December 5, 2013: Today fast food workers went on a one-day strike demanding higher pay in more than 50 cities across the country. The growing “Fight for $15” movement is mobilizing fast food workers and their allies in labor and the community to demand an end to dead-end, poverty-level wages and that the $200 billion-a-year industry provide living wages to its hundreds of thousands of workers in the fast food sector. Click here to read...

December 5, 2013: For the second time this year, a feeder driver in St. Louis has won $100,000 plus back pay and benefits for company violations of DOT regulations and firing drivers who are whistleblowers. UPS Teamsters are feeling some holiday joy at the Earth City Mo hub this week. Tim Bishop has returned to his feeder job 2½ years after he was illegally fired by UPS. UPS was ordered to pay Bishop more than...

"Congress needs to be reminded that flawed policies like trucking deregulation led to issues with our pensions. Many of our current representatives may not realize the impact that legislation had on our present circumstances. And they also need to know that our pensions were earned over many hard years where we passed on significant wage increases in order to see the companies make contributions towards the promise of our secure retirement. Now that’s being threatened....

December 2, 2013: The Central States Pension Fund had $17.8 billion in assets as of June 30, 2013, which is the same amount it had at the start of the year. The pension fund made $1.1 billion on its investments, a 6.5% rate of return in the six-month period. The high rate was due to the run-up of the stock market during the first quarter. The fund took in $332 million in employer contributions, and...

TDU wishes you and your family a good Thanksgiving. We're thankful you're a part of this movement for dignity on the job and a stronger, more democratic union.

UPDATED November 27, 2013: The Freight Division has scheduled a two-man meeting for December 6 in Dallas to review proposals made by YRC to extend the current MOU. All locals representing YRC Teamsters have been asked to send representatives for the meeting. On November 20-21, YRC negotiators presented proposals to the Teamsters Freight Division for a five-year contract extension. While they are not proposing any wage cuts, they are asking for other concessions. Reports indicate...

November 25, 2013: Walmart workers and their supporters are planning to kick off this year's holiday shopping season with protests at 1,500 Walmart stores around the country on Black Friday.  Last year, 30,000 supporters participated in Black Friday actions at Walmart and workers walked off the job in 46 states, according to OUR Walmart, the union-backed group that is organizing the actions.  This year, Our Walmart is hoping for even more supporters to turn out....

Updated December 2, 2013: Teamster mechanics who are without a contract picketed on November 25 at airports from throughout the country to demand an end to concessions and a contract. They were joined by AFA flight attendants who are also facing difficulties in their negotiations. Mechanics and Flight Attendants along with other workers have taken major concessions in previous negotiations in the last 10 years and they believe that they need to get gains as...

November 21, 2013: Growing opposition to a proposal to allow multi-employer pension plans to slash already-earned benefits has forced a delay in its introduction into Congress. That opposition needs to grow stronger, into a grassroots movement to save our pensions and develop a positive alternative plan to the cuts. A bill was scheduled to be introduced in the US House of Representatives over a month ago to allow "deeply troubled" pension funds—such as the Central...

November 19, 2013: After leaving UPSers in the dark for months, Teamster officials are working overtime to sell a weak contract that would mean smaller pensions for UPSers in the Southwest. The company’s offer is not good enough to sell itself. So Teamster officials have become full-time contract pitchmen. In Los Angeles, Local 396 business agents are even visiting hubs in the middle of night. They have never worked overtime like that to represent members. ...