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From the President’s Desk – May 2021

Welcome to the May edition of From the President’s Desk.  

Let me begin by thanking all those members that have taken the time and made the effort to attend their chapter conventions.   While our attendance figures may not be at the levels that they were before the pandemic hit, we are seeing very positive numbers of people coming out to share the fellowship, to learn together and to make sure their voices are heard in the election process and by voting on the proposed changes to the Articles of Incorporation and the National Bylaws.    Each of the eleven conventions Karen and I have been to thus far we have seen a very good number of first timers at each one.   So far, Iowa takes the prize with the most first timers at 13.    It is great to see both our newer members and our more experienced members coming together for what for many people is the first time in over a year.    Whatever precautions have been called for, the hotels and venues that have been hosting the conventions have been doing a great job of maintaining social distancing and people that have wanted to wear their masks have felt very comfortable doing so.

If your chapter has not yet had their convention, I would encourage everyone that is able to to go to the convention to meet with your fellow members.  In addition, most of our chapters are making sure that they are offering some training opportunities to assist you in your position with the Postal Service, or just in your everyday life outside of work.   For a complete schedule of the upcoming conventions you can go to our website, unitedpma.org and under the events tab you can find a link to the spreadsheet showing where and when the conventions are taking place.   As always, I would encourage you to contact one of the chapter officers from your state to make sure the information is as up to date as possible.

As I know many of you are aware, we currently have a membership promotion that is underway within UPMA.    Every EAS employee that joins the organization will receive one-year free membership.   What an excellent opportunity for the Postmasters, Managers, and Supervisors who are not UPMA members to experience what we have to offer!  Given the fact that it will not cost them anything makes it that much more attractive.   In order to share additional information with the non-member post offices we mailed a special issue of The UPMA Leader magazine not only to all of our members, but to the 5,959 non-member post offices throughout the country.   If you have the opportunity to speak with a non-member who is looking for more information, have them take a look at that issue of the Leader and then offer to be there to answer any questions they may have.    As we have new people that may be going into new positions as a result of the restructuring in the Postal Service what an excellent opportunity for our members to offer their assistance and guidance as these individuals make the transition to a new job and in many cases a new office, as well.    If you need any information, or assistance in recruiting, there are a number of resources available on our website, or you can contact your chapter’s membership chair, or call us here at the National Office and we will assist in whatever way possible.

We continue to move forward with the planning for the National Convention.   I had the opportunity to spend time this last weekend with the Ohio Chapter and a good portion of the time at their convention was spent in planning and going over assignments for the convention.   The dedicated members from Ohio are looking forward to hosting the convention and they are working almost non-stop to make sure that you have a great experience in the Buckeye State.  The convention will take place from August 14-20 at the Kalahari Resorts and Convention Center in Sandusky, Ohio.    Be sure to get your registration submitted and your room reservations made.   Also, go on our website, or look at a recent copy of the UPMA Leader magazine for the information on the tours and other events that will be offered at various times throughout the convention.   This year we will be offering a number of activities on Saturday evening when you arrive.   We will have a trivia contest, a glass fusion class, a paint and wine event and more.    Please check out the website for more details.   In addition, I would like to encourage you to check out the excellent line-up of possible tours that are planned for you on Tuesday.    It is important that the tour company get an accurate count on how many will be participating as soon as possible.   The original deadline for signing up has been extended until early August to allow you to make your plans.   Those tours are also listed on our website and in a recent issue of the UPMA Leader magazine where you will find the information on how to sign up and make sure you have a seat on the bus to your chosen destination.   After taking last year off we want to make sure we provide a memorable event in 2021.

Speaking of memorable events, I want to encourage you to also sign up for our 2021 Legislative Summit.   The Summit will be held at the Hyatt Regency Crystal City Hotel near Reagan National Airport.    The dates of the Summit are September 26-29.   The registration form is included in the UPMA Leader, or you can sign up online.   The registration fee will remain at just $40.00 until September 1^st.    With the lifting of many restrictions here in the DC area, we are very hopeful that we will indeed be able to have face-to-face visits with our Congressional representatives, or their staffs, on Tuesday, September 28^th.

Right now I know there are a number of questions on what is happening with the restructuring and who may, or may not, be receiving a Reduction in Force (RIF) notice.   As of today, we are still waiting for the RIF letters to be sent out – probably tomorrow, Friday, May 28^th – and those letters should at the very least answer some questions from the field on what is happening and when.   If you have specific questions, I would encourage you to address those to your District, or Area Human Resources people to get the answers you need.

As always, thank you for your time and I look forward to addressing you again next month.   Stay safe and healthy and get out and enjoy the summer weather.

Thank you!

Dan Heins
UPMA National President