Lobbying Efforts Focus on Antitrust Legislation, Combating Corporate Greed

(WASHINGTON) – Nearly 150 Teamsters from around the U.S. ascended Capitol Hill today to meet with lawmakers and urge them to enact legislation that would rein in massive corporations like Amazon while empowering workers to join together and advocate for better wages, benefits, and working conditions. 

These Teamsters, who are in town this week to attend the union’s annual political coordinators meeting, lobbied elected officials from their states about the importance of measures like the Protect the Right to Organize (PRO) Act and antitrust reform. Such legislation ensures that hardworking Americans aren’t left struggling to support their families while corporate executives hoard huge profits. 

“Corporate control of the congressional agenda must end,” said Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien. “UPS, Amazon, the rail carriers, and many others are making historic profits while ignoring worker safety and quality of life. Lawmakers need to realize that working people put them in office, and their well-being is paramount. Passage of the PRO Act and antitrust reform are important legislative steps this country needs to take now.” 

Teamsters called on senators to vote on both the PRO Act and S. 2992, the American Innovation and Choice Online Act, co-sponsored by Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.) and Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa). The former strengthens the National Labor Relations Act so that workers seeking to organize a union and negotiate better wages and benefits will be protected. The latter bill ensures real competition exists in big tech’s consumer and labor markets. 

Teamsters met with the offices of more than 150 members of Congress from 35 states, urging elected officials to stand with workers. These bills would make it easier for workers to organize while curtailing the power and influence of multibillion dollar companies that continue to post record revenue by denying workers decent wages and a better quality of life. 

“Teamsters like me let Congress know we’re not going to sit back and continue to allow all the spoils of our hard work benefit our big bosses,” said Paul Slattery, political coordinator of Teamsters Local 120. “They know this union won’t take ‘no’ for an answer.”

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.2 million hardworking men and women in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. Visit Teamster.org to join us. Follow us on Twitter @Teamsters and like us at Facebook.com/teamsters.

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