teamsterslocal251

New Local 251 Leaders Cut Their Own Salaries by More than $300,000

Your new Local 251 leadership team is cutting the fat and putting your dues to work for you.

On its first day in office, the new Executive Board voted to cut the salaries of all officers and business agents by more than $300,000 a year. The money saved will be used on programs to benefit the members.

The highest-ranking officers led by example. Secretary-Treasurer Matt Taibi and President Paul Santos reduced their salary by more than $60,000 each.

“We promised to save the our Union more than $250,000 a year by cutting excessive salaries,” said President Paul Santos. “We didn’t just keep our promise. We made deeper cuts and reduced our pay by more than $300,000.”

“Local 251’s treasury belongs to the members. We will protect the members’ dues money and put it work negotiating strong contracts and enforcing members’ rights,” said Secretary-Treasurer Matt Taibi.

Moving Ahead, Overcoming Sabotage

The new Local 251 is moving ahead despite shredding and sabotage by outgoing officers.

After the election, Secretary-Treasurer Matt Taibi reached out to Joe Bairos and the outgoing Local 251 leadership to coordinate a smooth transition. Bairos responded by shredding documents, sabotaging computer equipment and impeding the transition at every turn.

As for former President Kevin Reddy. There are no signs that he has even been in the Local 251 Union Hall in the last two years. The only paperwork in Reddy’s office was a stack of direct deposit receipts left for him on his desk and grievance files that are two years old.

It’s a sad reminder of what happens when Union officials forget the Teamster constitutional oath that, “It is the members that put me here and the members whom I will serve.”

Other former Business Agents have worked with Local 251 to keep our union moving forward. We thank them for putting the members first.

Contract Negotiations Update

The outgoing officers left behind contract negotiations that were never finished and contract files that were disorganized. That’s not stopping the new Local 251.

The new leadership appointed Dave Robbins as Contract Coordinator to keep contract negotiations on track.

Robbins and Business Agents are resuming negotiations with Employers where contracts talks were never finished by the old Local 251 officers. They are also preparing to open negotiations where contracts are set to expire.

The new Local 251 includes a new approach to contract negotiations. In every contract, members will have a voice in setting the union’s bargaining proposals and in choosing the Bargaining Committee that will negotiate with the employer.

YRC Teamsters Approve Revised Contract

YRC Teamsters nationwide voted to approve a contract extension by a vote of 12,267 to 6,314, following an earlier offer from the company that was rejected by 61 percent. Local 251 members voted 77 to 65 to approve the agreement.

The revised offer eliminated some concessions in the original offer.

UPS Freight Contract Update

Local 251 members voted 23 to 17 against the proposed contract. But the contract, which is a national master agreement, was approved by a two-to-one margin.

Shop Stewards: Our Union’s Frontline

Local 251 is taking action to increase union representation and fill shop steward vacancies.

Where resignations and vacancies left members without shop steward representation, we have recruited volunteers and made temporary shop steward appointments.

In the new Local 251, every member has the right to elect their shop steward.

Members can call for a shop steward election by turning in a petition for an election that is signed by over 30 percent of the Teamsters in a bargaining unit.

Voting will be fair and transparent with observers present.

Local 251 Members Vote to Support Workers Organizing for Justice at the Renaissance Hotel

Teamster Local 251 members voted at the General Membership Meeting to support the boycott of the Renaissance Hotel in Providence until workers there are given the right to form a union and organize for better working conditions, higher pay and respect.

We stand behind Renaissance Hotel workers in their struggle for justice.

Rhode Island Hospital Contract Negotiations Update – Wednesday, Oct. 29

Today, your Union Negotiating Committee met with management and presented 86 proposals to address members’ contract language concerns.

The Union Negotiating Committee proposed contract improvements.

Management came to the table with a proposal to eliminate the No Layoffs clause from the contract.

Local 251 members want good jobs and quality patient care. They don’t want to see our Job Security attacked.

Epic Update

Negotiations around Epic were more productive.

Last week, the Union Committee gave management proposals to address job security, retraining and other issues related to Epic.

The Hospital responded today with their first proposals about Epic.

Management moved in our direction and put forward proposals to protect jobs through retraining, filling vacant positions and respecting bumping rights.

Management estimates that 75 to 100 positions may be eliminated over the 18 months that Epic is implemented. This includes positions that are vacant right now.

The Union will fight for a fair severance package for any employee that is displaced by Epic.

We will also work to get a voluntary severance or buyout offer put on the table for employees who are considering moving on or retiring.

That could help protect job security for employees who want to stay.

Our number one goal is protecting members’ job security through retraining, filling vacant positions and respecting bumping rights. We will continue to negotiate over these important details.

What’s Next

Our proposals today focused on changes in contract language. Economic issues like fair wages, healthcare and retirement will be addressed later in contract negotiations.

Contract negotiations will resume on November 19.

The Contract Action Team will distribute more information soon.

It’s your Contract. Stay informed. Stay involved. Stay United.

Text CONTRACT to 313131 to sign up for contract updates straight to your phone.

Hospital Contract Negotiations Update – Tuesday, Oct. 21

  The Union Contract Negotiating Committee sat down across the table from management for the first time on Tuesday, Oct. 21. Negotiations began with an Opening Statement by President Paul Santos who made it very clear that the Union’s approach to contract negotiations will be different this time around and […]

Paul Santos Opening Statement at Rhode Island Hospital Contract Talks

To begin negotiations, Local 251 President Paul Santos gave the following Opening Statement to Lou Sperling and management’s bargaining committee. Good morning. We’re glad to be here and look forward to productive negotiations on a new contract. Before we begin, I want to make a few things clear about our […]