In past years, it was an accepted practice to suspend meetings in July, August and September due to low attendance during the summer months. However, the Executive Board of Local 81 has decided that due to the extraordinary circumstances concerning several of our largest units, including YRC and Oak Harbor Freight, as well as the general downturn in the economy, that it would be wise to maintain regular general membership meetings through the summer to keep our members informed and updated with the latest news. The June GMM is scheduled for June 14th. The July meeting is scheduled for July 19th, the August meeting is scheduled for August 16th, and the September meeting is scheduled for September 20th. All meetings will be held at Joe Edgar Hall at 10:00 AM, as normal. We encourage everyone to attend these meetings, if possible.

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June 5, 2009

The Teamsters National Freight Industry Negotiating Committee (TNFINC) created a sub-committee this week that will, among other things, consider whether language needs to be modified in the National Master Freight Agreement (NMFA) to address YRC Worldwide (YRCW), Inc.’s recent requests to defer pension contributions.

Challenging conditions in the industry have prompted the company to make the deferral requests to help it preserve operating cash.

“It is imperative that YRCW weathers this recession,” said Tyson Johnson, co-Chairman of TNFINC and Director of the Teamsters Freight Division. “The committee will also determine whether adjustments are necessary to further our central goal of protecting the jobs and benefits of our members at YRCW and all members covered by the NMFA.”

“We are forming this committee to review the contract in efforts to help YRCW survive this recession and hopefully come out stronger than ever,” said Jim Hoffa, Teamsters General President. “Our number one priority is to protect our members and their families, and that’s our paramount concern throughout this process.”

The committee will submit its findings to TNFINC, which negotiates the NMFA. If the committee accepts these recommendations, they will be submitted to the rank-and-file membership for the members’ approval.

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International VP Al Hobart announced on June 3, 2009 that the union has reached a settlement with Region 19 of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) concerning charges filed against the union and it's members by Oak Harbor management, allowing the NLRB to focus on the multitude of charges filed by the union against Oak Harbor. The union reached this settlement without admitting any wrongdoing or violations of the National Labor Relations Act...  Full Announcement Here

Stay tuned for further announcements regarding the Oak Harbor Freight situation as we continue our struggle for a fair labor contract.

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From The Oak Harbor Report:

- National Labor Relations Board Region 19 "indefinitely" postpones hearing on decertification petitions

- Teamsters file new Unfair Labor Practice Charge against Oak Harbor Freight Lines

Please remember to sign up for updates from the The Oak Harbor Report so you can stay tuned for breaking news on the struggle between Teamster workers and Oak Harbor Freight Lines!

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The IBT, in conjunction with Joint Councils 28 and 37, has revamped the Oak Harbor Teamsters website, and is now called The Oak Harbor Report. We strongly urge our members to check this site out, and direct customer and public inquiries towards this site, as this will be the central clearinghouse for all Oak Harbor-related information.

Oak Harbor is continuing to break the law and continues to harass and intimidate returning Teamsters. Teamsters are sitting at home on layoff while replacement workers continue to work. This battle is far from over, and while we all hope for a positive conclusion to this fight, we need to be prepared for a continuing tough battle. This newly revamped website will help the union and the Teamsters of Oak Harbor communicate and inform.

Stand strong!

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February 27, 2009

Company’s Unlawful Actions Could Incite New Strike

Oak Harbor Freight Lines is attempting to fire thirteen workers, represented by the Teamsters, and illegally eliminate workers’ healthcare and pension plans after the union decided to end a five-month strike last week. Over 500 workers at Oak Harbor in Oregon, Idaho and Washington originally went on strike on September 22, 2008 to protest the company’s violations of federal labor laws. Prior to that, the Oak Harbor’s employees had never gone on strike.

The latest unlawful move by Oak Harbor could incite a new strike just as the company is attempting to recover from the 157-day strike that triggered widespread service disruptions and cost Oak Harbor more than half of its business.

“It was our hope that the company would take our offer to return-to-work as a positive step toward resolving our differences,” said Teamsters International Vice President Al Hobart. “But it is now clear that Oak Harbor’s owners and their union busting attorney are willing to sacrifice customers, ruin the lives of hard working union families and drive this company into the ground to get rid of the Teamsters.”

According to documents released by the company last week, Oak Harbor is preparing to illegally eliminate returning workers’ healthcare plan, switch returning workers to a substandard plan administered by the company and abolish workers’ retirement fund. The company will also immediately suspend, without pay, thirteen union supporters on suspicious grounds and reserve the right to terminate more employees for union activities.

“Retaliating against union supporters is just another sign that Oak Harbor is a rogue company that is being propped up by several merciless shippers and financial institutions, including KeyBank (NYSE: Key) and Burlington Coat Factory (NYSE: BCF),” Hobart said.

These actions are just the most recent in the company’s ongoing effort to deny workers a fair contract and break the Union.

In December 2008, the National Labor Relations Board found merit in the union’s charges alleging that Oak Harbor violated federal labor law and bargained in bad faith by creating a Drivers’ Committee to undermine the union, unlawfully soliciting grievances, and making unilateral changes in working conditions.

Additionally, the International Labor Rights Forum (ILRF) recently published a report in which it concluded that Oak Harbor violated international labor rights standards. According to the report, Oak Harbor used “permanent striker replacements to undermine freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining of Oak Harbor and employed unethical and unlawful practices in the recruitment and employment of the replacement workers, including deceptive hiring practices, non-payment of wages and racial and gender discrimination in work assignment.”

In a response to these violations, Gap Inc. and several major customers have stopped using Oak Harbor. “The report by the International Labor Rights Forum and the failure of (Oak Harbor) management to work out a resolution with the Teamsters in a timely manner all contributed to our conclusion that our continued presence at Oak Harbor would not meaningfully contribute to a speedy resolution,” said Dan Henkle, Senior Vice President at Gap Inc.

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International Vice-President Al Hobart, Chair of the Union Negotiating Committee, has proposed to Oak Harbor Freight Lines' bargaining representatives an unconditional offer to return to work and an end the strike begun more than four months ago over alleged unfair labor practices by the company, the union announced Friday, Feb. 12.

“In this tumultuous economic climate, it does not benefit the workers or the company to allow Oak Harbor to continue to lose business due to this labor dispute and face the growing risk of closing its doors forever,” Al Hobart said about the union's offer to return to work. The union's offer is its “attempt to jump-start this process because at this stage both the workers and company are in a lose-lose situation,” Hobart said.

The following is the official statement of Teamsters International Vice President Al Hobart regarding an offer from the more than 600 striking workers at Oak Harbor to the company to return to work.

“Following extensive discussion with local representatives and rank-and-file workers from Oak Harbor who have been on strike for more than four months, our union announced it had extended an offer to end this job action and return to negotiations.

“This offer is contingent upon the company allowing every worker to return to their positions free from reprisal from management with no change in the wages or benefits they earned prior to the strike. The company must also agree to return to the bargaining table to negotiate in good faith a fair agreement.

“In this tumultuous economic climate, it does not benefit the workers or the company to allow Oak Harbor to continue to lose business due to this labor dispute and face the growing risk of closing its doors forever.

“It is our hope that the company will see this offer as a positive step toward resolving our differences and addressing the challenge of negotiating a collective bargaining agreement that will not only provide Oak Harbor’s workers with fair compensation and protections in the workplace, but secure a stable and capable workforce that will help the company compete and grow.”

Local Union leaders involved in the Oak Harbor strike also briefly met with local management at the struck terminals to reiterate the proposal.

Approximately 600 employees in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho walked off the job Sept. 22, claiming that the company had engaged in unfair labor practices. The union had been in contract negotiations sporadically with the company since August 2007, at times with the assistance of a federal mediator, to replace a contract that expired Oct. 31, 2007.

The company has five days under federal labor law to respond to the union's proposal.

The Teamsters Union and Oak Harbor have both filed numerous charges with the National Labor Relations Board since the current contract expired on October 31. Some of the charges have been resolved, while others are either being appealed or are still under investigation by the NLRB.In charges filed by the Teamsters July 25, Sept. 9, and Sept. 18 before the strike began, the union claimed that Oak Harbor engaged in direct dealing with employees by creating and maintaining a Web site to elicit feedback from employees and engage them in direct communication; mailing DVD movies about contract proposals to employees' homes, requiring them to watch the DVDs at work, and then questioning them to obtain their sentiments; holding mandatory meetings about contract negotiations; and creating and maintaining a “Drivers Committee” to communicate with employees directly about their work concerns and address their grievances.

Jim McCall, IBT special counsel, noted the basis of the board's finding that the walkout is an unfair labor practice strike is important because it means that the company cannot hire permanent replacement workers and is obligated to reinstate qualified strikers.

Among the statements in the posted notice are:

• We will withdraw all recognition from, and completely disestablish the Auburn Drivers Committee, and refrain from recognizing other similar employee committees as representative of any of our employees for the purpose of dealing with us concerning wages, grievances, rates of pay, or other conditions of employment;

• We will not use the Drivers Committee to find out what your grievances are; and

• We will recognize the Teamster Local Unions which are party to our Agreement; which expired on October 31, 2008... as your sole and exclusive bargaining representative of certain of our employees, and, bargain with those unions for the purpose of negotiating your wages, hours, and working conditions.

“It's a broad and pervasive charge against the company,” Jim McCall stated.

The board dismissed because of insufficient evidence the allegations of failure to bargain in good faith, but Hobart said the union intends to file an appeal.
About 10 days ago, Oak Harbor filed 18 charges against the union, claiming egregious conduct on the strike lines, Hobby told BNA.
In announcing the offer to return to work, Hobart in a statement said “[t]his offer is contingent upon the company allowing every worker to return to their positions free from reprisal from management with no change in the wages or benefit they earned prior to the strike. The company must also agree to return to the bargaining table to negotiate in good faith a fair agreement.”

The workers, based at various company locations in Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, are represented by Teamster Locals 81, 174, 231, 252, 324, 483, 589, 690, 760, 763, 839, and 962. Oak Harbor has 35 terminals on the West Coast, providing regional LTL services to the entire West Coast.

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