UPSPAC and Your Rights
June 20, 2008: UPS recently sent a mailing to Teamster members to try to get us to donate to UPSPAC, the political arm of the corporation. Before you give any of your hard-earned cash, you should know that UPSPAC will use that money to undermine your pension security, health and safety rights, and other worker protections. Here are just a few lowlights from UPS’s recent political action priorities. Attacking Our Pensions UPS was one of...
Crossing the Line on Safety Quizzes
June 26, 2008: When it comes to safety audits, some UPS managers are not following proper methods. By now, most drivers are familiar with UPS’s pop quizzes on the 10-Point Commentary and other company safety-speak. The company has decided it’s not enough for drivers to work safely and follow proper methods. They want us to recite their methods word-for-word like Big Brown parrots. The company can make us play the game, but there are limits....
No Cost of Living Raise for UPS Teamsters
June 20, 2008: All UPS Teamsters will be missing something this summer: a cost of living raise of 15¢ per hour. Gasoline and food prices are skyrocketing. Inflation, as measured by the Consumer Price Index (CPI-W), went up 4.5 percent from May 2007 to May 2008. This is the period used in Article 33 of our contract. When that index goes over three percent, we are supposed to get a cost of living adjustment (COLA)....
UPS Contract Talks Underway in Chicago
June 20, 2008: Chicago Local 705 has entered bargaining with UPS on a new contract covering more than 10,000 Teamsters in the Chicago area. The Local 705 UPS contract is independent of the national agreement. Local 705 Teamsters are currently operating under the 2002 contract, which expires on Aug 1. The local’s bargaining committee includes nearly 20 rank-and-file UPS Teamsters, with members from every classification. The company is seeking the same concessions they won in...
Part-Timers in L.A. Demand Money for Unpaid Breaks
June 30, 2008: UPS is violating the rights of part-timers in Southern California to get breaks in their fourth and fifth hours—or to get paid for unused break time. Now, concerned Local 396 UPSers are taking action to enforce members’ rights. The Southwest Sort Rider gives part-time employees the right to a ten-minute rest break during their 3.5 hour shift—and an additional five minute break after their fourth hour and fifth hour on the job...
Massive Losses in Local 804 Health Fund
June 20, 2008: A report by Local 804 members reveals that the union’s health fund lost nearly $18 million from 2003 to 2007. During that time, the fund lost 55 percent of its assets. Local officials diverted millions of dollars to the local’s pension plan and hiked members’ co-pays. Now members are asking what the new contract will mean for the health fund and their benefits. This crisis in the health fund was brought to...
Local 804 Members Threaten Lawsuit: Pension Fund Refuses to Turn Over Info
June 20, 2008: A pension attorney representing Local 804 members has warned trustees at the Local 804 Pension Fund that they are in violation of federal law for refusing to comply with members’ requests for pension information. Under the Pension Protection Act, members have the right to more financial and actuarial information from our funds—thanks to a successful lobbying effort by Teamsters for a Democratic Union and the Pension Rights Center. Local 804 members Bill...
A Workerless Warehouse?
June 20, 2008: Last November, Ralphs grocery announced plans to open an automated center in Paramount, Calif. by 2010. Ralphs warned they might move Teamster work away from their existing facilities, saying: “Automated capability does improve efficiencies and requires less labor.” The new facility will be built and operated by Witron, a European firm that is already launching other automated facilities in the U.S. and Europe. Of course, these new automated warehouses cannot totally replace...
Freight Teamsters in New Era
June 20, 2008: This is going to be a year of change for freight Teamsters: whether we end up stronger or weaker depends on how we deal with the changes that are coming. These changes can be summed up in terms like these: utility employees, Glen Moore line haul, and $14 casuals. These aren’t changes we wanted, but how we deal with them as Teamsters will shape our union power and job security in the...
Chicago Freight Teamsters Take a Stand
June 26, 2008: By a vote of 281-15, freight Teamsters in Chicago Local 705 passed a strike authorization vote that gave their negotiating team a strong message to take back to the bargaining table. The vote came in the wake of a number of bargaining sessions in April and May that led to little progress. Prior to voting at the union hall, members received a thorough update on bargaining. A number of Teamsters spoke from...