Posts tagged drivers
Uber, Lyft, DoorDash drivers to strike on Valentine’s Day for fair pay
February 14, 2024 // Thousands of drivers for ride-sharing platforms Uber (UBER.N), opens new tab, Lyft (LYFT.O), opens new tab and food delivery app DoorDash (DASH.O), opens new tab are expected to go on strike across the United States on Valentine's Day for fair pay, drivers' groups said on Monday. The demonstrations are set to take place about a week after Lyft said it would guarantee weekly earnings for drivers, a first in the U.S. ride-hailing industry as it looks to lure more drivers to its platform.
UPS to cut 12,000 jobs 5 months after agreeing to new labor deal
January 31, 2024 // UPS joins a number of other major U.S. companies axing jobs in 2024 amid forecasts for slower economic growth. Earlier this month, Alphabet-owned Google laid off hundreds of workers on its hardware, voice assistance and engineering teams to cut costs. Other tech players to announce significant cuts include Microsoft and business software maker Salesforce, while retailers eBay, Levis, Macy's and Wayfair also plan to shed jobs. Most economists expect the labor market will slow this year, but predict the U.S. will avoid a recession. Job growth has proved resilient, with the country adding a robust 2.7 million jobs in 2023.
Opinion: Biden adds to his ‘Bidenomics’ flop: This new rule throws wrench in popular gig economy.
January 22, 2024 // Biden promised to be the “most pro-union president you’ve ever seen,” so he needs to reward all those campaign donations. And Biden’s doing it regardless of the impact on the economy. Independent contractors cannot be unionized, so the more companies lean on these workers, the less ability unions have to organize. It’s really that simple. The Biden administration is trying to sell its new rule as a way to protect workers and make it easier for them to qualify for benefits such as overtime pay and paid time off.
Metro Transit workers, including drivers, overwhelmingly vote to authorize strike
September 14, 2023 // While some may be ready to strike, voting to authorize a strike does not mean a strike will happen. But it does give union leadership the ability to call a strike if it becomes necessary, the union said. "The members have the final say in that. They will tell us what they want to do. They have the final vote on the contracts," Timlin said. "It's really how far they are prepared to go on this. That's the reality." Workers are asking for pay raises to include the cost of living, safety solutions, better shift differentials and more one-piece runs. Negotiations with the Metropolitan Council started back in March and contracts expired at the end of July.
‘UPS dug their heels in’: Teamsters UPS strike plans emerge, could affect 30 percent of parcels
July 21, 2023 // “If we are unable to hire, properly train or retain qualified employees, we could experience higher labor costs, reduced revenues, further increased workers’ compensation and automobile liability claims, regulatory noncompliance, customer losses and diminution of our brand value or company culture, which could materially adversely affect us,” the company said. Teamsters chief asks White House not to intervene if UPS workers strike Teamsters spokespeople said last Friday that the hiring of nonunion workers is an affront to the collective bargaining process and makes negotiations more difficult.
Sean O’Brien’s summer of the strike
June 26, 2023 // It’s the spark for the combative spirit that permeates Teamsters headquarters, where a whiteboard charts a long-term battle plan on a timeline — “practice picketing,” “CAT trainings” (for “contract action teams”), “identify strike teams” … and finally, on the July 31 spot that marks the end of the current contract: “STRIKE.” Why strike now? As O’Brien himself acknowledged in his Senate testimony, UPS already offers the most plum jobs in the logistics industry, with driver salaries starting at $93,000. But O’Brien argues that the pandemic gave UPS workers the greatest leverage they’ve had in decades. In 2020, union members risked their health to keep packages moving. UPS’s profits surged and have remained high, with customers still hooked on the online shopping habits they adopted during the lockdowns. “Our members are fed up” and remain convinced, he said, that “the only concern that was being addressed was UPS’s bottom line and their balance sheet.” No better time, O’Brien reasons, for workers to go to the mat to demand wages beginning at $20 an hour, tighter safety provisions and an end to the two-tier employment system ushered in by the last contract.
Union Gets Big Pay Raise at Inefficient West Coast Ports
June 21, 2023 // The disruption tactics the ILWU has been using over the past few months to gain leverage in negotiations appear to have hurt its own members this year, with paid work hours down 25 percent through April 14 compared to the same period last year. That’s partly due to shippers choosing other ports and partly due to dockworkers working less on union orders. Common work actions include assigning fewer workers and slowing down the pace of work. The JOC said that cranes at the port of Seattle–Tacoma went from 25 container moves per hour to fewer than ten. As Peter Tirschwell argued on June 6 in the Wall Street Journal, by delaying negotiations for as long as it did, the ILWU might have missed an opportunity for a bigger pay raise. Ocean carriers earned extraordinary profits due to soaring container rates in 2021 and 2022, but those rates came back down to Earth at the end of last year and are largely back to normal now. And the constant uncertainty every time a West Coast contract expires contrasts with the relative ease with which the International Longshoremen’s Association, which represents East Coast dockworkers, has come to contract agreements for decades. The delay-and-prolong approach of the ILWU helps encourage shippers to go elsewhere, leaving less demand for longshore labor on the West Coast.
Amazon drivers, dispatchers stage walkout at Palmdale warehouse
June 16, 2023 // The 84 workers involved in the one-day walkout are employed by logistics partner Battle-Tested Strategies and subcontracted by Amazon. They voted in April to join Teamsters Local 396 in hopes of boosting their wages to $30 hourly by September and securing immediate safety protections. In a statement issued Thursday, Amazon spokeswoman Eileen Hards said facts are “being intentionally misrepresented” by the Teamsters and Battle-Tested Strategies. “This company has a history of underperformance and not providing a safe environment, and was notified that Amazon was ending their contract before the Teamsters got involved to try and re-write the facts,” Hards said.
Northern California workers at cannabis delivery service Grassdoor unionize
March 27, 2023 // “These workers are critical to the success of the cannabis supply chain, and they deserve to have prosperous, sustainable careers that reflect the value they bring to their employers,” Peter Finn, Western Region International vice president and Teamsters Food Processing Division director, said in a statement. “We look forward to working with them on securing better wages, benefits, and working conditions.” Grassdoor driver Alexander Torres joined the union to secure paid vacation and paid time off, according to the release.
TARC management, TARC Union to meet for new contract negotiations Wednesday
November 2, 2022 // The union has already voted to authorize a strike if necessary. Per Kentucky law, public employees like TARC drivers aren't allowed to strike or engage in work stoppage. In a statement, a TARC spokesperson said they're hopeful they'll finalize a contract that provides employees with the best possible wages while also meeting TARC's budgetary responsibilities.