This is what I believe happened Rhonda in my own uncensored words... we all know that the company executives have always been greedy... condescending... egotistical and pretentious equivocators who believe that the common workers are nothing more than serfs and peasants. And that hasn't changed one bit!
What has changed over the years is the IBT and the Rank and File.
The IBT used to be made up of common workers from the trucking industry that were elected by the Rank and File who believed would best represent their interests. That is not the case today in any sense of the word... the president of the IBT is a lawyer by trade who was elected solely on the reputation of his father's name. The trucking industry is only a fraction of what is now the Teamster's union that doesn't even come close to having the numbers needed in playing a major role come election time. So... what we have today is a leadership that forgot where they came from or never came from at all who have the same mindset as the company executives who don't give a flying :
: about the worker's financial future in the freight industry. They... just like the company executives who's only concern is their own financial future and well being that have become greedy... condescending... egotistical and pretentious equivocators who believe that the common workers are nothing more than serfs and peasants.Now comes the trucking industry's Rank and File's part in all of this which IMO is the saddest part. Sure... the leadership has sold us out but the majority of the Rank and File are not only doing nothing about it... they actually allowed the leadership to coerce them into being sold out!!! Now these weak minded individuals have the audacity to cry and whine... quietly of course... to each other if no union official can hear them. These members don't even realize that the leadership couldn't of done it without them and instead of the members standing up to the leadership... they bowed down!!!
So... What is going on with Teamsters... my assumption is that the Rank and File's mindset has drastically weakened over the years... a combination of seasoned members allowing themselves getting too comfortable and accustomed to the idea of putting all their trust and relying on the integrity of the leadership to fight their battles and newer members that were weak minded to begin with that wouldn't even think of fighting but gladly accepted the pay... benefits and working conditions that others sacrificed so much for. Hell... what do they care about giving some away... they didn't have to fight for it!!!
I'm sorry for your mother Rhonda because your father was an Old School Teamster who fought... sacrificed and earned what we gave away!!! There just wasn't enough of the 'old school mentality' still around to keep that from happening!!! Just to give you an idea of how much... this site was started so the Old School Teamsters that could see what was coming for years had a place to come and unite to try and avoid this catastrophe but as you can see by the amount of members... members that visit on a regular basis and how many of those members post... that our numbers just aren't there.