Teamster Retiree Writes to the Pension Funds
By: John Brose, East Liberty, OhioRetired, Local 413 I'm a retired truck driver of thirty years. I worked for Smith Transfer in Columbus, Ohio, in 1977 till they went bankrupt in 1988. I went to Consolidated Freightways till they went bankrupt in 2002. Then Roadway Express until they merged with Yellow Freight and I was laid off never to be called back. So I had to retire in 2009 with over thirty years of service....
Court Blocks the 30-minute break reg for city drivers
August 5, 2013: The US Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia has upheld all of the new Hours of Service regulations for DOT-regulated trucking operations, except one: the requirement of a 30-minute break during the first eight hours of work for short-haul drivers. This is of particular note to some UPS package car drivers, who may want to take their lunch break at the end of a shift to escape some measure of...
Why is the U.S. DOL Re-Running the L.A. Local 848 Election?
August 15, 2013: There's a rerun election in the 5,000-member Local 848 in Los Angeles in progress, as a result of a federal lawsuit brought by the U.S. Labor Department due to serious election violations. The Labor Department is conducting the election. The sad truth is, the exact same violations were brought before Joint Council 42, headed by International vice president Randy Cammack, and then to the International union. Instead of enforcing the members' right...
Republic Flight Attendants Get Contract in Shady Vote
August 22, 2013: Teamsters at UPS, UPS Freight and ABF have questioned their contract voting procedures, but consider the crap which 2,000 Teamster flight attendants have been fed. Their contract was deemed "ratified" on July 31 by a vote of 646-440 under these conditions: The ballots were to be returned in a single envelope, and no name or ID was required on it. Anyone with an envelope and ballot could mail in one, two or...
Members Reject National Gate Gourmet Contract
August 14, 2013: After 8 months without a contract, Teamsters and UNITE HERE members at Gate Gourmet rejected a tentative agreement by the lopsided margin of 2,179 No to 742 Yes, in yet another national Hoffa-administration contract which the members think is a stinker. The number one issue is wages. Yet IBT Local 528 in Atlanta, which represents a large number of Teamsters, says they will not pursue wage increases beyond what's been proposed but...
A Teamster Troublemaker for Fairness
September 6, 2013: A Local 802 Teamster celebrates her 15th year as a groundbreaking Teamster and "troublemaker" for fairness. The first Teamster woman at her grocery warehouse, Arlena Dean filed a grievance to force her employer to create a locker room for women employees only to be told that she was forbidden to use it. Management at her Bronx-based grocery warehouse banned Arlena, who considers herself a "proud African-American lesbian Teamster," from using the women's...
TDU is Growing—Want to be Part of Making it Happen?
August 23, 2013: TDU is growing, and it's no secret why. The Hoffa-Hall IBT leadership has failed, and Teamsters who want to do something about it realize that as isolated individuals, we are powerless to change the union. The only way to make it happen is if we're organized: that's what Teamsters for a Democratic Union is all about. The biggest face plant by Hoffa and Hall has been negotiating the national contracts this year:...
Education for Union Power
TDU CONVENTIONNovember 1 - 3, Chicago Get the education and information we need to defend our rights, organize to win stronger contracts and rebuild Teamster Power. NEW WORKSHOPS include: Secrets of a Successful Organizer: Learn the best tools for getting members involved, identifying issues and building power on the job. Stonewalling in the Grievance Procedure—And How to Beat It: Tactics for resolving your grievance when your boss—or BA—is trying to put you off. Defending Healthcare:...
UPS Retro Pay Calculator
August 9, 2013: Today is pay day—Do you know how much retro pay you are owed? From now until management pays you your retroactive pay, you would be wise to keep track of your hours and pay owed. It will be $.70 for each straight-time hour worked or owed due to vacation or holiday (Labor Day is coming up), and $1.05 for each overtime hour. Click here to download a handy calculator (in Microsoft Excel)...
ABF Teamsters Say No Deal
August 6, 2013: The ballots are out in the mail, but active Teamsters in the Central Region and some other supplemental areas are saying Vote No. A leaflet distributed by a number of Teamsters says that "a unified rejection of the supplements will better position us to recover our lost vacation week, and possibly all or some of our lost wages." Bret Subsits, a Chicago Local 710 driver, has this message for fellow ABF Teamsters:...