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About Northwest labor press. (Portland , Ore.) 1987-current | View Entire Issue (March 20, 2009)
March. 20, 2009:NWLP 3/17/09 9:50 AM Page 2 Teamsters dispute at Oak Harbor Freight Lines isn’t over International Brotherhood of Team- sters ended its unfair labor practice strike at Oak Harbor Freight Lines, but the la- bor dispute isn’t over. About 600 Teamsters members struck the privately-held regional truck- ing company Sept. 22 — alleging, in five separate charges, that the company had broken labor law. One of those charges was later withdrawn, and an- other was dismissed by National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) agent who in- vestigated, but three minor charges were found to have merit. The company agreed Jan. 30 to settle those charges by changing some company practices and posting a workplace notice. Once the charges were settled, for union members to stay out would have made it an “economic” strike, which would have given Oak Harbor the right to permanently replace them. So Team- sters International Vice-PresidentAl Ho- bart announced Feb. 12 that strikers were willing to return to work. After several weeks of wrangling over the subject, Hobart made it clear that the union return-to-work offer was unconditional. Some drivers and dock workers returned the first week of U.S. Court dismisses Cintas RICO suit NEW YORK — Calling the com- plaint “sprawling” and “larded,” U.S. District Court Judge William H. Pauley has dismissed a racketeering lawsuit filed by Fortune 500 company Cintas Corp. against UNITE HERE, the Teamsters, and Change to Win. Cintas filed the suit in March 2008, claiming the unions had mounted neg- ative and false attacks on the company as part of an “extortion” campaign dur- ing an organizing drive. b h m k Union officials described the lawsuit as a broader campaign of coercion to keep workers from forming a union. Judge Pauley called the complaint “a manifesto ... that is more a public re- lations piece than a pleading.” He said Cintas “does not have the right to oper- ate free from any criticism, organized or not,” noting the constitutional free- speech protection given to labor activi- ties. Bennett Hartman Morris & Kaplan, llp March. But others were laid off due to lack of work. The Everett, Washington, terminal is closed altogether — tem- porarily, the company said. Business is down due to the strike and economic conditions. Teamsters say Oak Harbor lost more than half its business during the strike. Striking drivers used their relationships with local customers to get them to switch to other shippers, while a union “corporate campaign” persuaded big companies like JC Penney and The Gap to cancel accounts. Workers returned without the protec- tion of a union contract. Their last con- tract expired Oct. 31, 2007. Oak Harbor imposed its own terms on returning strikers. It ceased making contributions to the Teamster-sponsored health and pension plans. Workers say the company isn’t honoring seniority rules, and man- agers are doing the work of bargaining unit members. Oak Harbor also refused to return 13 workers, saying they were suspended for supposed strike misconduct, and that more suspensions could come. Mean- while, anti-union workers —helped by the National Right to Work Foundation — have petitioned the NLRB to decer- tify the union at eight terminals:Auburn, Mt. Vernon, Pasco, Spokane, and We- natchee, Washington; Medford and Salem, Oregon; and Boise, Idaho. The terminals, totaling 250 workers, make up nearly half the company’s union membership. The NLRB has not yet set election dates for workers at those ter- minals to vote on whether to stay union. ...Gregoire, Chopp, Brown kill priority labor bill (From Page 1) nounce it in a press conference, and send the e-mail to law enforcement. “We are no longer considering ac- tion on … the Worker Privacy Act,” said Gregoire, Chopp, and Brown in their joint press statement. “Immediately upon becoming aware of an e-mail link- ing potential action on the bill to cam- paign contributions, bringing the bill forward was no longer an option. The e-mail raises serious legal and ethical questions. The matter has been referred to the Washington State Patrol for in- vestigation.” WSLC President Rick Bender re- acted later that day on the WSLC Web site: “We regret the incident. It was a re- sult of frustration with the Legislature’s failure to protect workers rights in the workplace.” “The Washington State Labor Coun- cil proudly stands behind our efforts to pass the Worker Privacy Act,” Bender said in a second statement the follow- ing day. “Early Tuesday morning, an e- mail communication related to the Pri- vacy Act was inadvertently delivered to the offices of several Washington State legislators. We regret that this uninten- tional communication has stalled con- sideration of this important legislation.” Bender said to Daily Olympian po- litical blogger Adam Wilson that he was unaware of any other case where leg- islative leaders responded to heavy lob- bying by burying the bills and calling the cops. Attorneys at Law E NTER T HIS R AFFLE T O W IN Oregon’s Full Service Union Law Firm Representing Workers Since 1960 A 2 0 0 9 H a r l e y D a v i d s o n D y n a L o w R i d e r Serious Injury and Death Cases Ti c k e t s a r e $ 1 0 e a c h O n l y 3 , 5 0 0 t i c k e t s w i l l b e s o l d • Construction Injuries • Automobile Accidents • Medical, Dental, and Legal Malpractice • Bicycle and Motorcycle Accidents • Pedestrian Accidents • Premises Liability (injuries on premises) • Workers’ Compensation Injuries • Social Security Claims We Work Hard for Hard-Working People! 111 SW Fifth Avenue, Suite 1650 Portland, Oregon 97204 (503) 227-4600 www.bennetthartman.com Our Legal Staff are Proud Members of UFCW Local 555 PAGE 2 Every indication is that Oak Harbor Freight Lines orchestrated the entire conflict expressly to bust the union. Even before contract negotiations began in 2007, Oak Harbor co-president David Vander Pol told the Teamsters’ Hobart that company owners had met with East Coast shipping company managers who’d defeated Teamster strikes and eliminated the union, and that Oak Har- bor was prepared to pursue that. Up to two years before the strike, the company was contracting to recruit striker re- placements. To represent it in bargain- ing, Oak Harbor hired a law firm that specializes in union avoidance. And when the strike began, the company re- turned to operation almost immediately, using workers brought in by a strike- breaking temp agency. ... AND HELP THE KIDS 7th Annual Motorcycle Poker Run and Chili Cook-Off Saturday, June 13 IBEW Local 48 Hall, 15937 NE Airport Way, Portland The bike can be viewed through mid April at the IBEW & United Workers Federal Credit Union, 1955 SE Washington, Portland And from mid-April to June 11 at the Teamsters Joint Council #37 Credit Union, 1866 NE 162nd Ave., Portland Tickets are on sale at either credit union or the following locations: Stagecoach Saloon, 20101 NE Sandy, Fairview Gateway Pub, 39100 Pioneer Blvd, Sandy Carver Hanger, 16196 SE Hwy 224, Clackamas (Carver) IBEW Local 48, 15937 NE Airport Way, Portland Pub 181, 18415 SE Division St., Portland Mason’s Custom Cycles, 439 NE 3rd Ave. #A100, Canby Seasons & Regions Seafood Grill, 6660 SW Capitol Hwy., Portland T h e r a f f l e a n d P o k e r R u n a r e s p o n s o r e d b y U n i o n s f o r K i d s , a n o n - p r o f i t , a l l - v o l u n t e e r o r g a n i z a t i o n . A l l p r o c e e d s g o t o D o e r n b e c h e r C h i l d r e n ’ s H o s p i t a l See our Web site at www.unions forkids.org or call Lee Duncan at 503 260-5905 Pre-registration and donations can be made on-line NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS MARCH 20, 2009
