Ask the Teamster Troublemaker
Employers are quick to label any Teamster who sticks up for the contract or questions management’s authority as a “troublemaker.” Ask the Teamster Troublemaker is a column dedicated to spreading the information that “troublemakers” need to enforce members’ rights and build a stronger union.
Click here to send a question to the Teamster Troublemaker.
Teamster Troublemaker Articles
April 6, 2011: My business agent is never prepared for our local level grievance hearings. He doesn’t talk to us beforehand. He doesn’t do any interviews or request any information.
Dear Teamster Troublemaker
Management is installing new cameras in our trucks—pointing right at the driver’s seat. Is there anything we can do?
Dear Teamster Troublemaker,
I’m a steward, and the supervisor likes to cut deals behind members’ backs; he doesn’t want members present when we meet. Should I bring members into grievance meetings anyway?
Dear Teamster Troublemaker:
I’m a package driver, and I’m often in areas where there aren’t adequate bathroom facilities.
February 11, 2010: Dear Teamster Troublemaker: I just found the TDU website. It’s got a lot of information! But my BA goes ballistic over TDU. He told me that TDU stands for “Too Dumb to Understand.” Why do they hate you guys?
July 21, 2009: Dear Teamster Troublemaker: One of my co-workers was suspended for a customer complaint. Last month, our boss let another employee skate by for the same thing with just a verbal warning, because they like his numbers.
Ask the Teamster Troublemaker: Can a rank-and-file bargaining committee member urge members to vote against a concessionary contract?
Winter’s here. Dispatch has the idea that there is no such thing as road conditions too bad to drive. Am I on thin ice if I refuse to drive in dangerous conditions?
March 27, 2008: For the last two months, I can’t get any of my grievances on excessive OT paid.