(WASHINGTON) – Yesterday, Teamsters Local 597 leaders and Senator Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) joined workers outside the Dairy Farmers of America (DFA) St. Albans Creamery in St. Albans, Vt., to condemn the idling of the facility and the company’s potential union-busting motive to do so. The press conference highlighted the impact the closure would have on Teamsters in the facility, their families, the local dairy economy, and the broader St. Albans community.

“Dairy farmers in the St. Albans area are already facing enormous pressure from rising costs, volatile milk prices, and an increasingly concentrated dairy industry,” said Curtis Clough, President of Local 597. “Idling this creamery would only make those challenges worse by disrupting a facility that local farmers, workers, and families have relied on for generations. DFA owes this community a full explanation because when a plant like this is put at risk, it is not just Teamsters jobs on the line — it is the future of family farms and the economic stability of St. Albans and the entire region.”

“The St. Albans Dairy Farmers of America plant has been an important part of Vermont’s dairy economy and a critical source of decent-paying jobs for more than 100 years,” Sen. Sanders said. “The decision by Dairy Farmers of America to close this plant appears to be nothing more than illegal union busting. I stand with the Teamsters in calling on DFA to reverse this decision and keep this vital plant open.”

During the press conference, Sen. Sanders and members from Local 597 called on DFA to provide a full public explanation for the idling decision and urged the dairy giant to engage with workers and the community directly. The Teamsters Union will continue to stand up for its members and explore all available avenues to protect jobs and workers’ rights.

“Our families made sacrifices while we stood in the rain on strike so we could put food on the table and win a fair contract,” said Ted Westover, a warehouse worker at St. Albans and steward with Local 597. “Now our jobs are on the line because it seems a multimillion-dollar business got their feelings hurt. It’s hard not to see the timing for what it is. This looks like classic union busting.”

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents over 1.3 million hardworking people in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. Visit Teamster.org for more information. Follow us on X @Teamsters and on Facebook at Facebook.com/teamsters.

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