Teamsters
Workers at Mill Rock Packaging Join Teamsters Local 117
(TUKWILA, Wash.) – Workers at Mill Rock Packaging have voted unanimously to join Teamsters Local 117. The material handlers will join an existing bargaining unit of press and assistant press operators, floor help, pre-press, plate makers, and sheeter operators at Mill Rock who previously joined the union.
“We are proud of these workers for sticking together through this process,” said Paul Dascher, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 117. “Our goal is to make sure their concerns are addressed at the bargaining table. We look forward to working with this group to outline their demands and negotiate a contract they can be proud of.”
The material handlers organized for workplace protections, increased wages, affordable health insurance, and better retirement benefits.
“With this step, our union grows stronger. Now that everyone in our department will be represented by the Teamsters, I believe we will be treated more fairly,” said Curtiss Jackson, a material handler at Mill Rock Packaging.
Teamsters Local 117 represents 19,000 workers across Washington State across many industries in both the public and private sectors. For more information, visit Teamsters117.org.
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Workers at Mt. View Funeral Home Join Teamsters
(TUKWILA, Wash.) – A group of 11 workers at Mt. View Funeral Home have voted overwhelmingly to join Teamsters Local 117. The staff associates will join an existing bargaining unit of 17 cemetery workers, embalmers, and funeral directors already represented by the Teamsters.
After speaking with their co-workers about the benefits of unionization, the staff associates reached out to Teamsters representatives to discuss how to improve workplace safety, secure equitable wages, and win respect on the job.
“We are thrilled to welcome another group of workers at Mt. View to the union,” said Paul Dascher, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 117. “These workers provide care, compassion, and support to families when they need it most — after the loss of a loved one. They deserve a strong Teamsters contract with fair pay, good benefits, and provisions that protect their safety and well-being.”
Staff associates at Mt. View are responsible for transporting deceased individuals to the funeral facility. They offer support to family members of the deceased at multiple locations during the grieving process — prior to transportation, at the funeral home, and at memorial services.
“We wanted to join the Teamsters because we didn’t feel confident that upper management cared about our safety,” said Leía Allen, a staff associate at Mt. View Funeral Home. “People have been hurt and pressured to return to work before they are fully healed. Our needs and requests have been repeatedly ignored, forgotten, and dismissed. But not anymore.”
Teamsters Local 117 represents 19,000 workers throughout Washington State across many industries in both the public and private sectors. For more information, visit teamsters117.org.
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Teamsters Forced On Strike at Open Kitchens
(CHICAGO) – Drivers and helpers at Open Kitchens in Chicago have been forced to strike over the company’s unfair labor practices. The workers, represented by Teamsters Local 703, are fighting for a first contract.
“Our members at Open Kitchens are demanding the company end its illegal labor practices and negotiate a fair first contract,” said Thomas W. Stiede, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 703. “Management’s reckless and unlawful conduct has left these workers with no choice but to strike. It is time for the company to stop breaking the law and get serious at the bargaining table.”
Teamsters at Open Kitchens deliver meals to Chicago Public Schools and other customers throughout the Chicagoland area. Workers voted to join the Teamsters last year, but the company has continued to intimidate workers and drag out negotiations instead of reaching a collective bargaining agreement.
“We come to work every day to do our jobs and provide for our families, but management has treated us with disrespect and constant threats to our livelihoods,” said Ernesto Patino, a helper at Open Kitchens and a member of Local 703. “As Teamsters, we are not backing down from this fight until we win the dignity only a union contract can provide.”
Local 703 has filed multiple unfair labor practice charges against Open Kitchens with the National Labor Relations Board, alleging the company illegally terminated workers in retaliation for protected union activity. Those unlawful terminations, coupled with the company’s continued efforts to delay reaching a first contract, forced these workers onto the picket line.
“Open Kitchens thought they could violate federal labor law and stall these negotiations until our members gave up,” said Tom Erickson, Director of the Teamsters Warehouse Division. “They made a serious miscalculation. The Teamsters have the strength and the resolve to win this fight.”
Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.3 million hardworking people in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. Visit Teamster.org for more information. Follow us on X @Teamsters and on Facebook at Facebook.com/teamsters.
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Cannabis Teamsters Launch ULP Strike
(BARRY, Ill.) – Over 300 members of Teamsters Local 916 at Ascend Wellness have been forced out on strike over the company’s unfair labor practices (ULPs), which includes their refusal to bargain in good faith. It’s the first strike undertaken by Teamsters at a cannabis grow house.
“Ascend caused this strike by refusing to bargain a fair contract with the workers who make this company run,” said JP Fyans, President of Teamsters Local 916. “They illegally fired a bargaining committee member to retaliate against them. We will not tolerate that kind of bullshit from anyone.”
The company is refusing to bargain a contract that addresses wage increases, health care benefits, and overtime. Local 916 members cultivate, process, package, and distribute products for dispensaries across Illinois. The strike could have a significant impact on the cannabis supply chain statewide.
“This is one of the largest multistate cannabis operators in the country. They can afford to bargain a fair contract instead of wasting time and money to disrespect our members,” said Jesse Case, Director of the Teamsters Food Processing Division. “These workers deserve the same standard that Teamsters at Ascend dispensaries enjoy, and we won’t stop until we get it.”
“If Ascend wants to continue being a successful business, it needs to empower the workers and communities who made that success possible,” said Shane Wilmer, an Ascend cultivator and member of Local 916. “We are proud of the work we do, but we’re not afraid of a fight. Ascend needs to know that our concerns are serious and must be addressed.”
Teamsters Local 916 represents more than 4,000 workers throughout the state of Illinois from Chicago to Carbondale and East Saint Louis to Champaign. For more information, visit teamsters916.org.
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Fairfax Carhaulers Win Teamster Protections
(FAIRFAX, Kan.) – Carhaulers with Cassens Transport at General Motors’ Fairfax Assembly plant have joined Teamsters Local 41. They will now be working under the National Master Automobile Transporters Agreement (NMATA), securing major economic gains, improved working conditions, and strong job protections.
“These 10 drivers were the spearhead of something much bigger,” said Avral Thompson, Director of the Teamsters Carhaul Division. “We made clear that Fairfax workers deserved the same wages, benefits, and protections as every other carhauler covered by the national agreement. With the support of Joe Monslow, Mark Malicoat, Pamela Newport, Bret Rust, Troy Pike, and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, these drivers stayed united through more than a dozen bargaining sessions and never backed down.”
After GM shifted the Fairfax carhaul work to nonunion carrier Hansen Adkins, the drivers organized with Local 41 to fight for the wages, benefits, and other standards they previously had under NMATA. Earlier this year, GM sought a new carrier, and Cassens Transport was awarded the contract. As if June 8, 2026, the drivers are now working for Cassens under the NMATA.
“We knew what Teamster standards looked like, and we knew we deserved better,” said Bret Rust, a Fairfax carhauler and member of Local 41. “Now that we are under the national agreement, I know the wages, benefits, seniority rights, and other benefits I’ve earned as a carhauler are protected. Our victory shows every Hansen Adkins driver that you don’t have to accept lower standards.”
Teamsters Local 41 represents thousands of workers across a wide range of industries in the Kansas City area. For more information, visit www.teamsters41.org.
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NLRB Orders Amazon to Bargain with Teamsters on Eve of Prime Day
(SAN FRANCISCO) – Teamsters are lauding a ruling by the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ordering Amazon to bargain with workers at its DCK6 facility in San Francisco. The ruling came only hours before the start of Prime Day, one of the company’s biggest events of the year.
“The Teamsters applaud this decision and will do everything in our power to ensure that Amazon complies with it. Once again, an NLRB judge has rightfully ruled against the most abusive and corrupt employer in the world,” said Randy Korgan, Director of the Teamsters Amazon Division.
It’s the second bargaining order in less than three months that the e-commerce giant has received from the NLRB. The board previously demanded that it comply with federal law and begin bargaining with Amazon Teamsters at the JFK8 warehouse in Staten Island.
“Amazon has repeatedly demonstrated it has no interest in recognizing its workforce or respecting workers enough to meet them at the table,” Korgan said. “But as this ruling proves, Amazon cannot forever dodge its legal obligations. The time for Amazon to start bargaining is now.”
Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents over 1.3 million hardworking people in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. Visit Teamster.org for more information. Follow us on X @Teamsters and on Facebook at Facebook.com/teamsters.
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Teamsters Celebrate Juneteenth
The Teamsters Union joins communities around the nation to celebrate the 161st anniversary of Juneteenth. Juneteenth commemorates the official end of slavery in the United States when Major General Gordon Granger arrived in Galveston, Texas, to take control of the state and ensure freedom for the last remaining enslaved African Americans.
As a union deeply committed to equality and justice, Juneteenth serves as a reminder for all of us that freedom cannot be gained without fighting for it. The Teamsters honor Juneteenth by continuing to uphold our union’s long history of negotiating equitable union contracts, fighting for employers to recognize the importance of Juneteenth, and using our union’s diversity to build worker power across the country.
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Teamsters 31st International Convention Retrospective
View photos from Teamsters 31st Convention here.
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Teamsters, DOJ File Joint Motion to End Final Order and Consent Decree
(WASHINGTON) – Today, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York (the Southern District) jointly filed a motion to amend the Final Order and the Consent Decree, ending federal government monitorship of the union.
In 1989, the Southern District and the Teamsters entered into a consent decree to eliminate organized crime influence within the union and ensure fair, democratic, member-driven elections. Over the past 37 years, the Teamsters have conducted nine elections and successfully eliminated corrupt elements from the union.
Since the election of Sean M. O’Brien as Teamsters General President in 2021, the Teamsters have built a new system of rigorous checks and balances in which every member complaint is investigated, and when appropriate, referred to legal authorities.
“Today marks a new era in the Teamsters. After 37 years, this filing marks an end to the longest monitorship of any union, corporation, nonprofit, or public entity in the history of the United States. Over the past four years, we have developed a system of internal controls and created a culture of vigilance in our union. Our efforts have proven that we can police our own, and the controls we have put in place are more stringent than any labor organization in the country,” said Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien.
The motion requires approval by the Federal District Court and the Honorable Loretta Preska, who has overseen the consent decree monitorships since 2002.
Earlier this year, the Honorable Barbara Jones (ret.), the Independent Review Officer, conducted an assessment of the International Union’s internal disciplinary systems and audit functions and concluded that the union has “developed the institutional tools, processes, and procedures necessary to adequately detect, investigate, and resolve instances of major corruption” and has the capacity to assume responsibility for internal processes.
Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.3 million hardworking people in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. Visit Teamster.org for more information. Follow us on X @Teamsters and on Facebook at Facebook.com/teamsters.
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Take Action – Faster Labor Contracts Act
Workers shouldn’t have to wait years for their first contract!
Tell your senator to co-sponsor H.R. 5408/S. 844, the bipartisan Faster Labor Contracts Act.
Workers have the right to establish a collective bargaining agreement after they elect to form their union, but the law is full of loopholes, and companies drag out the negotiation process for years. On average, it takes 458 days to secure a first contract.
Workers across the country are done waiting for corporate-backed politicians to hold their donors accountable. Last week, Teamsters forced the House of Representatives to pass the Faster Labor Contracts Act with overwhelming bipartisan support.
Now, it’s the Senate’s turn to act. Tell your senator to co-sponsor the bill and demand that the Faster Labor Contracts Act receive a Senate Committee mark up.
Take Action
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