Postal Union President Tells Members: Early Retirement No Bargain
By ARI PAUL
American Postal Workers Union President William Burrus is urging his members not to accept early retirement offers from the U.S. Postal Service.

WILLIAM BURRUS: Make it worth their leaving.

Motor Vehicle Services and Maintenance Craft employees in the APWU have been given the chance to participate in the USPS Voluntary Early Retirement. The USPS made the offer in July to 57,000 Clerks, Mail Handlers, and supervisory employees.

'Where's the Incentive?'

"My reasoning is simple: Every APWU-represented employee who leaves early will save the USPS hundreds of thousands of dollars, yet the Postal Service is refusing to offer cash incentives," Mr. Burrus said in a statement Sept. 4. "Each employee who opts for the early-out will suffer a life-long reduced annuity. And with the economy spiraling downward, the opportunity to find another job after retirement has diminished. Eligible employees should be offered a cash incentive to cushion the shock."

He added, "Early-outs have been offered in many industries. But elsewhere they are called 'buyouts' and employees have been offered healthy bonuses."

While telling his members not to accept the VER, Mr. Burrus urged the USPS to include Electronic Technicians who are members of his union in the plan.

In a letter to the APWU president last month, USPS Contract Administration Manager John Dockins said that, "This VER authority affords the Postal Service an opportunity to voluntarily reduce its workforce and maintain excellent customer service, in line with automation and technological advances and mail volume reductions."