February 7, 2014: The proposed contract covering 6,000 UPS Teamsters in Teamsters Local 710 has been mailed out for a vote.  Local 710 represents UPS Teamsters in downstate Illinois, Northern Indiana, and Davenport Iowa, along with feeder drivers in Chicago. The economics track the national agreement on wages and the concession on a four-year progression. The agreement also moves Local 710 UPS Teamsters into the Central States Health & Welfare Fund (They don’t even bother rebranding...

The 2015 TDU Convention will be held the weekend of October 23 - 25 at the Cleveland Airport Sheraton. Education is Power “I am coming to my first Convention to learn from other Teamsters how to better use my voice to empower other members in defending our rights.”   Jackie Polhemus, UPS, Local 177, New Jersey   Building the Pension Movement “Our movement to defend our pensions is blossoming. We’ve had meetings from Nashville to Minneapolis, Akron...

Join Teamster Sisters and Brothers at this inspiring gathering of grassroots union activists, dynamic union leaders, and all-around troublemakers.The conference is held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, near Chicago's O'Hare Airport. Click here for details and to register. Meet Teamster reform leaders and activists working for change in our union. A Teamster meeting will be held on Saturday. More than 100 meetings and workshops include secrets of a successful organizer, beating apathy, running for union...

February 4, 2014: Industry analysts report that UPS plans to put 45 percent of the number of drivers on the ORION system in the coming year, up from 10 percent who are currently using the technology.   Click here to read a report on ORION. Or click here to send us a message about your experiences with ORION.    Click here to read a report from industry analysts on investments UPS is making to improve...

February 4, 2014: Teamsters in the IBT-UPS Pension Plan were promised a $200 pension increase. But disinformation from the Pension Plan is stranding Teamsters who want to retire in pension limbo. One of the selling points of the UPS contract was that 50,000 full-time UPSers who get a substandard pension from the IBT-UPS Pension Plan were promised a $200 pension increase. The IBT’s “Contract Facts” website says that “Once all supplements and riders are approved,...

February 3, 2014: Eight months after it was first rejected by UPS Teamsters, the Indianapolis Local 135 Rider was approved by a vote of 551 to 357. Approval came after several changes were made to the rider in bargaining after the rejection. The International Union did multiple mailings to members to encourage a yes vote. The mailings advertised the improvements made in TeamCare benefits since the first rejection, the changes made to the Rider, and...

January 30, 2014: While UPS and UPS Freight Teamsters take concessions, the profit haul for the company continues. UPS reported fourth-quarter profits of $1.2 billion and says profits will top $5 billion in 2014. The media is full of sympathetic stories about how UPS profits are, “falling short of expectations.” And it’s true that UPS’s fourth quarter profits were lower than originally expected because of the much-publicized problems at peak. But before you pull out...

January 30, 2014: Corporate lobbyists are stepping up efforts to “fast-track” the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) trade deal, as unionists and environmental groups push back in opposition. The TPP is being negotiated in secret, with direct input from trans-global corporations seeking to undermine labor and environmental protections. Read what the TPP is about: Warnings from NAFTA The IBT is asking Teamsters to ask members of Congress to oppose fast track.

January 28, 2014: Teamster officials in San Diego, including a Hoffa appointee, face embezzlement charges from the Independent Review Board (IRB).  The Independent Review Board (IRB) has charged the current and past officials of San Diego Local 36 with embezzlement of union funds, and recommended trusteeship of the local. The charged officials include Art Cantu, a long-time Hoffa International Representative, who resigned last March after a member blew the whistle on the embezzlement scheme. Hoffa...

January 28, 2014: TDU and workers everywhere lost a friend with yesterday’s passing of Pete Seeger, the legendary folk singer and social activist. Seeger, who died yesterday at the age of 94, was a role model for putting his principles into action. He stood up to McCarthyism, supported the Civil Rights movement, worked to clean up the Hudson River and was a strong supporter of unions and workers’ rights. Throughout his life, Seeger lent his...