November 4, 2004: Teamsters and local officers at UPS often want to know if the issue they have grieved has been decided before—and if so, what the decision was. Just as common is the answer “We don’t know.” Sometimes we are told we should give up on a grievance because the same issue has already been lost in another case. Now the international union has provided local unions with a compact disk containing arbitration and...

November 4, 2004: UPS after-tax profits rose 20.8% to $2.47 billion in the first three quarters of 2004. Revenue during the same period compared to 2003 grew by over $2 billion. Both international and U.S. package volume were up over last year. UPS’ busiest quarter is still ahead, meaning that 2004 will be another record year for the company.

January 28, 2005: There has been a great deal of discussion lately about pension relief from many sources. The IBT releases regular statements regarding the need for relief, and in the July/August issue of Teamster Magazine the IBT called for Teamsters to “join [John] Kerry in his fight for legislation that provides meaningful relief for multi-employer pension plans.” Our committee couldn’t agree more that our pension funds need help but isn’t reform more important than...

November 4, 2004: NetJets Aviation Pilots of Local 284 are awaiting a new election for our Master Executive Council (MEC) after the local botched the first mailing of ballots. The Strong Union slate, which campaigned around the issues of good contracts and establishing an independent Teamster local, was widely expected to defeat the incumbents. The candidates of the slate include myself, Bill Olsen, Greg Rountree, Tim Nelson and Jim Brady. The previous MEC’s term expired...

February 28, 2003: “I’m planning to retire in three years. This will cost me $400 a month for the rest of my life.” That’s what a Colorado freight Teamster said when he heard about the drastic cutback coming down from the trustees of the Western Conference of Teamsters Pension Fund. Future Benefit Accruals Cut Who Cut Our Pension Benefits? Union Trustees of the Western Conference Pension Plan: Darel Aker, Oregon JC 37 Rome Aloise, International...

February 27,2003: In the Western Conference Pension Plan, each year you work, and your employer makes contributions to the plan, your pension benefit grows. The amount it grows is easy to calculate, once you know these facts: What does your employer contribute, per hour, as specified in your contract; How many credited hours did you have for the year (many contracts do not include overtime hours, and have a 2,080 limit); Are you covered by...

November 5, 2002: The Central States Pension Fund, in a bulletin to all local unions dated November 2002, has finally made a comment on the sudden removal of Ronald Kubalanza as director. He was replaced on Oct. 16 by Thomas Nyhan, the fund’s general counsel. Unfortunately, the statement gives no reason for Kubalanza’s removal, so it raises more questions than answers. The bulletin goes on to state that reports that initially appeared in Traffic World...

July 15, 2002: The pressure is on! The Central Pennsylvania Teamster Pension Reform Committee is a force that will not be denied. Through lawsuits, mass meetings, media exposure, petitions, contact with influential public officials and regulatory agencies, tough questioning at union meetings and membership education, the committee has created a situation where the Teamsters, from Hoffa on down, have to deal with their critical pension problem. For Teamsters in the Central Pennsylvania pension plan, any...

July 15, 2002: Many Teamsters rely on their pension benefits to provide for a secure retirement. But recent events like the crisis in the Central Pennsylvania Teamsters Pension Fund and health benefit rollbacks in the Central States and New England funds (see related stories) have Teamsters asking a lot of questions about the security of those benefits. This article answers some frequently-asked questions about our Teamster benefits. Please note that these answers are only general...

April 30, 2002: The latest wrinkle in the fight to salvage decent pensions from the troubled Central Pennsylvania Pension Fund is a proposed merger with the New York State Fund. This is a position being pushed by the International union and six of the eight local unions involved. The proposal is being resisted by Reading Local 429, the pension fund’s controlling local and Allentown Local 773. On July 17 the actuaries from the New York...