400 Teamsters, SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists), WGA (Writers Guild of America), SEIU, CWA, and UTLA (United Teachers of Los Angeles) members gathered at the hub, shutting down traffic at the intersections of Blaine and Olympic. A semi-truck branded with Teamsters logos served as a stage, and a giant inflatable cat that represents UPS corporate greed was on the scene.

Sean O’Brien, the general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, addressed the crowd, saying, “Buckle up!” and, “Do as we do in Boston: if you see a picket line, don’t cross it!”

Jared Hamil, a driver and union steward for Teamsters Local 396 spoke about the long hours UPS drivers had to work during the COVID-19 pandemic when they were delivering everything, including vaccines. “We didn’t get time to rest and more importantly, we didn’t get time to spend with our families. And for me, I have a toddler at home. I didn’t get to see her the first year of her life. Meanwhile, this company padded their pockets, they made record profits. So I’m here to say enough is enough! I’m here with my sisters and brothers and we’re standing strong in this fight!”

Hannibal Aguilar, another driver and union steward, spoke about the dangerous working conditions at UPS that put workers at risk of dehydration and heat stroke. He said, “UPS tells us to work safely yet they put profits first, pushing our bodies to the limit until they break down.” He ended with, “If we don’t get what we want by July 31, we’re gonna shut it down!”

Part-time employees make up around 65% of the UPS workforce but are paid a fraction of what full-timers are. Most UPS workers struggle to make ends meet.

Jennifer Bekenstein, part-time UPS worker and union steward for Teamsters Local 396, spoke about working hard in hot, sweaty facilities, lifting heavy boxes and dealing with management harassment every day. “We come in the middle of the night and work hard every day, all so that UPS can make billions of dollars in profits every year,” Bekenstein said, “We may be part-time UPS workers, but we are full-time Teamsters, and we are ready to fight for the contract that we deserve!”

“It was a great turnout for today's rally,” said Ricardo Contreras, Teamsters 396 union steward at the Olympic hub. “We’ve shown the company that we want a fair contract for all UPS Teamsters and that we are not fucking around.”

Teamsters are poised to strike in less than 12 days, unless a satisfactory deal is reached. Within hours of the rally, it was announced that negotiations would resume for next week. After weeks of practice picketing and the threat of a strike, the 340,000 Teamsters are aiming to win a strong contract. It remains to be seen what UPS may offer at the bargaining table, but one thing is for sure – the Teamsters will give them a real fight if UPS management doesn’t bring a proposal to that significantly addresses the issue of part-time pay.

#LosAngelesCA #Teamsters #UPS #picket #LA

Jacksonville, FL – 40 members of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) rallied near the Jacksonville United Parcel Service Hub on the morning of July 12. Officials from IBT Local 512 called for members to hold a “practice picket” like others held around the country. These practice pickets are part of the overall Teamster campaign to win a good national contract at UPS. Teamsters around the country are prepared to go on strike come August 1 if their demands for higher wages and better working conditions in the new contract are not met by the company.

Teamsters marched near the UPS Hub chanting, “Who are we? Teamsters!” A local television news station covered the event favorably. UPS Teamsters who participated in the practice picket mirrored the overall sentiment of UPS workers around the country – that the time for concessionary contracts is behind us and this contract needs to have big wins for workers.

A full-time UPS driver, Q Walker said, “This company has made billions off of the backs of my Teamsters brothers and sisters. It’s time for them to pay up!”

Solidarity between all those who work for UPS was a big theme at the practice picket. The company wants to divide workers based on different job classifications, but Teamsters are going to hold the line and demand a contract that benefits all hourly employees. Solidarity is one of the best weapons the working class has in their fight against greedy corporations.

Sean O’Brien and Fred Zuckerman are two of the many militant leaders of the IBT. They were elected in 2021 to lead the union as a whole. Now they must deliver on their promises to organize and win big at UPS, and to end the weakening and decline of the Teamsters Union.

Adam Gerardo is a part time UPS worker. He said, “Teamsters are ready to strike because we refuse to settle in our fight for a fair contract. We demand respect, better working conditions, and improved wages. Solidarity between full-timers and part-timers is crucial in this battle. We must stand together side by side to win the contract we deserve.”

A good contract at UPS between the company and the Teamsters will mean a huge win for the working class. The company does not have much time left on the clock to offer solutions before Teamsters begin what will be the largest single-employer strike in American history.

A second Local 512 practice picket is scheduled for Tuesday, July 18 at 8 a.m. for the newer Baymeadows UPS facility near the Southside of Jacksonville.

#JacksonvilleFL #Teamsters #UPS #picket

Milwaukee, WI – On July 6, Local 344 Teamsters held practice pickets at the Elm Grove UPS location to gear up for the potential nationwide strike in August.

Just the day before, Teamster leadership announced that, after over 24 hours of negotiating, no agreement had been reached. UPS walked away from the table at 4 a.m. on July 5, continuing to rob membership, especially part-time workers, of a decent economic proposal. There were no further negotiation dates scheduled.

This news was relayed to the members at the practice pickets and the importance of being out on the picket line was heavily stressed.

“We are the tip of the spear, and we need to win all that can be won, not just for us but for future generations,” stated Kevin Schwerdtfeger, a Local 344 business agent and representative for the Elm Grove building.

Teamsters held signs with demands such as “Just practicing for a just contract” and calling for recognition of Juneteenth as a holiday.

Teamsters picketed by the road, shouting chants such as “Who are we? Teamsters!” and “UPS! Pay up!” One member had even brought a giant blue custom-made Teamsters flag, flying in the wind, while cars on the road honked in solidarity.

Two practice pickets were conducted – one at 8 a.m. for the drivers and preloaders, and another at 4:30 p.m. for the twilight shift. Combined, over 100 workers attended. Most were drivers and part-timers, wearing their uniforms and sporting red and gold “Pay up” t-shirts. A decent number of members from other unions and community members were there to show solidarity.

Jason Sanchez, a former part-timer and now driver of four years, stated, “I’m excited for a new contract and I’m excited to get our part-timers what they deserve.”

Local 344 is a statewide local, and in addition to Elm Grove, around 12 other buildings held practice pickets over the last week to show the company that members are taking the possibility of a strike seriously.

Dave Burgdorf, a 37-year Teamster, remarked in comparison to the ’97 strike, “This strike is so much bigger because we have a lot more employees now than we did back then. Corporations always want to take things away from the working class. Pensions, healthcare. It’s so important to get a good contract that sets the bar.”

He continued, “It’s time to tell corporations that it’s time to give back to the workers. CEO pay compared to hourly workers’ have exploded in the last 20 years. It’s the workers that make the huge profits for the corporations. This is a watershed moment for workers in the entire world and we’re not going to back down.”

Only 23 days remain before the Teamster contract at UPS expires. Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien continues to make it clear that if a contract is not voted in by that time, UPS Teamsters nationwide will be going on strike for the first time in 26 years. President O’Brien wants to see higher wages and more full-time opportunities for the 70% of UPS workers who are part time.

#MilwaukeeWI #Teamsters #UPS #picket #Strikes

Milwaukee, WI – Pickets were held outside of two local Walmart stores, Nov. 29, in support of workers who walked out demanding a living wage. Dozens of union members, Walmart employees, students, and community members marched in front of Walmart on 27th Street on Milwaukee's South Side chanting, “They say rollback, we say fight back!”

A tow truck, a police van, multiple police cruisers and private security vehicles roamed the Walmart parking lot waiting to tow protesters’ vehicles. But out on the street, protesters received a flurry of honks in support from the Black Friday shopping traffic.

The actions in Milwaukee were part of a national day of walkouts organized by worker group OUR Walmart. According to OUR Walmart, about 1500 actions were scheduled for this Black Friday.

#MilwaukeeWI #LivingWage #picket #workersRights #WalmartStrike #OURWalmart

New York, NY – After news of an impending store closure, workers at the 63rd Street location of Hot and Crusty Bakery called for a 24-hour picket and store occupation, saying the company deliberately withheld rent payments following a hard-fought and successful unionization drive in May 2012. The company, owned by private equity partner Mark Samson, gave the Hot and Crusty Workers Association 11 days notice of eviction from the property, informing employees that August 31 would be their last day.

The union, led by a grassroots labor organization, the Laundry Workers Center and a contingent from Occupy Wall Street, students, faith and community members are occupying the workplace and holding an around-the-clock picket, demanding the company to discontinue its union-busting tactics, pay its rent immediately and continue to negotiate a fair contract with its workers. The company has used several bait-and-switch tactics during negotiations, threatening workers’ immigration status to deter their commitment to continuing the fight.

The August 31 closure will mean the loss of 23 jobs – including those of employees with as many as twelve years of employment with the company. Workers allege owners, including Mark Samson, Evangelos Gavalas and Nick Glendis, have a demonstrated history of wage and hour violations, intimidation, retaliation and harassment of workers in several of their businesses, as well as a pattern of closing down shops and opening under different aliases to avoid legal and economic liability. Workers have filed charges at the National Labor Relations Board alleging that the company is closing the 63rd Street shop to intimidate workers organizing at other Hot and Crusty locations.

Mahoma Lopez, a leader in the campaign who has worked at Hot and Crusty for over seven years said, “I want to send a message that we have to change the way immigrants are treated in this country. We have to show the bosses that we can’t be treated like animals any longer. We need to take radical action like people did in the civil rights movement, so that our voices can be heard. We are so happy to have the community here with us.”

Diego Ibanez, a member of Occupy Wall Street, emphasized the connection between Wall Street and workers, saying, “We’re sending a clear message to greedy bosses that we are watching and will not allow our people in the community to be oppressed any longer.”

#NewYorkNY #NewYork #picket #OccupyWallStreet #HotAndCrustyWorkersAssociation

Chicago, IL – Demetris McKinley, a customer service representative, came to work on Thursday, Aug. 16, even though it was a vacation day for her. She came to work to picket.

On Tuesday, Wednesday and then Thursday of that week, over 300 clerical and administrative workers at the University of Illinois – Chicago, members of Local 73 SEIU (Service Employees International Union), had picketed for a new contract. These workers are starting a second year without a contract, and that means a second year without a raise.

Picket signs read, “Fair contract now,” and “UIC get back to the table.” But the picketers, who were mostly Black women and Latinas, also felt discrimination. “I strongly believe that if this department was made up of whites and had even a small percentage of white males that we would not be going through this,” Demetris wrote later in an email to another union activist.

She went on to say, “… and we would not be working in this rundown building either. We are being taken advantage of.”

“They Say Give-Back, We Say Fight Back!”

Local 73 has other issues on the table. For example, stopping the erosion of unionized civil service jobs. Over the past five years, 500 of these jobs have disappeared, replaced by ‘academic professionals,’ a fancy sounding title which means employees with a college degree. These workers then have no job security and can be dismissed when a department has a tight budget.

The state budget has been squeezed by reduced revenues since 2001, and a budget for the current fiscal year still has not been adopted in Springfield, the state capital. However, workers know that UIC has been making record profits in the medical center, as a landlord and from research grants. The top administrators and physicians have seen their salaries grow. Union workers refuse to be left behind.

Also, UIC workers are still bitter that, for 35 years, they have been paid less than the mostly white workers at the downstate Urbana campus. UIC was built in the 1960s, and the Board of Trustees adopted a pay structure for the mostly Black workers at that time that was $1 or $2 less per hour. This continued until Local 73 became strong enough to force the university to grant parity in wages. This was only achieved for most workers in 2002. Food service workers only achieved wage parity this year.

This is in part why workers at the University of Illinois – Chicago are so determined to reject UIC’s proposal for wages that don’t keep up with the cost of living. “We fought long and hard to get here. We are not going backward,” said Local 73 executive board member, Sirlena Perry, a UIC secretary.

#ChicagoIL #News #SEIULocal73 #UniversityOfIllinoisChicago #picket