Five Points . . .
Anyone vested in an existing Teamsters-sponsored pension plan will remain a member until death. (And if your surviving spouse qualifies, you are even a "member" after death as well.) So if the fund has restrictive retirement work rules, these rules will still apply to you, even if a portion of your pension is paid by a second monthly check by an APWA pension fund or a new Teamsters/UPS pension fund. The APWA fund's lack of retirement work restrictions is a great policy, but it will be *irrevelant* if you must still comply with the Central States restrictions to get your Central States monthly check.
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If it bothers you that Central States assets were mismanaged by those Wall Street investment firms, how do you feel about the fact that UPS used/uses those *very same firms* to manage the investments of the UPS Pension Plan (for Central States part-timers) and the UPS Retirement Plan (for management)?
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The APWA claims to be organizing UPSers nationwide, but almost everything they say references just the Central States situation. They often talk as if what is true of Central States is true of us all. Maybe the APWA will petition the NLRB to declare the Central States Area as a seperate bargaining unit. Then they could submit cards just from that area and have a Representation Election just in the Central States area. What do you think?
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Why have so few people voted for the APWA in the online Brown Cafe polls? (I realize non-registered people can't vote in polls, but presumably, someone who felt strongly might register just to qualify to vote in the poll.)
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The APWA can submit a petition for an NLRB election so long as a new, signed Teamster/UPS contract is not in place. There's no guarantee that the new Teamster/UPS contract will be in effect on August 1st, 2008. It could be later, if negotiations drag on, or it could be earlier if early negotiations yield early results. Does anyone know for sure what the rules are? It seems Hoffa could agree to a UPS proposal at any time, declare it the "Very Bestest Contract Ever," sell it to the members, and if the contract passes, APWA is stopped dead in its tracks. If Hoffa needed to, he *could* have done this anytime during the last six month, though that may have been hard to sell. My point is, Hoffa can shut down the APWA at any time as long as he is willing to accept whatever UPS has on the table at that time. Conversely, UPS can keep the APWA alive by draging out negotiations, even beyond the expiration date. I'm wondering what APWA can do? Do they have up until a contract is actually ratified to submit their petition? Can they block the ratification process by submiting a petition first, before the final ballots are counted? These endgame rules may make all the difference. Anyone know for sure what they are? I do know once a contract is ratified, no NLRB election is possible for almost another three years.