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                              Teamster
                                                                     SUMMER 2019

                                                                         HOFFA
                                                                         MARKS
                                                                         20
                                                                         YEARS
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       IN THIS ISSUE

           8                                                                             20                                                                         22

       8       Hoffa Marks 20 Years                                                    NEWS
               Two Decades of Transforming the Teamsters                               • Supreme Court Rules Against Forced Arbitration                                                 International Brotherhood of Teamsters
                                                                                                                                                                                        25 Louisiana Avenue, NW
       20 Teamsters Escalate Campaign for                                              • Another Win for Workers in West Virginia                                                       Washington DC 20001-2198
                                                                                                                                                                                        202-624-6800
          Justice at Sysco                                                             • Casting Directors and Associates Ratify
                                                                                         New Agreement                                                                      The Teamster (ISSN 1083-2394) is the official publication
               Organizing Victories and Teamster Solidarity                                                                                                                 of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, 25
                                                                                       • Teamsters Honor Fallen Firefighter                                                 Louisiana Avenue, NW, Washington DC 20001-2198. It
                                                                                                                                                                            is published quarterly (January, April, July, October).
       22 Anheuser-Busch Agreement Ratified                                            • Iowa Teamster Wins Seat on Johnson County                                          Periodical postage paid at Washington, DC and at
               Wages, Benefits Increased and Job Security                                                                                                                   additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address
                                                                                         Board of Supervisors                                                               changes to The Teamster, Affiliates Records Department,
               Preserved                                                               • Commitment to Skills and Safety for Pipeline                                       25 Louisiana Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20001-2198.
                                                                                                                                                                                     SUMMER 2019 / VOLUME 116, NO 2
                                                                                         Construction Members                                                               ©2019 International Brotherhood of Teamsters. All rights
       24 Journey to Drive                                                                                                                                                  reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written
               New Apprenticeship Program Puts More                                                                                                                         permission is prohibited. Subscription rates: $12 per year.
                                                                                                                                                                            Single copies, $2. (All orders payable in advance.) Mem-
               Teamsters Behind the Wheel                                              18 Organizing                                                                        bers should send address changes to their local union.

                                                                                                                                                                                        Like us on Facebook
                                                                                       • DHL Contractor Employees Join Local 986
       26 ‘Miracles Do Happen’
                                                                                       • Local 525 Welcomes Ambulance Workers
               Long-Lost Mother and Daughter Find One                                                                                                                                   facebook.com/teamsters
                                                                                       • Food Services Victories at Two Locals
               Another at Local 777                                                                                                                                                     Follow @Teamsters on Twitter.
                                                                                       • Reyes Workers Join Local 727
       28 Longest Shutdown Over                                                        • Local 2010 Welcomes UCLA, UCSB Workers                                                         SIGN UP FOR UPDATES—
               Teamsters Stood with Affected Workers                                                                                                                                    Text “IBT” to 86466
                                                                                       • Americold Workers Join Teamsters                                                               (message and data rates may apply)

       30 In Memoriam                                                                  • Local 391 Welcomes Stericycle Workers                                                          Follow @teamsters on Instagram.
               Teamsters Mourn the Loss of Union Leaders

        GENERAL EXECUTIVE BOARD
        James P. Hoffa           VICE PRESIDENTS            Fred Simpson             TEAMSTERS               CENTRAL REGION           EASTERN REGION           SOUTHERN REGION          WESTERN REGION            TRUSTEES
        General President        AT-LARGE                   41475 Gardenbrook        CANADA                  Bill Frisky              William Hamilton         John Palmer              Ron Herrera               Jim Kabell
        25 Louisiana Ave. N.W.   Gregory Floyd              Road                     Stan Hennessy           6511 Eastland Rd.,       12275 Townsend Rd.       25 Louisiana Ave. N.W.   880 Oak Park Rd.,         1850 E. Division
        Washington, D.C. 20001   216 W. 14th St.            Novi, Michigan           1 Grosvenor Square      Suite 120                Philadelphia, PA 19154   Washington, D.C. 20001   Suite 200                 Springfield, MO 65803
                                 New York, NY 10011         48375                    Delta, B.C.             Brook Park, OH 44142                                                       Covina, CA 91724
        Ken Hall                                                                     Canada V3M 5S1                                   Dan Kane Sr.             Kimberly Schultz                                   Kevin Moore
        General Secretary-       George Miranda             George Tedeschi                                  Tony Jones               1308 Pierce St.          11705 Boyette Rd,        Rick Middleton            2741 Trumbull Ave.
        Treasurer                55 Broad St, 11th Floor    25 Louisiana Ave. N.W.   François Laporte        555 E Rich St.           Rahway, N.J. 07065       Suite 409                460 Carson Plaza Dr.      Detroit, MI 48216
        25 Louisiana Ave. N.W.   New York, N.Y. 10004       Washington, D.C.         1750 Maurice-Gauvin     Columbus, OH 43215                                Riverview, FL 33569      Carson, CA 90746
        Washington, D.C. 20001                              20001                    Street, Suite 400                                Sean M. O’Brien                                                             Denis Taylor
                                 John Murphy                                         Laval, Quebec H7S 1Z5   Robert Kopystynsky       544 Main St.                                                                1030 S. Dukeland St.
                                 348 D St.                  Steve Vairma                                     25 Louisiana Ave. N.W.   Boston, MA 02129                                                            Baltimore, MD 21223
                                 Boston, MA 02127           10 Lakeside Lane,        Craig McInnes           Washington, D.C. 20001
                                                            Suite 3-A                275 Matheson Blvd. E.
                                 Fredrick Potter            Denver, CO 80212         Mississauga, Ontario    Avral Thompson
                                 3400 Highway 35                                     Canada L4Z 1X8          3813 Taylor Blvd.
                                 Executive Plaza, Suite 7                                                    Louisville, KY 40215
                                 Hazlet, N.J 07730
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                 !"#
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                                                                                 GENERAL PRESIDENT JAMES P. HOFFA

                            WORKERS HAVE
                          WAITED LONG ENOUGH

       T
            he struggle to ensure the retirements of millions        sands of workers who are enrolled in these pension
            of hardworking Americans continues. But the              plans who deserve assistance.
            reintroduction of essential bipartisan legislation           As it stands, there are more than 300 multiem-
       by a long-time pension protector could go a long way          ployer plans across the country—including the Team-
       toward bolstering nest eggs jeopardized under the             sters’ Central States Pension Fund—that are in danger
       current system.                                               of failing. Congress needs to find a solution that will
           With the new Congress now seated in Washing-              deliver for these hardworking Americans who are
       ton, the Teamsters want to let lawmakers know it is           paying, or have paid, into the pension pool and have
       time to work together across party lines to secure the        played by the rules all their lives.
       hard-earned retirements of retirees and workers.                  As of now, the Central States fund is facing an un-
       These hardworking Americans deserve to receive the            funded liability of $17.2 billion, the largest of all multi-
       benefits they were promised.                                  employer plan shortfalls. The Bakery and Confectionary
           Fortunately, the Rehabilitation of Multiemployer          Union pension is second with a $3.2 billion shortfall,
       Pensions Act would solve the problem. Introduced by           while the United Mine Workers are third at $2.4 bil-
       Reps. Richard Neal (D-Mass.) and Peter King (R-N.Y.)          lion. Other threatened multiemployer plans face a
       last month, the bill is a continuation of an effort to        total shortfall of $13.6 billion. That’s why the Team-
       reform the system that first began in 2015. The seven         sters are stressing the importance of Congress com-
       House Republican co-sponsors understand the value             ing up with a solution as soon as possible.
       of the bill and should be lauded for supporting this              Workers and retirees aren’t asking for a handout;
       legislation.                                                  they just want what is rightfully theirs. The Teamsters
           There’s no time to lose. There are about 1.5 million      urge those on Capitol Hill to work together and pass
       retirees in desperate need of quick action to save the        a bipartisan solution that will make workers and re-
       retirement nest eggs they spent decades contributing          tirees whole. They’ve waited long enough.
       to on the premise they would be financially secure in
       their golden years. There also are hundreds of thou-
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       TEAMSTER NEWS

            VICTORY FOR WORKERS IN TRANSPORTATION INDUSTRY
            Supreme Court Rules
            Against Forced Arbitration

       T
            he United States Supreme           challenged employers’ attempts         nity and justice on the job.
            Court recently ruled that work-    to compel private arbitration to           For years, the Teamsters have
            ers in the transportation indus-   avoid a public legal battle, the       been shining a light on the issue of
       try cannot be forced to waive their     U.S. Supreme Court ruling makes        misclassification for port drivers.
       rights through private arbitration      it clear that employers cannot and     And nowhere has that effort been
       agreements. The case, New Prime         should not require drivers to waive    more intensive than at the twin
       Inc. v. Oliveira, was decided on        their right to their day in court      ports of Los Angeles and Long
       January 15, 2019.                       through binding arbitration agree-     Beach, the main gateway for prod-
           “This is a great victory for all    ments.”                                ucts made in Asia. While compa-
       workers in the transportation in-            Numerous companies across         nies and CEOs profit substantially
       dustry, including employees, legiti-    the country are misclassifying their   from the sale of those goods,
       mate independent contractors, and       workers as independent contrac-        those who help bring them to mar-
       drivers misclassified as independ-      tors, which denies them workplace      ket are suffering in silence.
       ent contractors who are suffering       protections under the law. Port            For more information on the
       egregious wage theft,” said Fred        truck drivers are challenging their    port truck drivers’ campaign, visit
       Potter, Teamsters International         misclassification status and at-       www.JusticeForPortDrivers.org,
       Vice President and Director of          tempting to recover stolen wages       like us at www.facebook.com/Jus-
       the Teamsters Port Division.            by filing claims with the regulatory   tice4PortDrivers and follow us on
       “Although we have consistently          agencies to win their right to dig-    Twitter @PortDriverUnion.

       2      Teamster | Summer 2019 | www.teamster.org
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                   Another Win for Workers in West Virginia
             JUDGE DECLARES PORTIONS OF RIGHT-TO-WORK LAW UNCONSTITUTIONAL

       W
                orking families in West Virginia won a much-         any union,” and forcing unions to provide the same
                needed victory recently when Circuit Judge           services to all workers, whether union members or not,
                Jennifer Bailey declared key portions of             “seriously hampers the unions’ ability to recruit new
       the state’s right-to-work law unconstitutional, more          members and retain old ones,” and amounts to “giv-
       than two years after the anti-worker legislation was          ing free riders something for nothing.”
       passed.                                                           The Teamsters Union couldn’t agree more. Right-
          Bailey ruled the falsely named Workplace Freedom           to-work states have lower wages, higher poverty rates,
       Act unconstitutional because it allows workers to re-         less health benefits and more workplace fatalities.
       fuse to pay dues even though the union must still rep-            State elected officials also know that you don’t help
       resent those workers. Unions are required to represent        the economy by taking money out of workers’ pock-
       workers at union work sites whether workers are               ets. They know that rebuilding the state’s infrastruc-
       union members or not.                                         ture—roads, bridges, water lines, energy grids—is a
          Bailey rightly explained that the law “would take          more common sense solution that helps workers and
       unions’ property without any compensation.”                   businesses than enacting right-to-work laws that only
          General Secretary-Treasurer Ken Hall, who                  benefit the already wealthy.
       has been leading the fight against right to work in               Although this was a big victory for working families
       West Virginia, has long said the legislation is in            in West Virginia, unions must remain vigilant and con-
       violation of the state’s constitution.                        tinue to beat back these endless attacks on wages and
          “We applaud Judge Bailey’s ruling,” Hall said.             benefits—things unions have spent decades fighting
          Bailey wrote that “membership is the lifeblood of          to achieve.

                                                                      www.teamster.org | Summer 2019 | Teamster            3
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       TEAMSTER NEWS

                    CASTING DIRECTORS AND ASSOCIATES
                          RATIFY NEW AGREEMENT

       C
            asting directors and casting associates repre-           the evolution of the industry and the demands of
            sented by Locals 399 and 817 ratified a three-           casting television, that additional time between pre-
            year contract in January, securing significant           production and longer episodes must be built into our
       gains for the more than 500 members represented               compensation. After a good deal of back and forth, I
       by the two motion picture locals.                             believe the AMPTP recognized that, and we now
           The steering committee focused on two major               have a path forward.”
       issues facing casting professionals during the negoti-            Within the motion picture and television industry,
       ations with the Alliance of Motion Picture & Televi-          associate casting directors have remained one
       sion Producers (AMPTP) – the “stretching” of pay              of the lowest paid groups on a production. While
       that occurs when episodic television productions              the Teamsters have negotiated significant hourly
       run long and raising wages for the associate casting          wage increases in previous agreements, they still
       directors.                                                    lag behind when compared to similar positions in
           “This was the sixth agreement since organizing            other crafts.
       this group,” said Tom O’Donnell, Director of the                  “With this agreement, we secured a decent in-
       Teamsters Motion Picture and Theatrical Trade Di-             crease in associate casting director wages, however, it
       vision and President of Local 817. “After a long              is still by no means reflective of the job they do, the
       and protracted negotiating process, this is easily            experience they have and the time they put in for
       our best agreement.”                                          each production,” said Gary Zuckerbrod, casting di-
                                                                     rector, shop steward and Local 399 Trustee.
       Path Forward                                                      Local 399 and 817 were able to secure a 26-percent
       Entering negotiations, the steering committee be-             increase in the first year with a 3-percent increase
       lieved the stretching of pay issue could be solved by         in the second and third years. This will bring casting
       educating the AMPTP on exactly how episodic televi-           associates up to $19 per hour in the final year of the
       sion production has changed for casting profession-           agreement. There were also increases to the pension
       als in the digital era. As part of the new agreement,         contributions for associate casting directors secured
       the AMPTP agreed to include a newly drafted sidelet-          in this round of negotiations.
       ter to address the issue on future productions.                   “We are very proud of each and every one of our
           “We really wanted to try to get the AMPTP to un-          Casting Steering Committee Members from both
       derstand the importance of what our casting profes-           Local 399 and Local 817,” said Steve Dayan, Secre-
       sionals do,” said Bernie Telsey, a steering committee         tary-Treasurer of Local 399. “Without their support, in-
       member and casting director represented by Local              sight and guidance on their pressing issues, we
       817 in New York City. “The job today is not the same          would not have been able to secure a fair and impor-
       job it was when we first organized in 2005. Given             tant agreement with the AMPTP.”

       4     Teamster | Summer 2019 | www.teamster.org
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             TEAMSTERS HONOR
             FALLEN FIREFIGHTER

                    LOCAL 340 MEMBER CAPT. JOEL BARNES DIED A HERO

       O
              n a cold and snowy Sunday,
              thousands of people from
              Maine, around the country,
       and the world, gathered in Port-
       land to honor Captain Joel Barnes
       of the Berwick Fire Department.
       The 32-year-old firefighter, a mem-
       ber of Local 340, died on March 1
       while fighting an apartment blaze.
       He was remembered for his kind
       heart and heroic actions, having
       died shielding a fellow firefighter
       from the flames.
           More than 2,500 people, many
       of them fellow firefighters, lined      340 in South Portland, Maine.            nate the service.
       the street in front of the memorial         “Capt. Barnes was dedicated to           At the memorial, Jon Keenan,
       to pay their respects and celebrate     his profession and to helping other      also a Teamster firefighter with the
       the life of Capt. Barnes, surrounded    people. Listening to everyone at         Westbrook Fire Department, joined
       by Teamster tractor trailers there in   the service talk about how he            Miller in presenting Barnes’s fam-
       solidarity.                             touched their lives, that same           ily with the Medal of Valor. The
           Barnes was one of three bar-        theme rang through,” said Traci St.      medal is given for heroic action
       gaining unit members at the             Clair, business agent for Barnes         above and beyond the call of duty
       Berwick Fire Department in Maine        and the Berwick bargaining unit.         that is at extreme personal risk and
       and an active Teamster member.              This was the first firefighter fa-   instrumental in rescuing and sav-
       He was a member of the Team-            tality in the state in decades. Local    ing another’s life.
       sters negotiating committee.            340 representatives helped organ-            A “last call” was sounded at
           “Capt. Barnes was a true hero.      ize the service, working alongside       the service, a poignant moment
       His dedication, service and sacri-      other firefighter unions, fire de-       in memoriam of a firefighter lost
       fice to his craft are unquestionable.   partments and other public em-           in the line of duty. The radio dis-
       He was the best example of a Team-      ployers. Lt. Joe Carroll, a member       patcher called out for Barnes three
       ster, helping and protecting others,”   of Local 340 with the Westbrook          times, then thanked him for his
       said Brett Miller, President of Local   Fire Department, helped coordi-          service, leadership and friendship.

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       TEAMSTER NEWS

                  IOWA TEAMSTER WINS SEAT ON
              JOHNSON COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS

       O
             n Dec. 18, 2018, Royceann
             Porter was elected to the
             Johnson County Board of
       Supervisors becoming the Iowa
       county’s first African-American
       to ever serve as supervisor. As a
       member of Local 238 in Cedar
       Rapids, Iowa and an International
       Organizer, Porter understands
       what is at stake for the working
       men and women of her state.
           Prior to running for public of-
       fice, Porter, as a member of the
       Iowa Teamsters Political Team,
       had a long history of fighting to
       raise standards in her community.
       In 2015, Porter was part of a suc-
       cessful community campaign to           son County Community ID pro-             time,” Porter said. “Kurt had done
       increase Johnson County’s mini-         gram. The vital service provides         such great work for the community,
       mum wage to $10.10. When the            government-issued IDs to mem-            it was such a loss.”
       initiative was rejected by the Iowa     bers of the community that didn’t            Jesse Case, Secretary-Treasurer
       Legislature, Porter helped con-         have access to the traditional           of Local 238, knew that Porter was
       vince 156 businesses in Johnson         forms of identification, like the eld-   the right person to fill Friese’s
       County to voluntarily adopt a           erly, students and legal immi-           shoes, even if she didn’t realize it
       $10.10 minimum wage.                    grants. Iowa adopted stricter laws       herself. Case encouraged Porter
           Porter also campaigned that         for voter identification in 2017, so     to run for the open seat on the
       year to raise support for the John-     the program has become even              board.
                                               more important for these mem-                “Royceann is the perfect exam-
                                               bers of the community.                   ple of what our members can do
                                                   “I’ve always tried to do what        with the right support and encour-
                                               I can to help others in our com-         agement,” Case said. “She has the
                                               munity that don’t have a voice,”         compassion and skills that you
                                               Porter said. “It’s a lot like being an   would want in someone represent-
                                               organizer: People that can’t stand       ing your interests. I am proud of
                                               up for themselves need others to         what she has done as a member of
                                               help them fight.”                        the Teamsters, and I know she will
                                                   In 2018, Johnson County Super-       only continue to do great things as
             For more information about        visor Kurt Michael Friese passed         a county supervisor.”
             Teamsters running for of-         away suddenly. A local restaurant            “With Jesse’s encouragement
             fice, or if you would like        owner, Friese volunteered to pro-        and the support of the union, I was
             to let us know if you are         vide food for the Johnson County         confident that I could not only run,
             running, scan the QR Code         Democratic Party BBQ fundraiser          but win the seat,” Porter said.
             with your smartphone’s            each year. Porter teamed up with         “What Kurt did was important, and
             camera or QR reader (avail-       Friese each year, cooking food           I am proud that I can continue to
             able for free).                   for the event.                           carry on his work to honor his
                                                   “It was such a shock at the          memory.”

       6     Teamster | Summer 2019 | www.teamster.org
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                    COMMITMENT TO SKILLS AND SAFETY
                   FOR PIPELINE CONSTRUCTION MEMBERS
                    STEWARDS FROM TEAMSTER LOCALS ATTEND ANNUAL MEETING

       M
                ore than 200 stewards and business agents
                from local unions in the U.S. and Canada that
                represent members in the pipeline construc-
        tion industry attended the 7th annual pipeline stew-
        ards school recently. The school covered a variety of
        safety topics, includes a review of the most recent na-
        tional contract, a report about the status of the
        pipeline workers’ pension fund and reports on serv-
        ices offered by Teamster departments.
            Jim Hoffa, Teamsters General President, greeted
        the numerous first-time attendees with words of en-
        couragement to keep participating in meetings such
        as this and at their local unions.                           tives from eight Canadian local unions attending.
            “Due to the tremendous work that Bubba Davis                 “I am proud that we have Canadian Teamster
        (Director of the Teamsters Building Material and Con-        members here representing thousands who work on
        struction Trade Division) and David LaBorde (Director        pipelines across our country,” said Francois Laporte,
        of Teamster Pipeline Projects) have done with this           President of Teamsters Canada. “We fight together
        meeting year after year, the word has gotten around          and we build things together, and the pipeline is a
        and people are coming here enthusiastically,” Hoffa          good example. These projects show how unions from
        said. “And, your training of Teamster members has            two nations can come together.”
        taken off. Over 1,250 members trained to work on                 As a summary of the last year’s progress in the
        pipeline projects last year.                                 industry, Davis said, “Our members are the best
            “This nation needs pipelines and these pipeline          trained in the pipeline construction industry. This is
        projects mean more good jobs for Teamster families,”         due to our commitment to skills and safety on the job.
        Hoffa said. “The pipeline pension fund is doing very         We want every member to come home at the end of
        well and that is essential. Having a strong pension          their shift.”
        fund along with the opportunity for good paying jobs             In addition to presentations from various Teamster
        means the pipeline construction industry will con-           departments, there was also an overview on the sta-
        tinue to grow.”                                              tus of current pipeline projects in Texas, Minnesota,
            More Canadian local unions and members partici-          Wisconsin, Ohio, West Virginia and other states, and
        pated this year than ever before with 20 representa-         early information on planning for future projects.

                                                                     www.teamster.org | Summer 2019 | Teamster           7
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                TWO DECADES OF TRANSFORMING THE TEAMSTERS

                HOFFA
                MARKS

                20
                YEARS

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              M
                       arch 19, 2019 marked an      Teamsters. We found good                 “By establishing a dedicated
                       important milestone in       union employers fighting for         Strike and Defense Fund and
                       Teamster history. On that    their survival in the face of gov-   designating funds for organizing
              date, General President James P.      ernment policies that rewarded       activities, we made a commit-
              Hoffa became only the second          companies sending jobs over-         ment to grow the Teamsters
              General President to log 20           seas. We also faced employers        Union, increase Teamster power
              years as head of the Teamsters        who wanted to take advantage         and provide the support Team-
              Union. Over the course of those       of our weakness to cut wages         sters deserve on the picket
              two decades, the Teamsters            and health care benefits, and        lines,” Hoffa said.
              have regained their mantle as         eliminate pension and retire-            The union’s strike fund had
              the strongest union in North          ment plans. We engaged these         been bankrupted by the prior
              America through rebuilding its        challenges from day one.”            administration and employers
              finances, organizing the unor-            Under Hoffa’s leadership, the    knew workers couldn’t afford to
              ganized and negotiating the           Teamsters Union has strength-        strike. By developing a real,
              strongest contracts in labor. In      ened its foundation by putting       strong Strike and Defense Fund,
              corporate boardrooms, on Capi-        its financial house in order, and    employers got the message. In-
              tol Hill and throughout the labor     by establishing a real Strike and    stead of offering little or no sup-
              movement, the Teamsters again         Defense Fund. Another impor-         port to our brothers and sisters
              command respect.                      tant change came to the union        on strike, the International
                  “When our administration          in 2002 when the Hoffa adminis-      Union now offers real protection
              took office 20 years ago, the         tration convened the first-ever      for workers.
              union was on the verge of bank-       Special Convention to ensure             And instead of having to ask
              ruptcy and was hopelessly di-         that the Teamsters Union had         for assistance from other unions
              vided,” Hoffa said. “We faced         the financial resources to grow      because of an empty treasury,
              employers bent on destroying          and organize new members.            the Teamsters have rebuilt their
              our union and others willing to       The Strike and Defense Fund          general fund as well. When the
              spend large sums of money to          currently stands at approxi-         Hoffa team assumed office, the
              keep workers from joining the         mately $206 million.                 Teamsters Union had less than

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                                         “ I WILL NEVER APOLOGIZE FOR STANDING UP FOR
                                       MY FELLOW TEAMSTERS AND ALL AMERICAN WORKERS.”
                                                                      –JAMES P. HOFFA

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               $9 million in net assets. In the last   collective power to negotiate         drivers and win them the justice,
               20 years, it has increased to $329      stronger contracts for members.       respect and dignity they deserve
               million as of April 2019.                   Organizing is the essence of      at the gateways of the U.S. sup-
                                                       who the Teamsters are, and the        ply chain. Port drivers and the
               Organizing                              Hoffa administration knows we all     Teamsters have coordinated 16
               Organized labor has long been           must work hard to defeat well-        strikes over the past five years
               opposed by anti-union corpora-          funded, vicious anti-worker forces.   to build worker power and ex-
               tions and the politicians they          Employers have been doing             pose an industry built on ex-
               control, but the last 20 years          everything they can to oppose         ploitation, wage theft and
               have seen a nonstop attack on           unions’ ability to organize, from     discrimination.
               working families. In that time,         worker misclassification schemes          In solid waste and recycling,
               the country has experienced the         to multi-layered contracting. The     thousands of workers have been
               worst economy since the Great           Teamsters are confronting these       organized across the country.
               Depression and a constant out-          challenges head on.                   Organizing in the airline industry
               sourcing of work. Many unions               In the core Teamster industry     has brought more than 80,000
               have seen a significant decline         of freight, membership losses         new Teamsters into the union
               in their membership.                    due to deregulation were offset       over the past 20 years. In pas-
                   Not the Teamsters.                  by the union’s aggressive organ-      senger transportation and the
                   “Our union has continued to         izing at UPS Freight (formerly        private school bus industry, the

               do what no other union has              Overnite Transportation), which       Teamsters have organized more
               done during this difficult time—        kicked off in 2006. Now the           than 50,000 drivers, monitors,
               organize,” Hoffa said. “When we         Teamsters represent nearly            aides, attendants, mechanics,
               were elected, the union was di-         13,000 drivers and dockworkers        dispatchers and more all across
               vided. Today, locals, Joint Coun-       at the company.                       North America.
               cils and the International Union            The Teamsters represent
               work together to ensure that            more than 200,000 public sector       Contract Victories
               workers who want Teamster rep-          members, unsung everyday he-          Organizing is the first step, but
               resentation get it.”                    roes who provide a wide range         the work doesn’t stop there.
                   The Teamsters Union cur-            of public services. On the Las        Hoffa and his team have fought
               rently has approximately 1.42           Vegas Strip and across the na-        hard to negotiate the best con-
               million members and continues           tion, the Teamsters have organ-       tracts in many industries, raising
               to grow.                                ized thousands of workers at          wages and benefits and improv-
                   Under Hoffa’s leadership, the       casinos, raising standards in the     ing conditions for hundreds of
               Teamsters Union is the most active      valet parking industry and other      thousands of workers.
               organizing union in the country.        traditional Teamster crafts.              In the Passenger Transport Di-
               Hoffa knows that growing union              At the ports, the Teamsters       vision, the Teamsters achieved
               density strengthens the union’s         are fighting to organize port         an unprecedented victory in

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       2011 by successfully negotiating      nual wage increases, protec-         UPS Teamsters with the most lu-
       and ratifying a National Master       tions against subcontracting and     crative compensation and bene-
       Agreement (NMA) with the              increases to health and welfare      fits in the industry.
       largest company in the industry,      funds, plus other improvements.
       First Student, Inc. The agree-            In the rail industry, higher     Politics
       ment is the only one of its kind      pay, job stability and strong ben-   When it comes to shaping poli-
       in the industry and includes          efits are the key ingredients in     tics and policy for this union,
       many benefits that set the bar        the freight rail contract covering   Hoffa’s tenure as head of the
       on protections and workplace          about 70,000 members of the          Teamsters started off strong and
       rights. In addition to the First      Teamsters Rail Conference,           hasn’t looked back since.
       Student NMA, the Teamsters            made up of members of the                From the get-go, his adminis-
       have secured representation           Brotherhood of Locomotive En-        tration was on the ground fight-
       and contracts with other leading      gineers and Trainmen (BLET) and      ing alongside thousands of
       companies in the passenger            Brotherhood of Maintenance of        Teamster brothers and sisters in
       transportation industry. As of        Way Employes (BMWED).                as part of the “Battle of Seattle”
       2019, the Teamsters have agree-           And the recently approved        against the failed policies of the
       ments with the four largest pri-      UPS contract, the largest private    World Trade Organization (WTO).
       vate school bus operators in          collective bargaining agreement      Hoffa led 40,000 pro-labor
       North America.                        in the United States covering

           Some other examples in-           250,000 workers, provides all        demonstrators calling for real
       clude the recently ratified con-      UPS Teamsters—full-time and          reform.
       tract covering more than 4,400        part-time workers—with tremen-           From there, the fight moved
       workers at Anheuser-Busch,            dous gains in wages, benefits        into other areas of trade, like
       which raised wages $2.50, im-         and working conditions and ex-       against granting permanent nor-
       proved retirement security,           cellent opportunities for part-      malized trade relations (PNTR)
       maintained the excellent bene-        time workers to gain full-time       with China, the ongoing imple-
       fits and job security and in-         employment. This agreement           mentation of the North American
       cluded a signing bonus.               protects the livelihoods of UPS      Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA)
           The contract for more than        Teamsters and their families         and opposing the enactment of
       16,000 Costco workers in Califor-     well into the next decade.           myriad other unfair trade deals.
       nia and in the East provides              Since the Hoffa administra-      Hoffa sounded the clarion call
       workers with the best wages and       tion began negotiating the UPS       against these broken trade
       benefits in the retail industry.      contract in 2001, the total amount   agreements and helped raised
           At ABF Freight, a national        of new money paid to UPS             public attention to the issue.
       contract covering about 8,000         Teamsters in wages and benefits          One of the best examples of
       drivers, dockworkers, mechanics       increased to more than $14.5 bil-    his administration’s political
       and office workers provides an-       lion and continues to provide        strength has been demonstrated

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               over two decades in the fight to      sters have been front-and-center     gain has always been para-
               keep unsafe Mexican trucks off        in defending the pension secu-       mount for the Teamsters. Hoffa
               the nation’s highways. The            rity of its members and millions     has led that charge in state after
               Teamsters Union is single-hand-       of others. In 2015, after months     state where legislatures have
               edly responsible for this effort.     of lobbying, the union fought off    sought to reduce the power of
                A provision in NAFTA would           proposed cuts to the Central         unions by approving right-to-
               have allowed freight haulers          States Pension Fund. Now the         work legislation.
               from Mexico, who are not kept         focus is finding a solution that         One of the most spirited ef-
               to the same safety standards as       will secure pensions for some        forts came in Wisconsin in 2011,
               American trucks, on our nation’s      1.5 million Americans whose re-      where then-Gov. Scott Walker
               highways. Through constant            tirements are jeopardized.           demanded that collective bar-
               lobbying efforts, rallies and             Hoffa spoke at a major rally     gaining rights be stripped from
               countless other grassroots ef-        last July in Columbus, Ohio call-    most government workers.
               forts, these dangerous trucks are     ing for a congressional fix, and     Teamsters were among the first
               still not threatening the safety of   did the same thing a couple of       protesters at the Capitol in Madi-
               America’s drivers.                    weeks later in Detroit during a      son, bringing their families and
                   And that is likely to continue,   town hall event that featured        the now-iconic “Stop the War on
               given the ongoing negotiations        now House Speaker Nancy              Workers” signs.
               involving the revamping of            Pelosi (D-Calif.) and other law-         These fights haven’t always
               NAFTA. The Teamsters have             makers. He is calling for the pas-   been easy. In 2015, for example,
               made curbing cross-border             sage of the bipartisan               the Teamsters and other unions
               trucking a priority in the union’s    Rehabilitation of Multiemployer      beat back efforts to implement
               effort to create a fairer North       Pensions Act, introduced in Jan-     right to work in West Virginia,
               American trade policy.                uary by Reps. Richard Neal (D-       only to have the Legislature
                   But trade issues are hardly       Mass.) and Peter King (R-N.Y.).      there approve it the next year.
               the only fight Hoffa has led for          Sticking up for unions and       But the public is beginning to
               this union. For years, the Team-      their ability to collectively bar-   catch on to the right-to-work

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        ruse. The Teamsters joined in to      championed bipartisan initia-        agreeing to end the lawsuit, the
        help defeat a Sussex County, Del.     tives such as their 2015 “Let’s      government acknowledged that
        effort to approve right to work in    Get America Working” cam-            there had been significant suc-
        early 2018, and Missouri voters       paign, which called on lawmak-       cess in eliminating corruption
        rejected implementing the policy      ers of different political parties   from within the union.
        last August as part of a ballot       to come together to improve in-          The consent decree was re-
        measure in the “Show Me State”        frastructure, focus on training      placed with a final order, in
        by a two-to-one margin.               the next generation for 21st cen-    which the government’s contin-
            One thing that has helped         tury jobs and allow workers to       ued involvement in the internal
        the Teamsters through all these       earn a middle-class wage.            affairs of the Teamsters Union
        political battles has been the                                             will be phased out over a five-
        continued growth of the DRIVE         New Challenges                       year transition period.
        (Democratic, Republican, Inde-        Another important period in              “This historic event for the
        pendent Voter Education) politi-      Hoffa’s time in office was Febru-    Teamsters was the direct result of
        cal action program. Created           ary 2015, when Chief Judge           decades of hard work and our
        over 60 years ago by former           Loretta Preska of the United         success in driving corrupt ele-
        Teamsters General President           States District Court for the        ments from the union,” Hoffa said.
        James R. Hoffa, DRIVE funds the       Southern District of New York ap-
        union’s efforts to defeat anti-       proved an agreement that ended       Brothers and Sisters
        worker legislation at all levels of   more than 25 years of govern-        “A good union is one that’s
        government. DRIVE is funded di-       ment oversight of the Teamsters      there for its members, whether
        rectly by contributions from          Union. The agreement dismissed       or not they’re at work,” Hoffa
        Teamster members and is one           the lawsuit brought by the U.S.      said. Over the last 20 years,
        of the most powerful PACs in          Attorney for the Southern District   Hoffa has made the union about
        the country.                          of New York, which led to a con-     more than just organizing and
            The Teamsters under Gen-          sent decree that the union has       contracts. Through various pro-
        eral President Hoffa have also        operated under since 1989. By        grams, the union is making lives

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       better for working families           ter Relief Fund has benefited        in the last 20 years but there is
       everywhere.                           thousands of members and their       always more to do,” said Hoffa.
           In November 1999, the Gen-        communities.                         “Workers’ rights and the gains
       eral Executive Board created              The Teamsters have also en-      we have made never stand
       the James R. Hoffa Memorial           couraged women in the union to       still—we are either on the rise or
       Scholarship Fund. Since then,         assume more leadership roles         someone is trying to take what
       thousands of children and grand-      through the Teamsters Women’s        we have—we only win by con-
       children of Teamster members          Conference. Since it started in      stantly fighting for more.”
       have eased their financial burden     2002, attendance at the annual            Reflecting on serving the
       in college with the scholarship.      Women’s Conference has in-           Teamster membership for 20
       The scholarship fund has as-          creased every year it has been       years, Hoffa added, “It has been
       sisted over 4,000 students with       held and is one of many ways         my greatest honor to serve the
       scholarships, awarding more           the union has become more all-       great men and women of this
       than $10,000,000 in funds.            inclusive in the last 20 years.      union. I look back with pride
           Through the Teamsters Dis-            Hoffa also established an in-    knowing that because of the
       aster Relief Fund, thousands of       novative program that helps ac-      strength of the Teamsters, thou-
       members affected by disasters         tive military personnel transition   sands of workers have been
       have been helped through diffi-       to a career in transportation. The   able to retire with dignity, thou-
       cult times. The fund receives         Teamsters Military Assistance        sands of children had illnesses
       donations from members, local         Program (TMAP) provides com-         treated because of excellent
       unions and their affiliates.          mercial driver’s license (CDL)       union-negotiated health care,
           Whether helping out in the        instruction. Once the CDL is         and that thousands of Team-
       wake of Sept. 11, 2001, Hurri-        earned by a participant, the         ster families could be a part of
       cane Katrina, flooding, torna-        union and employers provide          the American middle class be-
       does, wildfires and even the          job placement assistance.            cause they belonged to the
       tainted water in Flint, the Disas-        “We have accomplished a lot      Teamsters.”

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       ORGANIZING UPDATE

                                                            DHL CONTRACTOR
                                                            EMPLOYEES JOIN
                                                            LOCAL 986

                     108 KWK TRUCKING EMPLOYEES SEEK IMPROVEMENTS

               S
                    ergio Rodriguez is a five-year employee           benefits,” Rodriguez said. “We want to nego-
                    at KWK Trucking in Los Angeles. He                tiate a strong first contract that will provide
                    and his co-workers recently voted to              these kinds of improvements.”
               form their union with the Teamsters on                     Management set up numerous roadblocks
               February 28.                                           to organizing. KWK Trucking hired four union
                  “It feels wonderful being a Teamster,               busters to conduct daily captive audience
               seeing our long effort finally pay off,” said          meetings, one-on-one meetings and attempted
               Rodriguez, a lead driver. His employer, KWK            very hard to persuade the drivers to vote no.
               Trucking is a contractor for DHL Express.                  “The drivers remained strong and united
                  On February 28, 108 drivers in the bargain-         throughout the entire process and were not
               ing unit voted 83-23 to be represented by              fazed by the company’s union-busting tac-
               Local 986 in South El Monte, Calif.                    tics,” said Chris Griswold, Secretary-Treasurer
                  “We work with drivers from DHL who                  of Local 986. “We look forward to negotiating
               have a contract that includes strong retire-           a strong first contract that addresses the driv-
               ment security, great health care and other             ers’ needs.”

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       LOCAL 525                        vote was 23-9 in favor of      finished their negotiations    awesome experience.
       Kurtz Ambulance Service          Teamster representation.       and became members of          Now we need to negoti-
                                        Local 483 will represent       Local 2010.                    ate a strong contract."
       A group of 10 firefight-         32 of the 34 workers,              “Congratulations to           “We are excited to
       ers/Emergency Medical            while Local 670 will repre-    our dedicated childcare        welcome the workers at
       Technicians (EMTs) in Illi-      sent two.                      workers and welcome to         Americold and we will
       nois have voted unani-              “It feels good to be a      the Teamsters,” said           work with them to negoti-
       mously to join Local 525.        Teamster,” said Vince          Jason Rabinowitz, Direc-       ate a strong first contract
       The election was held            Nye, an employee in            tor of the Teamsters Pub-      that addresses their major
       by mail ballot and votes         Meridian, Idaho for the        lic Services Division and      concerns,” said Bill Shap-
       were counted on Febru-           past four and a half years.    Secretary-Treasurer of         pell, President of Local
       ary 26. The vote was 8-0         “We are seeking fair pay.”     Local 2010. “This great        429.
       in favor of Teamster rep-           “For far too long, this     win caps a years-long
       resentation.                     company has taken ad-          fight by these courageous      LOCAL 391
           The firefighters/EMTs        vantage of these work-         workers for union repre-       Stericycle
       work for Kurtz Ambulance         ers,” said Timothy             sentation and fair treat-
       Service in East Alton, Ill.      Acevez, Secretary-Trea-        ment in the face of terrible   By a more than three-to-
       They all serve employees         surer of Local 483.            opposition from UC.”           one margin, drivers at
       of Olin Brass, a large                                              “Teamsters proved          Stericycle’s Haw River,
       manufacturing plant in           LOCAL 727                      that there is power in         N.C. facility voted recently
       East Alton.                                                     unity and demonstrated         to join Local 391 so they
                                        Reyes Fleet Management
           “We welcome these                                           the importance of stand-       can better fight for respect
       workers and we will work         In March, mechanics em-        ing firm against unfair        and dignity on the job.
       with them to negotiate a         ployed by Reyes Fleet          treatment and wage in-             Moses Darden, Local
       strong first contract that ad-   Management, a subsidiary       equalities, and has al-        391’s lead organizer, said
       dresses their issues,” said      of Reyes Holdings, LLC,        lowed us to have an            workers are demanding
       Kevin Engelke, Secretary-        voted overwhelmingly in        active voice in the work-      better working conditions,
       Treasurer of Alton-based         favor of union representa-     place,” Alisa Daniels,         affordable health insur-
       Local 525. “They perform         tion, selecting Local 727 as   UCLA lead teacher.             ance and job security, all
       an important job in our          their collective bargaining                                   issues that will be guaran-
       community and they de-           representative.                                               teed in a strong Teamster
                                                                       LOCAL 429
       serve a secure future.”              “On behalf of all Local                                   contract. Local 391 is lo-
           Workers are also seek-       727 members, welcome           Americold                      cated in Greensboro, N.C.
       ing fair pay and improved        to our Teamster family,”       Workers at Americold, a            The organizing effort
       benefits, Wessel said.           said Local 727 Secretary-      temperature-controlled         that led to victory came
                                        Treasurer John Coli Jr.        warehousing and logistics      after workers withstood
       LOCALS 483 AND 670               “We look forward to fight-     company, voted on Feb-         numerous mandatory
       Food Services of America         ing for a strong first col-    ruary 6 to join Local 429 in   captive audience meet-
                                        lective bargaining             Wyomissing, Pa.                ings, visits from corporate
       On March 8, a group of           agreement.”                                                   executives and ride-
                                                                           There are 124 workers
       34 drivers in Idaho and              Local 727 also cur-                                       alongs from manage-
                                                                       in the bargaining unit.
       Oregon working at Food           rently represents more                                        ment. But the Teamsters
                                                                       The employees at the
       Services of America, Inc.,       than 700 employees of                                         helped counter those ef-
                                                                       warehouse in Leesport,
       which US Foods is in the         the Reyes Holdings sub-                                       forts. The union’s Waste
                                                                       Pa. work as forklift drivers
       process of purchasing,           sidiary Great Lakes Coca-                                     Division reached out to
                                                                       and janitors/porters.
       voted to become mem-             Cola Distribution, Inc.                                       other locals with Stericy-
                                                                           "It feels great being a
       bers of Local 483 in Boise,                                                                    cle workers, and in turn
                                                                       Teamster," said Harlen
       Idaho and Local 670 in           LOCAL 2010                                                    Locals 377, 20 and 813
                                                                       Aquino, a forklift driver
       Salem, Ore.                                                                                    sent photos and encour-
                                        UCLA, UCSB                     and six-year employee.
          The two locals filed a                                                                      aging words to these
                                                                       "Working so hard to get to
       combined petition to rep-        Lead childcare teachers at                                    North Carolina workers.
                                                                       this point has been an
       resent the workers. The          UCLA and UCSB recently

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                           Teamsters Escalate
                       Campaign for Justice at Sysco

       T
           he Teamsters Union is step-         voritism, create a fair pay system    been the subject of federal investi-
           ping up its campaign for            and stem increases in health insur-   gations of labor law violations in
           worker justice at Sysco, the        ance costs that make it too expen-    virtually every location where
       largest broadline foodservice           sive for working families.            workers have chosen union repre-
       provider in the country. More than          Workers have been fighting        sentation.
       10,000 workers at Sysco are Team-       back by organizing as Teamsters.
       sters.                                  In recent months, more than 1,000     Organizing for Power
          The escalation follows Sysco’s       workers across the country have       In February, drivers at Sysco near
       calculated nationwide campaign of       voted to become Teamsters.            Miami voted to join Local 769, the
       threatening and disrespecting its           The campaign includes educat-     second organizing victory in less
       employees, and its flagrant viola-      ing Sysco customers and the gen-      than three weeks at Sysco. The
       tions of the law when workers seek      eral public about the company’s       vote count was 100-25 in favor of
       union representation. Workers           well-documented history of violat-    joining the union and there are 132
       want to stop management’s fa-           ing workers’ rights. Sysco has        drivers in the bargaining unit.
                                                                                         “Rather than valuing its hard-
                                                                                     working employees who make this
                                                                                     company successful, Sysco contin-
                                                                                     ues to disrespect them, flagrantly
                                                                                     violate the law when they seek
                                                                                     union representation, and still de-
                                                                                     mand that they work harder and
                                                                                     faster,” Vairma said. “Like more
                                                                                     than 1,000 workers across the
                                                                                     country in recent months, Sysco
                                                                                     South Florida workers are saying
                                                                                     ‘Enough is enough’ and standing
                                                                                     together to take action.”
                                                                                         “This victory continues the
                                                                                     strong worker organizing momen-

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       tum at Sysco in South Florida,”         company’s Norman, Okla. center           fire him for his union activism.
       said Josh Zivalich, President of        and were vocal in fighting against       Since his firing, Daniels has
       Local 769 in Miami. “Sysco work-        a company-backed effort to with-         worked on several organizing
       ers are tired of the way Sysco is       draw recognition from Tulsa              campaigns at Sysco, where he
       mistreating them and they are de-       union members.                           has delivered important messages
       manding change now.”                         The union has filed numerous        to workers.
           In late January, drivers and        unfair labor practice charges                “I tell Sysco workers that they
       helpers from Sysco’s Sygma Net-         against the company over the fir-        need to stick together and fight for
       work in Monroe, Mich. near De-          ings. The union has also appealed        positive change on the job by
       troit voted overwhelmingly to           a ruling by the National Labor Re-       forming their union,” Daniels said.
       join Local 337.                         lations Board that the firings           “The only way to improve things
           There are 116 drivers and           should be settled in arbitration.        at Sysco is for workers to organize
       helpers in the bargaining unit.              As the workers wait for a ruling    and negotiate a legally binding
       Workers in both locations want a        on the union’s appeal, they all say      contract—a Teamster contract.”
       fair and level playing field and an     they will not stop fighting until            Nathan Ray is another steward
       end to what feels like an endless       they win the justice they deserve.       who was fired. He is driving for
       string of company takeaways.            Fortunately, as Teamsters, they          another Teamster-represented
           Last fall, 253 Sysco drivers near   have a process to fight their firings.   company while he waits to hear
       Boston voted overwhelmingly for         If they had been nonunion, they          about his case.
       Local 653 representation at the         would have been at-will employ-              “Don’t be intimidated by the
       company’s New England distribu-         ees and had little recourse.             company, the Teamsters have
       tion center that serves customers            James Daniels, one of the fired     your back,” Ray said. “The only
       in five states.                         stewards in Oklahoma, worked at          way to get things fixed is to
           Some of Sysco’s most egre-          Sysco in Norman for 33 years—30          stand together and organize.”
       gious actions have taken place in       of those years as a steward—when             For more information, visit the
       Oklahoma, where the company             he was targeted by management            “Foodservice Teamsters Fight
       fired five stewards who are mem-        for termination. The company al-         for Justice” page on Facebook
       bers of Local 886 in Oklahoma City.     leged he was dishonest over drink-       at www.facebook.com/Sysco
           The stewards worked at the          ing a soda on duty—an excuse to          USFworkers.

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                 WAGES, BENEFITS INCREASED AND JOB SECURITY PRESERVED

            Anheuser-Busch Agreement Ratified

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              M
                      embers at Anheuser-Busch’s breweries            working at the Merrimack, N.H. brewery for
                      in the United States have voted to rat-         the past seven years. “The rest of the nego-
                      ify a new five-year agreement by 88 to          tiating team did a good job and spent
              12 percent ,with 63 percent of members vot-             a lot of time listening to members to get
              ing. The contract covers more than 4,400                their feedback on what they wanted in the
              workers at 12 facilities across the U.S.                new contract.”
                  “This contract provides our members at                  The Merrimack brewery not only makes the
              Anheuser-Busch with the solid wages, excellent          famous A-B brands Budweiser and Bud Light,
              benefits and job                                                                     but also produces
              security they de-                                                                    craft brews for
              serve,” said Jim                                                                     Blue Point Brew-
              Hoffa, Teamsters                                                                     ing.
              General President.                                                                      “More and
              “Our members                                                                         more of An-
              work hard to make                                                                    heuser-Busch’s
              this company suc-                                                                    breweries have
              cessful, and this                                                                    been branching
              contract recog-                                                                      out into craft
              nizes their efforts.”                                                                beers since they
                  Wage increases,                                                                  have gained in
              improvements to                                                                      popularity,”
              retirement security                                                                  Nowak said. “We
              and a ratification                                                                   are pleased with
              bonus were all in-                                                                   this addition as it
              cluded in the new                                                                    keeps our mem-
              contract which went into effect March 1, 2019           bers working and provides a product that con-
              and has a five-year term. As with the previous          sumers enjoy.”
              agreements, it maintains excellent benefits
              and job security.                                       ‘Good Union Job’
                  In another victory for workers, the Team-           A member at the Baldwinsville, N.Y. brewery
              sters National Negotiating Committee argued             said they brew at least 63 different brands at
              successfully for a memorandum of under-                 her location alone and that she was grateful
              standing with Anheuser-Busch to keep a com-             for the new contract.
              mitment for all 12 breweries to remain open                 “It’s a contract that I can live with, that I
              for the term of the agreement.                          can retire with,” said Michele Buck, a member
                                                                      of Local 1149. “My father, brother and even my
              Security                                                sister have all worked here. I know how impor-
              “Our negotiating committee listened to the              tant it is to have a good union job.”
              membership and negotiated a contract that pro-              All 12 Anheuser-Busch breweries in the
              vides job security and financial security for these     U.S. employ members of the Teamsters who
              hardworking men and women for the next five             brew, bottle and package the brands produced
              years,” said Greg Nowak, Director of the Team-          by the company.
              sters Brewery and Soft Drink Conference. “I’m               The brewery locations are: Los Angeles;
              proud of the work of the committee and look             St. Louis; Jacksonville, Fla.; Newark, N.J.;
              forward to implementing the new agreement.”             Houston; Fort Collins, Colo.; Williamsburg, Va.;
                 “Everyone is happy with the new con-                 Cartersville, Ga.; Merrimack, N.H.; Fairfield,
              tract,” said Ryan Smith, a Local 633 member             Calif.; Columbus, Ohio; and Baldwinsville, N.Y.

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                  Journey
                   to Drive                                      New Apprenticeship Program Puts
                                                                 More Teamsters Behind the Wheel

       A
               nyone who works in trucking      practices in the skilled trades: the    try,” said Lamont Byrd, Director of
               or follows the transportation    apprenticeship. Today, Teamsters        the Teamsters Safety and Health
               sector knows there is one        are paving a new road for countless     Department.
        topic that has dominated the indus-     workers who want to build careers           Since it was launched in 2015,
        try in recent years: the persistent     in the transportation industry. Team-   more than 240 CDL-A apprentices
        shortage of drivers.                    sters have developed a number of        have been trained in the program.
             While the effects of deregula-     apprenticeship programs at locals       The goal is to train more than a
        tion are largely to blame for the       and Joint Councils, especially in the   thousand dock worker/drivers in five
        decline in drivers, as fewer work-      construction industry, but the new      years. The Safety and Health Depart-
        ers are attracted to the harsh          Teamsters Apprenticeship Program        ment worked closely with ABF as
        demands of jobs in the nonunion         is the first national effort by the     well as the Teamsters Freight Divi-
        sector, the shortage has led to all     union that is focused on the trans-     sion to put together the curriculum
        kinds of proposed solutions includ-     portation industry.                     of the apprenticeship program.
        ing the use of new technology to            “This program is designed to
        fill the gap in the labor supply.       promote the craft and train people      DOL Certified
             But there is another remedy,       to build strong middle-class ca-        Like many freight companies, ABF
        and it draws from centuries-old         reers in the transportation indus-      has been hit by the driver short-
                                                                                        age. So the company turned to the
                                                                                        Teamsters for help in bringing new
                                                                                        drivers on board. In addition to
                                                                                        ABF and DOL, Teamsters have
                                                                                        partnered with community organi-
                                                                                        zations focused on outreach to dis-
                                                                                        advantaged communities in order
                                                                                        to recruit young workers into the
                                                                                        apprenticeship program.
                                                                                            At 18 years old, an apprentice
                                                                                        dock worker is registered with the
                                                                                        DOL when they enter the program.
                                                                                        Their progress is monitored by in-

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                                                one hand who are trained to do            they can carry on the work and
                                                the work and, on the other hand,          keep this industry going,” said
                                                you have companies that are               James Mullens, a 24-year ABF
                                                struggling to find drivers. The ap-       dock worker and member of Local
                                                prenticeship program is building a        957 in Dayton, Ohio. Mullens
                                                bridge between the two,” added            joined more than a dozen other
                                                Chee Chang, a program manager             ABF dock workers at a training
                                                with the Teamsters Safety and             at Local 776 in Harrisburg, Pa.
                                                Health Department who manages             in March to sharpen his skills as
                                                the worker trainings and helped           instructor to new dock worker
                                                design the program.                       apprentices.
              To read the full version of
              this story or to find out            The Teamsters secured federal              “This program really got me
              more about the Teamsters          grant funding to support the devel-       thinking more about how we talk
              Safety and Health Depart-         opment of the apprenticeship pro-         about the union with new hires
              ment, including trainings         gram, which will be sustained by          and figure out better ways of
              and other resources, visit        employer contributions. And the           teaching people who are just start-
              teamstersafety.org or scan        union is also looking to apply for        ing in the industry. And with the
              the QR Code with your             state-level grants to further sup-        outreach at job fairs and high
              smartphone’s camera or            port the effort.                          schools, I think it can help lead to a
              QR reader (available for free).                                             better recruitment system for dock
                                                New Blood                                 workers and show that this is actu-
                                                A checklist…that’s how some cur-          ally a good job with good bene-
       structors. After 144 hours of dock       rent dock workers at ABF described        fits,” said Lindsay Mandelik, who
       operation training, they go through      the extent of their training before       has been working on the docks at
       2,690 hours of supervised work           the Teamsters Apprenticeship Pro-         ABF in Dayton for five years. She
       experience. Once they are of age,        gram was introduced. That check-          also attended the “Train the Trainer”
       they begin training to upgrade to        list is now a 157-page manual,            event in Harrisburg.
       a CDL. This involves another 240         written by the Teamsters Safety               By turning back to the practices
       hours to train for their CDL-A li-       and Health Department in consul-          of earlier generations, Teamsters
       censes, followed by another 2,690        tation with the company.                  may help turn back the trend of the
       hours of work experience.                    “It’s important to make a good        driver shortage and jumpstart a new
          “You have young people on the         connection with younger folks so          generation of union truck drivers.

              Thousands of Teamsters Participate in Safety and Health Trainings

             T
                   eamsters Safety and                                                   Workers Hazardous Materi-
                   Health provides a range of                                            als Training Program, which
                   resources and training for                                            represents nine rail unions.
             members across many trades                                                      Covering everything from
             and industries. In 2018, more                                               construction to transporta-
             than 7,400 workers (including                                               tion to warehouse to airline
             more than 2,000 Teamster                                                    professions, Safety and
             members) participated in                                                    Health programs focus on
             training programs held                                                      training workers in under-
             around the country. Trainings                                               served populations and pro-
             are conducted through an af-                                                viding members with the
             filiated consortium of 12                                skills they need to work safely on projects in
             Teamster training centers as well as the Rail            their communities.

                                                                                For more information, visit teamstersafety.org.

                                                                      www.teamster.org | Summer 2019 | Teamster                   25
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