Hoffa knows their isn't crap he can do about it. You cant stop anyone from running a company into the ground. CNF/CF/Conway proved that.. Its called hang on and ride it out.. Unions aren't intended on telling companies how to dictate its future or run itself, that's why there is so much debate. Good ole Judy just asserted that principle. Hoffa chose to play vs stick a fork in it at contract time.. Its not about Washington. Its about what are you going to do?
The presumption is that during contract talks, ABF indicated they had a plan to withdraw from LTL, and go to a logistics base with non-Union people. I agree that companies can aim themselves down any rathole they wish in a deluded quest for more profits for the fee running the company, however, .....when the company negotiators laid that proposition on the table, our so-called "leadership" should've gone at them hammer'n'tongs to get the best possible contract imagineable,.........and called their bluff.
They would've immediately either closed the doors,.........or blinked, and provided the employees top+of-the-line wages and benefits right up to the time they shut the doors. Either way, they said they were going to close the Union side. Which way would be better?
Instead, it appears our so-called "leadership" said : " Oh, well, give us a wish-list of how you want to decimate the NMFA, and how much you want to cut wages and vacations..........DURING THE WORST DRIVER SHORTAGE IMAGINABLE!.......so that you corporate people can start feathering your nests early in preparation for when you finally get rid of those stinky Union guys, and go all logistical.
We are presuming, of course, that ABF had indicated that direction during negotiations, and based on that presumption, we are trying to fathom what the reason was for the IBT to gut out our contract, and divide up the NMFA, and to give back our wages and vacations to people who, in hindsight, laughed all the way to the bank,......or stockbroker.