Teamsters waiting to catch Overnite off guard

RICHMOND, Va. (Sept. 28, 1999) — A threatened unfair labor practices strike by the Teamsters union against Overnite Transportation didn’t materialize this weekend, but the union says it is waiting to catch the trucking company unprepared.

Overnite, the largest non-union less-than-truckload carrier in the United States, moved hundreds of employee volunteers into areas where the Teamsters are strongest, such as Indianapolis and Memphis.

A Teamsters spokesman told RoadStar Radio News that the union is sitting tight and letting Overnite spend money doing this.

Although the Teamsters have won elections to represent a percentage of Overnite drivers and dock workers — 15% to 45%, depending on whether you ask the union or the company — they have been unable to get a contract at any of the company’s terminals.

The union announced that two upcoming elections for Teamster representation have been withdrawn, in Los Angeles and Syracuse, N.Y. While the Teamsters say this move is because of the impending strike and “because of unfair labor practices that have tainted the election atmosphere,” Overnite is claiming victory.