Indianapolis, IN – Drivers for uniform and workplace-supply company Vestis walked off the job at 2 a.m. Monday, July 13, launching an unfair labor practice strike organized by Teamsters Local 135.

The union says the strike is about accountability. Local 135 alleges Vestis threatened workers for engaging in protected concerted activity, a right guaranteed under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA).

Vestis, based in Roswell, Georgia, provides uniform rental, workwear, floor mats, linens and related workplace supplies to businesses across North America. The company was spun off from Aramark in 2023, separating Aramark's uniform services division into its own publicly-traded company. Vestis drivers deliver and service uniforms and supplies for businesses like UPS.

In a statement posted to Facebook, Local 135 said the union remains “ready, willing, and available” to meet with the company to bargain in good faith and called for Vestis to respect workers' rights and negotiate fairly to end the dispute.

The union is asking Teamsters members, families and labor supporters in the Indianapolis area to join the picket line, which will run 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at 2050 Oliver Avenue.

#IndianapolisIN #IN #Labor #Teamsters #Strike #Vestis #IBT135 #NLRA #Featured

Michigan City, IN – Slot attendants at Blue Chip Casino Hotel Spa marched on management Tuesday, June 23, to demand voluntary recognition of their union with Teamsters Local 135.

Joined by Teamsters from Locals 135, 364 and 142, approximately 15 slot attendants and supporters marched through the casino before presenting a union recognition letter to General Manager JC Rieger on the gaming floor. The letter was read aloud before being handed to Rieger, who accepted the demand letter but offered no response.

The letter warned Blue Chip management to refrain from union-busting, stating “that should you or any other Company Representative make any unilateral changes to the employees’ terms and conditions of employment or take any type of retaliatory action against employees” the local union would “enforce these employees’ rights to the fullest extent of the law.”

As the delegation concluded, workers filled the casino with chants of “Who are we? Teamsters!”

Later that day, Teamsters Local 135 filed a representation petition with the National Labor Relations Board. A pre-election hearing has been scheduled for July 2.

The bargaining unit includes slot attendants and dual-rate slot attendants, a majority of whom have signed authorization cards for representation with the Teamsters. Workers say they are organizing in response to declining wages, chronic understaffing, unjust discipline, a punitive attendance policy, and a paid time off system that often leaves employees waiting without timely approval or denial of their requests.

Workers also point to the consolidation of the guest service representative position into the slot attendant classification without any corresponding increase in pay, leaving attendants responsible for additional duties while earning the same wages.

One of the central issues in the campaign is the decline in tip income for slot attendants. Although attendants receive an hourly wage, the most significant portion of their earnings comes from pooled tips, or tokes, left by players receiving hand-paid jackpots. Recent changes to the federal W-2G reporting threshold increased the amount that triggers a mandatory hand-pay from $1200 to $2000, and many casinos have adjusted their slot machines accordingly. Workers say fewer hand-pays means fewer opportunities to earn tips, resulting in a sharp decline in take-home pay even as their workload has increased.

Teamsters Local 135 is also seeking contractual protection for tipped casino employees elsewhere in Indiana, including guaranteed toke rates for slot attendants and table games dealers during ongoing contract negotiations at Horseshoe Indianapolis.

The recognition campaign at Blue Chip marks the latest casino organizing effort by Teamsters Local 135, as gaming workers across Indiana continue pushing for a greater voice on the job and contracts that address wages, staffing, and working conditions.

#MichiganCityIN #IN #Labor #Teamsters #Casino #IBT135 #Featured

Lawrenceburg, IN – Workers at Batesville Products Inc. (BPI) have been on strike since May 11 after voting unanimously to withhold their labor and demand recognition of their union, Teamsters Local 135.

The strike began after a supermajority of workers signed authorization cards seeking Teamsters representation and demanded voluntary recognition from the company. BPI management refused to recognize the union, prompting the filing of a representation petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB).

Rather than allowing workers to move quickly toward an election, the company challenged which employees should be included in the proposed bargaining unit through the NLRB's pre-election hearing process. Workers and Teamster representatives contend the objections are a bogus attempt to delay the election and buy time for union-busting inside the facility.

The union's bargaining unit includes machinists, polishers and shipping and receiving employees working at the company's facility in Lawrenceburg, Indiana. Management wants to include workers from another separate location in Aurora, in hopes of diluting the vote with unorganized workers who were not a part of the union campaign.

The strike comes as the NLRB faces significant staffing shortages and case backlogs nationwide. Delays in the union certification process give employers major advantages in their campaigns to break organizing drives before workers have the chance to vote.

BPI workers formed their union over unsafe and unfair workplace conditions, excessive overtime, low wages, high health insurance costs, and declining benefits. Employees say many workers have been required to work mandatory 60-hour weeks for extended periods.

Facing delays from the bureaucratic pre-election hearing process, Teamsters Local 135 held a strike authorization vote and the workers unanimously approved a recognition strike. Picketing began outside the facility on May 11 and has continued for more than a month.

“This is about workers standing together and demanding a voice in their workplace,” said Teamsters Local 135 President Dustin Roach on the day of the strike's commencement. “These workers built their majority themselves, they organized themselves, and now they are prepared to stand together on the picket line for as long as it takes to win the dignity, respect, and representation they deserve.”

The strike remains ongoing as workers continue to seek recognition of their union and the opportunity to negotiate a first collective bargaining agreement.

This is the second strike for recognition called by Teamsters Local 135 in the past year, with the first taking place at the Horseshoe Indianapolis casino in Shelbyville. The early U.S. labor movement made use of the strike for recognition in the period of time before the passage of the National Labor Relations Act in 1935 and for years after. In the modern era, the tactic was virtually extinct as unions came to rely more heavily on the NLRB for union certification.

As the NLRB becomes more dysfunctional and openly operates on behalf of employers, militants in the labor movement are beginning to rediscover this tactic – and in Teamsters Local 135, they are making use of it to counter employers' unchecked union-busting campaigns.

#LawrenceburgIN #IN #Labor #Teamsters #BatesvilleProducts #Strike

Chicago, IL – On the morning of June 10, nurses organizing with Teamsters Local 743 rallied against Endeavor Health’s union busting campaign and demanded the reinstatement of two pro-union nurses recently terminated at Evanston Hospital.

The rally was attended by several dozen nurses who work at Endeavor Health, Teamsters from Local 743, JC 25, and Teamster locals around the Chicagoland area. In support were local officials, Jobs with Justice Chicago, and many community members, totaling well over 100 people.

Dave Bernt with Teamsters Joint Council 25 said in his opening remarks, “Over the last year nurses at Endeavor have been organizing with Teamsters Local 743 to win union representation so that they can have a voice in their working conditions and in patient care. It is these nurses’ right under federal law to do so and it is Endeavor Health’s obligation to respect those rights.”

Last month, during Nurses Week, two nurses were fired while handing out union literature and gift bags to their fellow nurses, an act which is their federally protected right as workers.

ICU nurse Stacey Oswald shared, “Last year during Nurses Week, many of my colleagues were told they’d receive pay cuts ranging anywhere from $9000 to $30,000 per year.” The pay cuts and understaffing pushed pro-union nurses to organize their coworkers with the help of Teamsters Local 743.

Since beginning their organizing efforts with the Teamsters, Endeavor has used union-busting tactics and campaigns with the goal of shutting down their organizing efforts. A month ago, again during Nurses Week, Endeavor used hospital public safety officers to spy on and harass nurses while they were exercising their legally protected rights to pass out union literature and talk with their coworkers about forming a union.

Two highly respected pro-union nurses were fired in an effort to chill the momentum of their organizing campaign. Multiple charges have been filed with the National Labor Relations Board.

Speaking to her fellow nurses at the rally. Endeavor nurse and organizing leader Tricia Poreda concluded her speech by calling those that have not signed their authorization cards to sign.

Poreda stated, “Endeavor has not been quiet about how they feel about us having a seat at the table and you shouldn't be quiet either!”

After this, the nurses marched to the Endeavor Health Corporate Center and delivered a letter addressed to the CEO of Endeavor Health, J.P. Gallagher, demanding that Endeavor Health must immediately reinstate the two terminated nurses, respect nurses’ right to organize a union and discuss union matters, and end all surveillance, intimidation and interference with nurses engaging in their right to organize.

#ChicagoIL #IL #Labor #Nurses #Teamsters

Fort Morgan, CO – On the morning of May 20, an hour and a half drive northeast of Denver, Cargill Meat Solutions locked out 1700 workers represented by the International Brotherhood of Teamsters. This lockout comes after months of negotiations for a new contract, during which Cargill, the largest privately-owned company in the United States, repeatedly refused to give necessary wage increases and health benefits to its workers.

The collective bargaining agreement between Cargill and the Teamsters expired in late February, with Cargill initially offering raises totaling 70 cents over the next five years. Over the course of several weeks of negotiations, representatives of Teamsters Local 455 were able to raise the employer’s offer to include pay increases of $2.15, along with a $1250 ratification bonus. On April 23, Cargill stopped production and demanded a vote on their most recent proposal.

“We continued to negotiate throughout the day,” said Servando Payan,