November 19, 2014: Walmart workers are planning protests, sit-ins and strikes at stores across the country on Black Friday. Protests against low-wages, lack of full-time jobs, inadequate and expensive healthcare, and disrespect from management will take place at 1,600 locations nationwide on the biggest shopping day of the year. Walmart employs more than 1.4 million workers—who they term “associates”—making it the largest employer in the country. “Associates” make on average just $8.81 an hour. Walmart...

November 19, 2014: Teamsters spoke out at the annual shareholders meeting of Sysco to defend Teamster jobs and contracts in the face of the proposed merger of Sysco and US Foods. Last December, Sysco announced it would buy its competitor US Foods for $8.2 billion. Both companies sell food products to restaurants, hotels, hospitals, and schools. More than 7,600 Teamsters work at Sysco and another 4,000 Teamsters work as US Foods. The proposed deal threatens...

November 18, 2014: Unless we act now, Congress may end up cutting a legislative deal by year’s-end to allow pension plan trustees to slash the already-earned benefits of retirees as a purported way of saving deeply-troubled multiemployer plans. This would be a radical departure from the federal pension law and it would wipe out the anti-cutback rule which states unequivocally that once a retiree starts receiving a pension – it cannot be taken away unless...

November 13, 2014: UPS is growing fast internationally and so is the middle class. How do we build union power in a global economy? UPS’s business is driven by middle-class consumers sending packages and buying products online. While UPS’s middle-class customer base is expected to grow rapidly through 2030, only a small amount of growth will come from the US. Most of the growth in the global middle class is expected in Asia, especially China,...

November 13, 2014: The TDU Convention in Cleveland last weekend drew a record number of new participants, who were able to link up with stewards, leaders, and concerned Teamsters from across North America. Some of the new folks, like Jeff Williams, were experienced Teamsters but new to TDU and ready to take back our union. "Meeting rank and file Teamsters and TDU members from across the country was terrific. Seeing Fred Zuckerman talking about building...

November 11, 2014: Louisville Local 89 and Teamster carhaulers have won a strike victory at Ford, despite getting no support from the Hoffa administration. Teamsters who transport vehicles from the Ford assembly plant to the rails in Louisville have won a victory—and they have won big. Their victory puts an end to a dirty deal cut between Ford and contractor Voith Industrial in early 2012, which dumped 161 Teamsters who made $20 an hour and...

Teamster members, officers and stewards packed the Cleveland Airport Sheraton Hotel for three days of education, strategizing and solidarity. Members packed workshops to build skills on organizing and defending themselves on the job “Our contract campaign is about putting our members first -- and our patients first.” -- Brooke Reeves, Rhode Island Local 251 and a leader of the campaign for Good Jobs & Quality Care at Rhode Island Hospital. UPS workers celebrated the Save...

October 31, 2014: A New York district judge ruled this week that Scabby the Rat is protected by the First Amendment. So are Fat Cats, inflatable corporate pigs and more. Check out our photo gallery and choose your favorite. Employers have gone to court to try to deflate Scabby the Rat since he was first introduced by the Bricklayers Union in Illinois in 1990. But judges have repeatedly ruled that Scabby and other inflatable union...

October 31, 2014: Two thousand telecommunications workers are on strike against Fairpoint Communications in Northern New England. TDU stands with them. The joint strike was called by the Communication Workers of America (CWA) and the Electrical Workers (IBEW), but it was forced by Fairpoint Communications and the Wall Street hedge funds that are calling the shots behind the scenes. On August 28, Fairpoint declared bargaining was at an impasse and imposed its final contract offer....

October 28, 2014: In a victory for women Teamsters, UPS has announced it will offer light duty to employees who have lifting or other work restrictions because of pregnancy. For years, UPS allowed pregnant women with health restrictions to work light duty. But ten years ago, management reversed course company-wide and began denying alternate work to pregnant Teamsters. Teamster women who were unable to keep working during their pregnancy had to burn their FMLA leave...