Trucker Strike Brews in Seattle
"This is an effort to spread the word," Teamsters Local 174 organizing director Rob Hickey said Monday. "The drivers will be out at the pier talking to other drivers, soliciting support."
A total of about 1,000 independent truckers work at the ports of Seattle and Tacoma, Hickey said. They are employed by some 35 trucking companies that contract to ship from the ports.
Drivers are paid by the load, but they also are responsible for fuel and maintenance costs. The drivers stopping work are demanding that their individual companies recognize the union, Hickey said. They also are seeking a change to the system so they are not forced to wait long periods to pick up their loads.
"Owner-operators are considered independent contractors," he said. "It's this whole thing of creating the new American work force of contingent and throwaway workers, where they ... aren't covered by many laws, including the National Labor Relations Act."
If they were covered under the act, he explained, the truckers could simply schedule a union election as a group. As it is, they must persuade each of their companies to allow them to unionize.
"All of the trucking companies will need to, on an individual basis, say yes, we will agree to recognize the union or agree to a procedure whereby the drivers will establish their majority support for a union," Hickey said.
Truckers at the Port of Vancouver, British Columbia, have been striking since July 22, demanding hourly wages rather than pay-per-load. That port's 400 independent owner-operators say the present system does not compensate them enough to safely maintain their vehicles.
On Monday, 15 of the approximately two dozen British Columbia trucking companies involved in the dispute agreed to the hourly rate demand, but the rate had not yet been determined. The settlement still had to be approved by Vancouver truckers.
The hourly wage concession was cause for optimism that the dispute would be settled soon, but it likely would not satisfy truckers, said Stan Hennessy, business representative of Teamsters union Local 3.
"Even if we were to agree to the proposal put forward, the membership has made it quite clear that it wants an industry standard," including all of the trucking companies, he said.
Hickey said he expected that Tuesday's action in Seattle would cause "some disruption of service," but said he did not know how many drivers would take part. About 100 drivers met Monday to discuss the action.
The level of disruption would depend on several variables, port spokesman Imbert Matthee said, including the volume of shipping through the port on Tuesday and how well prepared companies at the port are for such action.
"We'll have to see how many truckers actually join this action and what contingency plans the trucking companies and terminal operators have to deal with this," he said.
