At the San Diego Branch 70 general membership meeting on April 9th, 2026, Michael Rivera, facing retribution for exercising his right to free speech, was suspended from the union. Brother Rivera is a rank-and- file letter carrier who understands that transparency and accountability are essential to a strong union. Rather than just talk about these ideals, he made efforts to see that those ideals were reflected in his branch.
How our man got jammed up:
In late 2025, acting as an election observer and candidate for trustee, Brother Rivera found discrepancies and problems (ie, storing ballots in a break room locker) with the way the election had run. Along with a few others, he raised these concerns and appealed. He did so first to the election committee and then to the branch.
The election committee responded by filing Article 10 charges against Brother Rivera. Why? Because Brother Rivera posted copies of several individual’s appeals that were filed on Facebook. They were legitimate appeals; not lies, not slander. He was exercising his right to free speech and informing the membership of the goings on and his experience at this branch. Brother Rivera, using protected speech, was trying to ensure accountability and transparency in Branch 70.
After some delay, an allegedly biased “committee of three disinterested members” (investigators who are supposed to be impartial) brought their findings to the April 9th meeting. After introducing new arguments not present in the charges, the committee of three finished presenting their findings. Afterwards, Brother Rivera had to fight for the chance to defend himself. Ignoring the fact that Article 10 charges require an immediate vote after a defense, Branch President Ricardo Guzman took to the floor to challenge Brother Rivera’s use of his right to free speech (opening up Brother Rivera’s defense to debate in that manner, could be seen as a blatant violation of the NALC Constitution). Having opened Brother Rivera’s defense up to debate, and having recommended for Rivera an 18 month suspension, Branch President Guzman called for a vote.
After the messy railroading, the vote did not go Brother Rivera’s way and he is now suspended for 18 months. During these 18 months, Brother Rivera will still pay dues to the NALC, but he will have no rights as a member.
Why this matters to the membership more broadly:
Branch President Ricardo Guzman is the Chairman of the “Concerned Letter Carriers.” The CLC slate is running for the highest offices in our union. They claim they are fighting for OUR RIGHTS, stating that the hallmarks of their leadership will be transparency, accountability, and dependability. Using slogans like, “An injury to one is an injury to all” and “to ignore a wrong is as wrong as the wrong itself,” we would expect the CLC to step in to stop this clearly vindictive and petty attack on a rank-and-file member; ESPECIALLY since it is one of their own abusing their power as branch president. However, that is sadly not the case. Not one of the candidates on the CLC ticket has spoken out about what’s being done by their CLC Chairman Ricardo Guzman. If it bullies like a Good Ol’ Boy, protects its own like a Good Ol’ Boy, silences inconveniently outspoken members like a Good Ol’ Boy… chances are, it's a Good Ol’ Boy.
What’s Next:
Brother Rivera will have to start the long and arduous task of appealing the decision. First, he will have to take his fight to the committee of appeals (led by Ricardo Guzman’s old friend and current NALC Presidential candidate on the CLC slate, James Henry). If he is unsuccessful there, Brother Rivera will have to appeal this decision to our National Convention in L.A. later this August. And in the interim, Brother Rivera will most likely have to take it to the NLRB as well.
Brother Rivera is a table two carrier and needs your help to right this wrong. Fighting these cases can get expensive. We have no idea how long or how far this fight will go, but we are asking you to help us pool funds to cover a rank-and-file member’s struggle against entrenched and oppressive branch leadership. These funds will go towards the expenses of his appeal (travel to the National Convention, potential loss wages/travel in the event of hearings, lawyer fees, etc.).
An injury to one, is an injury to all. No man should have to defend himself from his own union for the crime of asking for accountability, working towards transparency, and exercising his rights as a carrier and an American. We hope you join us in supporting Brother Rivera.
If you want to get into the weeds of the story: