ABF Freight System’s employees represented by the Teamsters union have approved a five-year labor agreement, the two sides said.
A majority of the supplements to the ABF National Master Freight Agreement also passed, ABF’s parent company, Arkansas Best Corp., said in a statement.
Arkansas Best’s stock price jumped 15% to its highest level in almost two years on Friday, to $22.95 per share, following the announcement, Bloomberg News reported.
ABF and the Teamsters had extended their previous contract by 30 days at the end of May to allow time for passage.
The supplemental agreements that require additional action cover local work rule and other technical items and do not affect the major economic terms that are covered by the agreement, the company said.
The Teamsters said 21 of 27 supplemental agreements were approved, and that the union “will work on obtaining approval of those supplements that were not approved.” More than 6,000 votes were cast.
The contract calls for a 7% percent wage reduction, but the reduction will be recouped by the fifth and final year of the contract, the Teamsters said in a statement.
ABF CEO Roy Slagle said the less-than-truckload carrier was “very pleased” the agreement passed and that it will put “ABF back on the path to profitability.”
Arkansas Best Corp. is ranked No. 13 on the Transport Topics Top 100 listing of U.S. and Canadian for-hire carriers.
