Today, leaders from local unions that represent carhaul members endorsed the tentative national carhaul agreement, paving the way for members to vote on the proposal later this month.

“Today’s vote shows that local union leaders throughout the United States agree with the Negotiating Committee that this tentative agreement addresses our members’ top concerns and protects their benefits while providing real job security,” said Kevin Moore, Director of the Teamsters Carhaul Division.

Ballots will be mailed to members on or about Monday, September 28 and will be due back on or about October 15, when they are scheduled to be counted. 

The proposed 2015-2019 National Master Automobile Transporters Agreement (NMATA) contains numerous improvements for Teamster carhaulers and their families over the next four years. It includes a new pay system in which the majority of Teamster carhaulers will improve their earning opportunities with higher pay for driving more loaded miles and the elimination of Article 22 “new business” or “competitive”  mileage rates. The rate structure has been simplified into headhaul and backhaul rates with increases each year of the contract. (see attached summary for more information).

Unanimous Support

On August 31, 2015, the Teamsters National Automobile Transporters Industry Negotiating Committee (TNATINC) reached a tentative agreement for the new national carhaul contract. The committee unanimously supported the tentative agreement. 

Based on surveys members completed and feedback at local union meetings, the number one goal for the Negotiating Committee was to protect members’ health care and pension benefits. The tentative agreement achieves this goal, among other economic improvements.

The tentative agreement also includes operational changes to improve the Teamster-represented carriers’ ability to compete with non-union companies. This includes a Voluntary Open Board (VOB) that allows up to 10 percent of a terminal’s drivers to sign up weekly (or up to two weeks) to work the carrier’s system out of central dispatch with the goal of staying loaded and pulling trips where back-up assets are needed. The committee believes the operational changes are necessary to help the Teamster-represented carriers reverse the market decline, which will help protect our members’ futures in carhaul. In addition, the changes will allow drivers to earn more money with one more trip away at the top-loaded mile rate. (see enclosed summary for more information).

“Despite the employers’ attempts at eroding the NMATA benefit structure, we fought back and prevented any takeaways and negotiated significant improvements,” said Roy Gross, Assistant Director of the Teamsters Carhaul Division. “We also changed language that will benefit our members now and in the long-term, which is something we have needed to do for years. This time, we got it done.”

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