MIAMI — Martin Garcia and his coworkers at XPO Logistics’ Hialeah, Florida, location have voted to remove Teamsters Local 769 union officials from their workplace.
According to a company statement, Garcia and his colleagues received free legal assistance in their effort from National Right to Work Legal Defense Foundation staff attorneys.
Garcia filed a union decertification petition at National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Region 12 on May 19, which contained the signatures of enough of his colleagues to prompt the NLRB to hold a union decertification vote. The NLRB held the vote among Garcia and his colleagues on June 21, in which a majority voted to end Teamsters officials’ monopoly bargaining control over the facility.
“Teamsters officials didn’t listen to us and didn’t represent our interests in the workplace,” Garcia said. “My coworkers and I decided that the best way forward was to vote them out, and we’re glad we could get legal aid from the National Right to Work Foundation in exercising our rights.”
Garcia’s effort is just the most recent in a string of successful Foundation-backed union decertification efforts by XPO Logistics employees against Teamsters union officials. Recent victories include Teamsters decertifications in Cinnaminson, New Jersey, Los Angeles, Albany, New York, and other XPO Logistics locations, an XPO news release stated.
Most recently, Albany-based XPO Logistics truck driver William Chard submitted a union decertification petition backed by his coworkers in December 2022, seeking a vote to remove Teamsters Local 294 union officials.
Similarly, in October 2021, Teamsters Local 87 union officials avoided facing rejection from Juan Rivera and his coworkers at a Bakersfield, California, XPO Logistics facility by disclaiming interest in the work unit shortly after Rivera filed a decertification petition.
“Teamsters officials have a well-earned reputation for seeking power, money, and political clout overlooking out for employee interests, so it’s unsurprising to see so many workers seeking to exercise their rights to vote them out,” said National Right to Work Foundation President Mark Mix. “But this trend goes even beyond the Teamsters, as employee attempts to decertify unions are spiking across the country.”
“Unfortunately, even as employees increasingly realize that their interests diverge from union boss agendas, Big Labor allies in the Biden Administration are seeking to make it harder than ever for workers to exercise their right to oust an unpopular union,” Mix added. “Foundation attorneys will continue to aid American workers in defending their individual rights, and will oppose attempts by Big Labor to rig the legal landscape against workers.”
The Trucker News Staff produces engaging content for not only TheTrucker.com, but also The Trucker Newspaper, which has been serving the trucking industry for more than 30 years. With a focus on drivers, the Trucker News Staff aims to provide relevant, objective content pertaining to the trucking segment of the transportation industry. The Trucker News Staff is based in Little Rock, Arkansas.
