Recently, a spokesperson for the USPS came to our post office to talk about Customer Connect. Customer Connect is a USPS program that encourages postal carriers to identify businesses on their routes that could benefit by using USPS products. There was only one question after the presentation: "When do we get our grievance pay?"

You see, for the last year or two we've had a management team from hell that took every opportunity to harass and intimidate postal employees. They did it with malice, and also with their stupidity. This resulted in numerous grievances for blatant management violations of the contract, which of course the carriers won almost every time. I don't know the count, but there have been dozens and dozens of grievances, if not hundreds - counting all the grievances about violations of the OTDL list. This alone has cost the USPS many thousands of dollars just at my post office.

Getting back to Customer Connect. Do you think carriers will want to help management after being treated this way? Heck no. I say this because even though management may think they are getting ahead by harassing and intimidating carriers, in the end they lose a thousand different ways. Hopefully, one day, management will realize they may lose a little by treating employees with respect, but will gain much more in the end.

As for our management team, our station manager is no longer with us and is working as a delivery supervisor now (in effect a demotion). And her minion has been reassigned as well. Hopefully the new manager and a new supervisor will show a little more respect. If so, they may get a little respect and cooperation in return.