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| Steve Burroughs traveled from Mobile to Bellevue, Wash., to walk the line. |
The strike, which began on March 22, spread to Columbus and Buffalo, then to Washington state as 400 Teamsters refused to cross a picket line. Now that's solidarity.
No one likes strikes, but you gotta do what you gotta do. In this case, the company withdrew from a tentative agreement over health care issues.
Said Bob Morales, director of the IBT Solid Waste division,
Sanitation work is one of the most dangerous jobs in America. The employees are the ones who risk their lives every day to protect the public health. It’s a very profitable business, and members deserve a share in the business success they help to create.Here's what happened, according to Waste and Recycling News:
Republic Services Inc. has reached an agreement with Teamsters Local 991 in Mobile, Ala., over a disputed health care contract issue.
A total of 24 union workers in Mobile, Ala., went on strike March 22, followed by sympathy walkouts in Columbus, Ohio, and Buffalo, N.Y. Workers in the Seattle area were met with picket lines March 29.
The main roadblock in the process had been a dispute regarding a waiver of certain new health insurance surcharges, Republic said...What can we say, but "Solidarity Forever."
"Once we were able to sit down with the company, we resolved the issues quickly," Jim Gookins, secretary-treasurer of Teamsters Local 991, said in a statement on Teamster.org. "I appreciate the company´s willingness to work out a resolution that was recommended for ratification to our members in Mobile."
