Chicago IL – En una decisión sorprendiente, integrantes del local número 743 del Sindicato de Camioneros (Teamsters) votaron a favor de una planilla de delegados de tendencia democrática de la base a la convención de su sindicato, rechazando a otra planilla dominada por funcionarios y por títeres del presidente nacional de la unión Jimmy Hoffa Jr. La convención internacional del sindicato establece las posiciones políticas del organismo y nomina los candidatos para la presidencia internacional y la Junta Ejecutiva del mismo.

Los integrantes de la tendencia democrática de base se auto-demoninaron “La Planilla de Liderato Nuevo” (New Leadership Slate) y se opusieron a unos vendidos que se llaman Planilla Restauración de Hoffa (Hoffa Take-Back Slate).

Los actuales miembros pro-Hoffa de la Junta Ejecutiva pro-Hoffa del local 743 tiene la fama de hacer pactos vendidos con los patrones, de debilitar a los contratos, pagarse a ellos mismos tremendos sueldos con las cuotas de los trabajadores, y por ser amigos carnales del Sr. Hoffa, quien no ha hecho absolutamente nada para los miembros.

Un descontento amargo ha estado creciendo durante muchos años en la base, sobretodo entre los miembros afroamericanos y latinos que constituyen la mayoría de la membracía del sindicato. Tanto la gerencia como el mismo sindicato dan la espalda a los miembros que no hablan inglés. En muchos sitios de trabajo, la única presencia del sindicato ha consistido del hecho que les quitan la cuota del cheque de salario. La necesidad de un verdadero sindicato que lucha por sus miembros fue la base de la victoria de la planilla “Liderato Nuevo”.

“Hemos formado la Planilla Liderato Nuevo porque sabemos que solo los miembros pueden remediar la situación de este sindicato” dijo Richard Berg, un delegado del sindicato en los Hospitales de la Universidad de Chicago. “Y ahora hemos comprobado que los miembros podemos retar a las personas que están en poder, y que podemos ganar”. Berg es uno de los delegados que acaban de ser eligidos.

Los Hospitales de La Universidad de Chicago intentaron despedir a Berg por medio de cargos falsos en el medio de la campaña. Las protestas que surgieron en una forma inmediata por parte de sus compañeros del sindicato le restauraron su trabajo. Esto también hizo claro a todo el mundo que la gerencia ha estado trabajando mano a mano con las fuerzas corruptas que existen en el sindicato.

La Planilla de Liderato Nuevo ganó 11 de los 20 puestos de delegado del local, y 13 de los 20 puestos de alternados. Esta delegación piensa ir a la convención en Filadelfia para luchar para el derecho de cada miembro de eligir a sus propios delegados en el sitio de trabajo, de permitir que todos los miembros inspeccionen a cualquier cambio en el contrato antes de ratificarlo, y de limitar los salarios de los funcionarios del sindicato. El actual presidente del local 743 gana un sueldote de $190,000, pagado por los miembros del sindicato por supuesto.

Este otoño, los miembros del local 743 votarán de nuevo. Habrán dos elecciones importantes. También van a estar votando a favor de candidatos que van a controlar al local del sindicato y quien va a controlar al sindicato al nivel internacional.

La Planilla de Liderato Nuevo estará apoyando a la planilla de Tom Leedham “Poder a la Base” en la convención y en las elecciones en el otoño.

La elección de oficiales del local 743 está conmoviendo al movimiento sindical en Chicago. En el Local 743, miembros han mostrado que son capaces de retar a la vieja guardia de los teamsters. Control democrático de este local de 14,000 miembros será una victoria para todos los trabajadores.

#ChicagoIL #News #Teamsters #TomLeedham #TeamstersLocal743 #RichardBerg #UniversityOfChicagoHospitals #PlanillaDeLiderazgoNuevo

Chicago, IL – In a stunning upset, members of Teamsters Local 743 voted to send a rank and file slate of delegates to their convention; rejecting the slate dominated by officers, staff and stooges for International President Jimmy Hoffa Jr. The Teamsters International Convention sets policy for the union, and nominates candidates for International Union President and the Executive Board. Conventions are held only once every 5 years.

The Chicago Teamsters called themselves the 743 New Leadership Slate and ran against the sell-out leadership that called itself the Hoffa Take Back slate.

The current pro-Hoffa Local 743 executive board has gained a reputation for making deals with management, gutting union contracts, paying themselves big salaries with members' dues money and being buddies to current Teamsters International President Jimmy Hoffa Jr. Hoffa Jr. has done nothing for Local 743 members.

Bitter discontent among members has been growing for years, especially among Latino and African American members, who are the vast majority of the Local's membership. Members who don't speak English have been ignored and abused by both the employers and the union. In many shops, the only union presence has been the dues deducted from workers' paychecks. The need for a real union that fights for its members has been growing and is what propelled the New Leadership Slate to victory.

“We formed the New Leadership Slate because we knew only the members could turn this union around,” said University of Chicago Hospitals (U.C.H.) union steward Richard Berg, “and now we've proven that members can challenge the people in power and win.” Berg is one of the newly elected delegates.

U.C.H. tried to terminate Berg on bogus charges in the middle of the campaign. Immediate protests by fellow Teamsters got Berg his job back. It also made it clear to everyone that management and the corrupt union forces were working together.

The 743 New Leadership Slate delegation has 11 of the Local's 20 delegates and 13 of the 20 alternates. The delegation plans to go to the Teamsters convention and fight for the right of every member to elect their own union stewards, to allow all members to see accurate contract changes in writing before voting on them, and to limit the salaries of union officials. Local 743 President Chester Glanton pays himself $190,000 a year from members' dues money.

This fall, members of Local 743 will be voting again. There will be two important elections. They will be voting for who will control their Local Union and on who will control their International Union.

The 743 New Leadership Slate will be supporting the Tom Leedham Rank and File Power slate at the convention and again in the fall elections.

The Local 743 officers' election has the Labor movement in Chicago stirring. In Local 743, union members have shown they are capable of challenging these old-guard Teamsters. Rank and File control of this important 14,000 member local would be a victory for all workers.

#ChicagoIL #News #Teamsters #TomLeedham #TeamstersLocal743 #NewLeadershipSlate #UniversityOfChicagoHospitals

Leedham relied an a network of activists led by Teamsters for a Democratic Union. “These activists are the future of this union,” said Richard Berg, Central Region Vice Presidential Candidate on the Tom Leedham Slate, “without them there is no union. They have the vision to fight for something better and not just accept the crumbs that the boss throws us.”

Hoffa successfully strong-armed virtually all the union officers to support him. The Leedham campaign contrasted this by reaching out to new activists. “They woke me up,” said Local 743 member Larry Davis, “I’ve been a Teamster for more than 30 years and now I realize that only we, the rank-and-file members can make this union great again. Worker involvement – two words, but two powerful words – that is the only way forward for our union.”

Davis is an example of what needs to happen throughout the labor movement. After the national teamster election he ran and won a spot on the union contract negotiating committee at his workplace. He got together with his coworkers at the Central States Pension Fund and demanded union steward elections. The elections swept out some old- guard dealmakers and brought new life to the union at his workplace.

“Now we go back to doing what we do best,” said TDU International Steering Committee member Joe Sexauer, “We organize our coworkers to fight for better contracts. We demand dignity and respect on the job. We fight corruption in our union. When union officials don’t stand up for the members like they should we get in their face.”

The Teamsters union faces many challenges. They are in contract negotiations with their largest employer, United Parcel Service (UPS). UPS has just added a huge nonunion freight division that threatens Teamster job security and weakens Teamster power in its core industry. Teamsters need to organize the nonunion competition in freight, at DHL and FEDEX, as well as in health care, education and every Teamster industry.

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At the October convention of Teamsters for a Democratic Union (TDU) Leedham said that because the Teamsters haul this country’s freight, “We are situated at the chokepoints of the U.S. economy.” Leedham urged that we use this power to turn around the Teamsters. As he stated, “We can change the labor movement. We can make history.”

Hoffa’s famous name gave him an initial advantage, but his record of failure tempered this. Hoffa failed to negotiate sufficient employer contributions for UPS, the major trucking companies and other employers to maintain current Teamster benefits. But then he lied to members, telling them that he had done the job. In the case of UPS he had the nerve to call it the, “best contract ever.”

Hoffa is also responsible for the largest dues increase in Teamster history. He claimed that he was going to use the money to increase Teamster power, but the facts indicate otherwise. A TDU study shows that Hoffa and key allies each pay themselves over a quarter million dollars a year. When Hoffa first took office, 16 Teamster officials paid themselves with multiple salaries. Now, 150 Teamster officials receive multiple salaries.

The race is shaping up to be a battle between old-guard officials and rank-and-file reformers. Hoffa’s threat of International intervention into local unions, along with the carrot of buying off local officials with Teamster dues money, has successfully cowed the vast majority of local union officials. But many rank-and-file workers, led by TDU, are seeing through this.

“We are sick of the corruption; our officials take our money and do nothing. We need to take control of our union before it’s too late, before we become just a company union. That is why I got involved in the Tom Leedham campaign and TDU,” said Chicago Teamster Joe Sexauer.

No matter who wins this election, the battle between rank-and-file reformers and old-guard officials will continue on the local level as corrupt officials try to protect their lifestyle and workers try to build a fighting union. The struggle goes on.

#ChicagoIL #News #Teamsters #TDU #TomLeedham

Fight Back!: Why does Hoffa have to go?

Richard Berg: Teamsters originally supported Hoffa, Jr. because they associated his name with strength. Teamsters across the country know that the bosses are not respecting us. They are beating down workers while our standard of living falls.

When Hoffa ran for office he promised to not raise union dues, to end corruption and improve the Teamster pension plans. He has failed on all three promises.

First, shortly after the election in 2001 he held a special convention and instituted the largest dues increase in Teamster history. He has not used this money to restore Teamster power as promised. Instead we have witnessed a steady rise in salaries and special perks for Teamster officials.

Secondly, Hoffa hired former federal prosecutor Edward Steir to investigate and rid the Teamsters of organized crime influences. This was supposed to set the stage to end government oversight of the Teamsters. Instead, when Steir found evidence of corruption and mob ties in Chicago, Hoffa ordered him to not pursue his investigation of Hoffa allies. Steir and his entire staff resigned in protest. Hoffa no longer talks about how he will rid the Teamsters of corruption.

Finally, after negotiating insufficient employer contributions to maintain current benefit levels in Teamster pension funds with United Parcel Service (UPS), Hoffa declared that he had negotiated the best contract ever. The same was repeated with truck drivers in the master freight agreement. Now, as the Teamsters Central States Pension Fund and other Teamsters funds make major benefit cuts, it is apparent that Hoffa lied to us.

Fight Back!: Why is the Tom Leedham Slate such an improvement over Hoffa?

Berg: The Tom Leedham Strong Contracts, Good Pensions slate understands that we need a fighting union again. We understand that our power comes from the rank-and-file workers and not a famous name. The bosses from UPS to University of Chicago Hospitals, where I work, are interested increased profits, not improving the lot of their workers.

The Tom Leedham slate is committed to using the resources of the union to fight to improve the condition of all workers. Instead of raising officers’ salaries, we will use that money to organized new members in core industries. We will use that money to research Teamster companies and organize the rank and file to fight for better wages and working conditions.

The famous abolitionist Frederick Douglas told us that, “Power concedes nothing without a demand.” We have learned this lesson in the Teamsters as well. The Tom Leedham slate is committed to build a fighting Teamsters union that is up to the challenges of the most hardnosed employers.

Fight Back!: How are working Teamsters reacting to your campaign?

Berg: I have traveled extensively and the response has been wonderful. Teamsters know that Hoffa lied to them. They want to hear what we have to say. They listen, they ask questions and they respond positively. The Leedham slate has a plan to get us out of the hole that Hoffa put us in. When working Teamsters hear it, they approve. Teamsters can see that our plan could lead not only to a new Teamsters union, but a new and stronger labor movement.

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Las Vegas, NV – Richard Berg, a long-time leader in the Teamster reform movement in Chicago, was assaulted at the International Convention in Las Vegas, Nevada.

On Tuesday, June 27, Berg was nominated for vice president for the central region with the Tom Leedham slate. Leedham is Jimmy Hoffa’s opponent for president.

After his nomination, Berg was punched in the mouth by Richard Lopez, recording secretary of Local 743. Lopez is the head of the official delegation from Local 743. The 743 delegation tried unsuccessfully to block Berg’s nomination.

The assault occurred one hour after the announcement that Berg had survived the challenge and would be the candidate for vice president for the Central States region.

Berg was coming out of a Leedham meeting when Lopez and his group came down the corridor. Lopez started shouting insults at Berg and then struck him in front of witnesses.

Berg has filed battery charges against Lopez. The election supervisor stated that the Las Vegas police have a warrant out to arrest Lopez. Lopez hasn’t been seen at the convention since the attack.

Tom Leedham – Strong Pensions, Good Contracts Slate

Leedham, the leader of the reform movement, has come up with an aggressive local autonomy plan that gives more power to the rank and file as well as local officers. Leedham argues that the local unions know what’s happening on the ground. This attempt to revitalize democracy within the Teamsters may get some local officers’ support but it has been bitterly opposed by Hoffa and his top-down ‘Change to Win’ cronies.

Leedham also proposed to cap the salary of the International President at $200,000 a year and allow no other officer to make more. Hoffa did not even allow discussion on this issue. The ‘Strong Pensions, Good Contracts’ slate proposal for accountability of the union pension funds was similarly shot down.

But the attack by Lopez is the first time that Hoffa’s allies have turned to violence. Lopez is likely infuriated because he is facing charges filed by the Labor Board for having stolen the Local 743 officer elections in October 2004 from Richard Berg’s slate. As a result of this, Lopez and the other officers of Local 743 are under investigation by the U.S. attorney.

Speaking from the convention hotel, Berg had this to say about the desperate attempt by Lopez. “He knows that honest Teamster leadership will put an end to the gross corruption that now exists in 743.”

#LasVegasNV #News #Teamsters #TomLeedham #RichardBerg #JimmyHoffa

He spent large sums of money to try to prevent reformer Tom Leedham from being nominated to run against him. This plan failed. Instead of a coronation there will be an election. Leedham has announced that he has enough delegates to nominate him at the Teamster convention at the end of June. With mainly rank-and-file volunteers, Leedham won delegates in the majority races that he contested.

“The workers are sick of Hoffa’s broken promises and lies,” said Chicago Local 705 delegate Craig Karnia, “I work at UPS and I know that PR alone won’t do the trick. If we are going to take on UPS, we need a strong rank-and-file movement. We need to elect Tom Leedham.”

Some Leedham delegate candidates were not successful. In Chicago’s Local 743 Leedham delegates lost a close race amidst widespread irregularities. “This election was a joke,” said 743 New Leadership Slate candidate Richard Berg, “The officials lie, they cheat and they steal, and we still fought them to a tie or at least close to a tie.”

A lawsuit has been brought against Local 743 by the U.S. Department of Labor for stealing the last Local 743 officers’ election. “This suit is still in federal court,” said Richard Berg, “yet these criminals are still able to run the delegate election.” Local 743 failed to send over 15% of the members a ballot. Charges have been filed by the 743 New Leadership Slate.

“These little tricks won’t work,” said Berg, “the workers want change. They are going to vote for Tom Leedham and his entire slate because they are sick of ‘let’s make a deal.’ They want a union that will fight for them. Leedham understands this.”

Tom Leedham and his slate will face off against Jimmy Hoffa this fall. The 743 New Leadership Slate lawsuit is likely to be resolved some time before the end of the year. Besides campaigning for Leedham, 743 New Leadership Slate members are trying to raise money to cover their legal fees.

If you would like to help the 743 New Leadership Slate you can contribute to their legal defense fund by going to their website www.743newleadership.org. Or make a check out to the Chicago Labor Support Committee and send it to PO Box 805104, Chicago, IL 60680.

#UnitedStates #News #Teamsters #TomLeedham #NewLeadershipSlate #JimmyHoffa

Recently the powerful reform caucus Teamsters for a Democratic Union (TDU) endorsed Tom Leedham for International president. Leedham came out of the gate quickly, leading many to believe that he may upset the media-savvy Hoffa. “The press love the ‘son of a dead mobster’ story,” said TDUer Maria Trevino, “But the truth is that he has done nothing but raise our union dues and the salaries of top officials. Leedham will win, because the working Teamsters know that it is time for a change.”

Leedham surprised many when his supporters swept an early election of delegates to the Teamsters convention in the huge Louisville, Tennessee local that includes the United Parcel Service’s air hub. TDU compared it to “winning the New Hampshire primary,” when Louisville’s Local 89 went for Leedham. Local 89 is the fourth largest local in the Teamsters and, as Fight Back! goes to press, the largest to hold a delegate election.

Delegate elections will continue in Teamster local unions across the country until the end of April. These delegates will then attend the Teamster convention this summer, which will nominate international officers, including president. “These elections are crucial,” said past convention delegate Richard Berg. “If you don’t get enough delegates, you don’t get nominated.”

Tom Leedham is preferred by many Teamsters because of his strong background. Unlike Hoffa, he joined the Teamsters as a rank-and-file worker, when he got a job at a grocery warehouse in Portland, Oregon. Leedham led the reform movement in his Local 206, to which he was eventually elected president. He is known for fighting concessions and negotiating industry-leading contracts. Leedham renegotiated retiree health benefits that his old-guard predecessor had given away.

Leedham was eventually elected International vice president on the Ron Carey Slate. Carey appointed Leedham to run the warehouse division where he negotiated agreements that substantially raised the wages and benefits for warehouse workers, especially in the grocery industry. These higher wages became the industry standard.

Leedham’s slate is called the ‘Strong Contract, Good Pensions Slate.’ His track record in his local and as International vice president indicate that his success in these areas is based on his reliance on rank-and-file mobilizations. “It is not surprising that rank-and-file activists are drawn to Tom Leedham,” said Chicago rank-and-file IBT leader Richard Berg. “He is one of us, he knows that a strong union means a strong, educated rank-and-file movement.”

In contrast, Hoffa and his gang cut pension benefits and raised union dues without a membership vote. “The Hoffa name means cronyism and corruption,” said Minnesota Teamster David Skeie. “It’s time for the deal making to end. It’s time for real Teamster leadership.”

The current delegate elections and summer convention will be followed by a mailed ballot vote in the fall. All Teamsters (in the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico, etc.) will be allowed to vote.

#ChicagoIL #News #Teamsters #TomLeedham #HoffaJr #RichardBerg #theMob

Leedham is the Teamster reform movement's candidate for General President. The reform movement, lead by Teamster for a Democratic Union (TDU), is looking to energize rank-and-file Teamsters to overthrow the current corrupt leadership.

“The Teamsters belongs to the members. We can't allow union officials that only care about their big salaries and personal power to dominate our union,” Leedham told Adelante (TDU's Spanish language newspaper), “By standing together, we can win better contracts for the members and a better future for our families.”

Teamster activists recently finished a petition drive in support of Tom Leedham and his Rank & File Power Slate. 35,000 signatures were needed to give the reform slate official recognition. Leedham supporters collected over 60,000 signatures. This accomplishment allows Leedham free space in the October issue of Teamster Magazine, which is mailed to all Teamsters.

The incumbent slate, headed by the infamous Jimmy Hoffa Jr., was found guilty of using resources paid for with union members' dues money. “This sort of corruption is common with these old-guard officials,” said Chicago Local 743 activist Maimi Burrell, “they think nothing of rigging an election for steward, delegate or local officers. In this case they cheated on gathering signatures. They are crooked, and that's why we are going to get rid of them.”

The Election Administrator for the International Brotherhood of the Teamsters ruled that Hoffa would have to start his petition drive over.

The next important battleground will be the election of delegates to the union's International Convention to be held in June 2001. At the convention, candidates will be nominated. Then the race is on, with the final vote in the fall of 2001.

“Are you with the workers, or are you with the bosses? The difference between us and them is that striking,” said Chicago Leedham supporter Richard Berg, “2001 will be a big year for us in the Teamsters. We need to work hard now to put this great union in the hands of the workers.”

Many reformers will be attending the TDU convention November 3-5 in Cleveland, Ohio.

For more information contact TDU: (313) 842-2600

#ChicagoIL #News #Teamsters #TDU #TomLeedham #TeamstersLocal743 #TonyCaldera

With rank and file power and very little money, Tom Leedham pulled close in the final months of the campaign, but time ran out. Junior Hoffa campaigned for 4 years, had the famous family name and 6 million dollars. Leedham was unknown to most members and entered the race only last spring. He beat Hoffa Jr., in Minnesota.

Junior Hoffa won largely because of the support of old-guard, hack union leaders, many of them earning over $100,000 per year. They have far more in common with the bosses than the members.

Hoffa is a millionaire lawyer who has never held an elected office or a real job, he does not know how to fight even if he wanted to. Much of his vote totals came from lop-sided turnouts in large locals where his cronies were able to mobilize paid union staff to turn out votes for him.

Tom Leedham's campaign suffered a couple of major hits. First, Leedham was abandoned by so-called allies in the Teamster reform movement. Many officials who were the first to suck up to Ron Carey and the reform movement when it was in power, showed their true colors when the chips where down and refused to lift a finger for the Leedham campaign. For example, Sue Maurn and the other misleaders of Minnesota's Local 320.

On top of that, many Teamsters who voted for Carey just did not vote this time, apparently disgusted with the whole process. Overall, nearly one million ballots were never sent in.

The loss points to the need for the reform movement to get back to the basics of organizing to build the grassroots movement that it will take to truly reform the Teamsters union.

Much of Hoffa Junior's campaign beat the drum for unity and pride. His record shows that these cliches will mean little more than repressing the call from union members who are fighting to the end against the entrenched business unionism that has suffocated the Teamsters for decades now.

It will be key to watch how Junior relates to the AFL-CIO leadership, many of whom supported Ron Carey in the 1996 election. Hoffa's conservative influence will likely hold back the changes that AFL-CIO leader, John Sweeney, has promoted to move the labor movement in a more progressive direction.

Leedham and TDU have pledged to hold Junior Hoffa's feet to the fire, forcing him to live up to campaign promises to fight for good contracts, promote a militant Teamsters union, and preserve union democracy. Teamster reformers have been very successful in pushing Hoffa to talk the reform talk. He has even promised to cut the salaries of his lackeys. Now all Teamsters can push Hoffa Junior to walk the walk.

The results of this election deliver one clear message: the tasks of the reform movement in the Teamsters are more important than ever. The lesson of this election is that only a large, active, well-organized reform movement can defeat old-guard Teamsters and rebuild a strong, democratic and militant Teamsters union. The fight goes on

#UnitedStates #News #Teamsters #Hoffa #TDU #TomLeedham

There are only 2 slates of candidates running and the difference between them is great. The difference is basically between a member-driven, fight-for-workers kind of union or the kind of union where leaders just get rich off of members' dues and cozy up to management.

Tom Leedham is running for president and is heading up the progressive, rank-and-file slate. Leedham has made it very clear why he's running for president: he wants to involve and move members to action to win better contracts, stop giving union money to politicians, organize the unorganized, defend union democracy and limit the salaries of union officers.

In the working people's struggle to build good, strong organizations in the U.S., a victory for the Leedham slate would be a historical event. The Leedham slate stands to be the most representative group of union leaders in U.S. history. It would include the most people of color and women in top union leadership ever.

The other slate is led by Jimmy Hoffa, Jr., a millionaire lawyer who has never had a job like you and me but is riding on the legend of his father and the idea that a blow-hard like himself, no matter how corrupt and lazy he may be, will somehow “take care of the members.”

Hoffa has appeal to those who don't understand that power comes from a united, organized and mobilized membership and who believe there is an easy way to win better pay, benefits and rights on the job without members being active and leading the union's agenda.

As this paper goes to print, Teamster members are expected to start getting their ballots in the mail on November 3rd. Counting of the ballots is planned for December 3rd.

Kathy Kleckner is Former President of AFSCME Local 3800, University of Minnesota Clerical Workers.

#UnitedStates #News #Teamsters #TomLeedham #HoffaJr

Hoffa made this proposal through a hand-picked “blue ribbon committee” right after he was elected to a five-year term. Before the election, the hypocrite Hoffa Jr. accused his opponents inside the union of wanting to increase dues. He campaigned on a pledge to hold dues down. In his first two elections, he went so far as to name his electoral slate the “Hoffa No Dues Increase Slate.”

Hoffa's lies came as no surprise to the reform movement within the Teamsters. At the 2001 Teamsters convention, the reform candidate for International President, Tom Leedham, told Hoffa from the floor, “Be honest with the members. You have a secret plan. If you are lucky enough to win this election, your secret plan is to convene another convention and raise dues.”

As he was making those charges, Leedham was shoved away from the microphone by pro-Hoffa Jr. thugs. Now it is evident that Leedham and the reform movement were right when they charged that Hoffa was lying to working Teamsters.

The reform movement, led by Teamsters for a Democratic Union (T.D.U.), is demanding no dues increase without a vote of the members. They have launched a petition drive and are coordinating the national campaign.

As Leedham predicted, Hoffa Jr. is calling a special convention in Las Vegas to vote for the dues increase. While there will be some reform rank-and-file delegates there, the convention will be dominated by union bureaucrats. The special convention is to be held in conjunction with two golf tournaments where Teamster officials will be golfing with Teamster employers.

“The biggest problem is the gross waste of the money that they are getting now,” said reform delegate Richard Berg. Berg, a union steward and housekeeper at the University of Chicago Hospitals, pointed out, “Over 200 union officers currently make over $100,000 a year. That's our money, and now they want more.”

Berg continued, “In the 1990's the reform movement forced old-guard Teamster officials to sell their private airplanes and give up the most blatant perks. Now these fat cats want them all back. At the last convention in 2001, they increased their daily meal allowance to $75 a day. They want us, working Teamsters, to pay for their corruption.”

#UnitedStates #News #Teamsters #TDU #TomLeedham #HoffaJr #duesIncrease

This year's convention focused on the election of top, international officers of the union. TDU had endorsed the Tom Leedham Rank and File Power Slate, and nearly the whole Rank and File Power Slate was there. Convention participants talked about getting Leedham elected, how to move more Teamsters to vote, measured up the forces of the opposing candidate, Jimmy Hoffa, Jr., and exchanged views about why this election is important.

The highlight of the convention was a speech by Tom Leedham, expressing the principles of TDU and the differences between his slate and Hoffa's: “We believe in bringing out the best in people. They appeal to the worst... We spend our time with other members in union halls and breakrooms and on picket lines. They're most comfortable on a golf course with management. We believe that democracy is the way to prevent corruption and weak leadership. They believe that the union belongs to the top officers and that membership involvement is a threat to their comfortable lifestyles.”

TDU supported the previous Teamsters president, Ron Carey, but many criticize Carey for not going far enough to eliminate do-nothing, old-guard leaders. The whole convention stood and cheered when Leedham said, “I want to make it plain as day. When we win this election, we're dropping the curtain on the old guard. Local union officers will either stand with the rank and file or we'll run them out!”

Kathy Kleckner is former president of AFSCME Local 3800.

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