Like all IBT Local Unions, Local 174 is deeply involved in Organizing. There are two fundamental types of Organizing — bringing in new members, and maintaining existing bargaining unit groups. Organizing in the Teamsters Union in Locals like 174 often takes place in cooperation with other groups — Local Unions, the parent Joint Council 28, and the International. Local 174's parent Joint Council is JC-28. Bargaining Unit groups whether already members or soon-to-be members of Local 174 can be small or large, but whatever number of members involved, they have the same concerns and problems. (Click on listed links to jump to info.)
- The Local 174 Organizing Department
- Teamsters: Organizing For Power
- Who Are The Teamsters?
- Teamster Benefits
- What Can You Expect From Management?
- General Information About Unions
The Local 174 Organizing Department
The Local 174 Organizing Department congratulates all
our members on being Teamsters. Local 174 is especially committed to organizing
within our Core Industries.
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The Local 174 Organizing Department is led by Senior Business Agent Patty Warren and Organizer Michael Gonzales. Please call Patty or Michael if you know of anyone who would like Union Representation at their Company, and they will be sure to see that those potential new members hear why it is great to be a Teamster. Patty has more than 30 years of experience in the Labor Movement and prior to that also worked with the National Labor Relations Board. She has worked for several Unions, including the Teamsters. She has worked a total of eight years with Local 174 — six years in the 1990's and since January 2007 with the Rick Hicks Administration. Her vast experience with organizing, negotiating, grievance processing, arbitrations, staff direction, and steward training is extremely valuable to the officers, staff and general members of Local 174.
Michael has more than 10 years of experience participating in and
often running organizing drives. In addition to his organizational duties,
he a troubleshooter for Local 174, helping all staff members when needed
in areas of member representation, and is deeply involved in all Local
174 Political Action efforts.
Why join the Teamsters Union? There are many good reasons why it is great
to be a Teamster. Please read the following information in the sections below
on this page, generated for its Local Unions by the IBT, about what Teamster
Organizing is and what being a Teamster means.
Teamsters: Organizing For Power
Forming a Union at your workplace gives you and your coworkers
the power to stand up for your families, your futures and yourselves. Through
a legal, binding contract it gives you a strong, collective voice with which
to demand decent working conditions, with fair pay and benefits.
That's what the Teamsters are all about — decent working conditions, better pay, strong benefits, and dignity and respect on the job.
The Teamsters can help you explain the benefits of Union membership to your fellow employees, and assist in planning an organizing drive.
Once you and your coworkers become Teamsters, working with your Local Union representatives, contract language and proposals for negotiations are developed. Local Union officers and business agents fight with you to win a fair, good-paying Teamster contract with job protection that you deserve.
Teamsters contracts are the best in the Labor Movement. We have earned our reputation for bargaining hard and demanding the best protections and wages. For more than a century, Teamsters solidarity has kept Corporate America from holding the cards and calling all the shots. When you join the Teamsters, you put that history to work for you. We are 1.4 million strong and our membership is growing.
Who Are The Teamsters?
The Teamsters are America’s largest, most diverse Union. In 1903, the Teamsters
started as a merger of the two leading Team Driver Associations. These drivers
were the backbone of America’s robust economic growth, but they needed
to organize to wrest their fair share from greedy corporations. Today, the Union’s
task is exactly the same.
The Teamsters are known as the champion of Freight drivers and Warehouse workers, but have organized workers in virtually every occupation imaginable, both professional and non-professional, private sector and public sector.
Our 1.4 million members are public defenders in Minnesota; vegetable workers in California; sanitation workers in New York; brewers in St. Louis; newspaper workers in Seattle; construction workers in Las Vegas; zoo keepers in Pennsylvania; healthcare workers in Rhode Island; bakery workers in Maine; airline pilots, secretaries and police officers. Name the occupation and chances are we represent those workers somewhere.
There are nearly 1,900 Teamster affiliates throughout the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Teamsters stand ready to organize workers who want to bargain collectively. Once a contract is negotiated and signed, the Union works to enforce it — holding Management’s feet to the fire and invoking contract grievance procedures if Management chooses not to. Wages and benefits under Teamster contracts are markedly better than those of non-union employees in similar jobs. Teamster contracts are the guarantors of decent wages, fair promotion, health coverage, job security, paid time-off and retirement income.
The Teamsters Union also performs vital tasks in such areas as pension management, safety & health, community outreach, governmental affairs and communications. For more than a century, the Teamsters have been a public voice for the rights and aspirations of working men and women and a key player in securing them.
Teamster Benefits
In addition to job protection, benefits and wages provided
for in Teamster Contracts, the International Union provides for additional
services offered at a discounted cost to the membership. Because of the strength
and size of our membership, the International is able to negotiate these lower
costs for services ranging from legal to medical to financial. We are always
on the lookout for ways to save our Teamster families money and increase their
prosperity.
Teamster Privilege
A comprehensive package of benefits, services and discounts available only to
Teamsters and their families.
Teamster Privilege Life Insurance
- Teamster Privilege Accident Insurance
- Teamster Privilege Credit Card
- Teamster Privilege Dental and Health Plan
- Teamster Privilege Mortgage and Real Estate
- Teamster Privilege Legal Services
- Teamster Privilege Loan Program
- Teamster Privilege Family Savers Discounts
James R. Hoffa Scholarship Fund: Created in 2000, the Union awards college scholarships to Teamsters dependents through this fund. It awards seventy-five scholarships annually. Twenty-five of the awards, five per Region, total $10,000 each. These four-year scholarships are disbursed at the rate of $2,500 per year and are renewable annually. Fifty of the awards, ten per Region, are one-time $1,000 grants.
Teamster Disaster Relief Services
Teamsters families can count on their brothers and sisters in times of crisis. In the past, the Union has coordinated relief efforts for Teamsters caught in the middle of earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, wildfires and droughts.
Teamster Magazine
Mailed eight times yearly to all 1.4 million members, The Teamster provides the latest information on organizing, contract victories, legislative affairs, health and safety, politics, and human-interest stories.
Division Newsletters
These publications keep members up to date on Union news in their particular Industry or Craft. In addition you also receive a wide array of additional benefits provided through your Local Union. These include additional Local discounts, Local scholarships and Local Union publications. These are just a few examples of the ways in which your Teamsters dues pay off. It pays to be a Teamster. What Can You Expect From Management?
Now that we’re joining together, here’s what we can expect
to hear from Management.
When workers form a Union, they gain a voice in decisions that affect their
jobs, their future and their families. Unfortunately, Management doesn’t
always like the idea of sharing the decision making with employees. So Management’s
first reaction may be to make a lot of misleading statements to try to convince
you not to join together. Knowing what to expect from Management will
help you stay focused on your real goal — winning a voice on the job
and a say in your future. Following are some typical misstatements Management
often makes when workers form a Union.
Management: “A Union is a third party that will come between
us.”
Fact: Our Union is a democratic, member-run organization. When you form a Union,
you’ll work together to govern your own organization. And every contract
will be reviewed and approved by a majority of the employees where you work.
Management: “The Union will make you go on strike.”
Fact: Strikes are a rare last resort in contract negotiations — more
than 95% of Teamster contracts are negotiated without a strike. And no strike
will happen unless a majority of workers vote to call one.
Management: “If you form a Union, you risk losing the benefits
and pay raises you already have.”
Fact: It is illegal for a company to freeze or cut previously scheduled raises
to discourage you from forming a Union. Once you’re organized, you’ll
lock in our current wages and benefits and then negotiate improvements from
there. All of you will get an opportunity to review your proposed contract
before you vote to approve it. Obviously, you’re not going to approve
a contract that cuts our wages or benefits.
Management: “The Union just wants your dues money.”
Fact: As newly organized Teamsters, you won’t pay dues until you’ve
negotiated and voted to approve your first contract — and decided for
yourselves whether it’s worth it. (Teamster pilot groups are the exception;
in 1998, pilots requested that their dues begin the month after voting to become
Teamsters.) Every serious organization — churches, clubs, sporting leagues,
and similar organizations — has to have some kind of funding, and Unions
are no different. Dues pay for the costs of having an organization — contract
negotiations, grievances and arbitrations, training for members, legal fees,
and other things so no one has to go it alone.
Management: “With a Union, you won’t be allowed to
talk to your supervisor — you’ll have to go through the Union.”
Fact: Teamsters have found that having a Union strengthens communication between
employees and supervisors. Direct relationships with immediate supervisors
continue and you can negotiate to retain any good policy and procedures already
in place. The advantage of joining together in a Union is that you’re
able to make your voices heard at the upper levels of Management, where key
decisions are made.
Management: “The improvements we’re willing to make
right now show that you don’t need a Union.”
Fact: It’s great that Management is responding to your concerns. It shows
that when you join together, your voices are heard. By forming a Union, you
can make sure this progress is not just short term — you’ll build
an ongoing dialogue with Management on all your issues. You'll also have peace
of mind with a Union — since the improvements you agree on will be guaranteed
in your Union contract. It’s normal for some tension to arise when workers
start to build a Union. But the tension is temporary. After you vote to form
a Union, Management gets used to the idea of you having a voice on the job.
No matter what Management says, stay focused on your shared goals — to
make your workplace the best possible place to work.
General Information about Unions
What is a Union?
A Union is a group of employees who join together within a company to bargain
collectively for better wages, stronger benefits and safer working conditions.
What do Unions do?
A Union’s primary objective is to secure good contracts for its members
and to enforce the provisions of that contract. The Union also administers
some of the contract's important benefits directly. Often these include health
plans, pensions and Labor/Management partnerships and trusts.
How do you organize with the Teamsters?
Employees who want to join the Teamsters sign a “Union Authorization Card.” When
a majority of employees sign cards, they are forwarded, in most cases, to
the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB). The NLRB then schedules and conducts
a secret ballot election. In some cases, when a majority of workers sign
cards the company will recognize the Union. When the Union is certified,
the company is required by law to bargain over wages, benefits and working
conditions. The laws governing Public Sector and the Airline Industry are
different.
If I sign an authorization do I have to vote “yes” in
the election? What if I change my mind?
The Teamsters are committed to organizing workers that want Teamster representation.
Organizing is not about holding a vote; it is about gaining a voice in the
workplace. When the NLRB conducts a Union election it's a secret ballot. No
one has any right to know how you voted.
How does the Union work out problems with Management?
Through the Grievance Procedure. The contract spells out what the grievance procedures
are and explains how conflicts are to be resolved. When Management engages in
unfair conduct or violates a provision of the contract there are steps spelled
out in the contract to resolve the problem. First, talk with your supervisor.
When he or she refuses to do anything about it, go to your Teamster shop steward
for help. The steward sits down with you and Management and tries to talk about
the issue. If it can't be resolved at this meeting, a business agent from the
Union approaches the company to discuss the issue. If the problem still cannot
be resolved to everyone's satisfaction, the business agent appeals to upper Management.
If this step fails, both parties bring in a neutral arbitrator to hear evidence
and order a final resolution of the problem.
What are shop stewards and business agents?
A shop steward is one of your co-workers, who acts as an agent of the Union in
the workplace. The Union Membership and the Teamster Local Union determines procedures
for electing shop stewards and negotiates how many stewards are in each job location,
shift and department. The steward's job is to make sure your company lives up
to your contract. When there is a problem with Management and you need Union
help, your first stop should be a visit with your shop steward. A business agent
is an official of your Local Union who handles any problems the shop steward
cannot.
What is a “Bargaining Unit”?
A Bargaining Unit is made up of all the employees who are eligible to vote for
and be in the Union.
Who negotiates your contract?
The Teamsters and the company each choose their own negotiators. The company's
team is usually comprised of lawyers, local management and upper Management officials.
The Union Team usually consists of Bargaining Unit employees and expert Union
negotiators.
What kind of say do I get in the contract?
Before contract talks start, the Union asks you what you'd like to see in a contract.
Usually the Union sends out a survey to all a Bargaining Unit's members. Once
the contract has been negotiated it's submitted to you and your co-workers for
ratification. If a majority doesn't approve of the contract, your negotiating
team goes back to the drawing board.
How long do contracts last?
Usually 3 to 5 years.
What are Union dues? What are they used for?
Union dues are the money you pay to the Union to help pay for support staff,
legal costs, negotiation costs, arbitrator's fees, etc.
What’s a “Local”?
The Teamsters have a structure that includes a National Body, Intermediaries,
and Local Unions. Most decisions are made at the State and Local Union level.
So what does the “International” do?
The International's responsibilities include lobbying Congress for laws that
benefit workers, sending help to Locals that need it, and coordinating national
organizing efforts.
How democratic are Unions?
The whole process is open and democratic. You decide if you want to sign an Authorization
Card. You decide whether to vote "yes" on joining the Union. You decide
which co-workers you want on your negotiating team. You decide what to tell your
negotiators you want in a contract. You vote on the contract once it's negotiated.
You vote on who will be your shop steward. You vote on who will be the officers
of your Local.