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Ten thousand times has the labor movement stumbled and bruised itself. We have been enjoined by the courts, assaulted by thugs, charged by the militia, traduced by the press, frowned upon in public opinion, and deceived by politicians. 'But notwithstanding all this and all these, labor is today the most vital and potential power this planet has ever known, and its historic mission is as certain of ultimate realization as is the setting of the sun. --Eugene V. Debs
A LABOR DAY STORY: THOSE WHO SERVE (from the Red Bank Review, September 2003) AFL-CIO President John Sweeney at Labor Day Reporter Roundtable Labor Lost In Wal-Mart's America by Harold Meyerson (The American Prospect) The History of Labor Day (U.S. Department of Labor) Origins of Labor Day (Jim Lehrer, PBS) How labor won its day (Detroit News) The Father of Labor Day? (The New Jersey Historical Society) An Eclectic List
of Events in U.S. Labor History Working Heroes--Men and Women Who Shaped America's Labor Movement LABOR QUOTES (Red Bank Local collection)
A LABOR DAY STORY: THOSE WHO SERVE from the Red Bank Review (September 2003) Ann looks at her hands, as though they are someone else's. "The right one's good," Ann says. "The left one's pretty much useless." "Well, then, I hope you're right handed." "Yes," she laughs, "I am." Ann is one of many postal workers who have undergone carpal tunnel surgery on both hands. 63 years old, Ann has spent 23 of those with the Postal Service, all but the last two on the overnight shift. 17 years were spent keying zip codes, at a forced rate of 50 to 60 letters per minute, on an LSM machine. "It's frustrating, some times, because I don't have the strength to clip the nails on my right hand. I have to get help and people think you're just being strange." The years keying zip codes have taken a toll on Ann's eyesight, as well. A fall in the restroom, a few years back, left her unable to walk more than a few feet without a cane. The Office of Workers Compensation ruled the accident was not work related. "I only had a few years left to retirement, so I really didn't pursue it as much as I should have. They have a way of making you feel ungrateful." She says this without the slightest tone of resentment. Recently, a fire at her neighbor's house destroyed Ann's home and most of her possessions. Ann waits while the various insurance companies dispute responsibility. In June, the USPS began sending this dedicated employee of 23 years home, without pay, saying there wasn't enough work for her. A proud woman, it was this last that affected Ann most of all. "I just can't live on less than eight hours," she says. When it rains, it pours. Ann is eligible for the Early Outs the USPS is offering, in its attempt to save money and "transform" itself. Ann's preference would be to work to 65, as she'd always planned. But the Postal Service is forcing her to consider the Early Out, whatever her wishes. Says Ann's Union steward, "They're telling the people who built this company that they have no value anymore, that they're a liability." None of Ann's co-workers on the floor doubt her value. She has been for 23 years, and is today, one of the hardest working and most dedicated employees in the Service. And, whenever she retires, the Service will be diminished. Roberta is a clerk on Tour 3. Her workday starts at 4 P.M. and ends after Midnight. With less than 6 years in the Postal Service, Roberta has already seen her job abolished twice and been threatened with excessing. "It's OK," she smiles, "I'm getting used to it." Roberta was in her late 40s when she came to the Postal Service, but that career appointment was the fulfillment of a lifetime dream. "My father was a carrier. I saw that it was a good job, a secure job, and they always took care of him. It was like a family, then." She laughs. "Boy, has this place changed." Roberta explains that, when her father worked as a carrier, the Postal Service viewed their employees as assets and as dedicated Public Servants. "Now, they treat people like leeches or something. The harder you work, the worse they treat you. And none of it has anything to do with the mail." In her brief USPS tenure, Roberta has already had dealings with OWCP. While a Mail Processor, she suffered a Repetitive Motion Injury, similar to tennis elbow. "The pace on the machines is frenetic and the trays of mail are a lot heavier than they'll tell you--like 45 or 50 pounds, a lot of the time." The USPS challenged the claim, saying Mail Processing required "not a single repetitive motion." Roberta's Union steward says, "That's a joke. Most Mail Processors develop RPIs within a few years. And most will just work through the pain until it becomes unbearable. If the Postal Service really wanted to do something for their long-term financial health, they'd invest in an honest ergonomics plan. They'd save on Compensation costs and sick leave. They wouldn't be throwing good people to the street and saying 'you're no use to us, anymore.' But the Post Office doesn't understand investing in people. Even the President's Commission--they just want to cut payments, not fix the problem." After a lengthy battle with management, Roberta's claim was approved and physical therapy seems to have been successful. "It's been over 3 years and I finally got my time back." Smiling, she says, "They tell me that's fast for them." With her latest job abolishment, Roberta finds herself back on the machines. "It doesn't matter," she says. "Whatever your job is, they put you on the machines." Roberta's concern, these days, is that there be a Postal Service to retire from, when she is eligible. And she hopes that the Monmouth P&DC will remain. "It sure looks like they want to close us down, taking mail and machines out of here." Roberta's apprehension is less that she just purchased a home in the area than that her mother is sick. "She has good days and bad days," says Roberta. "I really need to be close by, in case something happens. I love my mommy. We've always been best friends. I just don't know how it would work if my job were an hour away. As it is, I worry all the time. I just can't imagine." "Whatever happens," Roberta says, "I'm sure it will be part of God's plan. It'll work out." Martin is the Union steward quoted elsewhere in this story. At 45 years old, Martin has been with the Postal Service since 1985. Prior to that, he worked in radio. "After 10 years, I was on a $10,000 a year salary. When the Post Office came calling, I just wanted a raise. The station offered me a refrigerator. So here I am." In the context of our previous segments, Martin grins, shyly, and says, "I ain't broke, but I'm badly bent. My feet and legs are shot. I don't let on, but I can't hardly move without some pain anymore. That's 20 years of standing and walking on concrete floors. There's not a single Processor motion that's normal for the human body. And I'm nearly deaf. As my buddy, Marv, says, 'nobody's gettin' out of here in one piece.' "No one's complaining. What we do is important. We're a Public Service. Most of us work very hard, whatever people think, and we care. It's just that when you've given your body for 20 or 30 years, you'd like to see a bit of loyalty in return. "The sad thing, to me, is, with so much time in, and so much time to retirement, I'm stuck here watching Postal management kill the Service from the inside. And the American people will suffer from this attempt to make a business out of a service." Martin pauses, reflecting, then adds, "In retrospect, I should have taken the refrigerator."
The Red Bank Local, APWU, AFL-CIO, is a non-profit organization.
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