Sandy Pope campaign provides new vision for Teamsters union leadership
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successful month-long strike of Teamster Steel haulers in 1979. After Ron Carey ousted the old-guard Mafiacontrolled leadership and won the Teamster presidency ered in Las Vegas in late June for the 28th International in 1991, he appointed Sandy International RepresentaConvention of the 1.3-million-member Teamsters union.
The assembled delegates were given a dazzling specta- In 1999, Sandy went to work for Local 805. In 2004, cle of a show that was fit for the city of sin. The incum- the union’s president cut a deal with employers to slash bent Hoffa administration spent millions of dues dollars members’ pension accrual to zero. Sandy united with for a show that included a motorcade of Harleys on the rank-and-file members to take back the local. They convention floor, paid celebrity appearances, profes- won, and Sandy has served as Local 805 president ever sionally produced videos beamed on jumbo trans, and a since. She has negotiated contracts that have protected series of speeches and resolutions praising the current members’ health benefits and pensions and mobilized members and joined forces with other Teamster locals and community groups to take on nonunion competiministration, turned what is supposed to be the union’s highest decision-making body, where delegates bring Sandy Pope brings a different vision of how the union the concerns and ideas of the members they represent should work than Hoffa’s concession-machine modto be democratically discussed, into a multi-million-dol- el. She calls for the mobilization of the members to negotiate strong contracts and organize the nonunion However, all the theatrics in the world cannot hide the competition. It is to be expected that as Teamster presifact that the Teamsters rank and file are under attack spite the company’s record profits. UPS workers in the dent Sandy Pope will take a hard line in negotiations from employers and have received little support from central states now have an inferior company pension, with employers and back it up with a rank-and-file orgathe international. In the union’s traditional industry, and the Teamsters still in the multi-employer plan have nized to take action. This was the type of leadership the freight trucking, membership is at an all time low. Mem- a pension fund on the brink of insolvency after losing its Teamsters had under Ron Carey, who led the successful bers at the union’s largest freight employer, YRC, have taken 15% wage cuts and indefinite suspension of em- In UPS negotiations Hoffa sold out on full-time job In her acceptance speech Sandy said, “I was in Canton, creation and left starting pay frozen at only $8.50 an Ohio, when Teamster steelhaulers voted to strike rather While the overwhelming majority of freight trucking hour. The only UPS Teamsters who have seen a raise in than accept a substandard contract. Waves of Teamsters remains non-union, Hoffa has done little to organize starting pay under Hoffa are in Washington state, where poured out of their union hall to hit the pavement, stop this critical sector. The only major organizing victory the minimum wage recently was raised to $8.67 per every steelhaul truck and shut the industry down. That in freight under Hoffa’s watch has been UPS Freight, a was Teamster power! It wasn’t declared in a press recompany created when UPS purchased the non-union Meanwhile, UPS continues to violate existing language lease. It was built by Teamster members standing shoulcarrier Overnight, a company the Teamsters formerly with no response from the international, including lay- der to shoulder. I have never forgotten the lesson taught had attempted to organize, only to be routed when in offs of full-time inside workers. In a conference call with to me by those steelhaulers and freight Teamsters in 1999 Hoffa called a disastrous premature strike that UPS stewards, Hoffa running mate Ken Hall told partici- Cleveland—that Teamster power comes from members blew up the organizing campaign. After UPS purchased pants that “it wasn’t the right time” to enforce the conOvernight, UPS agreed to card-check neutrality with the tract. This is the Hoffa-Hall response while UPS made “Hoffa didn’t come up through the ranks. He’s a career IBT in exchange for massive concessions in the national $5.8 billion in after tax profits in 2010. The same sce- union politician who rode into office on his father’s last nario is playing out across all Teamster divisions, with a name and on the shoulders of other Teamster leadIn addition, UPS Freight workers are under a contract ers. And that’s why Hoffa is so threatened by Teambelow the standards of the National Master Freight Not all the delegates at the Las Vegas convention, and ster members and by local officers who have their own Agreement, undermining not only the strength of Team- certainly not most rank and filers, are drinking the Hof- ideas. Where I see Teamsters, I see leadership and powsters at UPS Freight, but in the entire freight industry as fa kool-aid. In fact, thousands of rank-and-file activists UPS Freight underbids other union freight carriers with across the country are organizing to dump Hoffa and elect reform candidate Sandy Pope as the next Teamster ers are on the offensive against all unions. As in the The NMFA was negotiated by Hoffa Jr’s father in order general president; 130 elected delegates nominated her Teamsters, the response from union leaders, with rare to establish pattern bargaining that would prevent com- in Las Vegas, and 50,000 members have signed petitions exceptions, has been to lay down and accept concespanies from engaging in such practices. As it stands to- sions. Transforming our weakened unions into effective day, the NMFA is barely worth the paper it’s written on, Sandy Pope, president of New York Local 805, will face vehicles to fight back against the bosses offensive will with Hoffa allowing concessions every time employers off against Hoffa and another challenger, Fred Gegare, require many struggles, especially a revival of the strike La former Hoffa loyalist. Pope is supported by the rank- and the formation of a Labor Party. Advancing democAt the union’s largest employer, shipping giant UPS, and-file caucus, Teamsters for a Democratic Union, and racy in the unions and engaging the rank and file are Hoffa granted massive concessions, including allowing is a veteran reform activist in the Teamsters union. Un- necessary for such battles. A Sandy Pope presidency in UPS to withdraw from the union’s largest multi-employ- like Hoffa, Pope spent years working as a Teamster in the the Teamsters would represent a major advance in this er pension fund, the Central States Pension Fund, de- warehouse and freight industries. She helped organize a struggle. n Socialist Action august 2011 11 Thousands of delegates, members, and guests gathleadership and touting their accomplishments.
The delegates, mostly local officers loyal to the adlar pep rally. ployer pension contributions.
UPS contract.
its lower wage and pension obligations.
cry wolf.
Teamster presidential candidate Sandy Pope.
largest contributing employer.
hour. laundry list of concessions. in support of her candidacy. in action… tive assigned to the Warehouse Division. tors who are threatening good union jobs. 1997 national strike against UPS. er. Hoffa sees a threat to his job.”
The labor movement today is in crisis mode. EmployJosh Reynolds / AP