November 25, 2009: In an unprecedented power grab, the Hoffa administration has abolished all the Chicago-area freight contracts and imposed concessions on some 1500 YRCW Teamsters who have decisively rejected them.

In abolishing the contracts, Hoffa imposed the national master freight agreement on 2000 Teamsters, most of whom work for YRC.

The five affected locals – 179, 301, 673, 705, and 710 – were apparently not even consulted, nor were the members given a vote on abolishing their contracts. The attack came yesterday via a three paragraph memo, available here, from IBT Freight Director Tyson Johnson.

The memo states that the General Executive Board voted for the takeover; reportedly, Local 710 secretary treasurer Pat Flynn, who is on that Board, is telling members that he abstained from the vote. He abstained from standing up for the rights of his own members.

How can this memo overturn a signed and binding contract between a local union and the employers, which does not expire until 2013?! Chicago Teamsters are demanding an answer to that question.

Local 705 YRC steward Mike Jordan told us that “We’re proud that we stood strong against concessions, and we did it on our own. Now our own International union comes in and undercuts us. They’ve sold themselves to the company.” Jordan was on the union negotiating committee.

The Chicago locals have bargained separately for 45 years, generally getting the same wage increases but setting a better standard on some terms. This has benefited all freight Teamsters, because higher standards in one area make it easier for others to win those improvements in the next round.

The late James R. Hoffa once stood in front of the Local 705 membership and urged the freight members to give him the power to bargain their contract. They voted no. But another Hoffa now wants to deny them any right to vote. But Chicago Teamsters are not ready to take it lying down.

Click here to give us your comment.

September 18, 2009: There’s been a little shake-up at Teamster headquarters. Whether it will mean anything positive for members remains to be seen.

Leo Deaner, Hoffa’s Executive Assistant, and Todd Thompson, another Hoffa assistant, have been ousted and demoted to be field representatives. Thompson was also Hoffa’s Campaign Manager. Both Deaner and Thompson are known for arrogance in their relationship with members and Teamster officers.

The move comes about after a group of International Vice Presidents met about problems in the Hoffa administration, and demanded changes. Hoffa is trying to quell dissent with the demotions. We have not heard who will replace them.

Both Deaner and Thompson will continue to be living high on the hog, but will probably need to do a little belt-tightening. As Executive Assistant, Deaner bagged $190,784 in salary last year.

Will these changes mean anything to Teamsters struggling to maintain their contracts and benefits? Will they mean anything to Teamster officers and members working to restore Teamster pride and power?

We think it will take a lot more than a little shake up in Hoffa’s inner circle.

What do you think? Click here to send your comments.

September 11, 2009: The highest-paid Teamster officials hiked their pay by more than a million dollars last year.

They’ve got a million reasons to back Hoffa. How about you?

• Read the full report. • Download the full salary report. • See how working Teamsters stack up.

In this special $150,000 Club issue, TDU publishes our annual report on compensation for the top Teamster officials.

You’ll find the full report inside. Here’s the punchline in advance: While tens of thousands of Teamsters are taking benefit cuts, pay freezes or worse, our union’s highest-paid officials hiked their pay by more than a million dollars.

Some of the biggest pay hikes went to the very officials who have overseen the worst concessions and benefit cuts in Teamster history.

Hoffa himself has nearly doubled his compensation in his ten years in office. Last year, he hauled in $383,132.

Building union power in tough times requires the right financial priorities. James Hoffa, the candidate, claimed to understand that.

When Hoffa first ran for General President, he promised to “cut and cap” officer salaries at $150,000. If Hoffa had kept this promise, our union would have $30 million more in the bank.

That’s $30 million we could be putting to work to protect members’ wages, pensions and benefits—and to rebuild our union’s power by organizing the nonunion competition.

Informed members can demand new financial priorities and a new direction for our union. But only if we’re organized. That’s what TDU is all about.

If you're not a member, join today.

Last year, some of the biggest pay hikes went to the very officials who have overseen the worst concessions and benefit cuts in Teamster history.

James HoffaIn his ten years in office, General President James Hoffa has nearly doubled his compensation. Last year he made $383,132.

Butch LewisLocal 100 freight Teamster Butch Lewis took a 15 percent pay cut—and his pension was frozen for 18 months.

Bill HamiltonLast year Local 107 President Bill Hamilton got a raise of $64,037 from his four salaries.

Ed TaylorHamilton told Local 107 Teamster Ed Taylor he had to take a 10 percent wage cut to save his job—then USF Holland closed his terminal.

Ken HallKen Hall, head of the union’s Package Division, got a whopping $21,594 raise. That’s more than $10 an hour.

Larry McIverLocal 804 UPS Teamster Larry McIver got an increase last year too. His was 35 cents.

Karen BerryLocal 767 Teamster Karen Berry took a $3 hour pay cut and was forced back to part-time when Ken Hall and the International Union failed to enforce the contract language that requires UPS to maintain the 20,000 full-time combo jobs our union won in the 1997 strike.

How do you stack up? Click here to send your comments to Teamsters for a Democratic Union.

Click here to return to the 2009 $150,000 Club Report.

September 4, 2009: Last year the salaries of the highest-paid Teamster officials went up by $1,041,276.

That's according to the annual $150,000 Club Report produced by the Teamster Rank and File Education and Legal Defense Foundation (TRF).

Forty-four officials got a raise of over $10,000 last year. Over 110 Teamster officers made over $150,000 in salaries last year, the highest number ever.

The TRF report will be issued next week. TRF has published the report since 1979.

The full report and analysis will appear in the next issue of Convoy Dispatch.

Click here to subscribe to Convoy Dispatch and get your copy of the $150,000 Club.

September 1, 2009: The Hoffa administration continues to threaten the employees who work at the Teamster headquarters, who are bargaining to try to avoid concessions.

Their latest threat came on August 25, when Hoffa’s Administrative Assistant Ed Keyser instructed all department heads to prepare a report on how they will work behind picket lines in the event of a strike. Click here to see that memorandum.

This follows previous threats, including a July 31 series of letters threatening layoffs in mid-September, and a July 29 letter to all local unions threatening to operate normally in the event of a strike. It was this employer-style letter which angered many Teamster officers and some members of the General Executive Board.

IBT employees in Washington—janitors, secretaries, and folks who work in education, communications, trade divisions, pensions, accounting, data entry and so on—belong to the office and professional union, OPEIU Local 2. Over nearly two decades they have bargained several contracts, but this is the first time the top officials have demanded such concessions.

Hoffa and Keegel ignore a basic union principle: cuts should start at the top!

When an employer asks for concessions, any good union negotiator immediately asks for cuts at the top—equality of sacrifice—before considering any cuts at the bottom.

Hoffa and Keegel each took a huge raise two years ago in the form of a bloated “housing allowance.” They have increased the number of officials, consultants, and cronies getting big money: multiple salaries paid by the IBT have gone up more than ten-fold under Hoffa. The only officials they have let go have been those who dared to think independently of Hoffa. They have special pensions that will make them millionaires in retirement. International officials get a meal allowance of $100 per day when traveling, often to resorts.

September 1, 2009: The Hoffa administration has taken control of bargaining the Northwest Reddaway trucking contract from the local unions in Washington and Oregon, in a move to help YRC impose concessions.

The locals in Seattle and along the I-5 corridor in Oregon learned of the takeover by getting a copy of a letter Hoffa sent to Bob Paffenroth, offering him the position of Chairman of a subcommittee of the Teamsters National Freight industry Negotiating Committee (TNFINC) with full authority to appoint the other members of the subcommittee and negotiate a contract. The locals were not consulted or even notified before the appointment was offered to Paffenroth.

Reddaway is a regional carrier bought by YRC several years ago. It has long been union in the Northwest. Much of the company is nonunion. Paffenroth was involved in negotiating a substandard contract with Reddaway covering some of its California and Southwest terminals.

The Northwest contract with Reddaway, a white paper agreement, has always been bargained by the local unions, with stewards from the various locals making up the majority of the union bargaining team. Neither TNFINC nor the IBT is a party to the Northwest Reddaway Agreement, so it is dubious whether the Hoffa Administration has the legal standing to take over the bargaining.

Management wants to impose concessions on Reddaway Teamsters similar to those which took effect at YRC a month ago. Apparently the Hoffa administration is determined that management will prevail. But Reddaway Teamsters already have lower wages and pensions than the national contract, and aren't willing to accept drastic concessions.

Chicago: Bargaining to Resume?

Freight Director Tyson Johnson and International Secretary Treasurer Tom Keegel visited Chicago Locals 705 and 710 last week to attempt to get officers and members there to accept the concessions that they overwhelmingly rejected a month ago. YRC management will be coming to Chicago this week.

It may be worth nothing that those pushing the concessions—Hoffa, Keegel, and Johnson—all got nice raises in 2008.

What do you think? Click here to send your comments to the TDU Freight Committee.

August 3, 2009: Employer demands for pay cuts and for employees to pay part of health premiums are pretty common these days, but we don’t expect them from the top officers of our union. But James Hoffa and IBT secretary treasurer Tom Keegel are demanding such concessions – and more – from the employees of the International Union.

On July 31, Hoffa-Keegel used a new tactic: they sent dozens of letters informing employees that they would be laid off on September 14. No doubt they are hoping this will soften up the employees and their union.

They are also threatening that if the employees strike against concessions, they will cross the lines and defeat the strike. Click here to see their letter to officials.

IBT employees in Washington – janitors, secretaries, and folks who work in education, communications, trade divisions, pensions, accounting, data entry and so on – belong to the office and professional union (OPEIU Local 2). Over nearly two decades they have bargained several contracts, but this is the first time the top officials have demanded such big cuts.

Hoffa and Keegel ignore a basic union principle: cuts should start at the top!

When an employer asks for concessions, any good union negotiator immediately asks for cuts at the top -- equality of sacrifice -- before considering any cuts at the bottom.

Hoffa and Keegel each took a huge raise two years ago in the form of a bloated “housing allowance.” They have increased the number of officials, consultants, and cronies getting big money: multiple salaries paid by the IBT have gone up more than ten-fold under Hoffa. The only officials they have let go have been those who dared to think independently of Hoffa. They have special pensions that will make them millionaires in retirement. International officials get a meal allowance of $100 per day when traveling, often to resorts. Even Bret Caldwell, their PR guy who will issue press releases against the employees, had a total compensation of $180,694 last year.

If our union has a financial pinch, there is less money to pay employees. We need to operate on a budget, and should pay employees fairly but never go overboard with the members’ dues money. But any cuts should come only after Hoffa and company have done their own belt-tightening.

In August, the Teamster Rank & File Education and Legal Defense Foundation (TRF) will release a detailed factual report on the salaries and perks of Teamster officials. Teamster members will be able to see for themselves where cuts should be made.

August 3, 2009: The reins of Teamsters Local 726 -- which represents numerous blue-collar workers with Chicago city government -- were seized Monday by the group's parent union, which stripped leaders of their posts amid allegations of financial mismanagement.

James P. Hoffa, general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, implemented what's called an "emergency trusteeship" for Local 726, a Des Plaines-based group of roughly 4,500 active members.

Click here to read more at Chicago Union News.

July 30, 2009: Employer demands for pay cuts and for employees to pay part of health premiums are pretty common these days, but we don’t expect them from the top officers of our union.

But James Hoffa and IBT secretary treasurer Tom Keegel are demanding such concessions—and more—from the employees of the International Union.

They are also threatening that if the employees strike against concessions, they will cross the lines and defeat the strike. Click here to see their letter to officials.

IBT employees in Washington—janitors, secretaries, and folks who work in education, communications, trade divisions, pensions, accounting, data entry and so on—belong to the office and professional union (OPEIU). Over nearly two decades they have bargained several contracts, but this is the first time the top officials have demanded such big cuts.

Hoffa and Keegel ignore a basic union principle: cuts should start at the top!

When an employer asks for concessions, any good union negotiator immediately asks for cuts at the top—equality of sacrifice—before considering any cuts at the bottom.

Hoffa and Keegel each took a huge raise two years ago in the form of a bloated “housing allowance.” They have increased the number of officials, consultants, and cronies getting big money: multiple salaries paid by the IBT have gone up more than ten-fold under Hoffa. The only officials they have let go have been those who dared to think independently of Hoffa. They have special pensions that will make them millionaires in retirement. International officials get a meal allowance of $100 per day when traveling, often to resorts. Even Bret Caldwell, their PR guy who will issue press releases against the employees, had a total compensation of $180,694 last year.

If our union has a financial pinch, there is less money to pay employees. We need to operate on a budget, and should pay employees fairly but never go overboard with the members’ dues money. But any cuts should come only after Hoffa and company have done their own belt-tightening.

In August, the Teamster Rank & File Education and Legal Defense Foundation (TRF) will release a detailed factual report on the salaries and perks of Teamster officials. Teamster members will be able to see for themselves where cuts should be made.