Daily Koz: Teamster Online Round-Up for Members & Friends

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2009/3/11/175623/811/486/707348.

by TeamsterPower
Wed Mar 11, 2009 at 03:12:58 PM PDT

The Teamsters are always busy fighting a good fight. Sometimes it gets so busy that we don’t have the time to share with folks outside of our membership what all is taking place. This is something we are working hard on changing, starting with this round-up.

Organizing


The Teamsters are a powerhouse when it comes to helping workers organize a union. By the end of 2008, the union announced that it organized more than 40,000 workers that year.

"We announced two goals for the Teamsters in 2008: To organize 40,000 workers and to elect Barack Obama president of the United States," said Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa. "I am proud to say that thanks to the hard work by so many in our union, the Teamsters delivered on both promises," Hoffa added.

One of the many ongoing Teamster campaigns is our school bus and transit worker campaign, where employees of First Student, First Transit and Durham School Services are organizing unions with the Teamsters in droves. Since the campaign began in 2006, the union has organized more than 16,000 drivers, mechanics and aides throughout the United States and Canada.

In January, an Elgin, Illinois Durham yard took the major step toward gaining fair treatment and respect on the job, voting by a near 2-1 margin to join Teamsters Local 330. With this victory, the workers celebrate the culmination of more than two years of hard work to join the Teamsters. The company did everything it could for two years to hold the workers back from organizing. Aside from the general run-of-the-mill union busting, the company filed lawsuits to slow the 260 workers down. Though this was a hard fight, Teamster-driven campaigns don’t simply end with the organizing victory announcement. Now we go to the bargaining table and negotiate a fair collective bargaining agreement. That’s what it is all about; securing a solid Teamster contract for workers who deserve a voice in the workplace.

Employee Free Choice Act

The union, along with a united labor front, is leading the fight for the Employee Free Choice Act. With anti-union corporations and lobbies dumping nearly a half-billion dollars into ad campaigns to sway the general public on this legislation, we need all the help we can get from online activists to spread the REAL word on this important and vital law.

The Employee Free Choice Act enables workers to have a choice of whether to join a union without a fear of losing their jobs. It creates a fair and democratic election process for employees to obtain a contract within a sensible amount of time and would strengthen penalties on employers who violate their worker’s rights. Workers in unions are able to negotiate for a better quality of life instead of allowing CEOs to have all the power

Under current law, even if a majority of workers sign up for a union, the company can veto that decision and demand an election. This gives the company time to fire or harass workers and threaten to close the workplace to coerce workers into voting against the union. Under the Employee Free Choice Act, if a majority of employees sign cards indicating they want to organize, then the company has to recognize the union, as long as it is certified by the National Labor Relations Board.

FULL story at link.