will also support employee and manager self-service. Together, these systems will support the implementation of shared services by providing the technology to automate and streamline processes in order to shift routine and repetitive HR transactions to self-service and a service center.

     The new ERP system will provide a comprehensive HR solution in a Web-enabled environment, streamline processes, eliminate duplicate data, improve reporting capability and efficiency, and automate data entry and collection. This will be accomplished by replacing CMS and replacing or integrating other HR-related applications that reside in legacy systems.

     The Postal Service has nine collective bargaining agreements with seven unions covering approximately 707,000 employees. Negotiations with Postal Service unions cover a full range of topics involving wages, benefits, and conditions of employment.

     In April 2003, the Postal Service and the NPMHU reached a tentative agreement to extend the current 2000-2004 National Agreement for an additional two years. The extension agreement was ratified in May 2003 by NPMHU members. The agreement provided for two additional general wage increases of 1.3 percent - the first effective November 27, 2004, and the second effective November 26, 2005. The extension agreement also provided for four, additional cost-of-living allowance (COLA) increases under the existing COLA formula with two payments each in 2005 and in 2006. Eligible employees will receive uniform allowance program increases of 2.5 percent in November 2004 and in November 2005. The Postal Service and the NPMHU also agreed to work together to address workforce repositioning issues and to create a joint task force to review and discuss issues related to the implementation of the reassignment provisions of Article 12. The parties signed an MOU that allows for two additional bids (applying for vacant positions) during the

contract. The agreement, covering nearly 57,000 employees, is now due to expire November 20, 2006.

     Contract extension agreements were also reached with two smaller bargaining units represented by the APWU. A one-year contract extension was ratified in March 2003 covering the 100 employees under the Operating Services, Headquarters and the Facility Services, Merrifield, VA, collective bargaining agreement. The extension agreement provided for one additional general wage increase of 1.3 percent effective November 27, 2004. The extension agreement also provided for two additional COLA increases to be paid in 2005. Eligible employees are also due to receive a 2.5 percent increase to the Uniform Allowance Program. The current agreement expires November 20, 2005.

     The other extension agreement was reached with the 1,200 APWU employees covered under the Information Technology/ Accounting Service Center's collective bargaining agreement. The one-year contract extension was ratified in March 2003. The extension agreement provided for one additional general wage increase of 1.3 percent effective November 27, 2004. The extension agreement also provided for two additional COLA increases to be paid in 2005. The current agreement expires January 20, 2006.

     Negotiations with the Fraternal Order of Police, National Labor Council, USPS No. 2, which represents approximately 1,000 postal police officers for a successor collective bargaining agreement that expired on April 9, 2003, reached impasse. The impasse will be resolved through further discussions between the parties or by utilization of the dispute resolution procedures of the Postal Reorganization Act.

     The Postal Service and the National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) will publish the fifth edition of the Postal Service- NALC Joint Contract Administration Manual(JCAM), which will be distributed to every city delivery unit in the system in early 2004. First negotiated and published in 1998 and updated each year thereafter, this contract