The time has come for James P. Hoffa to be allowed to take his place at the helm of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
Now that Michael Cherkasky, the federal government’s election monitor, has decided to certify Hoffa’s overwhelming electoral victory over Tom Leedham, there should be no further delays.
Leedham, who has proven himself to be an effective union leader on the local, regional and national levels, should put aside any remaining pique and, for the sake of the union, allow Hoffa to fill the leadership void that has harmed the Teamsters’ effectiveness since Ron Carey stepped down in late 1997.
The December vote result was unmistakable: In a three-way contest, almost 55% of the 359,000 union members who cast their ballots favored Hoffa compared with the 39% garnered by Leedham and the 6% for John Metz.
The 1.4-million-member Teamsters union represents workers in many industries, in addition to trucking, and the workers and their employers would be better served by a duly elected leadership in place.
For the full editorial, see the Feb. 2 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.
