 5714 is the Postal Service Reform Act of 2016. This bill was introduced by Rep. Jason Chaffetz. HR 5707 is the Postal Service Financial Improvement Act of 2016. This bill was sponsored by Stephen Lynch (D) Mass. 8th Cong. Dist. Cong. Lynch also has family members that work for the Postal Service and he is a true friend of the NPMHU. HR 5707 is still currently in committee. Following Rep. Kelly's address the Report of the Constitution Committee given by Chairman Jefferson Peppers (306) Central Region VP. Many of the changes adopted were dealing with time constraints involving election of officers, challenges to election results or appeals to decisions involving elections results. Time constraints were extended due to the Postal Services adoption of Delivery Standards being relaxed. As we all know this caused mail to be delayed. Other changes were typographical changes due to misspellings or grammatical changes. There were also additional language added to ensure that checks being written must have names, amounts and dates entered prior to being signed. Seems kind of silly to actually have to put this in writing when it appears to be common sense, but I guess this was being done in one of the Locals. All of the recommendations by the committee were adopted following some discussion.
August 25, 2016
Day 4
The Convention was called back to order. The delegates were then informed of the results of the primary elections. Central Region Jim Haggarty Local 307 & June Harris Local 306, Eastern Region John Gibson Local 308 & Falandria Jackson Local 305. An invocation was then given by Sister Roxie Olds Pride Local 311. Following the invocation guest speaker Fred Rolando National President of the NALC was introduced. Fred gave a rather lengthy talk about the importance of working together. Brother Rolando spoke about the formation of what is referred to as the Grand Alliance. This alliance was formed between all the stake holders, all four unions, Postal Service and some of the larger mailers such as Amazon, and eBay. He also mentioned the grassroots involvement of all the members politically and how critically important it is to get the legislation passed. All the parties understand that the goal is to keep the Postal Service strong and by joining together there is a much better chance of success. Following Brother Rolando was the introduction of all the proposed changes to the Constitution that were not adopted by the Committee. This is when the delegates get the opportunity to introduce from the floor those changes not adopted. One of those changes was the reintroduction of the .80 per member. Delegates spoke for and against the proposal and a friendly amendment was proposed to reduce the .80 down to .40 per member. This proposal failed as did all the other proposed changes not adopted by the Committee. Following was guest speaker Representative Jason Chaffetz (R) from Utah's 3rd Congressional Dist. Rep. Chaffetz is the Chairman of the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform. Rep. Chaffetz spoke about HR 5714 Postal Service Reform Act of 2016 which he introduced July 11, 2016. This bill is now up for a vote in the House and if passed must then go to the Senate. Rep. Chaffetz while a Republican understands the importance for fixing the problems currently facing the Postal Service and has taken steps to correct them. While HR 5714 does not address all of the concerns facing the Postal Service it is a good start. Representative received a resounding applause from the delegates as a thank you for all the work he has done. He has increased the optimism for the possibility that while Democrats and Republicans have different views on getting things done it is still possible. Following Rep. Chaffetz Legislative Director Bob Losi gave a report. Bob informed the delegates of the schedule for the Presidential debates. There are three scheduled debates; Sept. 26th at Hosta Univ., Oct. 9th St. Louis and the last Oct. 19th in Nevada. Bob informed the delegates that there are currently 54 seats up for re-election in the Senate and 22 in the House of Representatives. He reminded the delegates of the Hatch Act which prohibits politicking on Government property. He asked all the Local's to commit to additional members for campaigning, Local 308 agreed to one additional member for this purpose. After Bob's report the Report of the Legislative Committee was given by Chairman Rudy Santos Local 320 and Western Region VP. There were eight (8) legislative resolutions proposed dealing with such topics as Trade and Globilaztion, Voting Rights, Raising the Minumum Wage, Board of Gov., Postal Reform, Campaign Fin. Reform, Voter Registration Reform, Hillary Clinton for Pres. endorsement. All of those proposed resolutions passed unanimously.
August 26, 2016
Day 5
The Convention was called back to order. A report was then presented by the Chairman of the Resolution Committee Lawrence Sapp Local 318 Southern Region VP. There was a total of nine (9) resolutions proposed for adoption. Those adopted were involving Dignity and Respect, Nabisco Boycott, Support U. S. Mail, Grand Alliance, Oppose Downsizing, Privatization, Black Lives Matter, Buy Union Buy American, Union Shop. For full information on these resolutions go to http://convention.npmhu.org/news/npmhu-passes-seventeen-resolutions. Simply copy and paste the link into your browser. All of the resolutions proposed by the committee were after some discussion adopted by the delegates. The delegates were then given the opportunity to bring to the floor any of those proposed resolutions not recommended by the committee. Only the resolutions proposed by the committee passed all others were rejected. A video guest speaker was then introduced to the delegates. Senator Robert Memendez (D) from New Jersey. The next order of business was to vote on the location of the next NPMHU Convention scheduled for 2020. After serious debate and discussion the field was narrowed to two cities Denver, Co. and Seattle, Wa. Denver, Colorado will be the site of the next convention. 2016 NPMHU National Convention was then adjourned.