Yellow | 1994 Strike

cityman va.

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I'm just wondering how many men on here have ever walked a picket line ? And if anyone remembers why we walked it the in 1994 ? I'm getting the feeling from the threads that very few men on here have ever had to go out on strike to stand up for whats right. Take a chance that you walk a line for a few weeks and could still get beat by the company,but it was the right thing to do. For the teamsters of YRC to just except what the company wants to give us erases all that has been accomplished by the National Master Freight Agreement established in 1964.
 
I remember the nonunion carriers chocked on all the freight and pissed off a lot of customers. Customers were glad to have use back.
 
I'm just wondering how many men on here have ever walked a picket line ? And if anyone remembers why we walked it the in 1994 ? I'm getting the feeling from the threads that very few men on here have ever had to go out on strike to stand up for whats right. Take a chance that you walk a line for a few weeks and could still get beat by the company,but it was the right thing to do. For the teamsters of YRC to just except what the company wants to give us erases all that has been accomplished by the National Master Freight Agreement established in 1964.

I believe the sticking point was the use of part timers.. That was many fatties ago.
 
In my 37 years (1976-2013) I walked 3 picket lines. And trying to compare the situation at YRCW to 1994 or any other strike is misguided at best. The LTL industry has evolved to majority non-union, that was NOT the case in 1994. Additionally, from its inception the conditions of the NMFA were basically given rather than fought for. That's because until deregulation the industry was guaranteed a profit. Rates were based on UNION wages and conditions.
The Teamsters are not solely to blame for this fiasco. But neither is the current leadership at YRCW. It is much more complex with shared responsibility in every corner. We are witnessing what likely will be the end of teamster presence in LTL freight.
 
walked 3 picket lines in my years as a teamster. 94 roadway then some at overnite when the union was trying to organize them. and at a regional grocer warehouse in support of of other teamsters.
 
I walked every one since 1973. I managed to work for every carrier that was struck in my career
I do remember 32 days after the 94 strike until I was called back.
Still got the picket signs tacked up in my garage back home.
 
I'm just wondering how many men on here have ever walked a picket line ? And if anyone remembers why we walked it the in 1994 ? I'm getting the feeling from the threads that very few men on here have ever had to go out on strike to stand up for whats right. Take a chance that you walk a line for a few weeks and could still get beat by the company,but it was the right thing to do. For the teamsters of YRC to just except what the company wants to give us erases all that has been accomplished by the National Master Freight Agreement established in 1964.

Walked the 94 picket line with my Dad. I'm second generation Teamster. Laughed our asses off when supes dropped a trailer off the mule while trying to move it!! Fond memories of sticking it to the man with my father.
 
I remember the strike and what we fought for. No part-timers and now we have part-timers and I remember what we got. 700.00 bonus then after taxes maybe 525 or so. But had we gotten .30 an hour we would have been better off but the IBT said this 700.00 is more than the raise will be in a year but that .30 would have been for every year going forward. YRC will ditate to the IBT what it needs to survive and they will tell us it is the best you're gonna get. B***S*** shut the FN doors I can't afford to give any more.
 
I remember the strike and what we fought for. No part-timers and now we have part-timers and I remember what we got. 700.00 bonus then after taxes maybe 525 or so. But had we gotten .30 an hour we would have been better off but the IBT said this 700.00 is more than the raise will be in a year but that .30 would have been for every year going forward. YRC will ditate to the IBT what it needs to survive and they will tell us it is the best you're gonna get. B***S*** shut the FN doors I can't afford to give any more.

If you can't afford to stay, how are going to afford to leave? "B***S*** shut the FN doors I can't afford to give any more. " Just sayin'
 
I remember the strike well, so do quite a few of our former good customers, I still feel it did and continues to do more damage to the unionized ltl industry then any other action before or since.
Since that time shippers have been looking for and developing cheaper, more dependable methods of moving their products from point A to point B that does not include using us.
 
As the years have gone by a strike has become less effective simply because fewer trucking companies are unionized. Even though many non-union drivers will sympathize with teamster strike actions, they cannot participate for fear of losing their jobs. They have no protection. When the teamsters strike now in this mostly non-union environment there are many non-union carriers to haul the freight where as back in the 70s or early 80s many more trucking companies were teamsters and a strike was much more far reaching. But if it takes a strike to keep decent wages and pension and health insurance I am all for it no matter what it takes. Good mechanics and dockworkers and switchers that are willing to work by the phone, taking work calls in the middle of the night, working different shifts and at all hours with forced overtime are hard to find in this day and age. There is a huge driver "Good Driver" shortage out there today, so if you think YRC has you by the balls, think again. You may be the one who has them by the balls.
 
CF. Columbus, OH. Was where I was during the 1994 strike. Like these other guys said, a lot has changed since then. Funny, one of the signs I carried said part time America won't work. Looking across the job market nowadays, that sign was dead on.
 
Good Lord I remember that. It was awful then just like this is terrible. The only difference back then was that I was 20 years younger, a hell of a lot angrier, and we were willing to fight for our share of a booming economy. Plus I knew I could still walk out and get another job if things went south. Today I'm not nearly as sure, the economy isn't on our side, and there are days (like today) where the lack of communication from IBT makes me wish I had all of those union dues back.

Even then though my kids were little and I hated the fact that I wasn't working. It was during that strike that I swore I would convince my kids not to put up with this nonsense and make sure they ended up on the right side of the economy. One of the most frightening days of my life was when my son said he wanted to be a truck driver. I raised them to respect hard work, never cross a picket line, and to remember that all of those letters after their names don't make them any better than anyone else. My YRC wages put them through some of the best colleges and professional schools in this country even after all of the cuts and I just hope they stay open so other families can have the same opportunity.

We're not fighting for our share this time. Instead it looks like we'll be trying to borrow a little more time and betting that the economy gets better. One way or another it looks like this will be the last time I have to sweat over contract negotiations. I sincerely hope it works out. It's easy to say "shut it down" while we're you're still working...
 
Good Lord I remember that. It was awful then just like this is terrible. The only difference back then was that I was 20 years younger, a hell of a lot angrier, and we were willing to fight for our share of a booming economy. Plus I knew I could still walk out and get another job if things went south. Today I'm not nearly as sure, the economy isn't on our side, and there are days (like today) where the lack of communication from IBT makes me wish I had all of those union dues back.

Even then though my kids were little and I hated the fact that I wasn't working. It was during that strike that I swore I would convince my kids not to put up with this nonsense and make sure they ended up on the right side of the economy. One of the most frightening days of my life was when my son said he wanted to be a truck driver. I raised them to respect hard work, never cross a picket line, and to remember that all of those letters after their names don't make them any better than anyone else. My YRC wages put them through some of the best colleges and professional schools in this country even after all of the cuts and I just hope they stay open so other families can have the same opportunity.

We're not fighting for our share this time. Instead it looks like we'll be trying to borrow a little more time and betting that the economy gets better. One way or another it looks like this will be the last time I have to sweat over contract negotiations. I sincerely hope it works out. It's easy to say "shut it down" while we're you're still working...
Eloquent and sincere. Nice post.
 
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