Hot House with Richie Ray

This episode breaks down Local NALC Grievance Case involving City Letter Carrier . This was not fundamentally a case about whether management could explain the Postal Service's Zero Tolerance Policy. The real question was muchbigger: Can management enter into a grievance settlement with another union that imposes mandatory obligations on an NALC-represented city letter carrier without consulti...

Brother Obadiah Batten's journey is anything but ordinary. Before becoming a city letter carrier and union representative, he spent eight years serving his country in the United States Air Force, earned a degree in Software Engineering, and performed as a professional wrestler. Today, he's one of thenewest voices representing letter carriers as a steward and Formal Step A representative in...

In this episode, we break down a problem every city carrier and shop steward needs to understand customer packagepickups being removed from city carrier routes and performed by employees from another craft, including APWU truck drivers. We go directly into Publication 399, Pickup Services Field Guide, and explain what management is supposed to do, what the city carrier is supposed to do, how PS Fo...

This episode is a full-scale training session for shop stewards, branch officers, activists and every letter carrier who has ever wondered what a steward can actually do when management says no . Using the Fall 2004 edition of the NALC Activist as ourfoundation, we are going to break down five major areas: We are going to talk about power . Where does management's power come from? Where does t...

This grievance began when a CCA who was working a hold-down assignment reported to work expecting to carry that route. Management later discovered that anotheremployee needed an assignment and decided to remove the CCA from the hold-down. The carrier objected to being removed, and a disagreement developed on the workroom floor. Management alleged that the carrier refused instructions, became argum...

On this episode of Hot House with Richie Ray, we sit down with Justin Frew, candidate for President of NALC Branch 351 in Olympia. But this conversation isn't going to begin with anelection. Before somebody asks the membership to trust them withthe presidency of their branch, I want to know who that person is. Who is Justin Frew? What kind of letter carrier is he? What did he experience on the...

Nearly 40 years ago , Raquel “Rocky” Acasio began her postal career as a PTF letter carrier in San Diego. Just one year later, she became a shop steward and she has been fighting for letter carriers ever since. In this special episode of Hot House with Richie Ray, we sitdown with CLC candidate for NALC Secretary-Treasurer Raquel “Rocky” Acasi o for a conversation about her journey from the workroo...

This episode goes far beyond campaign talking points. Richie Ray sits down with Region 1 National Business Agent Allan Rios to discuss nearly thirty years of service to letter carriers. Beginning as a casual employee in 1996, Allan shares how his experiences carrying mail shaped the representativehe became. The conversation explores his journey from shop steward to arbitration advocate, DRT repres...

This isn’t politics as usual this is The Hot House. In this episode, we sit down with James D. Henry, candidate for National President of the National Association of Letter Carriers, for one of the most direct and unfiltered conversations about the future of our union. We’re talking about the real issues carriers are dealing with every day forced overtime, excessive discipline, staffing shortages,...

For the third maybe even fourth time, Corey Walton returns to the Hot House with Richie Ray. But this conversation is different. This isn't about introducing Corey Walton. Most letter carriers already know who he is. This is about where the National Association of Letter Carriers stands today, why so many carriers are concerned about the future of the union, the role the Concerned Letter Carriers...

A Facebook post started a debate over who deserves credit for defending Branch 41 President John Cruz against a Notice of Removal. Rather than argue on social media, Richie Ray went back to the original record. The grievance file. The emails written while the case was happening. John Cruz's own clarification. Orlando Gonzalez's Informal and Formal Step A work. The eventual arbitration prep...

Jerry Kerner Jr. is not simply running for National Business Agent of Region 13—he is asking letter carriers to trust him with the responsibility of protecting branches, developing representatives, enforcing the National Agreement, and helping guide the region through one of the mostuncertain periods facing the Postal Service and the NALC. A city letter carrier since 2006, Jerry has spent twodecad...

William “Billy” Moody is a U.S. Army veteran, longtimeletter carrier, labor leader, and President of NALC Branch 181 in Austin, Texas. Now he is seeking to become the next National Business Agent for Region 10 as part of the Concerned Letter Carriers slate. This interview goes beyond Billy Moody’s résumé. We will examine the experiences that shaped him as a leader, his record as a shop steward, Fo...

On this episode of The Hot House with Richie Ray ,we sit down with Elliot Simmons , a Table 2 City Letter Carrier, union representative, educator, podcaster, and CLC candidate for National Business Agent of Region 7 . Elliot began his Postal Service career in February 2015 as an RCA before becoming a CCA in 2017. Within months of entering the city carrier craft, he discovered a passion for represe...

In this episode of Hot House with Richie Ray, Region 6NBA candidate Walter McGregory breaks down his journey from PTF to arbitration advocate and explains why he believes the time for change inside the NALC is now. Walter speaks on: His roots in labor and how growing up in a UAW household shaped his union philosophy. The current state of USPS and the operational crisis affecting carriers nationwid...

NALC Branch 758 President Phil  Bzura describes a long-running struggle over the grievance process in Region 6 and what he believes happens when regional leadership loses touch with the branches and stewards it is supposed to serve. Phil explains that the Dispute Resolution Process (DRP) was presented as a way to resolve grievances quickly and at the lowest possible level, reducing the need for ar...

Why do so many conflicts inside the Postal Service beginwith poor instructions, unrealistic projections, threats of discipline, and supervisors who seem more focused on numbers than people? In this powerful episode of Hot House With Richie Ray , Richie goes deep inside the USPS management system to expose why many frontline supervisors are failing—and why some of them may also be scapegoats trappe...

Operational and Financial Performance Across Postal Service Regions OIG Report 25-091-R26 (July 27, 2026) This report is one of the most significant USPS Office of Inspector General (OIG) audits in recent years because it moves beyond simply examining delayed mail or financial losses. Instead, it asks a much deeper question: Why are some Postal Service districts consistently successful while other...

Is management allowed to delay the mail just to avoid paying overtime? That's the question we tackle in this episode of The Hot House with Richie Ray. We break down a detailed paper from NALC Branch 134 and explain, in plain English, how the 2025 Nolan Interest Arbitration Award changed Article 8 overtime rules and what those changes mean for city letter carriers, stewards,branch leaders, and...

Mike Hayden has spent more than three decades as an NALCletter carrier and union representative, serving as a Branch President, Financial Secretary, Shop Steward, Formal Step A Representative, Arbitration Advocate, mentor, educator, negotiator, and graduate of the NALC LeadershipAcademy. Now, Hayden is running as the CLC candidate for NationalBusiness Agent of Region 11, representing letter carrie...

On August 28, 2026, Hot House with Richie Ray celebrates two unforgettable years of education, advocacy, personal truth, and rank-and-file solidarity. What began on August 28, 2024, with Richie Ray sittingbehind a microphone and admitting that he was “just trying this out” has grown into a national platform containing more than 140 episodes devoted to the lives, rights, struggles, and future of ci...

For the first time, Kimetra "Kim" Simpson-Lewis stepsinto the Hot House. From becoming a shop steward in 1994 to leading Dallas Lone Star Branch 132 as Branch President, Kim has spent decades fighting for letter carriers on the workroom floor, in Formal A meetings, in arbitration, and at every level of union leadership. Raised in a family where unionism wasn't just discussed itwas li...

For nearly five decades, Anita Guzik has fought for letter carriers, retirees, and working families through every level of the labor movement. In this episode of The Hot House with Richie Ray , Anita returns to discuss why she is running for NALC Director of Retirees, but the conversation goes far beyond an election. We explore the future of retirement security, the struggles facing younger carrie...

What you witnessed today wasn't justanother podcast. It wasn't about personalities. It wasn't about campaign slogans. And it certainly wasn't about who can deliver the best sound bite. This was a conversation about the future of the National Association of Letter Carriers. Bill Kriebel brought decades of experience to the table not only as a Marine, Branch President, steward, Forma...

On this episode of Hot House with Richie Ray, we welcome back Danna Chambless, President of NALC Branch 4in Nashville, Tennessee, and the Concerned Letter Carriers (CLC) candidate for National Business Agent of Region 8. Danna's story is one of dedication, perseverance, and leadership. From beginning her postal career as a Part-Time Flexible employee in Louisiana in 1996 to becoming the first...