The longshoremen of Local 1588 in Bayonne, NJ knew their place—they worked and kept their mouths shut. When your past union president, an exboxer named John DiGilio, is found floating in the Hackensack River with two bullet holes in his head, you don’t ask too many questions. When the man who usurped the local from him threatens to settle disputes with a blowtorch to the crotch, you don’t go to the union office to voice concerns about benefits or safety issues.
New York Local 804, led by Vinnie Perrone, a candidate on the OZ-Teamsters United Slate, has done what the Hoffa administration could not. They have fought back and won against UPS on the critical issue of Personal Vehicle Drivers (PVDs).
On September 11, there was an election in Teamster Local 948, the big local covering cannery workers, UPSers, and others in the California Central Valley from Modesto in the North to Visalia in the South. The Luis Diaz – Lupe Juarez – Tim Parolini Unity Slate swept the election, with Diaz winning by 905-598 over the former head of the local, Adam Ochoa. The majority of Local 948 members work for major food processors: Con Agra, Del Monte, and Stanislaus Foods.
