Enforcing Safety Through the Maintenance Pecking Order for Filling Vacant Positions

(This article appeared in the May/June 2026 issue of The American Postal Worker magazine)

As proud members of the APWU, we have long championed the fundamental right of postal workers to return home safely after each shift. The connection between understaffing and workplace hazards is undeniable. When positions remain vacant, the burden falls on existing employees who are often required to work excessive overtime, cover additional routes, or perform additional duties, increasing the risk of fatigue-related injuries, workplace accidents, and long-term health problems.

This is why the Maintenance Division negotiated a pecking order for management to quickly fill vacant maintenance positions. That pecking order was updated during the 2024 contract negotiations. Locals and states must enforce compliance and demand that management quickly and correctly fill all vacant jobs.

National Agreement Article 38.8 – Updated Pecking Order:

1. Select the ranking employee on the appropriate preferred assignment register (PAR).
2. An unassigned regular employee may be assigned to the vacant duty assignment.
3. Activate retreat rights for excessing which occurred under 12.5.C.4 (within craft and installation).
4. Consider higher-level qualified maintenance employees requesting change to lower level. A “previously submit-ted” written request for assignment to lower level must have been submit-ted prior to the close of the Notice of Intent (Article 38.5.A.10).
5. Select the ranking employee on the appropriate promotion eligibility register (PER).
6. a. Activate retreat rights for excessing which occurred under 12.5.C.5.

b. Offer former Maintenance Craft employees within the installation that were involuntarily reassigned into the installation and into another craft under 12.5.C.1 (discontinuance of an independent installation) and/or 12.5.C.5 (reduction in the number of employees in an installation other than by attrition). Selections shall be made using service seniority as defined in Article 38.2.E.

• Select Maintenance Craft employees on the In-Service Register.
• Select Maintenance Craft employees requesting a transfer:

A .Maintenance Craft employees who are already qualified for the position in question;

b. Maintenance Craft employees who are not qualified for the position in question but have been afforded an opportunity to qualify under the provisions for qualifying for transfer (see EL-304, Qualifying for Transfer).

• Consider non-Maintenance Craft employees on the in-service register in score order:
• APWU represented career Craft employees;

b. Other career bargaining unit postal employees.

1. Select current career employees for return to Maintenance Craft to a position previously held or to any position of equal or lower level for which he/she holds an eligibility rating. Employee must meet the time and eligibility criteria (outlined below).
2. Consider non-Maintenance requesting transfer through eReassign.
3. Consider former career postal employees for return to Maintenance Craft to a position previously held or to any position of equal or lower level for which he/she holds an eligibility rating. Applicants must meet the reinstatement requirements and the time and eligibility criteria (outlined below).
4. Consider APWU non-career bargaining unit employees with an in-service eligibility in score order.
5. Consider career National Rural Letter Carrier Association (NRLCA), Postal Police Officer, Nurse, Human Resource Shared Service Center (HRSSC) bargaining unit postal employees, with an in-service eligibility in score order.
6. Consider Executive and Administrative Schedule (EAS) employees in score order.
7. Consider entrance register eligibles in score order.

USPS Selection Criteria Prohibitions The USPS is prohibited from using attendance and safety records as selection criteria for Maintenance applicants. This principle is rooted in the negotiated framework between the APWU and the USPS, which governs how employees are considered for Maintenance positions. The intent is clear; selection must be based on merit, qualifications, and demonstrated ability to perform the position’s duties, not other subjective or potentially punitive factors.

Attendance records and safety incidents are not valid determinants of an employee’s ability to perform Maintenance duties. Introducing such factors into the selection process creates an uneven playing field and undermines the integrity of the negotiated procedures.

The post Enforcing Safety Through the Maintenance Pecking Order for Filling Vacant Positions first appeared on APWU.