November 10, 2003
Mr. Vincent Palladino
President
National Association of Postal Supervisors
Suite 400
1727 King Street Alexandria, VA 22314-2753
Dear Vince:
On July 22 I wrote you about upcoming changes to RMD/eRMS. In
order to keep you updated on this project, the following information is
provided.
With the new eRMS speech application, when employees are
unable to work due to unexpected illness/injury, personal emergency, or
community disaster, employees will make their unscheduled leave request
using an Interactive Voice Recognition (IVR) system. The IVR will then
update the RMD/eRMS with the employee's leave request information. The
decisions regarding leave approval, documentation requirements, and the
Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) will continue to be made by the
appropriate management official in accordance with existing handbooks,
manuals and published regulations. If the IVR is having difficulty
understanding the employee, the employee can use the number pad on his/her
phone to make selections. Enclosed is a detailed script of the actual
questions, possible answers, and other messages contained in the eRMS speech
application, as well as an updated call flow chart.
A small-scale usability test is planned for the middle of
December at a testing site in Boston. The test will provide an opportunity
to have callers perform a series of transactions on a prototype system. USPS
employees who have little or no experience using Postal Service leave will
be used for the test. This will ensure the system provides sufficient
information for the callers. Participation will be on a voluntary basis only
and the employees will be on the clock.
The USPS eRMS speech application Pilot Test phase is
anticipated to begin by the end of January 2004. Calls will be recorded
during the test phase for the purpose of improving the system. Over time,
the percentage of calls being recorded will decrease. However, it may be
necessary to record some calls from time to time to monitor the ongoing
effectiveness of the system. Employees will be told at the beginning of the
call whenever it may be recorded for quality purposes.
After the USPS eRMS speech application Pilot Test, we
estimate the roll-out to begin in February 2004. A roll-out schedule will be
provided when it is finalized. If you have any questions please contact
Sandy Savoie at (202) 268-3823.
source: pdf file from http://www.naps.org/forum/index.php?act=Attach&type=post&id=1386
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TO: Local Presidents
National Business Agents
National Advocates
Regional Coordinators
Resident Officers
FO: Greg Bell, Director
Industrial Relations
RE: RMD Settlement
Enclosed is a copy
of a pre-arbitration settlement agreement in case number Q98C-4Q-C01005505
concerning the Postal Service’s Resource Management Database (RMD) and its
web-based enterprise Resource Management System (eRMS).
This settlement resolves many of the issues related to
management’s implementation of these systems, including Privacy Act issues,
multiple call-in requirements, medical documentation to protect the
interests of the Postal Service, and fixed numbers of absences for
triggering discipline.
Several issues in this dispute remain outstanding,
specifically: management requesting the nature of the illness when an
employee calls in, FMLA second/third opinion procedures, and medical
documentation requirements to substitute paid leave for unpaid intermittent
FMLA leave. We have agreed to continue discussions related to these
unresolved issues. However, if no agreement is reached within fifteen (1 5 )
days from the date of this settlement, the parties have agreed that these
issues will be given priority scheduling for national arbitration.
It is requested that locals forward to my office any information
(policies, past practice, class action grievances, settlements or agreement,
etc.) that you may have regarding management requesting the nature of
illness when an employee calls in due to an illness or injury. Such
information may be helpful in our attempt to resolve this issue.
Please note that on Feb. 2 1, 2003, in national-level arbitration,
we heard the case involving whether the Postal Service violates the FMLA by
requiring a detailed medical report from bargaining unit employees seeking
to return to work from FMLA leave after certain illnesses or ailments, or
after absence of more than 21 days. This case is pending a decision upon the
submission of briefs.
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Mr. Greg Bell
Director, Industrial Relations
American Postal Workers
Union, AFL-CIO
1300 L Street, N.W.
Washington, DC 20005-4128
Re: Q98C-4Q-C 01 005505
APWU #HQTG200015
Class Action
Washington, DC 20260-41 00
Dear Mr. Bell:
On several occasions, we met to discuss the above-captioned case which is
currently pending national arbitration.
This dispute involves the implementation of the Postal Service Resource
Management Database (RMD), its web-based enterprise Resource Management
System (eRMS), and the application of current leave-related rules and
policies, including the Family and Medical Leave Act.
After discussing this matter, the parties agreed to the following mutual
understanding and settlement of this case:
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•
Pursuant to Article 10 of the
National Agreement, leave regulations in Subchapter 510 of the
Employee Labor Relations Manual (ELM), which establish wages, hours and
working conditions
of covered employees, shall remain in effect for the life of the
National Agreement. The
formulation of local leave programs are subject to local implementation
procedures, in
accordance with Article 30 of the National Agreement.
•
The purpose of RMD/eRMS is to
provide a uniform automated process for recording data relative to
existing leave rules and regulations. RMDleRMS (or similar system of
records) may not alter or change existing rules, regulations, the
National Agreement, law, local memorandums of understanding and
agreements, or grievance-arbitration settlements and awards.
•
RMD/eRMS enables local
management to establish a set number of absences used to ensure
that employee attendance records are being reviewed by their supervisor.
However, it is the
supervisor’s review of the attendance record and the supervisor’s
determination on a case-by-
case basis in light of all relevant evidence and circumstances, not any
set number of absences,
that determine whether corrective action is warranted. Any rule setting
a fixed amount or
percentage of sick leave usage after which an employee will be, as a
matter of course,
automatically disciplined is inconsistent with the National Agreement
and applicable handbooks
and manuals. Any corrective action that results from the attendance
reviews must be in
accordance with Article 16 of the National Agreement.
•
In accordance with the notice in
the Federal Register in June 2000, the storage of RMD/eRMS
documentation is covered by the Postal Service’s Privacy Act System of
Records, 170.020.
Information maintained in the RMDIeRMS, including, but not limited to,
social security numbers,
must be in accordance with the rules and regulations regarding Privacy
Act System of records.
RMD/eRMS users must be authorized to have access to records covered by
the Privacy Act
System of Records and must comply with the Privacy Act, as well as
handbooks, manuals and
published regulations relating to leave and attendance.
• Supervisor’s notes or records of Article
16.2 discussions are not to be entered in the RMD/eRMS.
• All records of overturned disciplinary
actions must be removed from the employee’s personnel
records kept by the supervisor, the employee’s official personnel
folder, as well as from
RMD/eRMS. Management may cite only “live” disciplinary action as
elements of past record in
disciplinary action pursuant to Article 16.10, and if a disciplinary
action has been modified, the
disciplinary records must reflect the final disposition of an action.
The RMD/eRMS is
programmed to delete records of disciplinary action two years from the
time issued if there has
been no disciplinary action initiated against the employee, in
accordance with Article 16.10 of the
National Agreement. However, employees are still responsible for making
a written request to
have such disciplinary action removed from their official personnel
folder.
•
Supervisors may maintain copies,
summaries or excerpts from other Postal Service personnel
records, or records originated by the supervisor, in a system of records
defined in ASM 120.190
as “Supervisors’ Personnel Records.” However, information about
individuals in the form of
uncirculated personal notes and documents kept by Postal Service
employees, supervisors,
counselors, investigators, etc., which are not circulated to other
persons, are not to be entered
into RMD/eRMS. (If they are circulated, they become official records in
a system of records and
must be shown on request to the employee to whom they pertain). The
copies, summaries, and
excerpts kept in accordance with the ASM 120.190 system of records are
destroyed (with the
exception of disciplinary records) when the supervisor/employee
relationship is terminated. All
disciplinary records are transferred to the new supervisor, provided
their retention period has not
expired.
•
Pursuant to part 513.332 of the
ELM, employees must notify appropriate postal authorities of their
illness or injury and expected duration of absence as soon as possible.
Once an employee
provides the expected duration of his or her absence, such employee is
not required to call in
again for the same absence. However, if the expected duration changes,
the employee should
notify management.
•
Pursuant to part 513.361 of the
ELM, when an employee requests sick leave for absences of 3
days or less, “medical documentation or other acceptable evidence of
incapacity for work or need
to care for a family member is only required when an employee is on
restricted sick leave (see
513.39) or when the supervisor deems documentation desirable for the
protection of the interests
of the Postal Service.” A supervisor’s determination that medical
documentation or other
acceptable evidence of incapacitation is desirable for the protection of
the interest of the Postal
Service must be made on a case by case basis and may not be arbitrary,
capricious, or
unreasonable.
•
Pursuant to part 513.362 of the
ELM, when an employee requests sick leave for absences in
excess of 3 days (scheduled work days), employees are required to submit
medical
documentation or other acceptable evidence of incapacity for work for
themselves or of need to
care for a family member, and if requested, substantiation of the family
relationship. Medical
documentation from the employee’s attending physician or other attending
practitioner should
provide an explanation of the nature of the employee’s illness or injury
sufficient to indicate to
management that the employee was (or will be) unable to perform his or
her normal duties for the
period of absence. Supervisors may accept substantiation other than
medical documentation if
they believe it supports approval of the sick leave request.
•
Pursuant to Article 10 of the
National Agreement and applicable leave rules, for an approved
absence for which the employee has insufficient sick leave, at the
employee’s option, such
employees must be granted annual leave or leave without pay. When an
employee’s absence is
approved, the employee may use annual and sick leave in conjunction with
LWOP, consistent
with the applicable leave regulations. In addition, an employee need not
exhaust annual or sick
leave prior to requesting LWOP.
•
Optional FMLA Forms: There is no
required form or format for information submitted by an
employee in support of an absence for a condition which may be protected
under the Family and
Medical Leave Act. Although the Postal Service sends employees the
Department of Labor
Form, WH-380, the APWU forms or any form or format which contains the
required information
(i.e. information such as that required on a current WH-380) is
acceptable.
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The parties agreed to continue discussions related
to management requesting the nature of the illness when an employee calls
in; FMLA second/third opinion procedures; medical documentation requirements
to substitute paid leave for unpaid intermittent FMLA leave. In the event no
agreement is reached within fifteen (15) days from the date of this
settlement, the Union may initiate a dispute at the national level, in
accordance with Article 15.4.D. of the National Agreement. If the dispute is
not resolved, and the Union appeals the dispute to national level
arbitration, the parties agree that the case will be given priority
scheduling.
Please sign and return the decision as your
acknowledgement of your agreement to settle this case, removing it from the
pending national arbitration listing.
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