Press Releases
Striking Taiheiyo Cement Teamsters and Supporters Begin Demonstrations at Japan’s Diplomatic Offices Across the United States
Teamster Leaders Call on CalPortland’s Parent Company to Resolve Seattle Concrete Strike
(SEATTLE, WA) – Today, members of Teamsters Local 174 who have been on strike for more than three months were joined by community supporters as they demonstrated outside Japan’s General Consulate in Seattle. They called on Japan-based Taiheiyo Cement to push its U.S. subsidiary, CalPortland, to quickly resolve the ongoing concrete strike that has crippled Seattle’s construction industry.
The Teamsters held signs and banners that read, “Taiheiyo Cement and Japan: Don’t Turn Your Back on American Workers,” demanding that Taiheiyo stop CalPortland’s ongoing effort to purge union workers from the Seattle construction industry.
“CalPortland concrete workers in Seattle have been on strike for over three months to demand that the company stop violating U.S. labor law. CalPortland’s unlawful conduct has devastated Seattle’s construction industry, endangering the health of our region’s economy and leaving up to 15,000 workers without jobs,” said Rick Hicks, Secretary Treasurer of Teamsters Local 174. “CalPortland’s actions in Seattle could jeopardize Taiheiyo’s future in the United States and draw the attention of federal regulators.”
Additionally, Teamster Local Unions throughout the United States including Boston, Detroit, Los Angeles, Miami, Portland, and San Francisco will be demonstrating at Japan’s diplomatic offices in the coming days and weeks and delivering letters asking Taiheiyo Cement to open dialogue with its American workers in Seattle.
“I don’t understand Taiheiyo’s business plan for CalPortland,” said Teamsters Construction Director Marion “Bubba” Davis. “CalPortland is destroying Seattle’s $26 billion construction industry and drawing the attention of regional, state, and federal government agencies, including the Washington State Attorney General’s office, the Washington State Department of Transportation, the City of Seattle, King County, and the U.S. Department of Labor. That is difficult to understand.”
Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.4 million hardworking men and women throughout the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Visit www.teamster.org for more information. Follow us on Twitter @Teamsters and “like” us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/teamsters.
