After being requested and suggested for years, I finally launched a Podcast. I created it to fill a void – people want to learn but don’t want to read a dry training manual. Even worse, the Union acts like a secret club at times when it comes to knowledge. Together we can lift the veil of secrecy and difficulty in learning our rights.
Solving a Problem
Stick with me here. The National Institute of Arts reported in 2022 that only 48.5% of adults read at least one book in a year – that is of Americans who actually take the survey. A decline of roughly 8% over 5 years. As of 2023, only 16% of Americans read for pleasure daily, down from 28% in two decades.
I have conducted numerous trainings from the individual level to the National Level, and no matter what education tricks I use (Exercises, breaks, prizes, and even candy) that I learned when I went to College originally to teach, people get bored in training and when reading dry material. And not to brag, but I am a very good teacher.
The numbers don’t look good. Children read less. Children consume more visual and verbal media than reading and that divide only increases. That is our problem. If we want our coworkers to know their rights and be able to fight back against bad Management, we need to find a way to reach them. I don’t have a face for TV, but I do have a voice for Radio. That’s why in addition to books, guides, articles and training, I am starting a Podcast.
How did I get here?
When I first went to College I wanted to be a teacher. But when speaking to a career counselor, I quickly found that the only places hiring History teachers (At the time) at any noticeable scale were Texas and Alaska. I never fact checked this, but I did panic. See, I live in Michigan. I like spring and fall. I switched gears, but I did pick up a lot of educational tips and tricks.
Before I became a Steward I worked at the Troy Customer Care Center. I had a customer who told me I had a voice like an adult phone operator. That customer encouraged me to ‘go into radio or something.’ I share that story in orientation to this day. That was not my only suggestion to go into radio. I had a professional voice actor call looking for a package who told me the same thing. The seed was planted – maybe I should do something that hid my face.
When I became a Steward and started attending training people began asking to keep in touch so they could ask questions and get help. The problem I found is the people I helped did not want to read a dozen books. My go to solution was to send a Kehlert or APWU Training Guide. This solution did not work. They did not want multiple trainings. People wanted to passively learn or to be told the answer.
Fast forward a couple years and I began training more and more. While people learned a lot, it would take 6 to 8 hours to cover a topic completely – such as Investigative Interviews. I needed a more efficient way to relay information. People began finding my old blog on Google Sites and asking if I had a Youtube channel or a Podcast. The idea grew.
Then, in 2023, my Local Young Member Committee wanted to start a Podcast. It was not supported by my Local due to information concerns, cost concerns and who would own it. But since the Young Members liked the idea, I kept it on the back burner. I intended to do it but like my Local I was concerned as even the National APWU Podcast only had a couple hundred views per episode.
“Mushroom Communication”
My push began in the summer of 2025 at my Locals Picnic. I spoke to a group of about 20 members who informed me that they were being Harassed – including physical assault. They had filed Grievances but it did not work. I grabbed a couple Stewards from the facility and I explained what Strategy would work to stop the Harassment long term.
I set realistic timelines. We needed Statements, Journals, and 1767’s. The Union needed to file Grievances on 1767’s not properly completed, they needed to file on IMIP’s not being completed, and Grievances on the overt Harassment itself. I advised to file EEO’s based on the reason for Harassment. I also advised the Stewards to ‘be in the area’ when the Supervisor came to the floor when possible and to write their own Statements. Finally, I advised going up their chain of command to have the topic brought up at Labor Management Meetings.
I then told the lead Steward (Most Senior who helped that group of members previously) to prepare to escalate by writing a Congress Person in a nearby area where the group of employees lived. The Steward would need to document the 1767’s, the Statements, and the Grievances and plead for help. But first thing first, get the Grievances filed.
What was shocking is the fact that this Strategy was surprising or not widely known. I was pushed over the edge after discussing Grievance Strategy at the 2025 All Craft Conference. We were discussing Harassment, and I found a plethora of Stewards and Officers whose only Strategy to fight Harassment was to file recurring violation Grievances. This was not a lack of knowledge, it was a lack of Strategy.
This illustrates a problem in our Union. Most Unions, Companies and Organizations fall victim to ‘Mushroom Communication’. The information and strategy is retained at the top and the bottom is feeds off ‘s***’. So to speak. While at all levels we have Strategies to deal with Management, recurring issues, and common problems, it is not often equally disseminated to the bottom.
This is the USPS philosophy. It is the Governments philosophy. It is the Militaries philosophy. The expectation is the bottom will do exactly what they are told without question and the sum of the parts will work. The problem for the APWU is we are volunteers. We can walk away for less stress, we can work more Overtime (As good Stewards work a lot off the clock) and we can improve our personal lives (You never STOP thinking about Grievances or your membership). A lot of upside exists to walk away.
The membership also pays dues. When they don’t see immediate results they will not just do what the Union asks, especially if the Union cannot explain why.
We need a culture shift. A shift of transparency. That’s why I finally decided to pull the Podcast trigger. This will not be a ‘rah – rah’ pep rally. It is information dense, it is informational, and it will help members on the workroom floor or Stewards better exercise their rights.
This was long, and not needed for the average Podcast listener. But I wrote this to hopefully express a point. The APWU must do better at educating the Membership and Stewards on the bigger picture if we want the Union to continue to be successful.
APWU Steward 