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LABOR & EMPLOYMENT LAW — 5/30/08

Teamsters bring 11,000 UPS Freight workers into the fold

In four months, more than 11,000 UPS Freight drivers and dockworkers in 40 states have signed cards to become members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters--the largest organizing victory in the freight industry in 25 years, the union announced on May 23.

The Teamsters won a card-check agreement from UPS in December 2007, and began collecting cards from UPS Freight (formerly Overnite Transportation) workers on January 16.

More than 9,900 of the UPS Freight workers have already ratified a new contract which improves employees' wages, benefits and working conditions.

In the latest victories, workers will be joining: Local 624 in Santa Rosa, California; Local 512 in Jacksonville, Florida; Local 983 in Pocatello, Idaho and Local 483 in Boise, Idaho which includes the Twin Falls terminal; Local 279 in Decatur, Illinois; Local 568 in Shreveport, Louisiana; Local 891 in Jackson, Mississippi, and; Local 492 in Albuquerque, New Mexico which includes the Farmington and Albuquerque terminals.

A majority of UPS Freight workers in 40 states have submitted cards: Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Mexico, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.

Victories have come in numerous large cities, including Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Columbus, Dallas, Denver, Detroit, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Memphis, Minneapolis, Nashville, Oakland, Orlando, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Raleigh, Sacramento, Salt Lake City, San Diego, San Jose, St. Louis and Washington, DC.

"To have organized more than 11,000 workers in such a short amount of time continues to amaze me," said Ken Hall, director of the Teamsters package division.

"We are closer to our goal of representing 12,600 UPS Freight workers," said Teamsters general president Jim Hoffa. The union represents 1.4 million workers in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.

For more information on this and other topics, consult CCH Employment Practices Guide or CCH Labor Relations.

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