If organizing Amazon is crucial to our survival, we're in trouble

[Jazzman]

The once every five years Teamster Convention just ended in Las Vegas with no clear direction or plan on how we'll unionize the biggest threat to members and the companies that employ them, Amazon.

Here's a few uncomfortable facts:verifiable by publications mostly found on this site over the last few years:

Amazon is now competing directly with UPS for Package delivery of all sizes.

UPS's subsidiary Roadie has 250,000 nonunion gig drivers at their disposal

Amazon is still opening new Distribution Ceners coast to coast paying minimum $22 p/hr with healthcare day 1.

IBT organizing efforts have been limited to a few "delivery partners" which are under the Trump Administration considered nonAmazon workers.

The last five year plan. So far no contracts and no negotiations

I see little evidence that this Union is at all serious about Amazon. Little skirmishes and fake strikes win brief PR but do nothing to help the workers themselves. Tough talk and failed PR stunts don't inspire confidence and does nothing to protect Teamster jobs that are under attack like never before. Vegas was an opportunity to address the issue in a serious way with all the unions elected leaders, it didn't happen..

How am I wrong?

[Bob Randall]

Jazzman...I can't say that you are wrong. Of course, Amazon should be a top priority with short term, as well as long term plans, to be adjusted as needed. Personally, I don't have much faith in Cabbage Head to do anything more significant than to promote himself in any way possible. What I will say is...if there were to be a plan (well-intended or not) I just don't think that it should be detailed and displayed and memorialized in any public forum such as this or any other for that matter. Just not strategically smart. Amazon is anticipating, has and will continue to prepare 24/7. Let's not make it easier for them. While typing this a memory came to mind. Really pissed me off at that time. C&S Grocers had always been a seriously important "target" to organize in the east. There was a plan in place by the IBT during the Carey administration. However, it was meant to be kept quiet during the early stages for correct procedure. The IBT had dispatched organizers to certain Locals as "salters" for surveillance purposes. I had assisted the organizers with setting up "previous employment" as well as "references". One particular Local gave a "press release" to a major newspaper about the effort. (Springfield Republican or Hartford Currant". Most likely the SR.) I don't know if the Local thought it was smart or if it thought that any press is good for the Teamsters. Both are bullshit. The headline of the large article read as follows: "Teamsters Target C&S Grocers For Offensive". Wtf?

[Jazzman]

No disagreement Brother Randall. Information is like currency in the Teamsters, always hard to keep secrets secret. I'd settle for a secret plan or at least a careful analysis of the last five years and why the next five should be different. As I said I don't see evidence of either.

[Thisischange?]

The Amazon campaign is not real, it's a blurb on the page to make you think something productive is happening. No one entity is going to accomplish this and O'Brien is too pigheaded to work with anyone. Buckle your chinstraps Teamsters vs Everybody.

[Bob Randall]

Spot on!!!!!!!

[CalTeamster]

The Amazon campaign is not real, it's a blurb on the page to make you think something productive is happening. No one entity is going to accomplish this and O'Brien is too pigheaded to work with anyone. Buckle your chinstraps Teamsters vs Everybody.

The $$ money being spent is real. Just ask Korgan, it spends like real money.

[Nickjamesups]

This is a serious question, are inside workers at UPS better off than inside workers at Amazon?

[Davis]

A lot folks used to get part time jobs at UPS to get the health insurance, now they go to Amazon for the same reason.

[UnionistIBT]

Other than Local 1 in NYC there's no one interested in inside workers.

[Bob Randall]

I finally figure out what was bothering me about the "survival" of the Teamsters depends on organizing Amazon. It's not that I disagree with it. Conversely, I agree that "survival" of the Teamsters is important. However, it bothers me that we look at organizing into our union(s) as a purpose of survival. As opposed to say...looking at organizing as an ideology. As a means to a grande scheme. A social issue, a quality-of-life issue, of great importance to the working class. So many Locals had never even put any energy into organizing at all until their Local's total membership began to decrease to the point of being an economic issue for the Local itself. Even then, a newly hired organizer's working conditions paled compared to the all-important, omnipotent Officers' and Agents' conditions. Moreover, the resources allotted for organizing are typically not enough to make a great difference as those resources would threaten the comfy conditions of the Officers and Agents. That should tell us everything about the way that we think about organizing. In order to make any material positive difference for all workers it must be done continuously on a great scale over time at the Local level as well as at the International level. Not when our coffers get low. Clearly this is the way that Cabbage Head views organizing new workers as he promotes "Teamsters versus Everyone". The last time that the IBT saw anything remotely like that level of commitment was during the Carey administration with freight. Muellenkamp headed an effort that was off to a positive start. It was a long-term plan moving in an effective way. However, Hoffa took it over and fucked it up while boasting about "numbers" (that have not increased in decades). Publicizing numbers and increasing dollars for your union should not be the reason for organizing workers. SOB is a poser.

[UnionistIBT]

However we approach the subject of organizing it better result in large numbers, and fast. At a time when 70% of Americans have a positive view of unions, the movement is stagnant at 6% of the private secter workforce. The laws and the government are pitted against collective barganing. That's been the case regardless of the Party in charge since the 1950's when this decline started.
Now we have Trump here to make it that much worse. We can't turn this around until we have a very diferent administration and Congress in Washington. Young people are starting to see that with the elections of Democratic Socialists. If Bernie were 20 years younger......