The crowd of over 40 picketers included clerks and letter carriers from the Barre Post Office, APWU members from throughout New England, and members of other local labor unions. Picketers handed out flyers to customers entering the post office, which listed their complaints alongside a request they contact the U.S. Postal Service’s Northern New England District Manager and the Postmaster General.
The Barre postal workers claim that their post office is mismanaged and short-staffed, leading to long lines and poor customer service.
John Dirzius, Northeast Regional Coordinator for the APWU, called Barre “a problem office.” He said that management has not cooperated with employees to resolve staffing and customer service issues. “We don’t want lines out the door,” Dirzius said. “We don’t want people getting their mail at 7, 8 o’clock at night. And that requires management working with us.”
The U.S. Postal Service claims that grievances have been handled according to protocol. “Anytime there’s a complaint against a manager, it’s investigated from the district level,” said Steve Doherty, a USPS Communications Specialist. “Anytime an employee has a grievance, there’s a process that that grievance goes through until it reaches a resolution.”
Nancy Rowell, a lead sales clerk at the Barre Post Office and the APWU Local president for Barre, said issues have continued even after workers met with management in 2015 and with district management in 2016.
Dirzius said that if the workers’ grievances remain unresolved, more pickets could follow. He added that postal employees have a no-strike clause in their contract.
If management does not respond, Rowell said, “We’ll do our job to serve our customers and do the best we can.”
