Canadian Rail Teamsters Win Right to Vote for Their National Officers
Victory Is Part of Trend towards Democracy in Rail October 18, 2006. For the second time in three months, railroad engineers and conductors have scored a victory for the right to vote. On Aug. 21, ballots were counted and the members of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference (TCRC) voted to change their bylaws to require direct election of the top three national officers. The result was overwhelming, with 88 percent supporting the change. Two months...
S.F. Newspaper Teamsters Fight to Hold The Line Against Hearst
October 18, 2006. The Hearst-owned San Francisco Chronicle has set its sights on its union workforce, but members of Teamsters GCC Local 4-N are fighting to preserve the good wages and benefits in their contract. These press and prepress workers have been hampered in their struggle by Teamster International officials who have signed substandard agreements and obstructed 4-N’s efforts to prepare for a strike, if necessary. In late 2003, Rome Aloise, secretary-treasurer of Local 853...
Teamster Spending By the Numbers
Ø Amount collected in new money from the July 2002 dues hike in four years: $638 million Ø Amount of that money spent on organizing by the International Union per year: $14 million Ø Percentage increase in the International Union's income because of the dues hike (most of the dues hike went to the International): 75% increase Ø Percentage increase in amount paid by International for multiple salaries to officials: 764% increase in pay...
How the $100,000 Club and TDU Have Changed Teamster History
TDU, Members Beat Dues Waste, Build Power October 18, 2006. TDU began publishing the “$100,000 Club” 27 years ago. Armed with this information, and the Right to Vote, Teamsters have demanded financial reforms and won them. In 1987, Teamster President Jackie presser bagged $609,984 in multiple salaries. In today’s dollars (adjusted for inflation), that would be over $1 million. International Vice President Arnie Weinmeister made $443,612 that year. Others, like Weldon Mathis, took home $305,914....
Bloated Salaries Again on the Rise
After Reformers Curbed the Worst Excesses... October 18, 2006. Reform Teamsters, spearheaded by TDU, have succeeded in directing members’ dues money away from fat-cat salaries and into programs that build union power. But millions of dollars in members’ dues are still wasted every year on bloated salaries and a patronage scheme of multiple salaries that the Hoffa administration pays to buy political loyalty. Those are the findings of this year’s analysis of Teamster financial reports...
Letters From Our Members
Why They Fear Teamsters for a Democratic Union Our union officials badger Teamsters for a Democratic Union because they are afraid of the membership finding out what they are doing. Those who fear TDU must have something to hide from the membership, like multiple salaries and pensions and nepotism, not to mention weak contracts, failure to organize core industries, and a shrinking labor movement. When members realize how much they are paying their union officials...
TDU Convention Helps New Members to Rally the Troops Back Home
October 18, 2006. “This is my first experience at the TDU convention and it was great for me. For 27 years I’ve been in the dark about a lot of things about the Teamsters. It’s a shame that you pay your money to these people who are supposed to work for you, and you hear messages like, ‘You should be glad you got a job.’ When I think about the things that I know now,...
Rank and File Hall of Fame Award Recognizes Long-Time Activist
October 18, 2006. On Friday night, Tommy Burke (right) of Local 391 in North Carolina was inducted into the Rank and File Hall of Fame for 30 years of dedication to the movement, and 20 years of work on pension justice. He was presented the award by Frank Bryant (left) of Local 391. Burke told the crowd, “I have been fighting the fight a long time. We members in North Carolina formed a Pension Improvement...
Members Know ‘We Are TDU’
October 18, 2006. Every year, hundreds of Teamsters travel across the country to attend TDU’s Rank and File Convention. They come for the educational workshops. They come to learn more about what is happening in our union. But most of all, they come to build an organization that speaks the truth and fights for a stronger union. Tommy Burke and Dolores Bowden (see articles below) appear to be two very different types of Teamsters. Burke...
New Steering Committee Members Share Thoughts on TDU’s Role
October 18, 2006.RICK SATHER, Local 638, Star Tribune Minneapolis I first heard about TDU in the mid-80s, through a newspaper article in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, and through some of the guys at work. But it wasn’t until 1989 that I became a member. I had recently been elected to the bargaining committee, and we were facing a no-strike clause similar to the one that the San Francisco Teamsters have faced [see Convoy #236]. Before...