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.

July 21, 2009: Fed up with contract givebacks, benefit cuts & empty promises, members are launching a movement to elect new leaders and set a new course for our Teamsters Union.

As we go to press, 50,000 freight Teamsters at Yellow-Roadway Corp. (YRC) are voting on whether to accept the worst concessions in Teamster history.

If accepted, the givebacks will bring wage and benefit concessions at YRC to $11 an hour—and freeze members’ pensions through the end of 2010.

There is a growing sense that our union needs new leadership to rebuild Teamster Power.

That conviction doesn’t end with YRC or the freight industry.

Hundreds of thousands of Teamsters are fed up—including many local officers. The Hoffa camp has never been more discouraged or divided.

But anger alone won’t be enough to get rid of Hoffa. It will take organization.

That’s why TDU is launching 10,000 Teamsters to Dump Hoffa.

The campaign to elect new International Union leaders will begin next summer. We have one year to build the campaign army it will take to win.

It comes down to simple math. It will take just 175,000 votes to win the next IBT election. A campaign army of 10,000 Teamsters can make it happen.

The Hoffa road is at a dead end. It’s time for Teamster members to take the wheel and set a new course for our union.

Click here to check out the Teamster election timeline and what it will take to win the election for top Teamster officers.

Click here to join the campaign army of Teamsters working together to elect new officers at the International Union.

Click here download the Dump Hoffa leaflet.

The election to Dump Hoffa begins sooner than you think.

What will it take to win—and how can we get started now?

Hoffa’s support has never been lower among working Teamsters:

• He negotiated the worst concessions to UPS in decades, even though the company was making more than $4 billion in annual profits.
• Under his watch, our union has been reduced to a shadow of its former self in freight, carhaul, and other industries. Employers are calling the shots and dictating concessions.
• He raised Teamster dues, then used it to pay multiple salaries to his political allies. In 2007, the IBT paid out $9.9 million in multiple salaries to 196 officials—up from just 16 when Hoffa took office.

Hundreds of thousands of Teamsters are angry—including many local officers. The Hoffa camp has never been more divided.

But anger alone won’t be enough to get rid of Hoffa. It will take organization.

A Campaign Army

• To win, we’ll need a campaign army made up of working Teamsters, retirees, and Teamster officers to: u Nominate a slate of capable reform candidates at the Teamster Convention.
• Spread the word to members about the campaign and make sure reform candidates have access to the Teamster magazine and membership list.
• Raise campaign funds.
• Turn out the vote and win.
• We have to start putting that army together now to hit the ground running once the election is underway.

That’s why this month Teamsters are launching a campaign to build a network of 10,000 Teamsters to Dump Hoffa.

How the Election Works

In 1989, TDU members won the right to vote for Teamster General President and the General Executive Board.

Unlike most local union elections, this election is overseen by an impartial Election Supervisor.

The Election Supervisor makes the rules, handles all election protests, runs a debate between the candidates, mails out the ballots, and counts the votes.

First Steps

The first jobs for the campaign army will be the petition drive and delegate elections.

During the petition drive members fan out across the union to get members to sign a petition accrediting candidates for Teamster office. To get accreditation, two and a half percent of Teamster members must sign the candidate’s petition.

An accredited candidate gets access to the Teamster membership list and space in the union magazine—giving them a chance to talk to all Teamster members directly.

After that come the delegate elections.

Every local sends delegates to the Teamster Convention to nominate the candidates who will run for Teamster General President, and members of the General Executive Board.

If rank-and-file members decide to run for delegate, members of the local will get to vote for the delegates of their choice in a secret ballot election overseen by the Election Supervisor.

To get nominated for Teamster General President, a candidate has to receive the votes of at least five percent of the delegates to the convention.

Getting Out the Vote

In the 2006 election, Hoffa was elected with 175,000 votes. That means we will need the organization to turn out at least 200,000 Teamsters to vote for change to get him out.

Where we had a strong campaign organization last time, reform candidates won, including in St. Louis, Tennessee, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Houston, Atlanta, Oklahoma City, Mississippi, Charlotte, Vermont, Seattle, Oregon, UPS locals in New York, Chicago and Detroit, and in lots of locals and areas.

More Teamsters turned out to vote in locals where TDU had strong organization and where reform candidates did well.

Among members with little or no connection to the International Union, and where there was not a strong TDU network, Hoffa won easily.

That was Hoffa’s winning margin: less involved members, in a low turnout.

What You Can Do Now

We can’t wait until the election starts to build our campaign army.

If you want to see Hoffa gone in 2011, now is the time to get on board and get involved. Here’s what you can do.

Fill out the form on the back page of the latest Convoy and join 10,000 Teamsters to Dump Hoffa. Send it in to TDU so that we know we can count on you to do your part to dump Hoffa in 2011.

Recruit to the campaign army. Make copies of the form on the back page of this issue of Convoy and get other Teamsters to sign up for our team. Go to dump Hoffa to download a form you can get other Teamsters to sign.

Start distributing Convoy. In every Teamster election, reform candidates do better in locals where members get and distribute bundles of Convoy. Call TDU at (313) 842-2600 to start a bundle with this issue.

Hold a meeting. Contact TDU and set up a meeting of members who want to Dump Hoffa in 2011.

Start planning for the delegate election. Start putting together a team of people you can count on. Contact TDU for steps you should take now to prepare to run for delegate. And be sure to attend the TDU Convention, Nov. 6-8 at the Cleveland Airport Sheraton to meet members who’ve run for delegate before—and won.

Can we get rid of Hoffa in 2011? It’s up to Teamsters like us to make it happen.

The campaign for Teamster General President will begin next summer. Now is the time to start getting ready. Please note: dates are based on 2006 election and haven’t been officially set yet.

Petition Drive Summer 2010

Two and a half percent of Teamster members must sign petitions to accredit reform candidates, giving them access to the Teamster membership list and space in the Teamster magazine.

Delegate Elections January - April 2011 (some early ones in Fall 2010)

Members get a chance to elect delegates to represent their local at the Teamster Convention.

Teamster Convention June 2011

Delegates nominate candidates for Teamster General President and the General Executive Board. Reform candidates must receive five percent of the votes to be nominated.

Ballots Mailed October 2011

Volunteers and candidates reach out to supporters to get out the vote.

Vote Count November 2011

June 18, 2009: The assault on Local 82 members and their seniority rights continues. "Hoffa appointee John Perry and Local 82 enforcer Joseph "JoJo" Burhoe.

John Perry is at it again. The principal officer of Boston Local 82 and the director of the International Union’s Trade Show Division has forced through another contract that guts the seniority rights of Boston trade show Teamsters, this time at Champion Exposition Services.

Critics charge that Perry is violating members’ seniority rights in order to funnel trade show jobs to a group of thugs with violent criminal records. In turn, the thugs provide Perry with muscle to control Local 82.

Perry is headed to court on July 22 for a hearing on charges that he assaulted a Teamster who filed a grievance to enforce members’ seniority rights. Local 82 enforcer Joseph “JoJo” Burhoe will face charges the same day for brutally assaulting a Local 82 member who criticized Perry.

The full story about Perry and his Boston Goon Squad were previously reported by TDU in Thugs Run Amok in Local 82 and in the Boston Herald.

New Attack on Seniority Rights

Perry is already under investigation by the Independent Review Board, the panel set up to investigate Teamster corruption. But that hasn’t slowed down his attack on members’ seniority rights.

Last month, Local 82 Teamsters at Champion voted to reject a proposed contract because it eliminated strong language that makes sure that senior employees don’t get passed over for work.

Instead of negotiating a new agreement that includes the seniority protections, Perry held a second vote on the same deal under circumstances that guaranteed the results Perry wanted.

Perry conducted his re-vote at an employer facility and played pick and choose with the balloting. Some supervisory personnel were given the green light to vote on the contract while other Local 82 members who work for Champion were denied their right to vote.

Perry’s Vote Till You Get It Right tactics worked and his contract passed. Members are challenging the vote and preparing internal union charges. Perry already faces internal union charges for negotiating a trade show agreement that gutted the seniority language at another company without even holding a proposal meeting.

In the meantime, Perry is now preparing to move against the seniority rights of Local 82 members at another trade show employer Freeman Decorating Company.

Hoffa Administration Must Act

As an IBT Division Director, Perry is supposed to coordinate our union’s efforts to defend members’ rights in the Trade Show industry—including seniority.

The “problem for Perry is that enforcing seniority rights would make it impossible for him to put his enforcers and friends to work while long-time Local 82 members sit at home. That’s why Perry has refused to process seniority grievances and is now moving to eliminate the language all together.

The Hoffa administration is more interested in protecting their political appointee, Perry, than in protecting Local 82 members and their rights. But the scandal has gone too far. Anti-union forces who would love to take advantage of this scandal to weaken Teamster members’ rights in the Boston trade show industry.

Media stories on Perry’s goon squad make it sound like all Local 82 trade show Teamsters are dangerous criminals who pose a threat to the public.

To try to defend himself, Perry has told the media, “What’s wrong with trying to provide jobs” to people with criminal records?

The answer is: nothing. The problem in the Boston trade show industry is not anyone’s past criminal record, but the criminal behavior that is happening right now—including Perry’s.

The goon tactics need to stop. Seniority needs to be maintained in Local 82 contracts. And members’ rights to a voice in bargaining and fair contract votes must be enforced.

None of this will happen while John Perry and his crew remain in power in Local 82. The International Union needs to act now.