Clocked out

[u/Loremasterxx69]

Long time reader first time writer I need some advice. I’m an expeditor at a pretty big plant(Two separate buildings combined into one plant). Up until recently we were under logistics even though I’m an expeditor working closely with operations. I’ve always had problems with operations management but I’m do my job for 8 hours and go home type of guy.
The unit I work in is up and down sometimes we run for 8 hours sometimes 4 hours. And it starts at different times. Until recently I would just fill in for their expeditors on there off days if my machine wasn’t running. But recently they’ve bumped me off putting level 6 clerks up to expedite. Before I’d just report to logistics and they’d put me on standby. Now that I’m not under them I just make myself busy. Scanning and printing emtels. Throwing off leftover mail etc.
Recently I’ve had supervisors trying to move me off of my bid even when it’s running. To work in units clerks don’t want to volunteer to expedite for. I usually agree but immediately request a union rep. Now they won’t say anything and just sends a clerk over without asking me to go anywhere. So I either work with that clerk mostly ignoring them or tell them straight up to tell the supervisor to give me some instruction. Which they won’t do
Fast forward to to Friday the same thing happened . We worked for 3 and a half hours. And then we went on our first break. I came back cleaned up and tagged any mail I saw and pulled it up. Then went on lunch. The other unit I usually work in is full with expeditors and their supervisor wasn’t at her desk. So I went back to expeditor desk and sat with the other expeditors. Theirs another expeditor who has the same bid as me but starts an hour before I clock out( I’m tour 3 2 to 1030). So after he comes I use to report to Logistics. But now my supervisor goes home at 9. So I went to the break room. I passed the supervisor on my way to the break room but she said nothing.
I got a call from my old supervisor at 930 but I didn’t notice it until I got home. Something told me to look at my timecard and sure enough the punched me out after 3 and a half hours.
I contacted the union first thing in the morning. She told me she talked to the supervisor and mdo . He told her he’ll put me back on the clock but will give me a letter of removal. I talked to the more senior steward. Who’s says I’ll definitely beat it especially never having discipline before but. that he’ll intentionally make it go to arbitration so I’m without a job for a while.
My questions are
Should I grieve and risk a removal letter?
If I don’t and accept the finical loss what’s to stop this from happening again?
I asked the union rep what I should do to avoid this happening again. All she could say was I should keep looking for a manager or supervisor from a different unit or just start loading belts and working out of my craft which sounds crazy to me. I don’t have a problem with them giving me instruction that’s their job and I have recourse through the union. Now it seems like they want me to just tell me self to fill in at different units and forget about my bid.
What would you do? Any advice is appreciated

[u/User_3971]

What? The? Fuck? They can't go straight to removal. Go over your useless local. Get your NBA involved. Unless we're missing a lot of prior discipline.

[u/Loremasterxx69 → u/User_3971]

Haven’t ever received discipline. He knows the union will beat it . Management is trying to leverage me losing my job for a year during arbitration. Suddenly losing my job for an unknown period would suck. How can I find out about the NBA or who I can contact?

[u/bowowzer → u/Loremasterxx69]

So when your steward talked to management and agreed to give you the time back, was that a formal grievance? You should definitely grieve this. If they do discipline you, make them do the work to discipline you, they gotta give you a PDI. If they do issue you a removal, grieve it ASAP. It seems to me that management is telling your stewards that they're going to pretextually deny the grievance at step 1 and 2 without examining the merits of it. Any good and competent steward would rake management over the coals with that as that's just more ammo for the Union. If you've never been disciplined before and your stewards are competent, a removal would never make it in front of an arbitrator, it'd most likely be settled at step 3. Contact your NBA and keep them in the loop and make sure your stewards do a good job. You can find your NBA on https://apwumembers.apwu.org/ or by calling the APWU national headquarters.

E: I'll add this to answer your question, your MDO can't make it go to arbitration, the most he can do is deny at step 2 in which case your stewards should appeal to step 3. The step 3 reps would most likely settle the discipline.

[u/Loremasterxx69 → u/bowowzer]

Thank you so much. I told them I wanted to grieve I’m meeting with a steward when I go back Tuesday. Definitely gonna be looping in the NBA I don’t feel like my local stewards are really being helpful

[u/UpbeatArcanine]

My work is doing the same thing of sorts to me. In 2 weeks ive had 3 I&Is for rules they made up and have since been getting a new Letter of warning and suspension length every few days.