The Teamster delegation traveled to the United Kingdom over serious
concerns about the negative workers’ rights and labor relations record at the
company’s North American subsidiaries, Durham School Services in the U.S.
(“Durham”) and Stock Transportation in Canada. They were joined by colleagues
from Unite the Union, the International Transport Workers’ Federation, the
National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers and the Transport
Salaried Staffs’ Association.
The Teamsters have
been fighting on behalf of school bus drivers for several years now. In fact,
the union’s Drive Up Standards campaign has organized more than 35,000 North
American school bus and transit workers. Here’s what a couple of the Teamster
drivers said about why they’re in London calling for fair treatment:
“I believe Durham shows disrespect and disregard for the drivers and
monitors. Our job is to safely transport children to school, but we face poor
conditions with some of the school buses we operate. I feel like my concerns
are not listened to at all, which is why I came here today, to be heard,” said
Latrisha Pringle, a 25-year school bus driver who works for Durham in
Charleston, South Carolina, U.S.A., and is a member of Teamsters Local 509 in West
Columbia, S.C.
“It’s important that people realize that the problems we face in my bus
yard in Navarre, Florida, are not just isolated incidences. I believe there is
a pattern to the way Durham is treating people. We are here today because
National Express’s subsidiaries cannot continue to behave this way in North
America,” said Diane Bence, a Durham driver and member of Teamsters Local 991
in Mobile, Alabama, U.S.A. “In Florida, we voted overwhelmingly to form our
union in February, and even though Durham said it would honor the election
result, it has not done so and has appealed the results from the National Labor
Relations Board secret ballot election.”
So what, exactly, are the Teamsters doing there?
A number of key stakeholders are calling on the National Express Board of
Directors to improve the global oversight of the company’s human resource
policies and practices.
Unite the Union’s OSSF and UASPS funds; the International Brotherhood of
Teamsters General Fund; and the Local Authority Pension Fund Forum (LAPFF) are
recommending National Express shareholders vote NO to Resolution 1 on the
Director’s Annual Reports and Accounts. PIRC, a leading U.K.-based proxy voting
advisor is also recommending to its clients a vote against Resolution 1.
The action is being taken to send a strong signal for the need for improved
Board oversight and reporting to shareholders of the company’s global human
resource policies and practices.
For
more information, visit the campaign’s page here.
