Pascual was appointed Executive Vice President in October, 2017.
Pascual began his career with the Postal Service in the Summer of 1997 as a Part Time Flexible Carrier at Morrisania Station. He became a Full Time Regular in 1999. Pascual worked at Morrisania Station his entire career until he was appointed as a Full Time Officer. He became a foot carrier as soon as he became a Full Time Regular and remained until 2017. In 2017 he became a combination wagon carrier and was then appointed to the Branch full time.
Pascual was elected as a shop steward in Morrisania Station in 2003 and remained until he was appointed as a full-time officer in 2017. In 2004 he was appointed as a Formal A Designee, and Hearing Officer in the Bronx which expanded the amount of stations that Pascual was representing at the Formal Step A in the Bronx. He became shop steward of Morris Heights Station during this time as well. In 2006 Pascual was selected to attend the Leadership Academy in Washington D.C. He was then selected to attend arbitration advocacy training in 2008. Pascual began to represent carries at arbitration within Branch 36 and for other branches within the NALC, along with the Caribbean District. In 2007 he was appointed as Trustee for Branch 36 and held that position until he was appointed to Director of City Delivery in 2010. In 2015 he was appointed to Editor of the Outlook and became shop steward of Bronx GPO within that time as well. In 2017 our National Business Agent authorized Pascual to represent carriers in Puerto Rico as an NALC representative addition to his arbitration duties on the island. In the fall of 2018 he was appointed to Executive Vice President of Branch 36.

Perfect Timing – No Brainer

The right to do something doesn’t necessarily make it the right thing to do. Calls have come in from the Bronx stating carriers are getting PDI’s and write- ups for failure to secure a push-cart/mail. Talk about being stuck between a rock and a hard spot.
No one leaves their mail “unsafeguarded” on purpose. Everyone is trying to get the job done as best as possible and quickly as possible. That’s easier said than done though. Some buildings aren’t spine or pushcart friendly. In order to get your cart into some buildings, you have to lift it up a few stairs, if not a lot of them, or you have to go through some side door that takes an extra ten minutes just to get to the elevator.
There are a few discussions to be had about this situation. The first one is how to respond to the discipline. The second discussion is how to keep yourself and the mail as best safeguarded as possible going forward. And, the third one is how this has an ironic twist of fate to foot routes and TIAREAP.
The first thing I would do is file a grievance and speak to my steward about the discipline. Ask for a record of the 3999s performed on the route in the past. Note prior delivery at this point and 3999s where there’s no mention of safety issues at your delivery point by the person conducting the 3999 with you. The manuals require them to notify you about something like this, specifically. Leave the rest of the arguing and positions to us. If you have any of your own though, document them and forward them to your steward.
Next, let “them” know it won’t happen again and move on. However, if this was a stance “they” were going to take, then “they” should have informed you about it before “they” wrote you up. “They” should have at least given some time to adjust the new rule reflecting a new high and mighty position on safeguarding mail. How do you adjust exactly? Allow me to show you.
Think about the relays on your route(s), thoroughly. What addresses can you enter with your pushcart without having to lift or drag your pushcart up one stair, yet still permitting you to access your mailboxes (using main, or side entrances friendly to pushcarts)? You’re going to use every side door, hidden door and trap door if for some reason the main entrance has any obstruction requiring you to both lift the pushcart and leave it alone because it’s unsafe to do so, no matter how long it takes to get in and out of the building. Deliver those addresses ini- tially, within the relay. This ensures the mail stays with you at all times within your pushcart, and by your side. Be as proficient and sequential as possible, as you determine what buildings are delivered in what sequence.
Next, we’re going to deliver mail to the addresses you’d have to leave that mail out in front and unsafe. The ones you can’t enter without having to break your back or bicep trying to lift the cart up some stairs. Make sure management has issued you your shoulder bag and take all the mail that you can (without hurt- ing yourself), in your shoulder bag, back and forth for the remaining addresses until you’re done with that relay (up to 35lbs). Propose the change in sequence be reflected in your AMS book with at least two reasons for justification:

1. The Notice of Action taken against you for “failing to secure” the mail in some way.
2. The 1767 you submitted the day after you were written up for an unsafe condition.

When you’re done with this relay, build the cart back up and move onto the next relay. Rinse and repeat for the most part, and tweak here and there as needed. The irony doesn’t get any better, though. First of all, this is legitimate, especially if you’re going to be disciplined about it. I personally would not leave my push cart anywhere I could not leave my wallet or social security card. This is how I delivered my mail. Ask anyone in the station that I came from. My mail did not leave my arm’s reach, period.
Back to the irony. TIAREAP is the joint route adjustment process. Management is looking to go into stations to inspect and adjust them. They don’t look to inspect assignments/stations unless they feel they will take routes away. This is perfect tim- ing to legitimately adjust your sequence of delivery, in the name of safety.
You now have to break your cart down in the applicable relays that house buildings/addresses which place your spine and the mail’s safety in jeopardy altogether. This creates street time on your route that wasn’t counted in the past. This newly recognized street time compensates for the lost street time due to the decline in volume in recent decades.
Remember, this reaction (re-action) didn’t come from the middle of the galaxy un-instigated, and from nowhere. This happened primarily because you or your fellow brothers/sisters were disciplined for failing to safeguard mail in some fashion and secondarily, because that discipline illuminated your ability to realize what safe and unsafe is when it comes to management hypocritically pursuing this topic. There’s nothing requiring you to lift a pushcart up one stair, much less many. You are required to keep the mail safe though. It’s a no brainer.

---