Teamsters to Organize Port Truckers
The Teamsters union has committed itself to organizing owner-operator truck drivers in the nation’s maritime ports, but it is not clear — not even to its leadership — the best way to accomplish this goal.
On Dec. 4, Teamsters officials met in Charleston, S.C., with leaders representing port haulers from the East Coast as well as those from Los Angeles and Long Beach, Calif. Afterward, the union issued a statement that stopped short of saying it would embark on a membership recruitment drive. However, union leaders did say they would give the project — though difficult — serious attention.
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“Any list of the most exploited work forces in America would have to include port truckers near the top,” said the union’s ports director, George W. Cashman. “We intend to remedy that.”
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“We don’t have a strategy because there’s still a lot of information we have to collect,” said Ed Burke, who is the West Coast port division coordinator for the Teamsters and an attendee at the Charleston gathering. “We have to make sure we’re legal. That’s what the attorneys are here for.”
