Will Hoffa and Hall Try to Impose the UPS Contract?
March 26, 2014: Hoffa and Hall are considering a secret plan to impose the UPS contract by taking away members’ Right to Vote on the rejected supplements. UPS Teamsters in Louisville, Philadelphia, and Western Pennsylvania have Voted No and rejected their supplements. Now Hoffa and Hall are considering a plan to take away their right to vote and impose the UPS contract. Teamster members won the right to vote on supplements and riders in 1991...
YRCW Annual Meeting: “Teamsters Welcome”
March 25, 2014: YRCW’s annual meeting on April 29 is open to anyone who owns any common stock. And Teamsters own stock. Want to question CEO James Welch, in front of the media? Do you want to ask why he got a big bonus after the concession vote passed? Why they paid Harry Wilson $12.5 million over a year’s time? Any votes are meaningless, because management holds the proxies of the big institutional investors. But,...
National Grievance Panel Minutes
March 21, 2014: The UPS Freight National Grievance Committee met for panel hearings in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida on March 4-6. The minutes are available here. The committee ruled on 20 grievances. 34 grievances were postponed or put on hold, and 9 were settled or withdrawn. The new contract stipulates that the national grievance panel will meet only three times per year.
Organizing to Defend Our Pensions
March 20, 2014: Over 80 active and retired Teamsters filled the chapel at Macalester College in St. Paul, Minnesota to learn about the move afoot in Congress to weaken pension protections, and what is being done to stop it. The meeting was organized by TDU and a committee of Twin Cities Teamsters who are organizing to defend their retirement security. Bob McNattin, a retired member of Teamster Local 120, spoke of the importance of maintaining...
UPS Ohio Rider Ratified
March 19, 2014: The third time’s the charm for UPS management, the Hoffa-Hall leadership, and the Ohio UPS Rider. After being rejected by 55% of UPS Teamsters last October, it was approved by a narrow 52% majority in votes counted today. In the nine months since the first rejection last June, members saw no help from Hoffa-Hall in terms of improvements to the rider. They can’t seem to do a thing for members, but they...
Round 3: Ohio Rider
Ohio Rider The first column contains the results from the secound round of contract votes in October. The second column contains the result from the third round vote count conducted March 19th. Results are preliminary and subject to change. Local City October Rider Vote March Rider Vote Yes No Yes No 20 Toledo 293 269 288 274 40 Mansfield 51 44 65 30 92 Canton 98 61 139 48 100 Cincinnati 133 619...
150 Members at NY TDU Education Conference
March 17, 2014: On March 15, 150 Teamsters attended a day-long education conference sponsored by TDU in New York City to educate themselves and build Teamster solidarity. “It’s inspiring to get together with like-minded Teamsters from all over the Northeast,” said Local 773 member Al Watrous, who made the drive in from Allentown, PA. “Knowledge is power. We need more members to get involved and take the time to learn. I’m looking forward to meeting...
Teamster Bus Drivers Hit the Streets
March 17, 2014: Teamster bus drivers were joined by 150 community supporters on the picket lines in Burlington, Vt. this morning. The Teamster Local 597 members work for the Chittenden County Transportation Authority. Riders include many public school students, and they stand with the drivers. Students gathered in below-zero temperatures this morning to rally and picket with drivers. Then they marched together to school. CCTA drivers are united for a contract that provides good full-time...
UPS Plays Hardball Louisville Members say No
March 14, 2014: UPS management claims it has issued its “last, best and final” offer on a new Air Rider covering nearly 9,000 UPS Teamsters in Louisville. UPS says they are done negotiating with Louisville Local 89 over the Air Rider, and they have thrown down an offer that is even worse than their previous one. The International union has announced they will put the company’s offer to a vote, with ballots mailed out March...
YRCW Execs Get Huge Bonuses
March 10, 2014: Last week the top execs of YRCW each got an $800,000 bonus, as a reward for the concessions approved by Teamster employees and the subsequent debt refinancing. A salaried (nonunion) employee of YRCW sent us an open letter to CEO James Welch regarding the top-heavy priorities of YRCW management, which is reprinted below. For obvious reasons, the letter is not signed. Mr Welch; Congratulations to you and Mr. Harry Wilson and Mr....