Freightmaster1
TB Legend
- Credits
- 615
Teamsters-ABF pact would boost LTL wages, limit driverless technology
Under the tentative deal, Teamsters driving for ABF will receive a $3.50-per-hour raise on July 1, and an additional $6.50 per hour over five years. Photo credit: Jonathan Weiss / Shutterstock.com.
William B. Cassidy, Senior Editor | Jun 16, 2023, 3:19 PM EDT
International Brotherhood of Teamsters leadership is endorsing a tentative agreement with ABF Freight System that would give union employees at the less-than-truckload (LTL) carrier a significant pay raise, as well as assurances that ABF won’t deploy driverless technology without the consent of the union.
The tentative contract includes a $3.50-per-hour — 8.75 cents per mile — raise effective July 1 and a $6.50-per-hour — 16.25 cents per mile — wage increases over the life of the five-year deal, according to an 8-K filing from ABF with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
“The first year alone increases wages more than the entire five years combined in the last contract,” which hiked wages $2 per hour, the union said in a statement Thursday.
The contract also keeps in place a profit-sharing bonus that would increase in size as ABF’s annual operating ratio decreases, rising to 4% if the operating ratio falls to 87% or below. ABF said it gave its union employees a 3% contractual bonus based on its operating ratio in 2022.
The contract also limits — and in some cases prohibits — the use of technology such as driver-facing in-cab cameras and autonomous trucks. Under the agreement, ABF would need the written consent of the Teamsters to deploy driverless trucks, and even then, the technology could not result in a reduction in union jobs.
(continued)