Thursday, January 11, 2018

UPS And UPS Freight Contract Negotiations Beginning - Get Involved!

UPS and UPS Freight Contract Negotiations will kick off in late January

For an update on the process of negotiations and what you can do to
be involved please join Denis Taylor, Director, IBT Package Division, for
a conference call on Sunday, January 28, 2018 at 6 pm eastern time.

You can join by dialing into the number below. You can also sign up at http://ibt.io/1-28UPScall and we will call you and join you to the conference call. Please encourage your fellow members to join this call as well. We must all work together to deliver the strong contract Teamster members deserve.


 WHAT: UPS and UPS Freight Contract
 Negotiations Update Call

 WHEN: Sunday, January 28, 6 pm eastern time

 HOW: Dial into 877-327-9495 and enter pin 111566
 at 6 pm eastern time to be joined to call or go to
 http://ibt.io/1-28UPScall to register for the call
 and we will call you when the call begins.

Monday, January 08, 2018

Senator Tina Smith Meets With Retirees About Pension Problem

U.S. Senator Tina Smith hit the ground running in the Northland and an important item on her agenda was meeting with retired Teamsters to find a solution to an impending pension problem.

"Some of us for 40 years have made weekly contributions into the Central States Pension Fund," Sherman Liimatainen, the Director of the Minnesota Duluth Committee to Protect Pensions, said.  "they depended on it, we depended on it as our living when we chose to retire after years of service."

The issue they're facing could be devastating.

"They have asked us to take a 60% cut on our pensions," Liimatainen said.

Over $1 billion of pensions for thousands of Minnesotans in the Central States Pension Fund are at risk for being lost.

"These retirees represent about 21,000 teamsters who have paid into a pension their entire working careers and now they find themselves being told that that pension that they counted on, might not be there," Smith said.

The National United Committee to Protect Pensions is proposing a bill that would help save the pensions and Smith plans on backing it.

"Over the next couple of weeks there's going to be a big debate over how to resolve the latest federal budget impasse and I wanted to hear about these issues, because I want to make sure that they get brought forward into that budget discussion that will be happening," Smith said.

She said it's not about numbers, but about how real people will be affected by this.

"There was a woman who retired to take care of her husband with Parkinson's Disease and she's now faced with trying to figure out if she has to go back to work after she's retired just to make sure as she said that she literally isn't living under a bridge," Smith said.  "This is about real peoples' lives and I'm going to take that back to Washington."

Smith continued her tour by visiting the Iron Range.  After leaving Duluth she stopped in Eveleth and Mountain Iron and she said she'll head to Washington D.C. on Sunday, taking what she's learned from Northlanders with her.

Teamsters Applaud Rep. Pete King’s Co-Sponsorship of Butch Lewis Act

Rep. King Joins Sen. Chuck Schumer to Announce Support of Critical Legislation to Address Pension Crisis

Rep. Pete King (R-N.Y.) joined Sen. Check Schumer (D-N.Y.) at a press conference at Teamsters Local 707 in Hempstead, N.Y. to announce his co-sponsorship of the Butch Lewis Act of 2017 (H.R.4444/S.2147), legislation that will assist pension plans facing insolvency. Rep. King is the first Republican member of Congress to join the bill as a sponsor.

The Butch Lewis Act of 2017, which was introduced by Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH) and Rep. Richard Neal (D-MA) on Nov. 16, would provide a path to fixing the country’s growing pension crisis by providing the financial support the plans need to avoid insolvency.

“I am proud to support the Butch Lewis Act and I commend Jim Hoffa for his leadership,” Rep. King said. “Protecting retirees who worked hard for their pensions should not be a partisan issue. Republicans and Democrats should work together to allow workers to live their retirement years in dignity. It's time to get started.”

The legislation would establish a new agency that will be called the Pension Rehabilitation Administration (PRA) within the U.S. Treasury Department. The PRA would be authorized to issue bonds in order to finance loans to pension plans in financial distress.

Kevin McCaffrey, President of Teamsters Local 707 joined Rep. King and Sen. Schumer to voice his support for the legislation.

“Like many other workers, our members have unfairly been the victims of failed government policies which have threatened their way of life and plans of retiring with dignity,” McCaffrey said. “I am proud to stand with these two elected officials who are stepping up to make a difference in the lives of working families.”

“The Teamsters Union thanks Rep. King for his leadership in co-sponsoring this bill,” said Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa. “This legislation is too important to be delayed by partisan politics. The pension crisis must be addressed now, and the Butch Lewis Act is the best option. We must protect the retirement security of hundreds of thousands of active and retired workers across the country.”

Teamsters, ABF to Begin Contract Negotiations in Earnest

The Teamsters National Freight Industry Negotiating Committee (TNFINC) will begin contract negotiations in earnest with ABF starting on Monday, January 8, three weeks after exchanging initial contract proposals with the company.

This first round of negotiations will continue through Thursday, January 11 and multiple dates have been scheduled into March.

“We look forward to sitting down with the company to begin addressing our members’ priorities,” said Ernie Soehl, Director of the Teamsters National Freight Division and Co-Chairman of TNFINC. “We know these will be challenging negotiations, but we are prepared and committed to negotiate a contract that will provide our members with the solid wages, benefits and protections they deserve.”

The current ABF-National Master Freight Agreement runs through March 31, 2018 and covers more than 8,000 members.

After January 11, the following negotiations have been scheduled:

·        Monday, Jan. 29 through Thursday, Feb. 1, 2018;

·        Monday, Feb. 12 through Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018;

·        Monday, Feb. 26, through Thursday, March 1, 2018.

More dates will be scheduled, if necessary.

Visit the new ABF Teamsters Facebook page where members can see the latest updates. Go to “ABF Teamsters” on Facebook. Text "ABF" to 86466 to receive text message alerts (message and data rates may apply).