Vol. 79/No. 4 February 9, 2015
Help make this column a voice of workers’ resistance!
This column is dedicated to spreading the truth about the labor resistance that is unfolding today. It seeks to give voice to those engaged in battle and help build solidarity. Its success depends on input from readers. If you are involved in a labor struggle or have information on one, please contact me at 306 W. 37th St., 13th Floor, New York, NY 10018; or (212) 244-4899; or themilitant@mac.com. We’ll work together to ensure your story is told.— Maggie Trowe
LA port truckers win victory
at Shippers Transport Express
Following discussions with the union, Shippers Transport reclassified its drivers as employees effective Jan. 1, 2015, and agreed to recognize the Teamsters as the drivers’ official bargaining agent contingent on verification by an agreed upon third party that a majority of the drivers had signed valid union authorization cards. Out of 111 employees, 88 signed.
“As Teamsters, Shippers drivers will now begin the hard work of negotiating a first contract,” said Fred Potter, director of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Port Division, in a Jan. 9 press statement.
The victory followed five strikes by port truck drivers against eight trucking companies over the last 18 months. Drayage, or short haul, drivers have been fighting to join the Teamsters and have a steady paycheck. They demand an end to the bosses’ scheme to keep them divided and more exploitable as so-called independent contractors. Under this setup they get paid by the load with no compensation for waiting time and are responsible for costs of fuel, parking, insurance and maintenance, which sometimes results in negative “pay.”
“There are over 10,000 drivers misclassified as independent contractors at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach,” Barb Maynard, a spokesperson for Justice for Port Truckers/Teamsters, told the Militant.
Shippers Transport Express was not one of the companies struck because it was in discussions with the Teamsters. The eight companies where strikes took place are now in talks with the union.
— Bill Arth
Florida bus drivers keep up
pressure for yearly raises
When about 30 drivers showed up Dec. 23 at the Palm Tran administration building and central bus barn to hear management’s response to the union’s proposal for step raises, it took the bosses just 15 minutes with no discussion to reject the proposal. They then abruptly ended the meeting and left.
“Palm Tran management set the Jan. 14 negotiations at the worst time for drivers on both shifts to attend,” Igor Ruptash, a Palm Tran driver, told the Militant, “and they stalled on publicizing the location.”
Nevertheless, about two dozen drivers picketed outside, waving handmade signs that read “Palm Tran lied” and “We want step raises,” and chanting, “No raise, no peace!”
During the public negotiations, with a number of unionists present, Palm Tran boss Shannon LaRocque at first seemed to accept the union’s proposal to pay step increases this year, but then backtracked, referring the question to future talks.
“LaRocque is doing what all public employers do,” Local 1577 President Dwight Mattingly, a driver, said in a phone interview. “You have a three-year contract, but nothing binding on wages over the life of it. I want other workers to see what we are fighting for, and to not allow the bosses to play with the contract language and use it against you.”
— Anthony Dutrow
SF airport restaurant workers
defeat concessions, forge unity
“Ninety-nine percent voted yes,” union member Jesse Johnson, a bartender for 34 years, told the Militant. Official vote totals haven’t been released.
Tipped workers won an initial 50 cents per hour pay increase with back pay to September 2013, and others won $1.
“We won job security,” Johnson said. “If you work for a unit that shuts down, you get first shot at a job in another unit at the airport, with no loss of seniority.”
In another gain, the owners withdrew their threat to stop contributing to the union health insurance fund, which would have cost workers, whose average annual pay is $24,124, more than $4,200 per year.
“The companies did us a good deed by forcing us to strike,” said Johnson. “We all work in separate units. Getting out there together gave us a level of unity we haven’t seen. Right now when I walk through the airport there is a new level of confidence from the membership. It’s through the roof. They would strike again at the drop of a hat. I don’t think the restaurant owners will challenge us again anytime soon.”
— Eric Simpson and Carole Lesnick