Striking Teamsters have won a major contract victory at Continental Cafe in Indiana Local 135, including significant pay increases, higher retirement benefits, an additional week of vacation, and protected members' healthcare benefits for the life of the contract.

Members mounted 24-7 picket lines at three locations and conducted  ambulatory picketing across the state. The strike lasted nine weeks. 

Teamsters from other Local 135 companies served as strike captains at the picket lines. Local 364 members in South Bend, who are in bargaining now, also honored the picket lines. 

It was a masterclass in the solidarity it takes to beat corporate greed.

Protecting Union Standards

Continental Cafe Teamsters pack and deliver food and beverages to vending machines and small markets across Indianapolis.

Local 135 represents members at locations in Indiana, including Lafayette and Plainfield.

Members at the Lafayette location negotiated a strong contract in August 2024. But when it came time to bargain in Plainfield, the company went on the attack.

Continental Cafe demanded a cut in drivers’ commissions to pay for more warehouse staff who would pre-pick drivers’ loads. 

“That would have meant a $300 or $400 reduction in some of our drivers’ paychecks,” says Rhonda Banks, the Chief Steward at Plainfield.

To make up for the lost income, the company would have added dozens of stops and longer hours to some drivers’ routes while dropping other routes altogether.  

By striking, members protected their union standards under the new system. “We needed job security and to protect drivers’ income, and that’s what we won, plus so much more,” says Banks.

Every single member honored the picket line.

“The company sees us as expendable,” says Lafayette Chief Steward Steve Hudson. “That’s why I was ready to walk through fire for my fellow members and honor their picket line.”