David was elected the Director of Safety and Health in 2010. A position he has held for 12 years and was recently re-elected in 2022. David’s Postal and Union membership began in 1984. In 2007, David was elected Shop Steward by his fellow coworkers. David’s willingness to learn and volunteer made him an easy pick for many positions within the Branch. When the branch needed someone to coordinate the Food Drive in 2008, David was right there. In 2010 David became a Formal A Representative as well as the Customer Connect Coordinator. David did not stop there. His ability to organize landed him the coordinator position of the MDA bowl-a-thon. His multitasking abilities are unmatched. During all the years of service to Branch 36 and through all the positions he held, David managed to also be a part of all the minor route adjustment teams beginning in 2008. When the need arises, we can all trust David’s sound advice and knowledge to keep us all safe. In 2022, David was re-elected to the position of Director of Safety and Health

Assaults

Recently there has been an increase in the number of crimes and attacks on letter carriers. These attacks are alarming and unacceptable. When I began my career in 1984, it was a very rare occurrence for a letter carrier to be a victim of an assault. During those years, letter carriers were respected more for the job we do. We were not viewed as an easy target. We served our communities and generally there was a line that was not crossed as we provided service to our customers. As society has changed, so has its attitude towards us. As letter carriers, we spend more time in public spaces than just about any other worker. We witness the good, the bad and just about everything in between. While the good things we witness make the job enjoyable, letter carriers can also witness, or be victims of violent crimes. Here in New York City and across the nation, letter carries are victims of assaults and crime. These crimes consist of having our mail stolen from our pushcarts to being assaulted for our arrow lock keys. It has now escalated to robbing us of our personal belongings as well.
On December 9, 2022, a Milwaukee letter carrier was shot and killed on his route. Six mail carriers were robbed at gunpoint over a 2-day period in the DC/ Maryland area. Four postal workers were robbed at gunpoint in Chicago.
Our newly elected NALC President Brian Renfroe has made it his and the National Officers’ number one priority to safeguard their members. They are pursuing long term solutions in Collective Bargaining to protect letter carriers’ safety. They are seeking measures to protect our members, and are engaging with postal management, Postal Inspection Service and the Office of Inspector General to find ways to deter violence and crime against letter carriers.
There are potential penalties for assaulting a federal employee. If you threaten a federal employee, you could be facing a class A misdemeanor. A class A misdemeanor could result in following penalties: a prison sentence of more than six months, but less than a year, and a maximum fine of up to $100,000. If you make physical contact with a federal employee during the assault, you could be charged with a Class D Felony. A Class D Felony could result in the following penalties: a prison sentence of more than 5 years, but less than 10 years, and a maximum fine of $250,000.
Even the smallest crime can be a traumatic, life changing experience. In cases of assault and robbery, the trauma can be debilitating. These traumatic on the job injuries are compensable under Federal Law. The best way to file a traumatic injury is through www. ecomp.dol.gov by creating an account. Nobody should have to go to work expecting to get assaulted or robbed. We cannot control what others do when they want to harm us. Even with our best effort to avoid danger, we sometimes become victims. Report any and all concerns to your supervisor, your shop steward and your National Business Agent’s office in an effort to prevent as much harm as we can. Remember, Safety Depends on me.