News
Organizing RoundUp
LOCALS 170, 523
Red Cross
Two units of Red Cross employees joined the Teamsters recently. Local 170 in Worcester, Mass. organized blood technicians and a phone recruiter in Rynham, and Local 523 in Tulsa, Okla. organized mobile blood drivers.
“We are pleased to welcome this new group of Red Cross workers,” said Shannon George, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 170.
“I voted for the Teamsters after hearing from my union-represented peers in Worcester and Springfield, and comparing wages and benefits,” said Chanel O’Brien, a Red Cross blood technician.
“I’d like to congratulate the group on seeking Teamster representation and following it through to a successful election,” said Gary Ketchum, President of Local 523. The Local 523 victory makes these the first Teamster-represented workers in Oklahoma.
LOCAL 553
Beecher’s Handmade Cheese
Workers at Beecher’s Handmade Cheese, in the Flatiron District of New York City, voted recently to join Local 553. The 24 cheesemakers, lead cheesemakers and maintenance employees will now negotiate a union contract with their employer, and hope to raise wages and improve health coverage.
“We love the work we do, but need this to be a good job too,” said Riley Peters, a cheesemaker at Beecher’s. “When you gain experience and take on new responsibilities, your wage should reflect that. That is one of the things we want to address in our union contract. We are proud that Beecher’s cheese will be union cheese going forward.”
Beecher’s workers began their campaign for a union in September, in partnership with the Teamsters. After distributing fliers and organizing with their co-workers, they signed union authorization cards and petitioned for a government supervised election. The vote was 14-6.
LOCAL 1038
GCA Services
By a unanimous vote, the custodians working for GCA Services at Albion College in Albion, Mich., voted to be represented by Local 1038. There are 24 custodians in the unit and they join the 70 clerical and facility operations workers at the college that are already represented by the local union.
“We are pleased to welcome GCA Services custodians at Albion College to our local union,” said Greg Nowak, President of Joint Council 43 and Local 1038. “Our business agent Karl Grimm worked many hours with the organizers in the unit to bring about this victory.”
“Benefits were the main reason the custodians wanted to be represented by the Teamsters. Now our next step is to sit down with the company and work on a contract,” said Karl Grimm, Secretary-Treasurer and business agent with Local 1038.
LOCAL 856
MCMEA
MCMEA, an association of public employees in Marin County, Calif., has voted to affiliate with Local 856.
The 300-person association includes county professionals in public works, health and human services, the county sheriff’s office, information technology services and more.
The affiliation agreement joins MCMEA members with Local 856, which currently represents Marin County Probation Officers, Marin County District Attorneys and over 12,000 workers throughout Northern California, including 7,000 public employees.
“We are proud to represent MCMEA members,” said Teamsters 856 Secretary-Treasurer Peter Finn. “They are joining a union with an established record of winning strong contracts for public employees.”
LOCAL 633
STA
Workers with Student Transportation of America (STA) have overwhelmingly decided to join Teamsters Local 633 in a vote conducted by the National Labor Relations Board.
“We are extremely pleased to welcome these professional bus drivers to the Teamster family,” said Jeffery Padellaro, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 633 in New Hampshire.
Teamsters Field Representative Roger Travers of Local 633 organized the group of 44 drivers under Padellaro’s direction.
Travers spent many days speaking with and addressing the needs and concerns of these newest members, which will ensure their voice is heard though collective bargaining.
Local 633 is uniquely positioned to represent bus drivers, with a staff consisting of business agents and field representatives who have been representing bus drivers for decades.