2011 COLCPE contest aims to boost Gimme 5
| The 2011 COLCPE contest is over. Winners will be announced in the February 2012 edition of The Postal Record, the special annual issue listing and thanking all of our COLCPE contributors. |
As the union’s political action fund, COLCPE is the anchor for the NALC’s legislative and political activities. This spring, NALC President Fredric V. Rolando announced a contest to encourage maximum participation through the Gimme 5 program, which asks active and retired carriers to give $5 or more each pay period through automatic deduction.
The contest will pit branches of similar size and current Gimme 5 participation rates against each other. Branches with 50-99 members will compete in one group, and those with 100-450 members in another. The largest branches—those with 451 or more members—will compete with each other in groups of three or four (see below).
Branches will win prizes based on the total new Gimme 5 participants they sign up by November, as well as for the greatest increase in participation percentage. All new and current Gimme 5 participants will be entered into a raffle for additional prizes.
“There simply has never been a more important time to participate in COLCPE,” Rolando said. “We need everyone on board. COLCPE helps pro-labor, pro-letter carrier candidates for Congress get their message out so they can go to Washington to support us and protect our jobs so we can serve the public.”
The involvement of NALC members who lean Republican, Rolando added, is especially important.
"Our union isn’t partisan and neither is this fight,” he said. “Our struggle is for letter carrier jobs, period. We deserve support for that struggle from both parties. We have a diverse membership, and that’s good. Our Republican members need to tell Republicans in Congress our side of the story and remind them of our political diversity, and to speak out against attacks on labor.”
How the 2011 COLCPE contest works
Category 1: Branches with 451 members or more have been divided up into competitive groups of three, four or five. There are 33 total groups based on membership size and current "Gimme 5" automatic contributing percentage. Branches need to sign up as many automatic "Gimme 5" contributors as possible.
The branch with the highest percentage of "Gimme 5" contributors in the assigned grouping at the end of November will be declared the winner. Each winning branch will win four $100 gift cards.
Category 2: All branches with 100 to 450 members will be competing against each other. Branches need to sign up as many automatic "Gimme 5" contributors as possible.
The branch with the highest percentage of "Gimme 5" contributors at the end of November will be declared the winner, but the top four branches will all receive a prize. The top branch will win four $100 gift cards; the second place branch, three $100 gift cards; third place, two $100 gift cards; fourth place, one $100 gift card.
The four branches with the greatest increase in "Gimme 5" percentage will also receive a prize. First place will win four $100 gift cards; second place, three $100 gift cards; third place, two $100 gift cards; fourth place, one $100 gift card.
Category 3: All branches with 50 to 99 members will be competing against each other. Branches need to sign up as many automatic "Gimme 5" contributors as possible.
The branch with the highest percentage of "Gimme 5" contributors at the end of November will be declared the winner. The top four branches will all receive a prize. The top branch will win four $100 gift cards; the second place branch, three $100 gift cards; third place, two $100 gift cards; fourth place, one $100 gift card.
The four branches with the greatest increase in "Gimme 5" percentage will also receive a prize. First place will win four $100 gift cards; second place, three $100 gift cards; third place, two $100 gift cards; fourth place, one $100 gift card.
Category 4: Individual raffle,
Every "Gimme 5" contributor will be eligible to win one of 10 $100 gift cards. The raffle winners will be announced in the February 2012 issue of The Postal Record.
The deadline for EFT and OPM contributors to be counted towards their branch totals ended in November. PostalEase contributors must be reflected in our system by the second pay period in December.
Results will be published in the February 2012 issue of The Postal Record, along with the winners of the individual raffle. |
