When pressed by resident sycophant Senator Rand Paul over her endorsement of the PRO Act in Congress, Ms. Chavez-DeRemer backed off her support for the provision repealing state “Right-to-Work” laws. In response, Sean O’Brien not only doubled down on the Teamsters’ endorsement of Chavez-DeRemer but stated he’s working with Senator Josh Hawley in creating a version of the PRO Act that “may not include” repealing of “Right-to-Work.”

In the same interview, ironically on anti-worker Fox News, O’Brien stated, “That’s the beauty of having conversations with people from the other side, where you can collaborate and actually find out what works for that state, what doesn’t work for it—but more importantly, what’s going to work for the American worker.” This statement insinuates that “Right-to-Work”, a notorious union-busting tool promoted by oligarchs to maintain the open shop may work in some states.

Sean O’Brien is the poster child of the modern misleaders of labor, his hollow capitulation on “Right-to-Work” is his latest abandonment of the working class. The closed shop, something our class-oriented forebears fought—and in many cases were murdered for—should be the standard we fight for. Instead of fighting the ravages the Taft-Hartley Act of 1947 has leveled against the American labor movement Sean O’Brien is now falling in line with the capitalist bosses.

LUEL saw potential in the Teamster’s non-endorsement in last year’s presidential election as a potential shift towards independent labor political action. Unfortunately, without a strong rank-and-file movement leading the way for an independent labor party, the misleaders of labor, led by Sean O’Brien, are using any potential momentum towards further entrenching “labor-management cooperation” at a time when the capitalist class is intensifying its attacks on the working class.

The post EDITORIAL: Sean O’Brien Continues Selling Out Workers as He Embraces So-Called “Right-to-Work” appeared first on Labor Today.

In 2022, airline technicians bargained for an “Industry Reset Model” which would put UA techs at 102% of the industry standard. As such, during this bargaining period, workers were not given a raise, but an analysis is run every 12 months from December 2024 to ensure wages do not fall behind due to collective bargaining.

Teamsters gave an update in February stating that United “has no intention of reaching a fair deal that reflects the value of our hard work”. The airline presented a proposal to the negotiating committee to which the union urged its membership to vote “no” on February 12^th, 2025. Among the proposals was a subpar wage increase, removing retiree plans and switching to a cash balance, and raising the health care costs for technicians. While United did raise the moving allowance to $14,000, the negotiating committee stated that the current proposals are “concessionary and unacceptable”. Likewise, the membership had rejected an Extension Agreement in April 2024.

It appears there is no end in sight for negotiations as United continue to stall in providing airline technicians a sound contract. Unfortunately, due to the Railway Labor Act, airline workers are prohibited from striking, providing no remedy from companies that refuse to bargain in good faith.

The post Teamsters Continue Bargaining into 11th Round with United Airlines appeared first on Labor Today.

Sean O’Brien’s comments during his interview with Sen. Josh Hawley stating that “people are trying to protect illegal aliens that come here and commit crimes … and steal jobs” gives cover for the bosses to continue pitting workers against each other. Harold Daggett credited Trump with being a “true friend of the working class” after securing a tentative Master Contract in early January. Fain spent so much time at the DNC calling Trump a scab and how he will hurt workers to then support his tariff plan.

Right now is the time when unions need to be working towards independent political action, not tailing the Democrats or Republicans. O’Brien’s speech at the RNC in July 2024 was welcomed, not because Republicans are going to be a party for workers, but because it represented an opening in our ability to reach conservative workers with a class-oriented message.

The lack of an independent labor party in the United States means that inevitably there will be a rightward shift as more people pull away from the Democratic Party. Misleaders like O’Brien, Daggett, and Fein only encourage a rightward drift even more with their sloganeering about “protecting American jobs”. Fain’s comments may not have been xenophobic like O’Brien’s, but a tariff war and attack on immigrants both objectively help the bosses. The working class needs unity now the most, not more division.

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In recent years union organizing at Amazon has increased significantly, Beginning with the defeated RWDSU campaign in Bessemer, Alabama in 2021 unions have been organized at multiple facilities, the most successful of which was the JFK8 drive that culminated in the 2022 victory by the independent Amazon Labor Union in Staten Island. Though the union, which has since been affiliated with the IBT, successfully overcame a vicious, anti-union campaign and won an NLRB-sponsored election, the union has not successfully brought the company to the negotiating table. With unions organized in eight facilities in four states, the December strike was an attempt to put pressure on the company to begin negotiations.

While the strike involved less than one percent of Amazon’s US workforce it nonetheless brought significant attention to the working conditions of Amazon warehouse workers and Delivery Service Partners (DSP) in facilities across the country. Local unions affiliated with the IBT set up picket lines comprised of union activists, shop stewards, and union officers with negligible participation from inside Amazon employees, aside from the 8 facilities with formal union memberships. Even the notable JFK8 warehouse had only 201 workers participate in the strike.

The strike nevertheless mobilized a significant segment of IBT members at bargaining units such as UPS, who have a direct interest in organizing Amazon. The greatest success of this nationwide action will most certainly be the cultivation of new contacts in facilities previously unavailable to the union, with interactions between union members and inside Amazon employees the prospects of future organizing drives are greatly improved.

The post Rank-and-File Teamster Analyzes “Historic” Amazon Christmas Strike appeared first on Labor Today.

The class struggle in the U.S. is sharpening, and the WFTU extends its complete support for the just demands of the Amazon workers and encourages all its affiliates and friends to express their solidarity the strikers. Workers at Amazon all across the world are in motion, organizing against the company and its monstrous treatment of its employees. Support the Amazon Workers! Support the Amazon Strikes!

The post WFTU Solidarity Statement with Amazon Strike in U.S. appeared first on Labor Today.

That election was a response by the union’s rank and file to years of concessionary contracts negotiated by the previous administration that left the membership divided and unable to mount the fight back necessary to overcome management encroachment on their rights and standards on the job. Particularly a hated two-tier system in wages and excessive overtime, which was finally abolished in last year’s UPS contract by the incoming administration. TDU played an instrumental role in that turnaround.

The Convention heard from speakers representing UPS, DHL, and Amazon on the progress of organizing campaigns, contract enforcement, and bargaining as well as fiery speeches by General President O’Brien and the president of the Association of Flight Attendants-CWA (AFA-CWA) Sara Nelson that called for a class struggle orientation in our unions to rebuild Labor’s power.

Increased Militancy and Using Our Ability to Strike

Several speakers pointed to the more frequent exercise of our strike weapon to achieve contract gains and beat back concessionary settlements. The IBT has organized over 100 strikes within the last 2 ½ years contrasting with the previous administration’s 32 strikes over a decade. Included in those figures are the strikes that have been developing at the “nation’s sweatshop” Amazon.

Contract enforcement has been a central focus of activists at UPS seeking to implement the contract language won in last year’s contentious bargaining campaign. Indispensable to those seeking to improve shop floor conditions is the development of skills necessary to organize job actions and campaigns that involve members on the shop floor.

To this end, the Convention held over 30 different workshops on topics ranging from “Overcoming Fear at UPS”, and “Organizing Marches on the Boss” to “How to Hold a Successful Meeting” and “Reforming and Transforming Local Unions”. Workshop instructors diligently prepared highly engaged and intensive programs to share the skills acquired and expand the union’s base.

The Political Environment and the Need for a United Labor Movement

Throughout the Convention organizers strongly emphasized the necessity of maintaining and expanding unity within the labor movement and in our unions. The refrain consistently brought home by organizers was one of unity against division with a looming presidential election that threatens to split the membership of the IBT on political lines, potentially paralyzing the ability to wage effective struggles against employers.

Weeks prior to the Convention saw the new union leadership refuse to endorse any presidential candidate citing the failure of Democrats to deliver on campaign promises of necessary reforms to labor laws and the reinforcement of American workers’ organizing rights. The decision was hotly contested by many corners of the union while many others lauded the decision as a step toward independent labor politics. While no consensus was reached, many came away with a determination and commitment to unity.

The raucous speech given by AFA-CWA president Sara Nelson was a highlight of the weekend sessions. In her speech, she implored shop stewards and activists to orient themselves to a class-wide perspective and intensify our struggles against the capitalist class that is strangling labor and gutting our rights and standards, illustrating her point with numerous examples of workers doing just that today, led by women and people of color in a variety of industries.

Looking Ahead and Organizing a Pole of Class-Oriented Trade Unionism

The fights that loom in the near future will require a class-oriented approach if they hope to be successful. With that knowledge, many Convention goers understood clearly the necessity of expanding their struggles beyond individual companies and industries and the importance solidarity plays in their day-to-day fights with management.

TDU, since its founding in 1976, has sought to be a pole of rank-and-file democracy in the labor movement, being a force that has seen the accomplishment of constitutional changes, a national UPS strike in 1997, and the reversal of many concessions bargained by compromised union officials. Plans discussed by Convention attendees include the expansion of rank-and-file steward networks at the regional level, campaigns for leadership in local unions and joint councils as well as the building of solidarity with other unions engaged in struggles. It will be a fight to accomplish these tasks, but it is necessary to advance the struggles of American labor.

The post Union Militants Meet To Chart The Future Direction Of The Teamsters Union appeared first on Labor Today.

A month into their strike, there is no shortage of support from local and national politicians. Michigan Governor Gretchen Witmer, Senator Gary Peters, and Lieutenant Governor Garlin Gilch all appeared on the picket line October 6^th. Senator Bernie Sanders also appeared at the picket line saying “Marathon Petroleum’s CEO made $24 million last year. The company can afford to pay its workers a decent wage.”

“Marathon only wants to give a 3% raise, which is nowhere close to inflation in this day and age, as you know, and also, they want to take away our work. So subcontracting is a major issue with us. We need the language that protects our work and our workers to keep their jobs.”

Steve Hicks, Teamsters Local 283 President

Workers have said they are fighting for a 6% pay increase as well as language that promotes work-life balance and morale at the plant. As of October 27^th, 2024, the workers at Marathon Petroleum are still on strike.

The post Teamsters Strike at Marathon Petroleum Workers in Detroit Still Ongoing a Month Later appeared first on Labor Today.

UPS workers in the region are among the most impacted by heat illnesses and injuries due to climate change in recent years. A result of the company’s ruthless exploitation of its workforce and gross negligence regarding worker safety: this was underscored by the tragic death, in June of this year, of Braden Hasselbeck, an Oklahoma City delivery driver was found, hours after returning to his building, unresponsive at the facility.

In response to multiple worker deaths in the company’s McKinney TX facility and other incidents – including a recent crash involving a fatigued driver – Oklahoma Teamsters have mobilized to take action in solidarity with the struggles of their union, brothers and sisters in North Texas.

Though the national contract, negotiated and ratified last year after a very public and contentious contract campaign, commits UPS to replace a minimum of 28,000 delivery vehicles with air-conditioned models by the expiration of the contract, no new models have been introduced to date.

Across the country, the company has ramped up its efforts to squeeze the maximum amount of production from its workforce, intensifying production harassment, speed-up, and excessive overtime for its drivers rather than taking steps to make safety protocols more effective. Much of the heat illnesses and deaths could’ve been prevented by the introduction of the air-conditioned vehicles promised by the contract. UPS seems to prioritize its stockholders over the safety of its employees.

“UPS Teamsters across the country, including our union siblings in Texas Teamsters Local 767 are facing unbearable and dangerous heat conditions,” said Zakk Flash, a representative of Oklahoma Teamsters Local 886, “we are united in our demand that UPS take immediate action to honor the contract and protect our members’ lives” he continued.

To effectively respond and counter the aggressions of the company, Teamsters will need to develop a class-oriented approach that emphasizes solidarity and militancy. This will require a resolute left-wing within the union that is capable of putting before the membership the most effective strategies and tactics appropriate to the hazards we face.

The post Oklahoma UPS Teamsters Build Solidarity Across Two States appeared first on Labor Today.

Back in 2018, Amazon launched its DSP program and has now grown to employ over 280,000 workers, but Amazon claimed the drivers were subcontractors even though the company controlled the drivers terms and conditions of employment. This led to Amazon sidestepping federal labor laws and committing dozens of unfair labor practices (ULP) in Palmdale, California including holding captive audience meetings, threatening job loss, and intimidation.

“Amazon drivers have taken their future into their own hands and won a monumental determination that makes clear Amazon has a legal obligation to bargain with its drivers over their working conditions. This strike has paved the way for every other Amazon worker in the country to demand what they deserve and to get Amazon to the bargaining table.”

• Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien.

DSP drivers from Palmdale have been on a ULP strike since June 24, 2023 after Amazon refused to recognize the newly formed union of 84 drivers, maintaining it did not employ the drivers. The Palmdale Teamsters have grown their picket line to over 50 Amazon warehouses, including Skokie, Illinois who also launched a ULP strike in June 2024, citing low pay, dangerous working conditions and their refusal to bargain with the Teamsters. Workers in the San Bernardino, California KSBD warehouse, as well as the Hebron, Kentucky KCVG Warehouse have also gone on strike recently over unfair labor practices.

“We wear Amazon uniforms, we drive Amazon vans, and Amazon controls every minute of our day. Amazon can no longer have all the benefits of their own fleet of drivers without the responsibilities that come with it. The time has come for Amazon drivers across the country to organize with the Teamsters and demand what we deserve.”

• Brandi Diaz, Amazon driver and Teamsters Local 396 member

The NLRB’s next step will be to issue a complaint against Amazon and bring the company before an NLRB judge for trial. The Teamsters are hoping the ruling from the NLRB on the Palmdale drivers will include DSP workers nationwide.

The post New NLRB Ruling States Amazon DSP Drivers are Employees, not Contractors appeared first on Labor Today.

Teamster Canada has stated that it will lawfully comply with the CIRB decision, but it plans to appeal the ruling in federal court.

The main issues that were at the negotiation tables between the union and the two main Canadian railroad companies, Canadian National (CN) and Canadian Pacific Kansas City (CPKC), have to do with fatigue, rest, scheduling, and forced relocation. The railroad workers commonly work 80+ hour workweeks for these billion-dollar companies. The Teamsters union disagreed with CN and CPKC over scheduling, shift duration, and availability. For example, in a proposal that is opposed by the union, CN wants to negotiate an increase in work hours from 10-hour shifts to 12-hour shifts.

“This decision by the CIRB sets a dangerous precedent. It signals to Corporate Canada that large companies need only stop their operations for a few hours, inflicting short-term economic pain, and the federal government will step in to break a union. The rights of Canadian workers have been significantly diminished today,” said Paul Boucher, President of the Teamsters Canada Rail Conference.

“The Trudeau Liberals have chosen to side against middle- and working-class Canadians, abandoning their supposed progressive values at the first sign of short-term supply chain disruptions. The Teamsters have fought to protect rail safety in Canada, improve working conditions, and prevent CN from forcing workers to relocate thousands of kilometers away from their families—and we will continue to do so,” added Boucher.

The unfortunate results delivered by the CIRB remind us that here in the United States a similar conflict occurred between our railroad unions and the corporations back in 2022, which led to Congress declaring any attempt at a railroad strike action to be illegal and forced American railroad workers back to work.

Like their counterparts in the U.S., the Canadian companies used the threat of economic turmoil to coerce the Canadian government into submitting to their demands. This comes as the railroad corporations make record profits and continue the practice of stock buybacks while they refuse to acknowledge the union’s demand for a fair work schedule.

LUEL supports the Teamster’s legal battle in Canada against the decision to prevent workers from striking. The attack on workers in Canada is an attack against workers here in the US.

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