| 9/19/2005 - Teamsters Attempt to Unionize Miami Truckers |
The Miami Herald reported that the Teamsters Union plans to unionize what it calls the �last unrepresented sector in the $80 billion container shipping industry.�
A job placement center, called a �hiring hall,� has been opened as the first step toward unionizing truck drivers in South Florida. It comes after a frenzied time of labor squabbles in the Miami-Dade area, where last year truckers went on strike to protest low wages, rising fuel costs and long waits at the port, among other issues.
According to Ron Carver, deputy director of Teamsters� port division, the union would be registering drivers who officially cancel their independent contractor leases -- in effect quitting their jobs -- and sign on as ��employee owner-operators�� with the union. The move is expected to give truck drivers collective bargaining power and protection under the National Labor Relations Act. Truckers working as independent contractors do not have those protections.
��This will be the first time these drivers are allowed to bargain for the things that most workers in America have always been allowed to bargain for, including health insurance, pensions, and sustainable wages,�� Carver said.
Whether this effort will be a success � and if it spreads to other industries � remains to be seen.
To read the entire article, click here |
Return to Courier Home Page
