YRC Worldwide, Teamsters reach tentative accord on new contract

YRC Worldwide Inc., the country’s biggest trucker, has reached tentative agreement with the Teamsters union on a contract, more than three months before the existing pact is to expire.

The union represents nearly 50,000 drivers and dock workers who work for several YRC subsidiaries, the biggest being Yellow Transportation and Roadway. YRC is based in Overland Park.

The Teamsters negotiated the five-year agreement with Trucking Management Inc., or TMI, the negotiating arm of the unionized trucking industry.

After ABF Freight System pulled out of TMI and the consolidation in recent years of unionized carriers, YRC subsidiaries are the only remaining members of TMI. They are Yellow Transportation, Roadway and USF Holland.

YRC and the Teamsters began negotiations in early October, and the company hoped that a new contract could be reached before March 31, when the existing agreement will expire.

With YRC struggling to maintain freight volume in a slowing economy that YRC chief Bill Zollars has characterized as recessionary in some sectors, analysts said the trucking company was eager to get a new deal quickly.

Many trucking customers sign contracts choosing their carriers before the end of the year. As revenue and profits continue to plummet, analysts said, YRC could ill afford to have freight diverted early next year as a strike deadline loomed.

“The early outcome of these negotiations is positive for our employees and positive for our customers,” said Mike Smid, president and chief executive of YRC North American Transportation. “With the major hurdle of the NMFA (national contract) behind us, we are now positioned to remain competitive in a very challenging industry environment.”

Jim Hoffa, Teamsters general president, said the new contract would protect the jobs and benefits of the union’s membership.

Tyson Johnson, head of the union’s freight division and lead negotiator, said the new agreement would improve grievance procedures for workers and addressed the issue of forced overtime, which had been regarded as a key concern of workers.