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The following articles are just a few of the basic, important rights we have under our current contract with UPS. To gain a more complete education on these rights, you should obtain and familiarize yourself with a copy of the current contract.

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• ABOUT SUPERVISORS WORKING
• ABOUT STEWARD REPRESENTATION
• INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY
• CARDINAL INFRACTIONS
• IF YOUR PAYCHECK IS SHORT
• EVERY EMPLOYEE IS ENTITLED TO DIGNITY AND RESPECT
• IF YOU NEED TO FILE A GRIEVANCE

(a) The Employer agrees that the function of supervisors is the supervision of Employees and not the performance of the work of the employees they supervise.  Accordingly, the Employer agrees that supervisors or other employees of the Employer who are not members of the bargaining unit shall not perform any bargaining unit work, except to train employees or demonstrate safety, or as otherwise provided for in the applicable Supplement, Rider or Addendum. However, in the case of Acts of God, supervisors shall comply with the procedures in subsections (b) and (c) and may only perform bargaining unit work until bargaining unit employees are available. The Employer shall make every reasonable effort to maintain a sufficient workforce to staff its operations with bargaining unit employees.  The Employer also agrees that supervisors or other employees of the Employer who are not members of the bargaining unit shall not perform bargaining unit work in preparing work areas before the start of the Employer’s hub,preload, or reload operation, nor shall the Employer send any bargaining unit employee home and have such employee’s work performed by a supervisor or other employees of the Employer who are not members of the bargaining unit.”

This is the first paragraph of the main “supervisors working” article.  Our supplement also contains an article on this subject. In the supplement, it clearly states that supervisors can’t perform bargaining unit work, “except for the purpose of training, demonstration, safety or performing work when qualified personnel are not available.  If a supervisor must perform bargaining unit work for any of the above listed reasons, he or she shall inform the appropriate steward for that shift or center as soon as possible.” (Article 46, section 2,) This means that even when supervisors are permitted to perform our work, the company must inform the Shop Steward.

Grievances can be filed for violations of these articles.  The penalty for violations is double time for the time spent working by the supervisor or non-union worker (Article 3, section 7(d)). Article 3, section 7(b), and 7(c) also outline some of the practices the company can be required to follow in order to insure proper staffing, to avoid having supervisors do our work.

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The Employer recognizes the employee’s right to be given requested representation by the Steward, or the designated alternate, at such time as the employee reasonably contemplates disciplinary action… When requested by the Union or the employee, there shall be a steward present whenever the Employer meets with an employee concerning grievances or discipline or investigatory interviews.  In such cases, the meeting shall not be continued until the steward or alternate steward is present.

This paragraph (from Article 4) gives us even more protection than is required by the Weingarten Supreme Court ruling.  Please be aware that our local union has in fact sent a letter to UPS that constitutes a standing request to have a steward present at every such meeting, with or without the employee’s request.  The individual employee does have the right to decline his or her right to have a steward present, and the guidelines for that
are below:

If an employee does not wish to have a Union Steward present in any meeting where the employee has a right to Union representation under this Article, the employee shall sign a waiver of Union representation, a copy of which shall be furnished to the Union upon its request.

Aside from certain government-mandated forms and the back of your paycheck, there is very little that requires your signature with regards to UPS - so be careful what you sign while at work, and only sign a waiver of union representation if you are absolutely sure you want to go it alone, because there may not be much anyone can do for you once you’ve signed a waiver.

• NOTE: In addition to the rights explicitly afforded in our contract with UPS, members also have the right under state and federal labor regulations to choose a specific union representative from those who are available (”available” generally means on the job site).

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Except in cases involving cardinal infractions under the applicable Supplement, Rider or Addendum, an employee to be discharged shall be allowed to remain on the job, without loss of pay unless and until the discharge or suspension is sustained under the grievance procedure.

This paragraph outlines our “innocent until proven guilty clause” for non-cardinal infractions. This means, if fired or suspended for a non-cardinal infraction, we have the right to stay on the job and not be discharged or serve a suspension until that discharge or suspension is upheld by the grievance process.  To assert this right, an employee must file a grievance under Article 7, and Article 51 (discussed below), which lays out the definition of a “cardinal infraction.”

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The Employer shall not discharge or suspend any employee without just cause, but in respect to discharge or suspension, shall give at least one (1) warning notice against such employee to the employee in writing… except that no warning notice need be given to an employee before he/she is discharged if the cause of such discharge is calling an unauthorized strike or walkout, drunkenness, drinking during working hours (including during lunch time) or being under the influence of liquor or drugs during working hours, or in the illegal possession of drugs, proven theft or dishonesty, unprovoked physical assault on his/her Employer or his/her Employer’s representative during working hours or carrying unauthorized passengers in Employer’s vehicle.

These are the reasons (Article 51) for which UPS may fire or discharge an employee without prior warning.  Under these circumstances, the Article 7 idea of “innocent until proven guilty” may not be followed, but we still have the right to appeal if we feel the punishment is unjust. As mentioned a couple paragraphs later, an employee must make an appeal “within ten (10) days from the date of discharge, suspension or warning notice.”

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Wages for properly selected vacations, in all instances, will be paid to the employees no later than the workday prior to their vacation.  If the employee does not receive his/her vacation check, the Employer will make all reasonable efforts to provide the check the following day, including delivery by Saturday or Next Day Air.  Other shortages involving more than thirty dollars ($30.00) for full-time employees, and fifteen dollars ($15.00) for part-time employees, will be corrected and the payment will be made available to the employee at his/her reporting location on his/her second scheduled workday after reporting the shortage.  If the Employer fails to make the payment available on the employee’s second scheduled workday and the shortage was the result of the Employer’s error, the employee will be paid an additional amount equal one-half (1/2) of his/her daily guarantee at his/her regular hourly rate for every full pay period in which the shortage is not paid after the second scheduled work day, until corrected.”

This is the second paragraph of the article covering “PAID FOR TIME” (Article 17). It explains what should happen in the event you become aware of a shortage in your paycheck, or the absence of a check you should’ve received.  The “green check” which is mentioned later in the article, is the check they issue for the second scheduled day after you report the shortage.

If your paycheck is short (more than $15 for part-timers), you shouldn’t have to file a grievance to request a green check, but you should take a couple precautions.  Make sure you request a green check from your full-time supervisor as soon as you notice the shortage.  It helps to have a witness present (a union co-worker) or to get the supervisor to sign a note confirming your request, and make sure your supervisor understands that you want a green check and that you expect it in TWO BUSINESS DAYS - the witness or signed note may come in handy if you don’t receive the check and you need to file a grievance later.

Too many people get strung along by seemingly friendly supervisors who never actually put the time in until weeks or months later when they finally approach a steward or business agent because they didn’t know they had these rights. Of course it’s up to you if you want to let the company off the hook and trust them to put it in next week’s check, but don’t be surprised when they keep making excuses why they couldn’t get your pay fixed.

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(a) The parties agree that the principle of a fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay shall be observed at all times and employees shall perform their duties in a manner that best represents the Employer’s interest.  The Employer shall not in any way intimidate, harass, coerce or overly supervise any employee in the performance of his or her duties.  The Employer will treat all employees with dignity and respect at all times, which shall include, but not be limited to, giving due consideration to the age and physical condition of the employee. Employees will also treat each other, as well as the Employer, with dignity and respect.

This is the first paragraph of the article dealing with management-employee relations (Article 37).  It spells out our responsibility as employees to do our jobs conscientiously and to treat each other and our bosses respectfully. It also clearly mandates that our bosses are not free to treat us any way they choose. Intimidation, harassment, coercion and over-supervision can take a variety of forms. If a supervisor were to use abusive or threatening language toward you, it would be a violation under this article.

This part of our contract also bars management from singling out any employee for unfair attention. If you feel a member of management is not treating you properly (”with dignity and respect at all times”) you can seek a solution through the grievance process.

In general, UPS has the right to ask us to do our job, and we have the obligation to perform our duties - the basic clause of “a fair day’s work for a fair day’s pay” means that while no specific production standards are implied in this language, it is up to us to perform our jobs responsibly. If you are performing to your abilities, UPS has no right to discipline or threaten you for not meeting production standards not specified in our contract.

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If you feel you have reason to file a grievance, remember to “work first/grieve later”; this means that unless there is an immediate threat to physical safety, you should follow a supervisor’s instructions to the best of your ability. Once you are free to do so, you can file a grievance for violation of the contract. Be careful not to leave your work area just to file a grievance while you are supposed to be working. There may be a situation where it becomes necessary to seek immediate help, but it’s usually best to inquire about a grievance later if you can.