Step 4 Grievance Filed on Overburdened Routes Not Being Adjusted in a Timely Manner

On  January 13, 2025, the NRLCA filed a Step 4 grievance regarding the  Postal Service’s failure to timely adjust overburdened routes.

The text of the Step 4 appears below:

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Pursuant to Article 15, Section 4(D) of the parties' National Agreement, the NRLCA submits this National-level grievance.

In dispute is the Postal Service’s continued violation of Article 9.2.C.8.b which states:

“Permanent  relief will be arranged as soon as practicable for overburdened routes.  Auxiliary assistance may be provided as a temporary means of providing  relief for those routes as defined in 8.a.(1). Assistance is provided,  equivalent to the lesser of the following:

(1) The regular rural carrier’s actual weekly work hours that are in excess of 48 hours (K classification); or

(2) The standard hours for the route that are in excess of 57:36.”

The  NRLCA received the USPS letter dated January 7, 2025 in response to the  Union’s Request for Information dated December 19, 2024 regarding route  adjustments. The response states “The Postal Service is not planning to adjust or consolidate any routes between 01/01/2025 and 03/31/2025.”

In  March 2024, the parties agreed to an adjustment process/tool to adjust  rural routes. Applying that process/tool, the Postal Service adjusted  thousands of routes from May 2024 through August 2024. From October 2024  through November 2024, the Postal Service adjusted hundreds of  additional routes. 

The  NRLCA and the USPS subsequently entered into a MOU dated 11/18/2024  that eliminated the fluctuation of post adjustment evaluations by  locking in those evaluations for a minimum of 52 weeks and should have  addressed any concerns regarding adjustment fluctuations. 

Failure  by management to timely adjust overburdened routes is a violation of  the established language and is causing harm to Rural Carriers. A rural  carrier is incentivized through the evaluated system and compensated up  to 57:36 standard hours (K48). Management’s violation results in mail  being delivered at the expense of the carrier. This violation is causing  carriers to perform work without being properly compensated.  Failing  to timely adjust routes potentially causes additional harm by not  creating career positions resulting from newly created regular routes.  It also impacts the number of PTFs required within an office in  accordance with Article 30.2.A.3.

The  Association's remedial request includes but is not limited to (1)  immediately adjust all overburdened routes (2) retro the career  effective date as appropriate, for any leave replacement negatively  impacted by management’s failure to timely adjust routes (3) compensate  regular rural carriers for all standard hours greater than 57:36 at 150%  of their hourly rate, and (4) interest at the Federal Judgment Rate for  all impacted carriers.

Please contact Director of Labor Relations John Adams at your earliest convenience to discuss this important issue.

Sincerely,

Donald L. Maston 

President 

National Rural Letter Carriers’ Association