The American Postal Workers Union (APWU) has achieved a significant arbitration victory concerning the grievance rights of non-probationary employees who are dismissed without just cause. Industrial Relations Director Charlie Cash announced that these employees can now file grievances regarding their dismissals and have them heard in arbitration.
On June 30, Arbitrator Margo Newman ruled in favor of the postal unions, led by the APWU, in a case against the U.S. Postal Service. The case concerned non-probationary employees terminated due to unfavorable National Agency Check with Inquiries (NACI) background check results. This decision impacts how grievances and arbitrations will be handled for such employees.
Director Cash filed a national dispute over the Postal Service’s practice of preventing non-probationary employees from having their terminations reviewed in arbitration if they failed initial employment background checks. Other postal unions joined the APWU to contest this practice.
Arbitrator Newman stated: “(1) A grievance protesting the separation/removal of a non-probationary employee based upon an unfavorable NACI [background check] report is substantively arbitrable under Article 15, and that (2) in such arbitration, the Postal Service must prove that it had just cause for the separation/removal under the principles of Article 16.”
Newman addressed and dismissed arguments from the Postal Service regarding whether such disputes were substantively arbitrable. She noted that only probationary employees are restricted from accessing grievance procedures according to the APWU National Agreement, while defining grievances broadly as disputes related to employment conditions.
She further concluded: “absent any clear language exhibiting an intention of the parties to exclude this type of dispute from the coverage of Article 15, I conclude that the matter is substantively arbitrable.”
Regarding whether Article 16’s just-cause standard applies to background check grievances, Newman refuted claims by the Postal Service that these removals were administrative rather than disciplinary. She determined: “I conclude that a post-probation separation for receipt of an unfavorable NACI can be considered disciplinary in nature so that the just cause standard of Article 16 applies.”
Industrial Relations Director Cash expressed satisfaction with this outcome: “This is a huge win for employees… Our contract grants them the right to challenge a non-probationary discharge, which must be for just cause, and this award again affirms that right.”
The decision followed substantial groundwork laid by local grievances across various regions. Manchester Area Local President Dana Coletti played a key role as a witness during arbitration proceedings.
According to APWU’s National Agreement, regional cases previously paused due to this national dispute should proceed based on whether there was just cause for removal due to NACI findings. Although currently analyzing Newman’s decision, USPS has not yet processed these regional cases. The APWU remains committed to enforcing this award as written.
