Region 5 NBA Report: August
by David Teegarden
Heat Illness
Reported heat illnesses in the region have decreased over the last year. That fact does not mean that heat related illnesses are down. And we certainly have problems with management not abiding by their own HIPP standards. We still have two or three months of summer heat to get through before the possibility of heat injury or illness wanes. Please look out for each other and speak up if you see a fellow carrier might be in trouble. Please notify the NBA office when management fails to adhere to the HIPP standards. This office will aggressively pursue any necessary action when management fails to protect the health and safety of letter carriers.
NLRB Charges
It has come to our attention in Region 5 that the National Labor Relations Board is changing the procedures for how they handle labor charges when the case has been deferred to the grievance/arbitration process. The following is language directly from the NLRB,
“Please note the Agency has changed the manner in which it handles cases that have been deferred to the grievance/arbitration process.”
“Going forward, you are obligated to e-file a status report twice a year-March 15 and September 15-advising the Region regarding the status of the grievance. If you fail to timely provide these status reports beginning September 15, 2025, your case may be dismissed due to lack of cooperation.”
If you or your branch file labor charges and receive a letter from the NLRB advising you of this status report, you will need to reply with the attached status report on the letter or risk having your claim waived. Do not take the chance, make sure we meet the deadlines. The Region referred to in the bold language is the NLRB region and not the NALC region. If you have any questions, please reach out to us at the NBA office.
Region 5 Training
It has been a busy month since my last article. We have completed steward college training in St. Louis, Kansas City, Wichita, and Lincoln. By the time most of you read this we will also have completed training in Des Moines IA. A big thanks to Branches 343, 30, 201, 8 and 352 for hosting the training courses, it is very much appreciated! We will now shift to additional arbitration advocate training, state training in Nebraska and Iowa, route adjustment grievance training and OWCP training. Thanks to all of you that have attended the training and committed to additional learning opportunities to better protect and serve the members of Region 5.
Advanced OWCP Training
OWCP Advanced Training will take place in KCMO September 7-9. Branch 30 will host this training, and they have also invited all attendees to attend the branch picnic on Sunday September 7 th . This two and a half day training will be facilitated by RWCA Samantha Hartwig. Please call the NBA office or send me an email at Teegarden.nalc.org to register.
NERMP Training and MOU
The New Employee Retention and Mentoring Program training is being conducted across the country. All NALC stewards and officers alone with their management counterparts should have been trained in the application of this new process. In most districts this did not go as planned. Some installations have had trouble with management letting the union representatives attend the training. If you read this article and have not been trained, please contact the NBA office and speak to RAA Larrissa Parde who monitors this process so that the training can be scheduled.
The NERMP is designed to educate and retain newly hired PTF and CCA employees. Some of the highlights of the process are; work hour restrictions, access to mentors, additional training if necessary, a guaranteed day off with the schedule posted the Wednesday prior to the service week, restrictions that only allow the employee to work in their office for the first eight weeks, progress reviews at 30, 60 and 80 days, route maps, reflective vests and a postal hat. All these changes are designed to make acclimation to work as a letter carrier easier for the new hire and increase retention rates. Hopefully this helps alleviate some of the staffing shortage where carriers will not be required to work mandatory overtime.
Region 5 Rap Session 2026
We are in the final stages of signing a contract with the KC Downtown Marriott for the 2026 Region 5 Rap Session scheduled for February 27 th through March 2 nd , 2026. I will update you as soon as the agreement is signed so that you can plan for the event as far out as possible. The training will be held Saturday and Sunday all day, a Rap Session with a National President/Officer will be held on Monday March 2nd.
David A. Teegarden
National Business Agent
NALC Region 5