UPS workers interviewed by the Militant say the battle that began on the picket lines continues inside their worksites. "Both sides are working by the book," said Earl Romero, 24, a full-time package driver from Chicago and a member of Teamsters Local 705. "The company is nit-picking every little detail of the dress code and is following drivers to see if we spend extra time on our routes." On the other side, Romero said, "The union is asking us to enforce the rule that we get help on lifting packages over 70 pounds. Prior to the strike we had the right to call for help on these packages but nobody really did."

"Things are pretty ugly," said Michael Martin, 32, a UPS driver and member of Teamster Local 728 in Atlanta. "The volume has picked up but there are layoffs. I'm working 11 hours every day." At the same time UPS is recruiting part- time workers, putting in appearances at the Dekalb, Georgia, State Department of Labor on August 29.

"UPS has instituted a policy they call `zero tolerance,' " said Martin. "For example we can't wear T- shirts under our uniform shirts to absorb perspiration." The company's real concern is union T-shirts, he said, noting that the company "has banned the `We were forced to striké T-shirt."

Martin explained that workers who played "a vocal role in the strike have been taken aside" by UPS management. "There are threats of warnings, write-ups, and suspensions. But why should we back down now? Why should we give up rights that we fought for on the picket line?"

The company is "saying it has the right to determine if you need a union representative when they call you into the office -whether it's going to be disciplinary or just a discussion."

A summary copy of the contract will be mailed out September 9, Martin said. "We know that a lot of part-time jobs here should go full-time. So we are waiting and watching."

During the Labor Day parade in downtown Pittsburgh, where tens of thousands of unionists marched, a couple of UPS workers marching in their uniforms told the Militant that they did not want to give their names because of the tense situation inside their work sites.

These workers, members of Teamster Local 249, reported that about 60 workers had been fired and others suspended at both the Thornburg and Beaver UPS facilities. Most were accused of strike-related activities that included talking too much to the media during the walkout.

To prove this the company had video taped the picket lines. One UPS worker said that a supervisor had bumped into him while he was on picket duty. The supervisor then reported this as "violence" on the picket line, and the worker was given a five-day suspension.

"It's too early to tell what the working conditions will be like under the new contract," said Eugene Phillips, 43, a feeder driver and Local 705 member in Chicago. "For one thing, until we vote to ratify this contract, we are working under the old work rules."

`Use momentum from UPS to organize'
Phillips, who has worked at UPS for 25 years, commented that "people are more interested in the union now because of the strike." The unionist said he is concerned about subcontracting and would like to see what is said about this in the contract. According to one union summary, which was circulated just after the strike, "UPS is prohibited from using subcontractors except for peak season feeder work, and then only if the local union agrees." Phillips noted that he is "seeing more and more subcontractors and independent truckers. If these guys are in the union, that's all right. If they're not, they should be encouraged to join. We should take a hard-line stance on that."

Phillips noted that RPS, a $1.3 billion shipper from Pittsburgh, is the fastest growing nonunion shipping company. It employs 5,000 - 6,000 drivers who own their own trucks. Phillips said the Teamsters "should use the momentum of the UPS victory to organize these workers, as well as the drivers from Federal Express." In the Chicago area, seven of 13 local Federal Express stations have asked for Teamster representation, covering more than 800 workers.

"Our victory will have an effect at other companies," said Michael Douglas, a full-time UPS driver from Chicago and member of Local 705. "Like Federal Express workers. They have a lot of part-timers who would like to be full-time, who want benefits. These workers are looking at us, thinking maybe they can get the same thing."

"After the strike they staggered our start times so we couldn't all walk into work proud of our victory," said Stuart Miller, a full-time driver and shop steward, from Local 728 at the Stone Mountain Center in the Atlanta area. "We all have different staggered times so management can bring us into rooms and try to intimidate us individually.

"They have convinced some workers that the wage package we won through the strike was inferior to the company's `final offer,' " Miller said, saying this was rewriting the facts.

Government intervention in Teamsters
In the days after the strike UPS "jumped on the government's intrusion into our union," Miller said, referring to the recent government ruling to void the reelection of Ron Carey to the Teamster's presidency. "The company is trying to keep the workers distrustful of the union," said Miller.

Phillips, too, was concerned about government intervention into the union's internal affairs. "We are hung up by this reelection," he said. "Every time we take a couple of steps forward, you're held up. This will kill the momentum we had coming off the UPS victory."

The federal board that oversees the Teamsters union was created to purge "corruption" out of the union as part of the settlement of a federal "antiracketeering" suit in 1989. "We want to say that the government is neutral," Phillips said. "But why at this particular time do we see the government giving so much help to companies during organizing drives?

"The power should be given back to the union members," he stated. "We were elected as delegates to represent the members, but we are not in charge of the convention or the new elections. It is these government officials and they were not elected by anyone."

James P. Hoffa, who Carey narrowly defeated in last year's election, is campaigning to delay the new ballot until next spring. The December 1996 election was overturned a few days after the strike victory by court-appointed monitor Barbara Zack Quindell, who has called for a new vote in November.

Quindell announced that all candidates must identify the source of campaign contributions, including those of less than $100.

Meanwhile, the National Mediation Board said it would prevent the UPS pilots from striking until early next year, thus assuring UPS that shipments would not be disrupted during the company's peak season.

Bob Miller, head of the Independent Pilots Association, denounced the board for taking UPS's side. "I believe it's extremely unfortunate that the board chose to take this stand at this time and create what could be a backlash against their actions," he said.

The pilots played an important role in supporting the Teamster strike. "When the pilots honored our picket lines, we knew we were going to win," said Earl Romero. "If UPS doesn't give the pilots what they want and they strike, the Teamsters will back them. We will cover their backs."

Contributors to this article include: Arlene Rubinstein from Atlanta; United Auto Workers member Cappy Kidd, International Association of Machinists (IAM) member Betsey Stone, and Danny Booher from Chicago; and IAM member Edwin Fruit from Pittsburgh.  
 
 
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