Not that anyone has been sitting around waiting for my take on APWU elections, but now that we know the candidates, here are my thoughts. I havenât seen many specific posts as to why a candidate should or shouldnât be supported, so here is my attempt on a few of the races.
PRESIDENT
Mark Dimondstein
If only half the stories are true about how he spoke to and treated the Rank & File Committee he would not deserve another term. I will leave it to others to speak with members of the R&FC about that interaction. I had spoken to someone within days of the incident and Iâm satisfied that more than half the story is true.I am probably the only person in the country that doesnât fault Mark for attempting to get a negotiated contract. He tried, the R&FC said no and the process worked. While many will deny him another term for agreeing to things that they object to, he is the elected president and itâs his job to negotiate with postal management, even if I may not agree with the outcome.
Mark wants to turn the APWU into the Bernie Sanders saves the whales union. Our members should be concerned with global issues and while there is nothing wrong with attacking some of the world issues, while doing so we canât forget the contractual issues affecting our members every day. I believe our union has lost its way and has forgotten what is important to our members on a daily basis.
Tony McKinnon
He was the incumbent DIR last election and 43% of his own local voted for Zimmerman. He returned months after losing the election to NC and sought an additional term on the NC AFL-CIO Executive Board and the leaders of NC replaced him on the E-Board. Months later he ran for president of NC APWU state organization and lost 2-1. One would have to wonder what North Carolina knows about Tony that the rest of the APWU doesnât.Those who know me have seen me wear long pants maybe1-3 times at a union function, which includes some very cold NPC sites. I wear shorts; my goal is to be comfortable. If I wore nice suits and was a real smooth talker would it make me a better union official? Donât be fooled, members need representatives that show up on time and stay the long haul, not just dress nice.
I can guess Tony is still unhappy with Mark for replacing him on the ticket and why not take a shot at president. Iâm just not sure that I can support someone who hasnât received unconditional support from his local and state. We can do better.
John Marcotte
No you run, no you. I really believe that is how the first meeting of this ticket went. John is a great guy, always stood out at NPC meetings, great leader in Michigan and does a good job as HP Director. Doing a good job as HP Director does not a national president make? I also have concerns that his ticket is lined with a few resident officers that arenât in the office very much. I keep hearing, well thatâs just a political hatchet job and everyone is in the office. No problem ask the Secretary-Treasurer to release your records showing that no leave was taken and you were in the office and I will apologize and you will put the issue to rest. Itâs kind of like, release your tax records!One thing I canât figure out is why Debby Szeredy isnât on the top of this ticket. Again back to, no you run. John and Debby ran together with most of Markâs ticket twice now and all of sudden he isnât the right person? Maybe Mark has treated John and Debby the way he has been accused of treating the R&FC? The difference is the R&FC members expressed their dissatisfaction with Mark, when John and Debby played along.
Just because John is unhappy with Mark after running with and serving with him for two terms is not reason for me to elect him president. We need someone with experience dealing with postal management at the highest level and unfortunately John doesnât have that experience. And until now he either had no problems with Mark or didnât have the courage to stand up.
Greg Bell
Total disclosure, I am originally from Pennsylvania and Greg Bell appointed me to the 2006 R&FC. So the good news is that Greg and I have known each other for years. The bad news for Greg is that I have known him for years and can probably provide more insight than others into what makes Greg tick. He hates the employer, no love lost; he is not their friend and wonât be going by their house for dinner and drinks.Simple math, Greg has three more yearsâ experience at the national level than the other three candidates combined. He served 15 years as the Director of Industrial Relations and 3 years as Vice President. If one was voting based on experience alone your decision would be easy. With the ticket splitting that will occur during this election, Greg is the obvious choice to lead a new cast of officers and bring everyone together after the election.
I have read that when Greg lost his election to Debby Szeredy he cleaned out the office and took papers home. I have been in the vice presidentâs office at national when it was occupied by Burrus, Guffey and Bell, what papers?
Where is Gregâs ticket? I personally like the fact that he has chosen to run as an individual candidate, free of the baggage, free of trying to convince people to support sub-par ticket mates and in a position to quickly heal the wounds and get people at the national level working for the members on day one. And there will be no void during contract negotiations because of Gregâs past experience in this area.
VICE PRESIDENT
Debby Szeredy
âThe Executive Vice President shall perform the duties of the President in case of the Presidentâs absence or inability to attend to the duties of officeâ. It has been said by more than a few that Debby doesnât want to be President. Then I would say she is in the wrong job. I also go back to my comment on Marcotte, which is it? Did Debby run and support Mark for two terms and believed he was a good president? Or was Mark a terror to work for and she put up with it to preserve the status quo? Either answer doesnât sit well with me.Sister Szeredy has always been a decent person and cares for the member, but donât most of us? If she is not ready after six years to head the ticket and run for president, why would I give her three more years if she really never wants to be president? Iâm not looking for a seat holder; Iâm looking for someone who will actively assist the field, generate new ideas and initiatives that benefit the members on the floor.
I know the knock on Burrus when he was Vice President is that he took over most of the clerk craft issues, but maybe somewhere in between what Burrus did and a seat holder is the answer. I just donât believe Debby is that answer.
Jonathan Smith
Did you know that Jonathan was from the largest local in the APWU? Of course you did because on every posting or video he shares, he reminds you. Did you know that when he signed his first LM report in 2010 he had 5,596 members and last year he had 4,415 members or a 21% decrease? Two locals that I have been members of over the same period of time Charlotte Area Local had 1074 members in 2012 and 1094 in 2018 and Lehigh Valley Area Local had 552 in 2012 and 523 in 2018.Having cleared that up, many good arbitration decisions have come from NY Metro during the time Jonathan has served as president. It should be noted that Pete Coradi, NBA who is a top shelf advocate put on many of those cases, but the files seemed tight and included new arguments that hadnât been argued in other places. And as the âlargest localâ Jonathan has shared his thoughts and strategies with the rest of the union and that is a good thing.
I am a West Wing nerd, have seen the whole series more than once and we own the DVD set. On one show two characters are stuck in the mid-west trying to get back to DC. They decide that one of them must lead off with Hi, Iâm Toby Ziegler and I work for the White House when introducing themselves. They finally abandon that statement and just start listening to a guy who canât make ends meet and canât afford to send his little girl to college. Leading with Iâm from the largest local in the country does nothing to better the lives of the members on the floor.
Samuel Wood
Samâs own printed words âAs far as being part of a âTicketâ, we are really a group of like-minded individual candidates who are looking to stand up and fight for those we represent.â Sam was quick to give Tony McKinnon credit for backing his localâs decision to go it alone and file a lawsuit, but the national wouldnât be held liable. I would have given Sam permission to file his lawsuit and not hold me liable. What does that even mean? I love the fact that Sam has always taken the position that at all costs his members matter and he will do what is necessary to beat the employer. But come one, give McKinnon credit for saying yes to something that cost the national nothing and the outcome couldnât be blamed on him?There has been at least one possible candidate for higher office in this election that decided to sit this one out in lieu of joining a ticket that they couldnât fully support. I am glad Sam didnât sit this one out, but he will forever be known for being on this ticket or like-minded individual candidates. As for the person who sat this one out, they will forever have my respect.
When national agreed to a far less than perfect RI-399 settlement with the mail handlers, Sam spoke up and spoke up loud and clear. Sam doesnât back down from a fight. There are officers in this union that stand out for how they carry themselves and how they approach a discussion. Sam has the demeanor and the knowledge needed to serve as vice-president. He can be forgiven for his choice of like-minded team mates, because we need a vice-president that will go after the employer every chance he gets.
DIRECTOR OF INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS
Vance Zimmerman
Six years ago the same membership that approved the 2010-2015 CBA by 75% than drank the cool-aid and voted out Mike Morris, who without a doubt what was one the best minds that ever served the APWU. Three years ago you came to your senses and voted out Tony McKinnon and elected Vance Zimmerman. If youâre looking for a smooth talker, Vance may not be your guy. If youâre looking for someone who understands the contract, fights hard every day and has served an NBA and is ready and willing to continue doing the duties of DIR, than Vance is you guy.I know its election time, but I have been reading that Vance has called numerous individuals to discuss what really happened with the negotiated contract. I have not been one of those people and donât need a call. But the fact that he is taking that time to be that personable and discuss your concerns has to be a check in the plus column.
If you send Vance packing this election you will have a new DIR three terms in a row. Historical knowledge matters and we canât afford to change the person responsible for national negotiations. The DIR shop is where it all really starts and ends as we ready for arbitration. If we make a change in other parts of the union, this is the part we need to keep constant. Think about what your local would look like if you kept replacing those with the historical knowledge necessary to be successful. You wouldnât make that mistake locally; I suggest we donât make it at the national level.
Scott Hoffman
I really donât know Scott Hoffman, but being elected president in Boston is a positive check for him, it has always been a strong and progressive local. Being elected the chairperson of the R&FC is also a check for him. But is it enough to replace a sitting DIR in the midst of contract arbitration? I have actually seen some write that somehow the nine that voted against the Contract did so with the plan to parlay it into a run for office. Give me a break! They voted against the Contract because they believed it wasnât worthy of a vote by the membership. The process worked.Now some may be running based on how they were spoken to after their vote that I believe. I will date myself, many years ago a group of presidents had had enough and were revolting (so it seemed) and through separate meetings and discussions a group that was called POP (pissed off presidents) was formed and yes Omar you were a POP once. We wanted change, we wanted answers and we would be heard. I liken Scottâs run for DIR to our group called POP.
Scott is most likely feeling like a POP. (Again I donât know Scott). He wants change and he has the right to run. I wish Scott well in all future endeavors after this one; I think making a change at this point will hurt the union.
First Name: LeRoy
Last Name: Moyer
Email: apwuldm@gmail.com
Union/Local: Charlotte Area Local
Office held if any: Past President PPWU, Charlotte Area Local, Co-Chair NPC
Union and NAME of Local/Branch
APWU - Atlanta Metro Area Local 32
Office held, if any
Maintenance Steward
Email Address
apwunodine@gmail.com
Brother Moyer,
First, let me start by thanking you for your many years of dedication to our cause. And let me say I have the highest respect for you. So stating my disagreements with your assessment of our candidates in this election does not come easy for me. With that said:
PRESIDENT
Mark Dimondstein
My past support of Brother Dimondstein is no secret to all who know of me. The recent criticisms of how he conducted his attempts to achieve a negotiated CBA settlement are valid, he seems to have acknowledged that in the recent debate by stating he would have done that differently if he had a do-over. Did he learn a lesson from it and become better for the experience? I am certain he did and he will. Or will he repeat those same mistakes? I don’t think so, but that is just my opinion. Each member must decide this for themselves, however, I don’t see this issue as pivotal in that our Constitutional system of checks and balances ultimately worked and to our Membership, the net effect on the workroom floor was no harm, no foul.
As far as President Dimondstein “forgetting contractural issues,” the most important criteria I consider first is has he delivered on his campaign promises? Among those is whether he has delivered on reversing the damage the 2010 “Watershed CBA” did to the next generation of our Members, our PSE’s. On that promise, he achieved converting all Maintenance Craft PSE’s to career and eliminating PSE’s from the Maintenance Craft altogether. And while he has not yet achieved the same reversal for the Clerk Craft, he has made progress in the right direction as evidenced by many Clerk PSE conversions rather than agreeing with management to increase the number of PSE Clerks.
If we can’t protect our most harmed Members, our PSE’s, then we have no right to call ourselves a Union. I say this as a soon to retire 30-year Member who you would expect to place retiree benefits as my highest priority. But I wouldn’t be a Unionist if I did that, I would just be selfish. Which is the one thing that undermines Unions more than any other single factor.
In the scope of the larger picture, I don’t think President Dimondstein has made significant enough mistakes or “done enough wrong” to not withdraw my support of him. However, that is not to say my support of him is blind or obedient, I shall compare him to the other candidates and vote for the one I consider to be the best for the next term. Just as he would not only expect but also encourage every Member to do.
In short, I have seen President Dimondstein accomplish much good for the conditions of life on the workroom floor, as impossibly difficult as that task is. And I have seen him cause no harm to the conditions on the workroom floor, where it really counts. So what if fellow officers don’t like him the ivory tower at APWU headquarters? I didn’t vote for him to be nice to them or to kiss their arses. How he runs the show in DC means little to me. The bottom line is how he impacts the workroom floor means everything to me. So I must count his record as president as a winning record for those of us struggling and suffering daily on the workroom floor.
Tony McKinnon
The problem I have with Brother McKinnon is the fact there are 31 DBCS’s in my plant with the smallest machines having 222 pockets and the others having 238 and 254 pockets. Many days I still see some of these machines being run by only one Clerk who is loading and feeding mail into one end of the machine and running back and forth trying to sweep all of those pockets at the same time.
Brother McKinnon’s big campaign move was to hand out his “two clerks per DBCS “Agreement” at the convention just prior to the last election and tout it as being some kind of victory. But it is far worse than just a hollow victory, it sold out the Clerk Craft on this issue because the agreement only requires two Clerks to start a DBCS, not actually run a DBCS. I say “sold out” because the agreement makes it practically impossible to negotiate a real agreement that actually REQUIRES two Clerks to run a DBCS at all times. And now we are now stuck with it.
How any Clerk could ever vote for Brother McKinnon for any position in the APWU, much less president is beyond me. He has proven to me that he will say and do anything to get elected. How any Clerk could ever vote for him again is beyond me. But some will and they will deserve what they get should he be elected.
John Marcotte
“No you run, no you.” I see that as a very good thing! It tells me Brother Marcotte has no tricks up his sleeve and does not covet the position so he has no agenda to lie to win the election “by any means necessary” for his own personal glory and ego. That’s the kind of person I want representing me, someone running for reasons other than their own personal agenda.
But more importantly, Brother Marcotte has the cushiest best job in the entire APWU. Our Health Plan Director gets paid the most money for having the least responsibility. And it is a position that is difficult to screw up so badly that our Members would want to ever vote the incumbent out of office. It is a job for life. His reelection to Health Plan Director is all but certain.
The fact that Brother Marcotte is willing to give up being our Health Plan Director puts some real skin in the game. He is the only challenger with any skin in the game, and it is the most skin any candidate could possibly risk giving up. That is a very powerful qualifier in my book.
Brother Marcotte says he has not lost touch with the workroom floor. I believe him to the extent that is possible. Another powerful qualifier in my book.
And he has both local and national experience, rounding out the qualifiers I see as most important to lead our Union. This makes it a two-horse race for our president in my book. And I believe we would be well served by Brother Marcotte or Brother Dimondstein. So much so that I have not yet decided which I will vote for. And when I do, I may invoke my right to keeping my ballot secret. No matter who I choose to vote for, it will be a tough decision sending either Brother Dimondstein or Brother Marcotte home as losing either will be a big loss to our Union.
Greg Bell
Watershed! Watershed! Watershed! Perhaps the greatest CBA on paper that was ever written, but the worst CBA for those on the workroom floor impacted by it. Just like Communism is the greatest form of government in theory, but the worst in actual practice. I should not have to recite all the reasons the 2010 Watershed CBA is probably the worst contract agreement in the history of the Labor Movement. But I will say that had there been a provision that PSE’s get all of their PSE years credited towards retirement when they are converted to career, I would not be as vehemently opposed to it. But they don’t and I’m not.
The real issue I have with Brother Bell is his continued insistence that the Watershed was a good CBA. Not only does that tell me he learned nothing from that mistake, but that he will continue to persist in that line of thinking in future negotiations should be elected as our president. It is my opinion that he has long lost any concept of what life is like on the workroom floor.
Union and NAME of Local/Branch
APWU - Greensboro BMC Local # 7035
Office held, if any
Current Clerk Craft Director (Greensboro BMC), Former President Central Jersey Area Local # 149
Email Address
postalexpress11@aol.com
Union and NAME of Local/Branch
APWU - Central Jersey Area Local #149
Office held, if any
MVS Director
Email Address
lafauci@att.net
Union and NAME of Local/Branch
Michigan State Retiree Chapter & Flint MI Area Local Retiree Chapter
Office held, if any
Retiree Chapter advisor
Email Address
allab1937@gmail.com