June 27, 2008: The board of Anheuser-Busch has rejected InBev’s bid to purchase the company, but the takeover is far from over. Yesterday in court, InBev filed a suit claiming that A-B shareholders can remove all 13 board members at the brewer’s annual board meeting. The suit is the likely first step in a hostile takeover bid. Meanwhile, A-B management announced that they intend to cut 1,300 jobs by offering early retirement buyouts. Read more:...

June 27, 2008: Interstate Bakeries Corp. must file a new reorganization plan by Monday and get support from its unions or provide a liquidation strategy to its lenders. The stipulations are laid out in the bankrupt company's most recent financing package provided by a group of lenders. Kansas City-based IBC filed for protection from creditors in September 2004 amid rising costs and declining sales. Click here to read more at tradingmarkets.com.

June 26, 2008: Republic Services Inc. agreed Monday to buy larger rival Allied Waste Industries Inc. for $6.1 billion to become North America's second-largest trash hauler as a weaker economy and rising fuel prices strain waste-removal companies. Allied investors will receive 0.45 Republic shares for each share they hold, the companies said. The price is 3.5% higher than Phoenix-based Allied's Friday closing price. Click here to read more at latimes.com.

June 26, 2007: The Anheuser-Busch board will reject the takeover bid by InBev, but Bud Teamsters aren’t out of danger yet. Teamsters were already worried that if Belgian brewer InBev bought Bud, their working standards and benefits would be on the line. The New York Times reports today that A-B will launch its own restructuring plan to cut $500 million in costs annually. And InBev isn’t giving up either. The Belgian beer giant has lined...

June 23, 2008: If you think that filling up your car is expensive, just be glad you don't have a 240-gallon tank and a vehicle that gets five miles to the gallon. With diesel prices at record highs, Miami-based Ryder System is offering a new high-tech tool to help its customers save fuel. The product, called RydeSmart, is one of several on the market that enables customers to instantly track the fuel consumption, idle time,...

June 23, 2008: Since 1976, Teamsters for a Democratic Union has brought together members who want to build a stronger union—by getting organized and sticking to our principles. Here’s what we’ve done: A More Democratic Union At the 1986 Teamster Convention, TDU members delivered over 100,000 signatures demanding the Right to Vote. Back then members had no vote for our union’s top officers. TDU won the Right to Vote for General President in 1989, and...

June 23, 2008: Union leaders representing InBev workers in Brazil, Canada and Europe have a simple message for Anheuser-Busch employees if InBev takes control of the St. Louis-based brewery: Watch out. "They should worry, because the production is going to be concentrated and the work force reduced," says Siderlei Oliveira, president of Brazil's 1.2 million-member food workers union, citing a reduction in Brazil's brewery workers to 13,000 from 23,000 since the 1990s. "This is the...

June 20, 2008: The IBT and carhaul employers have reached a tentative agreement to present to the members. Reportedly, the “two person” meeting for officers of all carhaul locals will be July 2. Teamsters for a Democratic Union (TDU) will post the proposed tentative agreement and all supplements at that time, to provide members a chance to study and discuss it. The proposed agreement is of three years duration. This could be a problem, because...

June 20, 2008: Soaring gas prices. A sinking economy. Our union can shield us in tough times—but only if our leaders plan ahead. High prices are killing working Teamsters at the pump and in the grocery store. In times like these, a union benefit like a cost of living increase (COLA) makes a real difference. But incredibly, the International Union failed to bargain a COLA raise for 2008 in both the UPS and freight contracts....

June 20, 2008: Teamster members at Anheuser-Busch are worried about the future of their jobs after Belgian beer giant InBev announced its plans for a takeover on June 11. Anheuser-Busch is the largest beer maker in the United States. InBev and A-B are two of the four largest brewers in the world—and together they would be the biggest, by far. InBev already owns the Canadian brewer Labatt’s, another Teamster employer. Local 1149 member Katie Brutcher...