A Strong Network: How We Won Good Pensions
August 11, 2008: In the ‘90s, TDU built a nationwide movement to get pension improvements. Without TDU’s organizing efforts, those improvements would not have been possible. I’m proud to say I was a part of that movement. Having a network of members in our area is vital. I got to know a lot of feeder drivers in every barn. I would get copies of flyers and Convoys to them, and in turn, they would pass...
Chicago Local 705 Settles Contract with UPS
July 31, 2008: A tentative agreement has just been reached between Chicago Local 705 and UPS on a new contract covering some 11,000 Chicagoland Teamsters. The union bargained down to the wire, negotiating to the last day before expiration. Management was forced to start diverting packages away from Chicago, and major shippers were near to canceling shipping contracts. The union also put nearly 200 deadlocked grievances on the table, to end management stonewalling. On the...
Market Watch: Teamsters Local 206 Reports Sealy Threatened by Labor Dispute
July 30, 2008: As Sealy Company (ZZ) shares continue to lose value -- down 57% since its initial public offering in April 2006 -- and a new CEO, Larry Rogers, takes over, the mattress manufacturer faces a labor dispute in Portland, Oregon. Teamsters Local 206 represents loaders who are expected to lift and stack thousands of pounds of mattresses by hand every hour. Sealy is majority owned and controlled by the buyout firm KKR, which...
Bobby Hogan Attacks Hoffa
July 29, 2008: Bobby Hogan, the former secretary-treasurer of Chicago Local 714, has lashed out at IBT President James Hoffa. Hogan has called out Hoffa for his “cowardly abdication of leadership, a betrayal of basic union democracy and of long-time supporters.” In a July 17 letter, Hogan accuses Hoffa of becoming a tool of the Independent Review Board (IRB). The letter is noteworthy because the Hogan family members have been major political supporters of Hoffa....
Did UPS 'Pants' the Teamsters?
July 29, 2008: In the quote of the week, a CNBC host told viewers that UPS “pantsed” and “pummeled” the Teamsters in the new contract. Here is what Jim Cramer, the host of Mad Money on CNBC, had to say: “The company got a new labor agreement with the Teamsters, effective August 1, that will let UPS pay new drivers less than it does veterans. This is a classic example of a union hosing people...
BNA Daily Labor Report: Local 705 UPSers Authorize Strike
Members of Local 705 of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters in the Chicago area have overwhelmingly voted to authorize a strike against parcel delivery giant UPS. Officials with Local 705 told BNA July 24 that negotiations toward a new five-year agreement are continuing with UPS, but rank and file Teamsters voted to strike beginning Aug. 1 if no resolution is reached. Local 705 Secretary-Treasurer Steve Pocztowski was in negotiations and could not be reached for...
Carhaul Steward Calls for End to Lies
July 25, 2008: Carhaulers across the USA are speaking out against the concessionary national contract that is being voted on right now. Many are angry about the outright lies being told on the Teamster website about members' sentiments. You can read a letter from a concerned steward in Kansas City Local 41, who calls on president Hoffa to pull the plug on the lies and on those who abuse members. Click here to read the...
BNA Daily Labor Report: New Testing Rules Expands Use of Observed Urination
July 24, 2008: Under regulations that take effect Aug. 25, the Transportation Department will begin requiring transportation workers who previously tested positive for a prohibited drug to give their urine specimens while being watched by specimen collectors. Currently, only transportation workers suspected of tampering with their specimen are required to provide urine specimens while being observed. The rule applies to workers in safety-sensitive positions in the aviation, motor carrier, rail, transit, maritime, and pipeline industries....
Early Deal at Anheuser Busch?
July 23, 2008: A new report this week speculates that Anheuser-Busch management may seek an early contract before the InBev takeover even takes effect. The report in the St. Louis Beacon quoted several industry and labor experts who expect A-B management to push for an early deal. The Teamster contract covers 7,000 Teamsters at A-B, and it expires on March 1, 2009. Talks on the new contract are scheduled for this August in Cincinnati. Some...
Canadian Brewery Workers Formed Alliance to Take on InBev
July 22, 2008: Canadian brewery workers who work for Labatt found themselves under the gun thirteen years ago when the Belgian brewing giant InBev bought the Canadian brewer Labatt. In response, they formed an alliance of unions, the Canadian Brewery Workers Alliance (CBWA). This was necessary to build unity and strength among the seven different unions at the seven Labatt breweries across Canada. These unions are the Teamsters at the Hamilton, Ontario brewery; the Canadian...