Local 853

April 23 saw a huge turnout of Teamsters Local 853 members, friends, and family at the San Jose Shark Tank — there to watch the Sharks beat the Chicago Blackhawks by 4-1. The day started with a pre-game BBQ at the Local\’s San Jose office. Two lucky members won signed Sharks jerseys. If you\’re a hockey fan, getting a chance to enjoy it with your union brothers and sisters is the best way to watch!

Watch for news about the 2023 game starting in February or March and join the fun!

The Teamsters\’ annual barbecue at Gillig had to be a 2-day event (held on April 18 and 19), due to the large number of members who work at the Livermore-based bus manufacturer (over 550!)

Business Reps Steve Beck and Scott Gonsalves trucked out the Local\’s barbecue and prepared hamburgers and hot dogs for as many members who wanted to eat. Along with lunch, they brought out the 401(k) rep on Monday, April 18, to answer any last-minute tax time questions.

In addition to Gonsalves, Beck wanted to give special thanks to Business Reps Jonathan Pinney, Johnny Gallegos, and Steven Lua, and shop stewards Robert Terry, Lupe Pinedo, Joe Bulhoes, Lyle Funderburk and Joel Bellison, who together made it possible to serve more than 250 people within 45 minutes on both days.

Monday —April 18

Tuesday, April 19 (in the rain!)

Business Rep and Chair of the Northern California Construction Committee Stu Helfer reports that the Northern California Teamsters Heavy, Highway, Building and Construction Committee settled their third-year allocation that increased wages and benefits by a total of $2.25 per hour.

\”Over the 3-year life of this agreement, we saw wages increase by 11.67%; pension increase by 15.7%; we maintained health and welfare benefits for both active members and retirees, we strengthened our Training School Fund, and established a Labor Compliance Fund,\” Helfer explained.

About 500 Teamsters in Locals 853, 137, 150, 315, 386, 431, 439, 533, 665, 890 and 948 are covered by this agreement. \”But even more important, this agreement sets the bar for prevailing wage rates for Northern California and puts us in a strong position for a new agreement or extension in 2023,\” Helfer adds.

Helfer says that the Committee looks forward to members having lots of work under this agreement given the recent passage of the infrastructure bill on the federal level.

By a vote of 44 to 1, the members who make all of the Eggo Waffles sold west of the Mississippi went into their contract negotiations with a strike authorization at the ready. The vote took place at a proposal meeting held on January 22 at Teamsters Local 853\’s San Jose office.

\”We\’re tired of being taken advantage of,\” said Chief Steward Eric Calderon. \”The company has been short-staffed during the pandemic. Everybody\’s working double shifts. In fact, people are working 70 hour weeks, on average. It\’s crazy.\”

Calderon adds that many members live in the Central Valley and have long commutes to San Jose. \”After working those long, grueling hours, having a 90-minute commute is a safety hazard. Especially when you have to turn around and come right back in 6 hours.\”
Dorothy Flores, the night shift steward, is hoping to see a bigger shift differential. \”We see untrained people training new hires. That\’s not only unsafe, but it causes burnout of our trained folks.\”

Justin Litvack, a workers\’ compensation lawyer for the Boxer Gerson law firm, explained that companies survive by pushing workers to the limit. \”Sixteen-hour shifts take a toll on your bodies. Like I tell NFL players, \’you\’ve only got one body. Once it gets beaten up, that\’s it!\’ Litvack advised members that they\’ve got to assert their rights and be sure to report any type of injury, no matter how minor, because it might turn into something more down the road.\”
Before taking the strike vote, the members in attendance set their priorities for what should be in their new contract. They\’re looking not only for wage and pension improvements, but also for career ladders with additional pay for additional responsibility, more sick days, a greater night shift differential, and benefits based on hours actually worked.

Business Rep Ray Torres says that 28 people signed up for the five-person bargaining committee. \”This shows the company that lots of people care about these talks.\”

Negotiations started in February. Torres reported that when the two sides introduced themselves, the worker side had about 120 years of work experience at this facility. Together, the employer reps didn\’t have five years between them. \”Clearly they\’ve got a lot to learn. But one thing\’s for sure, they\’ll know that our members are serious about getting a good contract.\”

It may have taken over a year and a half, but the thousands of members across California who do sales for Southern Glazer Wine & Spirits & RNDC (formerly known as Young’s Market) ratified their richest contract to date. Local 853 alone has about 684 workers under this contract who received huge wage increases, full maintenance of benefits on their health and welfare, additional holidays, and more.

Business Rep Steve Beck was quick to acknowledge the bargaining committee, which consisted of many locals and stewards, made a big difference in the negotiations. \”Having those members at the table gave us the kind of information we needed to build the case for a lucrative contract.\” In addition to Beck, the Local 853 members on the committee were Ethan Reavis (SG), Nick Lavdiotis (SG), Robel Alem, (RNDC), Kadi Ingram (RNDC), and Trevor Cook (RNDC). Also participating in the talks were Southern California Locals 166, 186, 683, 848, and 986 and their stewards.

\”Without the stewards and the knowledge that they provided and their 100% support, we would not have been able to get such a great contract,\” Beck says. \”Our members stayed out in the field calling on customers even though there were restrictions. But due to their vast knowledge of their customers and the industry, they were still able to continue to service their accounts. Our members were brought back to work sooner than any other company in the liquor industry.\”

Importantly, for the first time in the history of the sales group, they have a pandemic-proof contractual guarantee that will make them whole if something like this were to occur again. \”If there’s a fire, flood, or pandemic, they’ll revert to their 2019 earnings. That\’s an amazing contract clause!\” Beck says with pride.

Beck also completed a five-year contract for the DSD merchandisers & Inside Sales members. \”They also saw significant gains across the board and for the first time, they got full maintenance of benefits for their health and welfare plan over the full duration of the contract. Previously, their company package had a $6,000 deductible, forcing many to pay out hundreds of dollars a month before the plan kicked in. That\’s now money that they get to keep.\”

After working at UPS for 21 years, one member didn’t feel that he should have been fired for doing what other workers around him routinely did. And neither did his Business Rep, who took up the case and got him his job back.

“They told me I couldn’t play music, even though we were allowed to when I worked in a different facility, and other workers in San Jose could. They spent a day trying to make a case against me and they finally fired me for gross insubordination and escorted me off the property,” the member who wanted to tell his story but also wanted to stay on the down-low says. “I stood my ground. I wasn’t going to take their harassment.”

“Management clearly wanted to make an example out of this member,” says Business Rep Johnny Gallegos. “The case we made was that his insubordinate actions were in direct response to how poorly management was treating him. And we were able to prove it.” The UPS panel ultimately agreed that the member should be reinstated on March 1. He’ll have been out of work for three months.

“The managers thought they had a slam dunk case,” the member says. “But Johnny investigated, made a thorough case, and caught management in all kinds of lies.”

“They thought I was done. One manager said that I’d never come back and he told me to ‘have a good life.’ Even now, they\’re mad that I am coming back,” the member adds. “Johnny is my boy — he did the impossible for me. He fought for me and I\’m getting my job back. Respect!”

The 33 driver/warehouse workers at JDRC (formerly known as River Cannabis), with locations and deliveries to dispensaries across California, unanimously ratified their new three-year contract in January.

\”The negotiations went well,\” says Business Rep Steve Beck. \”Things got tense at times, as all negotiations do, but calmer minds prevailed,\” Beck added, saying that this is a great company. \”They take care of their people. They work well with the union. It’s what a real partnership looks like.\”

Beck said that the company understood how the pandemic impacted our members. \”As a result, we got significant gains across the board, including wages, pension, and health and welfare. As the company grows, we\’ve negotiated labor peace agreements, and we hope to build this group and organize more in this industry.\”

Beck wanted to acknowledge and thank Stewards Kevin Matzek and William “Bill” Easterwood. \”They were integral in negotiations and provided invaluable information. Having strong support from the membership was the number one reason why we were able to come to such a lucrative contract.\”

They say the third time is the charm, and for the members at Genesis Logistics, it took three contract offers before they finally ratified their new 18-month contract on February 16, 2022.

Genesis Logistics is a Third-Party contractor that delivers to 7-11 stores from Fresno to Yuba City. Local 853 represents about 60 drivers and 40 warehouse workers at the Union City hub.

“While the union had recommended the first contract, the members turned it down,” says Business Rep Efren Alarcon. “We didn’t recommend the company’s second proposal and knew it wouldn’t pass. At that point, we were seriously considering going on strike,” he adds.

But the union stayed at the table and kept pushing. “Ultimately, we got a good 18-month contract that includes significant gains,” Alarcon explains. “The warehouse workers had been underpaid for many years, and they got a 15% increase in year one, with an additional dollar in the second year. The drivers got a 9% raise over the 18-month contract term.”

Alarcon says that they also changed the employer split on the medical plan, moving from 70-30 to 75-25, with the goal of getting an 80-20 split in the next contract. “And in another huge win, we changed how they pay for vacation time, ensuring that workers get their regular wage for vacation time, rather than a lower vacation rate.”

The committee backed the final contract unanimously and the members overwhelmingly ratified it. Their previous contract had expired on July 1, 2021; in lieu of retroactive pay, every member got a $3,000 signing bonus. Alarcon wanted to recognize the great work of the bargaining team: Trent Rivera, Ruben Picado, and Pete Hall.

The nine Teamsters who work at adhesive-manufacturer Henkel in Berkeley ratified their new four-year contract on February 15, and Business Rep Stu Helfer reports that it may be the best contract they\’ve ever had. While the company wanted to pull this group out of the Teamster health and welfare plan and move them to the same company plan that the rest of its employees around the nation work under, the Berkeley group stayed strong and kept their Teamster plan, only moving from the TMT plan to the TBT plan. Meanwhile, they got significant wage and pension increases each year and the company increased its monthly caps to cover the health and welfare costs.

\”This is an addendum to the Master Warehouse agreement that we are part of along with the ILWU. For the second time in a row, this agreement is much better than the master,\” adds Helfer.