United Teamsters face down divided ownership at Heidelberg Distributing Co.

Feuding family members who own Heidelberg Distributing Co.in Ohio are making unreasonable contract demands on Teamster employees, but Teamsters stand united against the owners.

Teamsters represent approximately 500 workers at six of Heidelberg’s family-owned distributorships of beer, wine and spirits in Ohio.

Heidelberg employees voted to join Teamsters Local 284 in Columbus two years ago, but are still without a contract. In Youngstown, Teamsters have been bargaining for a first contract for more than 18 months. Contracts with Heidelberg in Toledo, Cleveland and Dayton expired or are on the verge of expiring.

Members of Teamsters Local 1199 in Cincinnati have a contract until April 2016, but that didn't stop them last month from joining other Heidelberg Teamsters in a show of solidarity during contract talks in Columbus. Teamsters from six locals that represent Heidelberg declared their solidarity by marching together into negotiations with Teamsters Local 284.

Yesterday, 100 percent of  Teamsters Local 957 who work at Heidelberg's Dayton facility voted yes on strike authorization. The strike vote followed a standing-room-only meeting in Cleveland with Teamsters General Secretary-Treasurer Ken Hall.

From l to r: Bill Lichtenwald, Ken Hall, Randy Verst, and Max Zemla
talk solidarity with Heidelberg TeamsterFamly!

WCPO reported: 

Union workers are threatening a statewide strike at one of the largest beer and wine distributorships in the Midwest, citing stalled contract negotiations over better wages and health care. 

This is the latest blow for Heidelberg Distributing Co., which is embroiled in a bitter legal battle between its two sibling owners, who accuse each other of using the company for personal gain. Union leaders say the family dispute is spilling into the workplace and dampening contract negotiations. 

The issue attracted a visit from the second-in-command of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Ken Hall, who met with Heidelberg workers in Cleveland on Sunday. He is secretary-treasurer of the Teamsters, just under president James P. Hoffa, at one of North America’s largest unions. 

“We’re worried that this family feud is really going to lead to the destruction of a company that our members helped to build,” Hall said. “Right now, the company is just not bargaining reasonably with the union.”

Teamsters rally: 11K in OH, 10K in IL, ??K in NY

Teamsters "Stop the War on Workers" signs bobbed atop a sea of placards at enormous rallies in Chicago, Columbus and New York City today.

Teamsters from Joint Council 41 got fired up at the "We Are Ohio" rally in front of the Ohio Statehouse. The demonstration kicked off the campaign to repeal SB5, the law that strips government workers of their collective bargaining rights.

Joseph at Plunderbund offers this report:

I just got home from today’s rally at the Statehouse and I have to say I was impressed. This was definitely one of the best organized rallies I have been to so far – and I’ve been to almost all of them. Unofficial estimates put attendance at over 11,000, they had a good line-up of speakers and the crowd was fired up. More importantly, the effort to sign up signature gatherers for the referendum effort was in full swing.

With this level of organization and this level of enthusiasm, I fully expect SB5 referendum signatures gathered in record time.

Teamsters from Joint Council 25 rallied in downtown Chicago with 10,000 other union supporters, according to the Associated Press.  We saw one t-shirt that explained what Chicago's rally was all about. It said, "Wisconsin Today, Illinois Tomorrow." Wisconsin state Sen. Chris Larson -- one of the Fab 14 -- told the crowd the union movement is just getting started.

And in New York, Teamsters joined the "Rally for Jobs and Justice" in Times Square along with thousands to protest public sector job cuts.  We don't have a crowd count yet but we do have this video of the event. George Miranda, president of Joint Council 16, helped organize the rally with the New York City Central Labor Council.

Photos to come.