February 27, 2009: Negotiations for a new contract for some 400 Teamsters at the Pacific Northwest terminals of USF Reddaway were not going smoothly, as of late February.

Reddaway is a regional carrier owned by YRC.

Negotiations are ongoing; the contract expired Dec. 31, and Teamsters are working on an extension.

Management is reportedly demanding an immediate ten percent pay cut, in line with the negotiated cut at YRC’s other operations. But local union negotiators and members point out that the ten percent cut was agreed to after the NMFA was in place, which provides for benefit and wage increases each year till 2013.

Reddaway Teamsters make lower wages and have lesser pension benefits than NMFA levels. Their present wages are barely above YRC’s wages after the ten percent cut, so a ten percent cut would drop them to under $19 per hour.

Reddaway has nonunion terminals for about half of its operations in California, Arizona, Oregon and Washington. They have not lowered the wages by ten percent at these terminals, though they are free to do so at any time.