News
History at FedEx
In mid-June, the Teamsters Union made history when it met with representatives of FedEx Freight to kick off contract negotiations for workers in the Philadelphia and Charlotte, N.C. areas. It is the first time the union sat down with a FedEx operating unit for contract talks.
The talks took place after FedEx Freight exhausted all its legal appeals in the courts and was forced to sit down with the union.
“We made it clear to the company that we are very serious about getting a first contract for the FedEx Freight workers at the East Philadelphia terminal,” said Bill Hamilton, International Vice President and President of Local 107 in Philadelphia. “The company knows we are very serious about helping our members achieve a better future.”
“We got the ball moving and the company committed to a second meeting in mid-July in Philadelphia,” said Tyson Johnson, International Vice President and Director of the Teamsters Freight Division.
Charlotte Negotiations
Local 107 discussed ground rules for bargaining and requested significant information regarding the terms and conditions of employment applicable to the employees at the East Philadelphia terminal.
A day after the Philadelphia-area meeting, Local 71 in Charlotte met with the company on behalf of the employees in its area.
“We are going to hold the company’s feet to the fire during negotiations and we are committed to negotiating a first contract for the workers in Charlotte,” said Joe Eason, President of Local 71 in Charlotte.
The company met again in late July in Charlotte.
Meanwhile, as negotiations took place in mid-June, representatives of local unions handed out fliers to FedEx Freight workers nationwide in another round of leafleting. The fliers featured information about the negotiations that were taking place with the headline, “Never is NOW! Teamsters Make History at FedEx Freight.”
XPO/Con-way Campaign
The Teamsters are conducting another major freight organizing campaign at XPO/Con-way.
In early June, Teamsters from across the country took part in a national action, handing out leaflets at XPO/Con-way terminals to coincide with actions taking place at the Ports of Los Angeles, Long Beach and locations in San Diego as XPO workers are standing united to fight for fairness on the job.
XPO is mistreating former Con-way workers who are being kept in the dark about terminal closures, subcontracting and layoffs. The company is aggressively opposing its new workforce’s federally protected right to organize.
XPO port and rail drivers in Southern California and across the nation are fighting company wage theft in excess of $200 million because they are misclassified as independent contractors and denied their federal right to form their union.
CEO Compensation
During the early June leafleting, XPO/Con-way workers were outraged to learn that company CEO Bradley Jacobs received a 481-percent raise in compensation over the past two years.
Jacobs went from making under $1 million per year to $5.8 million in total compensation per year. Jacobs is known as a buyer and seller of companies and has done similar transactions in oil, solid waste and equipment rentals.
XPO/Con-way workers are having terminals closed, are forced to stay home as their hours are cut, are seeing more and more outsourced runs, not getting overtime, have high-cost, low-coverage health care and no retirement security, while their new owner gets a 481-percent bump in pay.
The Teamsters are making history at both companies, with organizing, first-ever national days of action, nationwide engagement and interaction with the workers and the bargaining process that’s under way. The union has also filed unfair labor practices charges, is involved with federal court cases, is building nationwide activist committees, is conducting freight member organizing trainings, launching shareholder resolutions and other ongoing steps.