September 28, 2010: As we go to press, local union officials from freight locals are meeting to hear the tentative agreement that the International Union has reached with YRCW. Then the decision will be in the hands of YRCW Teamsters. YRCW Teamsters, working and laid off, will be entitled to vote on the concession proposal in the October mail referendum. The International union has recommended that all freight locals schedule YRCW membership meetings for Oct....

September 28, 2010: Hoffa promised to strengthen our pensions. Now his promises have turned into excuses. One of the very best things about having a Teamster contract is a pension you can count on. A pension with 25-and-out or 30-and-out, at decent benefits. Teamsters of all political persuasions have consistently supported adequate pension funding, even foregoing good wage increases. Under Teamster President Ron Carey we won superior pensions that were the envy of workers in...

September 28, 2010: It’s not enough that YRC Teamsters gave up wages and pension contributions. Our union is letting management get away with subcontracting, forced overtime with hundreds laid off, and dubious changes of operation. Hoffa has even gone along with company plans and set up a “Competiveness Committee” made up of Johnson, Gordon Sweeton and other officers to meet with the YRC Board and management big shots. You don’t have to have much of...

September 28, 2010: Our ranks in freight are a third the size of what they were when Hoffa took over. Trucking is a growth industry. Companies can’t export it overseas. But our ranks in freight are a third the size of what they were when Hoffa took office in 1998—even while overall trucking numbers grew. Organizing is hard, but it can be done. Not with secret deals, but with mobilizing Teamsters, a commitment of resources,...

September 28, 2010: “We were committed to providing the best contract we could for these workers and we have achieved that.” - Ken Hall, May-June 2008 Teamster magazine. “Our contract is a big disappointment. Ken Hall told us this was the best we could get. It’s not much given what we expected from the Teamsters.” - G.W. Owensby, UPS Freight, Local 41, Kansas City At the 2006 Teamster Convention, Hoffa announced he had a deal...

September 28, 2010: Teamsters at the UPS hub in Syracuse knew they needed a show of unity to counter all the grief they get daily from UPS management. So they held a rank-and-file day of action to educate members on how to enforce our contract. “Our action brought package drivers and part-timers out front so UPS could see we’re in this together,” reported 22.3 Teamster Bill Shaughnessy. “We’re tired of supervisors working and the package...

September 28, 2010: Local 2727 members are getting back their holiday turkeys, thanks to a grievance their local just won. Is this the only turkey our union can deliver at UPS?UPS Teamsters in Local 2727 will get a turkey this Christmas season, and they will get their annual safety and length-of-service awards, thanks to a grievance their local just won. But will the rest of us get our benefits back? That question can only be...

September 28, 2010: UPS said it is preparing to follow its ban on driver texting with a broader policy on use of cell and smart phones while its employees are behind the wheel. The company made the announcement while Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood and other top Department of Transportation officials were hosting a daylong distracted driving summit in Washington, D.C.

September 28, 2010: Diverting feeder work to nonunion carriers (via Logistics or Supply Chain Solutions) costs jobs and hurts our union: if not stopped it could eventually destroy the feeder department and weaken our union. Here’s one example reported by Local 688 members in St. Louis. UPS had a large account with a company called Scholastic Books. Recently this feeder work was transferred to Werner, a nonunion truckload carrier. Werner—instead of feeders—now brings the freight...

September 28, 2010: They used to make $8 to $10 an hour with no benefits. Now after a five-week strike, they’re celebrating big raises and union benefits. Strikers followed scab trucks with mobile pickets and showed up at job sites with a giant inflatable rat. Building managers were not amused.Workers at ATM Enterprises had no union and were making $8 to $10 an hour with no benefits. Now they’re Teamsters and celebrating big raises and...