Federal Court Ruling is Victory for XPO Workers in Laredo, Texas

A federal court has denied XPO/Con-way’s latest attempt to delay the decision by workers in Laredo, Texas to form their union as Teamsters with Local 657.

The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit rejected the company’s petition for review of an order of the National Labor Relations Board requiring the company to recognize Local 657 as the workers’ bargaining representative. The workers voted to form their union as Teamsters in September 2014.

“The court has rejected yet another attempt by XPO to delay justice to these workers,” said Frank Perkins, President of Local 657 in San Antonio. “The company can appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, but we think that is unlikely in this case. We demand that the company respect these workers’ wishes and begin bargaining a contract soon.”

Hoffa: CR Less Than Ideal, Doesn't Address Real Pension Reform

Congress Must Tackle Comprehensive Retirement Reworking In 2017

The following is a statement from Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa about the continuing resolution (CR) funding bill cleared through Congress and signed by President Obama late last week that will keep the federal government operating until April 28, 2017.

“Short-term funding measures are never ideal, and that includes the bill passed by the House and Senate last week. But given that Washington finds itself on the cusp of a change in leadership, it was inevitable, yet still disappointing, that such legislation would be passed by this Congress to keep the government operating into the new year.

“While the Teamsters are pleased no action was taken to ram false pension fixes down the throats of our members and other hard-working Americans, comprehensive reform for all pensioners is needed in the next Congress. People who worked hard all their lives should not be left in their golden years with such uncertainty.

“In addition, the Teamsters are disappointed to see the continuation of anti-safety policies for truckers included in the CR. It is an undisputable fact that many truck drivers are pushed to the limit on our roads. The Hours of Service rules originally put forth but suspended by Congress must be reinstated for the good of all who use the nation’s highways.

“However, there were two important issues included in the funding bill. During the past year, the Teamsters have been active in lending a helping hand and advocating for the residents of Flint, Mich. due to the ongoing water crisis there, as well as for people all over the country suffering from the scourge of opioid addiction. We are glad to see those matters addressed with additional funding.”

YRC Chief Financial Officer Jamie Pierson Resigns

The chief financial officer of YRC Worldwide Inc. has resigned, effective at the end of the year, to work for an unidentified company near his home in the Dallas area.

Jamie Pierson had been a consultant for the Overland Park-based trucking company starting in 2008 and became an employee in 2011. Throughout that time, YRC struggled to avoid bankruptcy, which it ultimately did thanks to a financial restructuring and extended concessions from its Teamsters union employees.

YRC Worldwide disclosed Pierson’s plans to leave the company in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. It said Pierson would work to transition his duties to Stephanie D. Fisher. He will remain a consultant for six months to further the transition.

Fisher will become acting chief financial officer on Jan. 1. She currently is YRC’s vice president and controller.

“Mr. Pierson is resigning to take a chief financial officer position with a privately-held building supply and material company located near his home in the Dallas, Texas, metropolitan area, where his family resides,” YRC’s filing said.

It added that Pierson has commuted to the Overland Park headquarters since first becoming a consultant. Pierson became YRC’s top finance officer in 2011, continuing his commute.

Pierson previously had been a managing director of Alvarez & Marsal North America. His work for the firm included business restructurings outside of bankruptcy court and advisory work for companies’ senior management.

“We want to extend our deepest gratitude to Mr. Pierson for his service, contributions, and commitment to the company, including the personal family sacrifice experienced with commuting for eight years” YRC CEO James Welch said in the company’s filing. “Jamie has been a great partner, working closely with me, and I wish him well in his new endeavor.”

Welch and Pierson discovered while working together that they had attended the same high school in Texas, though at different times.

Another Successful NTDC for New Penn

From August 10-13, the very best drivers in our country converged on Indianapolis to compete at the 2016 National Truck Driving Championships (NTDC). Commonly referred to as “The Super Bowl of Safety,” the NTDC is the most elite venue for competitive truck driving in our nation.

In fact, simply qualifying for NTDC is a major accomplishment. To compete, drivers must first take top honors at their state-level safety competitions, and also maintain a collision-free driving record for the entire year prior.

After achieving those honors, New Penn professional driver Richard Gagnon took his talents to Indy this August and made New Penn proud. Rick performed very well in a highly competitive, tightly knit contest, and showed that he is still one of the best drivers in the country.

We say “still” because Rick Gagnon is no stranger to the NTDC. In fact, this was his fourth consecutive year competing at nationals and his sixth time overall! That's a whole lot of “best of the best” state truck driving championship success, and we are confident that Rick will continue to build on his record for years to come.


Rick has been driving professionally for 27 years and has spent the past 20 years with New Penn as a City Driver out of our Providence, RI terminal and most recently out of our Springfield, MA terminal. Rick's long history of safety championships began in 2009, when he took first place in the 5-Axle class and was named Grand Champion of the Rhode Island Truck Driving Competition. The title of Grand Champion is given to the driver with the highest overall score in the competition across all classes.

Rick has taken gold in the 4-Axle category in the state of Rhode Island four times, and most recently this year, won in the state of Massachusetts. Each of those first place finishes earned him a trip to NTDC, where he is a top competitor.

Rick Gagnon represents the very best of New Penn and the industry at large. His commitment to safety and self-improvement make him an exceptional example of hard work and professionalism.

When it comes to staying safe behind the wheel, Rick says it's all about maintaining your focus.


“The number one key when driving is to always be fully aware of your surroundings,” said Rick. “You have to be aware of weather conditions, road conditions, your own vehicle, the people around you...everything.”

“NTDC is always a special trip,” said Rick. “Meeting other drivers with the same dedication to their craft, who enjoy competing against one another is great. It also helps me sharpen my skills as a driver and increase my knowledge of the industry, while competing against the very best of the best. These competitions are a great experience, and I wish other drivers would try it out and see what they are missing.”

Team New Penn thanks and congratulates Rick on his continued safety success, and wish him the best of luck in the 2017 safety competitions! Drivers like Rick are what make New Penn the industry-leader that it is today.

BNSF Logistics Honors Holland with 2015 Regional LTL Carrier of the Year Award

Holland has been honored by BNSF Logistics with their 2015 Regional LTL Carrier Partner of the Year award. This is the second year-in-a-row for BNSF Logistics to honor Holland with this award.

Carrier Partner of the Year winners are selected based on service quality, performance, loss and damage events, customer service, claims resolution and overall commitment to partnership.

“We are honored to receive this award from our partners at BNSF,” said Scott Ware, Holland President. “Customer satisfaction is the best measure of success in any industry, and this award serves as affirmation that Holland is doing business the right way.

“Our combination of unmatched performance and uncompromising customer service creates a shipping experience that is second to none. And all of this is made possible by the hard work and dedication of our Holland professionals. It is their commitment to excellence that allows Holland to continuously deliver the very best in on-time, next-day LTL shipping. We would like to thank BNSF for this honor, and we look forward to many more years of award-winning service to come.”

“I am excited to announce Holland as our 2015 Supplier Excellence Award recipient,” said Ray Greer, president of BNSF Logistics, LLC. “BNSF Logistics continually strives to provide the highest level of customer service to our clientele, and we couldn’t reach the level of satisfaction we have without companies such as Holland to help meet and exceed the expectations of our customers.”

Greer further stated, “Holland was the clear choice for ‘best of the best’ in Regional LTL service because of the dedication to service and delivering at the highest level of performance, allowing BNSF Logistics to be the most reliable 3PL company. Thank you for your service and for helping BNSF achieve its mission to ‘provide a superior customer experience by delivering innovative, flexible and value-driven solutions.’”

We extend our sincere thanks to BNSF. We were honored to demonstrate excellence by complying with service requirements of BNSF Logistics’ customers, proactively communicating with operations personnel when concerns occurred, and providing BNSF Logistics the high level of customer service they are known for.