by Ryan Vuz
Providence, RI
The International Brotherhood of Teamsters (Teamsters, or IBT) is preparing for the possibility of the largest strike in U.S. history against a single private company, the United Parcel Service (UPS). It’s crucial to look back at the lessons from the last UPS strike in 1997 when over 185,000 Teamsters came together and won a strong contract in the face of corporate greed.
Growing Frustration and Mobilization Among Teamsters
For years leading up to 1997, UPS workers had endured the company’s attacks on their pay, pensions, benefits, and access to full-time positions. Their union leadership was doing little to fight for members. Led by the corrupt Jimmy Hoffa Sr., the Teamsters leadership ran a management-friendly union that sought to increase its own privileges at the expense of membership. UPS was increasingly hiring part-time workers at low wages and subcontracting out jobs. Teamster members were fed up.
In 1991, in the first one-member-one-vote election, rank-and-file Teamsters, including those organized in Teamsters for a Democratic Union (TDU), voted in Ron Carey as the new union president. Carey’s election was the first step in picking up the pieces of a broken union: he reduced his own salary, got rid of exclusive benefits for officers and staff such as limousines and private jets, and removed dozens of corrupt leaders, some with ties to the mafia.
In February of 1994, UPS doubled the maximum package weight a worker was required to handle alone from 70 to 150 pounds. Unlike the Hoffa administration, the new leadership fought back, calling a strike in violation of a court order to reverse UPS’ decision. Despite being smaller than anticipated and mainly affecting the Northeast, the strike won its demand in a single day. This action set the tone for the 1997 strike and demonstrated the potential UPS workers had to fight for more.
Preparing for the 1997 Contract Negotiations
By 1997, Teamsters were ready to make big demands on UPS, most prominently for more full-time positions. UPS had netted a record profit of $1 billion in 1996, and its claims that it couldn’t afford more full-time jobs rang hollow. Its “last, best, and final offer” included lower wage increases than the previous contract, more subcontracting, and UPS seizing control of the Teamsters’ pension fund for UPS workers.
While previous union leadership conducted negotiations privately with management without rank-and-file involvement, the new leadership under Carey took a different approach by leveraging workers’ power to wage a public, militant fight. It rallied the rank-and-file, communicated openly about negotiations, and worked around conservative union bureaucrats. The new leadership also asked for member input through surveys ahead of negotiations, put rank-and-file members on the negotiating team, and built “member to member networks.” The union also distributed leaflets and organized on-site rallies to boost morale. Over 100,000 Teamsters, more than half of the UPS membership, signed petitions demanding full-time jobs. Signs, stickers, and shirts were distributed to members with slogans like “It’s Our Contract, We’ll Fight For It.”
The Teamsters also established ties internationally with other unions to put pressure on UPS. Over a year before the strike, the Teamsters met with the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF), one of the world’s largest trade union federations. The ITF coordinated over 150 job actions and demonstrations across 11 countries at UPS facilities two months before the strike.
The Strike Begins
The Teamsters’ strike authorization vote showed 93% of members voting to strike. The vote sent UPS into a scramble, with the company’s chief negotiator, David Murray, distributing an audiotape to upper management stating that $8 an hour was more than enough for even the full-time workers. In response, Carey widely spread the tape and included rank-and-file members’ counter-arguments to Murray. When UPS demanded that the Teamsters destroy their new, edited version of the tape and provide the names of all those it was distributed to, the union ignored the company.
On August 4th, following repeated delays by management and their insulting last offer, the Teamsters’ called a strike. Over 185,000 hub workers and drivers, along with over 2,000 pilots and mechanics, walked out of work to join the picket lines. In Massachusetts and Rhode Island, workers clashed with police as they tried to stop scab drivers. Competing corporations like USPS and FedEx could not handle the sudden extra daily traffic of over 11 million packages. UPS lost upwards of $40 million each day.
As the strike progressed, delivery drivers walked their normally-assigned routes, going door-to-door to explain the situation directly to the community. They won support by explaining the necessity of the strike and how people could help by donating to the Teamsters’ strike fund, visiting picket lines, and boycotting UPS. Public support grew so large that opinion polls showed 55% of Americans supported the strike, and a majority opposed government intervention.
After 15 days of striking, UPS conceded to the Teamsters’ demands. The Teamsters won massive improvements in the new contract: 20,000 additional full-time positions, the largest pay increase in UPS history, no subcontracting unless approved by the union, and protection and improvements to workers’ pension plans.
Backlash and Challenges
The contract victory was only temporary. UPS, both corporate political parties, and James Hoffa Jr., launched attacks against militant union leaders and members. They accused Ron Carey of embezzling campaign funds and expelled him from the union despite strong evidence of his innocence. His membership in the Teamsters was never restored, and he was attacked for years after, despite being vindicated in 2001 by a federal court.
James Hoffa Jr. won the following union presidential election thanks to the combined support of the union’s bureaucratic “old guard,” capitalist politicians and judges, and even UPS itself. The stage was set for decades of pro-business leadership that forced through the wildly unpopular 2018 contract. Today, UPS Teamsters suffer from heat stroke, subcontracting is rampant, and full-time jobs are few and far between. UPS extracted record profits over the last five years through the devastating exploitation of its workers.
Teamster membership at UPS has almost doubled since 1997 to 350,000 members. The Teamsters recently authorized a strike with 97% voting in favor. The strike deadline is set for midnight, July 31st. Management has fought back, including passing out pamphlets of anti-union propaganda, conducting mass surveillance of workers, and preventing strike authorization votes from happening in the parking lots of hub centers.
Lessons from 1997
The fight today mirrors the strike of 1997, with demands like more full-time positions and higher wages. In addition, Teamsters are fighting to end workplace harassment and surveillance, end subcontracting through the Personal Vehicle Drivers (PVDs) position, add Juneteenth and MLK Day as paid holidays, and install AC units in delivery trucks. Teamsters also want to abolish the notorious “22.4” full-time position where some drivers get paid less than full-time Regular Package Car Drivers (RPCDs). “22.4”s are being forced to work six days a week and can not refuse over-time, often working up to 60-70 hours a week. On July 1st, UPS and the Teamsters agreed to abolish 22.4 positions and convert them to full-time RPCDs.
As the Teamsters gear up for the contract battle this year, some Teamsters locals are once again spreading literature, signs, and shirts and practicing picketing. However, many locals are not participating in a strong contract campaign, as relayed by activists at a TDU briefing. In many locations, it is up to rank-and-file members and the broader labor movement and community to push for action.
These actions alone will not be enough. Member to member networks must be brought back to mobilize more UPS workers. New technology can’t fully replace in-person workplace meetings, rallies, and organizers’ one-on-one outreach. Bargaining needs to be opened up to rank-and-file participation and observation. Non-disclosure agreements concealing the bargaining process must stop!
The Teamsters also need the assistance of other unions and workers’ organizations. In April, Railroad Workers United passed a resolution calling on the railroad unions to take action if there is a strike at UPS and work with Teamsters not to cross picket lines and keep UPS containers from moving on freight trains. Other unions should look for connections between their members and UPS in case of a strike, including organizing boycotts of UPS deliveries to workplaces, local union offices, and individual union members’ homes.
Solidarity committees of unions and other pro-labor groups could coordinate those actions and raise awareness about the contract fight, donate to the strike fund, and prepare to walk the picket line in solidarity. The Independent Socialist Group wants to do our part, and we are launching solidarity committees with public meetings in Worcester and Boston in Massachusetts, as well as Providence, Rhode Island, and Portland, Maine.
The success of the Teamsters in securing a strong contract will be felt beyond just UPS. It will set higher standards for wages and working conditions across the industry, inspiring other workers to unionize and strike for more in their own workplaces. If workers win at UPS, it could start to reverse the decades-long decline of union strength in the US.
Independent Socialist Group 