Updated April 22, 2013: The IBT and ABF have agreed to extend bargaining another 30 days, as ABF continues to demand big cuts in health care, pensions and wages.  The extension now runs until the end of May. According to an IBT Bulletin issued late yesterday, ABF is demanding that Teamsters pay $240 per month for family health coverage, with reduced benefits; big cuts in pension contributions, which would have the effect of removing ABF...

Join TDUers in Providence, other Teamster members, stewards and officers, as well as labor educators and experts, for a day of training and education. Workshops include: Legal Rights of Union Members Using Grievances to Protect Members from Unfair Discipline Winning a Better Contract at Rhode Island Hospital Uniting Labor and the Community for Workers' Rights Guest Speakers: Sandy Pope, President Teamsters Local 805; Ken Paff, National Organizer of TDU; and Julian Gonzalez, Labor Attorney. Southern...

April 19, 2013: UPS Teamsters and many local unions are raising red flags about members being moved into the Central States Health Fund. The proposal has sparked resistance from members and locals opposed to benefit reductions. Officers from every local in the West held a conference call on Wednesday and spoke out against any transfer to the Central States Health & Welfare Fund. Teamsters Local 177 which represents some 6,000 UPSers in New Jersey also...

UPDATED April 18, 2013: Republic Waste Teamsters walked out yesterday in Cleveland, joining striking Teamsters in Youngstown Ohio. Also, Republic Teamsters in Memphis Local 984 walked out, in an unfair labor practice strike. Some 600 are now out on strike in Northeast Ohio. The International union has extended picket lines on a rolling basis to some other areas, to put more pressure on the giant corporation. On April 18, Republic Teamsters in Seattle area are...

UPDATED April 18, 2013: YRCW and the union for 200 mechanics at 15 Holland and YRC terminals have reached a tentative agreement, and the threat of a lock-out is over, at least for now. Members of the International Association of Machinists (IAM) will be voting on the contract. The Hoffa administration has taken the company's side, noting that the union mechanics are not going along with the "equality of sacrifice" envisioned in the Teamster memorandum...

April 16, 2013: Three thousand Teamsters, active and retired, headed to the union hall in Kansas City. What sparked the monster turnout and what does it say about Teamsters and our pensions? Over 250 people showed up at the Local 41 union meeting last Saturday. Another 3000 retirees showed up for a meeting that afternoon. What sparked this monster Teamster turnout? A report from Central States Pension Fund representatives, after TDU broke the news that...

UPDATED April 16, 2013 2:00 p.m. EDT: YRC has given another extension on its deadline to lock-out 200 union mechanics at 15 terminals. Bargaining is scheduled to continue today. Meanwhile, the Hoffa administration has taken the company’s side, but some Teamster members are choosing solidarity instead of sorry-assity. This Teamster rank and file solidarity may be what is bringing management back to the table. The mechanics, who are members of the International Association of Mechanics...

UPDATED April 19, 2013: The International Union will resume contract negotiations with UPS on April 22 with the goal of reaching a deal on a proposed new contract by the end of the week. Economic issues, including healthcare, remain on the table. The IBT and UPS have reached tentative agreements on a number of language issues, including 9.5 protections from excessive overtime. Members have been promised that the new 9.5 language will: Make it easier...

April 12, 2013: The press is reporting that Mayor Michael Bloomberg lied about the key issue behind the recent school bus strike in New York City. The strike was provoked when the Department of Education eliminated key job security protections from school bus transportation contracts. The "Employee Protection Provisions" protect the wages, benefits and job security of more than 10,000 union school bus drivers in the City including over a thousand Teamsters. The Mayor repeatedly...

UPDATED April 12, 2013: Are UPS Teamsters presently in company plans heading for the Central States Health and Welfare Fund? That’s one proposal that UPS management has put on the table. The International Union called a two-week break in negotiations to study this issue. So far, UPS Teamsters have only been told that management has proposed moving all UPS Teamsters into a union health and welfare plan. Meanwhile, the Central States Health and Welfare Fund seems to...