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Clearing up the confusion on COVID leave for postal workers

Informational post by Ruralinfo.net I am seeing a lot of confusion about the current state of COVID leave for postal workers.  I wanted to try to clear up the confusion On April 1, 2020, the U.S. Department of Labor announced new action regarding how American workers and employers will benefit ...

Latest Clarification on COVID Leave and the expiration of the Families First Corona Virus Relief Act (FFCRA)

Subject: Latest Clarification on COVID Leave and Families First Corona Virus Relief Act (FFCRA) Good Afternoon, As you know, the FFCRA expires on December 31, 2020. We have been in discussion with Labor Relations at USPS HQ and here is the current position at the National level: Any rural carrier ...

NRLCA – Liberal Changes of Schedule and Leave MOU Extended

The March 23, 2020 MOU which temporarily expanded the use of Sick Leave for Dependent Care and implemented a liberal leave policy has been extended to March 26, 2021. The MOU expanded the use of Sick Leave for Dependent Care to allow employees to use their sick leave for unexpected ...

UPDATE: NRLCA and USPS Agree to Extend COVID-19 Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) Through March 26, 2021

UPDATE: December 22, 2020 Click the following link to view/download the signed MOU confirming the extension of the MOUs listed below: Agreement to Extend COVID-19 MOUs ------------------------------------------------------------ The National Rural Letter Carriers' Association and United States Postal Service have mutually agreed to extend the Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) linked below ...

NRLCA – Emergency Salary Advance

It has come to our attention that we have carriers that are not being paid properly and, in some cases, not being paid at all. The manager is then claiming they cannot give the carrier a salary advance and in many cases this is just not true. The rules for ...

NRLCA – Overtime Pay Reminder

REMINDER: When a regular carrier volunteers to give assistance on a route other than their regularly assigned route in accordance with the current MOU, the regular carrier is paid time and a half for every minute worked on the other route. The time goes straight to the OT block on ...

Postal workers KNOW that you need your packages by Christmas

Imagine working 10-12 hours a day or more working full speed to do your job, only to be disparaged over and over in the news and on social media.  That's what postal workers are going through right now. We are working non stop to get your Christmas packages delivered, but ...

Rural Carrier helps customer tend to collapsed husband

Rural Carrier Melissa Melhorn was recently delivering a parcel at a residence in East Berlin, PA, when she spotted unusual movement in the garage. Concerned, Melhorn knocked on the front door and alerted the older customer who answered. They checked the garage and found the woman’s husband unconscious on the ...

Rural carriers get help for customer who fell

Rural Carrier Cheryl Sechelski and Rural Carier Associate Mark Husfeld were recently making deliveries in Navasota, TX, when they came upon a customer in crisis. As the duo took a parcel to the man’s residence, they heard him yelling for help. They opened the door and found that the customer, ...

NRLCA – Second Trips During the Christmas Overtime Period

From NRLCA It has come to the attention of the NRLCA that some managers are requiring regular rural carriers to deliver parcels prior to casing the mail for the route. This issue is the subject of a grievance GATS # G15R-4G-C 18190733 that was appealed to Step 4 on April ...

Rural Carrier saves disabled customer from fire

Rural Carrier Associate Troy Boswell was recently delivering mail in Ronceverte, WV, when he spotted a fire in a customer’s backyard. Boswell immediately called 911, honked his horn and rushed to knock on the front door of the residence. The customer — a recovering stroke victim who relies on a ...

Gratitude expressed for life-saving rural carrier

Rural Carrier Jacqueline Tannehill was recently making deliveries in a Springfield, IL, neighborhood when she grew concerned about an older customer whose mail was piling up. Tannehill knocked on the woman’s front door and only heard dogs barking in response. The Postal Service employee alerted a neighbor, knowing he was ...

MDD Communications: Messaging To Rural Carriers On The Route

From NRLCA The NRLCA has received calls from carriers that indicate management has been using the carriers’ personal cell phone to communicate service directions while the carrier is delivering the mail. Until such time as the USPS provides cellphones, pays for cellphone service, and includes the use of cellphones in ...

Carrier Pickup – COVID-19 Response and Prevention

From NRLCA A rise in the number of COVID-19 cases has recently been confirmed across the country. The safety and well-being of our employees is our highest priority, and we are continuing to follow recommended guidelines and strategies from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We are also implementing ...

Rural Carrier helps customer stuck outside overnight

Rural Carrier Associate Shelly Stoddard was delivering a package at an isolated residence in Barker, NY, on a rainy morning last winter when she heard someone yelling for help. She soon spotted an older customer lying on the ground in his driveway. Stoddard rushed to help the man, who lives ...

Rural Carrier helps save heart attack victim’s life

Rural Carrier Reggie Elliott was delivering mail one day last winter in Yorkville, IL, when he spotted a customer lying on the ground at the end of a driveway. The man had suffered a massive heart attack while shoveling snow, and his wife was frantically trying to administer CPR while ...

Mail carrier (RCA) killed in single-vehicle accident

Hopkinsville, KY - A U.S. Postal Service mail carrier was killed in a single-vehicle accident Saturday afternoon on Herndon-Oak Grove Road. Christian County Coroner Scott Daniel identified the victim as 48-year old Robin Jean Kennedy of Clarksville, who was employed as a carrier for the Oak Grove post office. She ...