October 7, 2009: Some 1,140 Chicago Local 710 YRC Teamsters are voting again on concessions that they rejected, but we haven’t found any Teamster yet who regards the voting method as legitimate. In early August, Local 710 YRC Teamsters rejected the concessions, by a vote of 471-321 in the dock contract, 57-48 in the office contract, and 10-4 by the mechanics. The re-vote will be counted on Oct. 15. But will it be a real...

October 8, 2009: A U.S.-based shipping company is shutting down its operations in Edmonton Oct. 31 after its unionized employees refused to take cuts in their wages and benefits, says the company's Canadian president. "It's a tough economy and people have to realize this," said YRC Reimer Canadian president Clayton Gording. Click here to read more at the Edmonton Sun.

October 1, 2009: The next UPS National Grievance Panel will be held October 12-15 in San Diego. TDU is making the complete list of the cases to be heard at the panel available to concerned Teamster members. Excessive overtime (9.5 violations), the elimination of full-time combo jobs and subcontracting top the list of most common grievances. Click here to download the docket of cases to be heard by the UPS National Grievance Committee. 9.5 Violations...

September 29, 2009: YRC Worldwide Inc. is continuing to make moves to combat a weak economy, including reducing its nonunion work force and amending a credit agreement. The Overland Park-based trucking firm said Friday that it was making “workforce adjustments across the company in response to economic conditions affecting business volumes.” However, YRC did not disclose how many employees would be affected since the actions were ongoing. Click here to read more at Kansas City....

September 25, 2009: President Obama made a peculiar choice in June when he nominated Anne Ferro, a major trucking industry lobbyist in Maryland, to lead the agency that oversees truck safety. On its face, Ms. Ferro’s selection violates the spirit of Mr. Obama’s decision to limit the ability of lobbyists to enter government as high officials and influence policy from within. Click here to read more at The New York Times.

November 3, 2009: Are you ready to get involved to turn our union around? Get the tools you need at the TDU Convention. The workshops at the TDU Convention are taught by some of the best union leaders and experts around. Join us this Nov. 6-8 at the Cleveland Airport Sheraton for workshops on: Writing and Investigating Grievances Bargaining to Protect Jobs Legal Rights on the Job and in the Union Advanced Grievance Handling Preparing...

September 18, 2009: There’s been a little shake-up at Teamster headquarters. Whether it will mean anything positive for members remains to be seen. Leo Deaner, Hoffa’s Executive Assistant, and Todd Thompson, another Hoffa assistant, have been ousted and demoted to be field representatives. Thompson was also Hoffa’s Campaign Manager. Both Deaner and Thompson are known for arrogance in their relationship with members and Teamster officers. The move comes about after a group of International Vice...

September 18, 2009. The Central Pennsylvania Teamster Health and Welfare Fund just announced benefit cuts that apply to YRC, Holland and New Penn Teamsters, due to the lower employer payments in the YRCW concession agreement. The Fund created a new “Y” (for YRCW) benefit class, with lower dental benefits, higher prescription co-pays, lower life insurance, and disability benefits cut from $275 per week to $100. The Fund’s explanation of the cuts is available here. Will...

September 17, 2009: YRCW VP Jack Peak has openly threatened to move work out of terminals where Teamsters under white paper agreements voted to reject concessions. Even worse, Teamster Freight Director Tyson Johnson has ratified the threat by passing it along to all local unions and affected members, asking if they need “further clarification.” Teamsters expect more from the International Union than “clarification” of corporate threats to play one group of Teamsters against another. They...

September 17, 2009: A sexual harassment scandal involving an International Vice President has cost our union a half million dollars. So why is Jim Santangelo still an International Vice President and head of the 100,000-member Joint Council 42 and Local 848 in Los Angeles? That’s the question some Southern California Teamsters are asking. In August, a sexual harassment lawsuit against Santangelo was settled for $500,000. The lawsuit was filed in January 2009, so the large...