October 30, 2009: After years of sell-out contracts and benefit cuts, members of New York Local 814 voted by 73% to elect Jason Ide and the New Directions Slate.

New Directions told members that “it’s time to get back to negotiating strong contracts and enforcing them.," and the overwhelming vote showed that the commercial movers of Local 814 agreed.

Jason Ide, the president-elect, works at Sotheby’s art auction house, where he was instrumental in leading a campaign for a good contract, using ideas and tactics learned in TDU workshops. “Now the hard work begins,” Ide told us about the election victory.

Walter Taylor, a member of the TDU International Steering Committee and a long-time Local 814 member said that “Finally change has come, and members can be active participants in our own union. We have big problems, but now we have hope.”

New Directions swept all positions in a big turnout among the 1,000 members. The new team will take office on Jan. 1.

Want to find out more about how they did it? Jason Ide will be speaking at the workshop on Running for Local Union Office at the TDU Convention, Nov. 6-8 at the Cleveland Airport Sheraton. Click here to register.