Retirees Want an Advocate, Not a Messenger
April 21, 2015: Central States retirees in the growing pension movement are calling on the appointed “Retiree Representative” to be a genuine independent voice. By law, the Central States Pension Fund had to designate a retiree to act as an advocate, at least 60 days before submitting any plan to cut pensions. But as this letter from one pension movement leader says, retirees want “an advocate, not a messenger.” Retirees are calling on Sue Mauren,...
Teamsters & the Fight for $15
April 17, 2015: Teamsters and TDU members joined a national day of action to fight for living wages. UPS Teamsters in New York made a splash in joining the Fight for $15. Workers and supporters in 120 cities rallied, protested, and went on strike on Wednesday, including Wal-Mart employees, fast food workers, homecare workers, and others. UPS Teamsters in New York made a splash—joining the Fight for $15 with rallies at UPS buildings throughout the city....
Nyhan’s Fast-Track: What’s Behind the Curtain
April 15, 2015: Central States Pension Fund Director is giving the hard sell on his fast-track pension cuts, but withholding all the information members need to formulate alternatives. He states the plan will go broke in exactly 11 years, and says we cannot question his facts. Where does he get this figure? And why hasn’t it changed as the fund’s assets have gone up? Taking the fund’s current level of employer contributions and benefit pay-out,...
Central States Drops Pension Cut Bomb
April 15, 2015: The Central States Pension Fund has launched a PR offensive to sell their fast-track pension cut plan as the only way to “rescue” members’ retirement. Teamster members and retirees are demanding a review by independent actuaries and consideration of alternative proposals before the cuts are imposed. Central States Director Thomas Nyhan pitched his plan in a letter and national conference call, calling for deep cuts on a fast track with no amendments...
Sue Mauren: Representative for Central States Retirees
TEAMSTER HISTORY Sue Mauren was a Teamster employed at the University of Minnesota. She participated in a pension plan run by the university, and was not a participant in the Central States Fund (CSPF) She became a Teamster around 1980 and continued till the early 1990s, when she was hired as a business agent. Mauren was hired as a business agent in the early 1990s by the leaders of Local 320. The officers of Local...
“Save our Pensions” Spreads
April 14, 2015: Under the banner of “Save Our Pensions”, 175 Minnesota Teamsters and retirees met on April 11 in St. Paul to get the facts and build the movement to save pensions. A surprise guest, Minnesota Congressman Rick Nolan, declared his support for repealing the pension-cut law and replacing it with a fair solution. The Save Our Pensions Committee called the meeting, and greatly expanded its working committee as a result of it. More meetings...
Joining the Fight for $15
April 13, 2015: On April 15, workers will rally, sit-in and even strike as part of a national day of action to fight for $15-an-hour and a union. Teamster members are getting in on the action too. More than 60,000 workers in over 120 cities will rally, protest or strike on April 15 in the biggest national day of action since the movement began four years ago. Grassroots action has paid off. Walmart raised its...
Election Supervisor Issues Election Rules
April 13, 2015: The rules for the 2015-2016 Teamster election for IBT General President and officers, and for delegates from each local are now available on line. Richard Mark, who served as the independent Election Supervisor in the 2006 and 2011 IBT elections, will again supervise the 2015-2016 elections of delegates from all local unions to the IBT Convention, and the IBT Election of officers in 2016. Mark will supervise a national staff to handle...
Central States Timeline for Pension Cuts
April 9, 2015: Yesterday Teamster leaders and Central States Pension Fund director Thomas Nyhan laid out in vague terms their plan to cut the pensions of retirees and active Teamsters. A preliminary letter to all participants will be mailed out today. No details or numbers are being revealed, but they did outline their timeline for cuts. By June or soon after, every active Teamster and retiree will receive an individualized estimate of how the proposed...
Teamsters Organize to Defend Pensions
April 8, 2015: Over 100 Teamsters from across the Midwest and South converged on the Rosemont Convention Center today to voice their objections to possible pension cuts by the Teamster Central States Pension Fund. "We're here today because we worked hard, sometimes gave up raises, to earn a decent pension,” said Greg Smith, a retiree from Akron Ohio Local 24. The retirees talked with officials and passed out a leaflet to them, as they...