Carhaulers today rejected a second national contract offer after saying Hell No to Hoffa’s concession deal last October. The vote was 1811-1479.
An unofficial Local by Local count is available here. Rank and file observers traveled to the count to make sure it was on the level and have provided these numbers. Thanks to the observers from Locals 327, 89, and 745.
The contract was rejected despite an all-out push by the Hoffa-Hall carhaul division, threatening members with a strike and no strategy to win it.
Instead of using the solidarity given them by the rank and file, the IBT actually used the strike threat against the members, instead of the carriers.
It’s time now to go to the carriers and get the members’ reasonable demands met. The members are not looking for sky-high wages, but they are saying NO to any concessions and YES to some gains, with auto production at an all-time high for two years.
The 87% No vote of last October gave the union negotiators a powerful show of solidarity to bargain some reasonable improvements, and remove all concessions. Instead, they waited a year, took the big pay cut off the table, and got a $1,000 bonus (instead of real retroactive pay), but failed to deal with the issues carhaulers put forward.
In the vote tally today, the role of leadership was clear. In Detroit Local 299, Hoffa’s Carhaul Directors Kevin Moore and Roy Gross threatened members with a losing strike, and pulled out a 2-1 Yes vote. But in Louisville Local 89, St Louis Local 604, and Cleveland Local 964, elected local leaders explained the pluses and minuses of the deal, and recommended a rejection. Those locals voted No by over 90%.
Lots of good Teamsters voted Yes, and lots voted No. They all deserve a leadership that will rebuild Teamster power in Teamster industries, including carhaul.
Soon, the leaders who have stood with the members, including Fred Zuckerman, the president of the largest carhaul local, can take the reins of the International Union and put real negotiators at the table, backed up by a unified rank and file.