Picket at Auburn's Corporate Office

"Business Examiner" said:
Jul. 22, 2008 at 11:08am
Teamsters picketed freight company

A handful of retirees and union officials picketed outside Oak Harbor Freight Lines' headquarters in Auburn yesterday. At issue is contract negotiations that remain stalled after almost a year of talks. The sticking point is reportedly the regional trucking company's stance of eliminating health care coverage for all of its retirees.
"If Oak Harbor gets their way, our retirees – the ones who built this company -- will be orphaned with no health insurance," said Al Hobart, Teamster vice president and Joint Council 28 president. "We cannot allow that to happen."

The privately held company turned 90 years old this year and is one of the largest in the Northwest. Its annual revenue tops $150 million and boasts about 8 percent revenue growth in recent years.

The contract would affect about 70 people, of which the difference between shifting to the company plan as it proposes and the continued use of the union plan is only about $60 a month, corporate communications manager Mike Hobby said. The picketing came during a scheduled negotiation time using a federal mediator, when the company presented its seventh proposal and union officials failed to present a counter plan. They opted to picket.

"They were here as long as the television cameras were here," Corporate Communications Manager Mike Hobby said, noting that the story was wrapped by local television stations into a story about GM's contract negotiations with its auto workers.

The Teamsters represents about half of Oak Harbor's 1,300 employees who are spread out between the West Coast states.

What an ***....

What about all of the proposals the Teamsters came with, and Oak Harbor didn't have anything?
 
Too bad this clown Hoby lied to who ever he talked to. The cost would literally double for retirees. That would make thier cost for medical go from $359.00 to over $700.00 per person, and they no it. Lieing jerk says it will go up $60.00. Hope you read this Mike.

LIAR

These people have absolutely no morals!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

There is no company plan for retirees anyway.

LIAR
 
Gary H. isn't all that bad of a guy I guess, but when he says he put this company first he means it. Even ahead of his Teamster brothers, anyone else feel this way? Once you cross the line into management there is no going back...to me he has worked to further the agenda of the VP's, his playing both sides was not beneficial to Teamster members retired or otherwise. A former Terminal Manager is spokesman for a group of Teamster OHFL retirees, that seems kinda messed up to me.
 
I usually agree with you but I gotta say it is a great idea to have gary as the retired teamsters spokesperson on the news...wouldnt you say that people would realize that things have really gone to hell when a devoted company centered man is complaining about what they are trying to do? I think it made a powerfull statement. As for him as a person, moral and respect sure was higher when he was in office, cant say as much for what bill has done since he has joined us. Just a thought.
 
I usually agree with you but I gotta say it is a great idea to have gary as the retired teamsters spokesperson on the news...wouldnt you say that people would realize that things have really gone to hell when a devoted company centered man is complaining about what they are trying to do? I think it made a powerfull statement. As for him as a person, moral and respect sure was higher when he was in office, cant say as much for what bill has done since he has joined us. Just a thought.

I will say this; he spoke well, and he made our point effectively. Otherwise we are just going to have to agree to disagree, I don't want to walk a line with someone who may have fired or suspended one of my brothers. Moral and respect for what? This company has been taking #2's on its employees for a long time now, they were just warming up I realize, but to look back nostalgically at a time when the terminal manager received pension payments, and went to lunch with the Sec. Tres. of the local is just a testament to how far OHFL has manipulated their workforce away from union values.

I believe Gary was a part of that, former kick *** and take names shop steward, turned company. Do you think these lines exist between management and labor because we want to be difficult? Gary shouldn't even have been receiving a WCTWT pension contribution as a Terminal Manager. Maybe if the owners had felt more resistance long, ago things wouldn't be where they are today? Maybe they used Gary as a liaison to smooth over relations with the union leaders to allow for the insane concessions they have had in their contracts.
 
He was one of the last grandfathered in teamster managers, and one of the better, thats all im saying. Bill does not respect us and considers us less of a person for doing what we do, you can gather this by the way he talks at their meetings. Like you said, he spoke well, and I think his message was effectively delivered...
 
He was one of the last grandfathered in teamster managers, and one of the better, thats all im saying. Bill does not respect us and considers us less of a person for doing what we do, you can gather this by the way he talks at their meetings. Like you said, he spoke well, and I think his message was effectively delivered...

He fired people, a sworn Teamster cannot fire another member, even to aid in the termination of fellow brother is a violation of the Teamster oath. I understand at one time master freight companies had union "checkers" their purpose was to direct the flow of freight, discipline is an entirely different issue. It doesn't matter if he was the nicest Terminal manager in the world and Bill H. eats children for lunch, it was wrong and the union officials that let it go on were wrong, and the Oak Harbor employees that let it go aided in the breakdown of their conditions. If Gary really wants to help us now I am sure he knows something that can help.
 
He fired people, a sworn Teamster cannot fire another member, even to aid in the termination of fellow brother is a violation of the Teamster oath.

This is why a teamster should never be a manager. What
if the people that he terminated should have been terminated?
What if the suspensions were warranted? The conflict of
interest is way too great.

Are there any more teamster managers at OAKH?
 
This is why a teamster should never be a manager. What
if the people that he terminated should have been terminated?
What if the suspensions were warranted? The conflict of
interest is way too great.

Are there any more teamster managers at OAKH?

No Teamster should be terminated in my eyes, unless they steal freight, or create unsafe situations that threatens the health of other Teamsters.

A Teamster should never have even been a supervisor, never in a million years a Terminal Manager.

I believe they made all the Teamster supervisors go non in preparation for this contract battle.
 
No Teamster should be terminated in my eyes, unless they steal freight, or create unsafe situations that threatens the health of other Teamsters.

A Teamster should never have even been a supervisor, never in a million years a Terminal Manager.

I believe they made all the Teamster supervisors go non in preparation for this contract battle.

No, unless? OK, so let's say that a teamster supervisor
watches as a teamster dock worker takes freight off of
the dock and loads it into his or her car. The supervisor
is the only person that sees this happen. The teamster
code evidently says that this supervisor can not turn
the dockworker in, but you are saying that for theft, he
should.

I know of one operations manager that was told, by his
local, that he would be in danger of losing his pension if
he so much as wrote up a fellow teamster.
 
I know of one operations manager that was told, by his
local, that he would be in danger of losing his pension if
he so much as wrote up a fellow teamster.

HAHA that was a bluff because as we all know nobody can do anything about someone else's pension. Once it is yours, it is yours. If a member/supervisor is under the 5 year vesting period and then was removed they would lose but only then. Filing charges and having them removed is another story though.
 
No Teamster should be terminated in my eyes, unless they steal freight, or create unsafe situations that threatens the health of other Teamsters.

What about unsafe situations that threatens the public or NON union employees, or showing up under the influence, or being caught using drugs, or failing to show up for work for days, or having repeated accidents. or faking an injury, etc, etc, etc.

It seems you would let someone get away with a lot of things, simply because they are a teamster, which is holding teamsters to a lower standard than everyone else. Once you start lowering your standards then what have you got left???
 
Are there any more teamster managers at OAKH?[/QUOTE said:
Nope. The last one withdrew from the union this year. Most likely to avoid fines in the event of a strike. A true turncoat who didn't even have the nutts to tell the memebers he works around.
 
What about unsafe situations that threatens the public or NON union employees, or showing up under the influence, or being caught using drugs, or failing to show up for work for days, or having repeated accidents. or faking an injury, etc, etc, etc.

It seems you would let someone get away with a lot of things, simply because they are a teamster, which is holding teamsters to a lower standard than everyone else. Once you start lowering your standards then what have you got left???

We can regulate ourselves, if someone shows up to work drunk I would say something to them like "hey man, maybe you should call it a day". If I caught someone using illegal drugs like Heroin in a public workplace, I would encourage them to go to get some help. If I see a couple dock workers who are stacking boxes all day smoking a joint, I could care less.

If someone didn't show up to work for days, I would congratulate them on the vacation, you expect me to run to my supervisor and tell him "Mr. Bossman so and so hasn't been to work for days" thats about the snitchiest skab BS I can think of. If a driver is having repeat accidents maybe he should take the initiative to bid onto a nighttime shift where he can work for a while while so the accidents can fall of his record. Again as a Teamster not my responsibility to report or discipline him. If I knew for a fact someone was faking an injury I would talk to them first, second I would get my union steward or BA involved.

We can regulate ourselves, no need to run to the company, we are raising our standards if we can deal with problems internally. If we run into problems like these our stewards are never far away, if they can't deal with the problem bring in the BA. Never never narc out a brother unless he is stealing the freight, even then, think hard and consult your steward.
 
No, unless? OK, so let's say that a teamster supervisor
watches as a teamster dock worker takes freight off of
the dock and loads it into his or her car. The supervisor
is the only person that sees this happen. The teamster
code evidently says that this supervisor can not turn
the dockworker in, but you are saying that for theft, he
should.

I know of one operations manager that was told, by his
local, that he would be in danger of losing his pension if
he so much as wrote up a fellow teamster.
As a Teamster it is your duty to never knowingly harm a fellow member.

Say a union supervisor gives a Teamster a work assignment, he takes the assignment, walks off the dock, and starts talking on a cell phone for 30 minutes, a Teamster can't do anything about it except talk to the steward. I am not really sure on the theft thing, the oath really does not specifically mention theft as an exception. At a local union meeting we were told that theft is unacceptable, and to report it as soon as possible.
 
Hey girls, what about Monday's talks? What do think about not getting to vote before the International calls a strike and you sissys have to go out. Wonder what the Teamster code on that one is sweethearts? You sheep will drag out to the street and your old ladies will be screaming at you to cross that line so fast your sunday bonnet's will fly off.

Any meetings scheduled by your fearless leaders? Wow you all are headed out the door and your little jobs will be taken by Men that want work and you will be on the outside looking in, wiping your stupid sheeplike tears!!! Ha gals and good luck!
 
Top