Overtime, do's and don'ts

Overtime. Some love it, most hate it or at least don't like it.

For our Postal Service its a necessity to get the mail out.

For this reason our union agreed on the overtime desired list. Created to first of all protect our union brothers and sisters who do not care for overtime and to give it to those who actually want or need it.

Occasionally due to circumstances the need arises for management to mandate our brothers and sisters who did not sign up for any overtime.

Confusion arises on what management can or can not do. So here are the rules and regulations on mandatory overtime.

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In our local we have a quarterly-, a holiday- and a non-scheduled day list.

At the plant those lists are posted in the "Information Highway".

Two weeks prior to the start of each calendar quarter, fulltime regular employees desiring to work overtime during that quarter can place their names on the “Overtime Desired” list.

If you are absent or on leave during the sign up period you will be passed.

1. If the voluntary overtime desired list does not provide sufficient qualified people, qualified full-time regular employees not on the list may be required to work overtime on a rotating basis with the first opportunity assigned to the junior employee.

2. January through November, no full-time regular employee will be required to work overtime on more than four (4) of the employee’s five (5) scheduled days in a service week or work over ten (10) hours on a regularly scheduled day, over eight (8) hours on a non-scheduled day, or over six (6) days in a service week.

3. Employee's on the overtime desired list may be required to work up to twelve (12) hours in a day and sixty (60) hours in a service week.

4. Employee's on the overtime desired list, excluding December, shall be limited to no more than twelve (12) hours of work in a day and no more than sixty (60) hours of work in a service week.

5. Full-time employee's not on the overtime desired list may be required to work overtime only if all available employee's on the overtime desired list have worked up to twelve (12) hours in a day or sixty (60) hours in a service week.

6. The employer can use an employee from the overtime desired list that has not yet reached penalty overtime in favor of an employee who has reached penalty overtime status. However they can not use an employee who is not signed up on the list in favor of any overtime desired employee to circumvent over time or penalty overtime pay.

Locally the union has decided that the non-scheduled day list has a separate rotation from the overtime desired list.

If you have any questions regarding the subject of this article, feel free to contact your stewards or myself.