On Saturday, October 5th, Teamsters Local 89 members working in the Sort at the DHL CVG Air Hub in Northern Kentucky ratified their first agreement by an overwhelming 92%. This agreement acts as an addendum and fully incorporates Sort workers into the existing DHL CVG Ramp and Tug contract.
In August, DHL formally recognized their 1,300 Sort Workers as being represented by Teamsters Local 89. In doing so, Sort workers immediately gained access to the guaranteed contractual raises, healthcare, vacations, just cause, grievance processes and more gains that were won for Ramp and Tug earlier this year by the hard work and dedication of Teamsters Local 100 and their members at DHL CVG.
“We’re proud of what our committee accomplished on this agreement, and glad to have an agreement for our new DHL CVG members,” said President Avral Thompson. “You know our folks did a great job when you see a 92% ratification.”
Thanks to this new agreement, Local 89’s members in Sort now have additional language to address issues unique to them that were not previously covered by the Ramp and Tug agreement. This includes new Sort specific language for seniority, overtime, bidding, weekly scheduled start times, ending split work weeks, addressing safety issues, misapplications of progressive discipline for attendance being corrected, and more.
The Sort agreement is the culmination of tireless work by Local 89 and the International Brotherhood of Teamsters Organizing Department to help member activists establish a powerful presence at DHL CVG, which included the opening of a Northern Kentucky office. Immediately after being formally recognized, Local 89 began contract enforcement under the existing Ramp and Tug language. Within two weeks, interim stewards were appointed to serve until full elections could be held, and they were put through rigorous and thorough training by Local 89 staff and IBT organizers.
“The IBT Organizing Department has been a huge part of our success at DHL CVG,” said Secretary-Treasurer Jeff Cooper. “We want to thank Director Chris Rosell, Coordinator Alexandra Topete, Organizer Steven Fightmaster and many more for their outstanding work and dedication.”
Determined to negotiate strong Sort specific language as quickly as possible, Local 89 and the IBT Organizing Department rose to the challenge to hold proposal meetings and conduct elections for the rank-and-file members who would serve on the negotiating committee. Negotiations with the Company began on September 23rd, and thanks to IBT General Counsel Dave Suetholz, experienced Local 89 negotiators and a dedicated rank-and-file committee, a strong tentative agreement was quickly achieved on September 26th.
“Our committee went from non-union to bargaining with a multi-billion-dollar international corporation in just a matter of weeks, and they did a great job representing their co-workers,” said Business Agent Jay Dennis. “We had a lot of folks involved in this victory, and everyone worked together to make it happen.”
As enforcement begins for this historic new contract language, Sort Workers will have their lives changed for the better. We must use this momentum to continue building worker power at DHL CVG, because in just two years we will be heading back to negotiations alongside Local 100 to improve the entire contact. But that can’t be done just by Local 89 negotiators or the Sort workers on our committee. It will take all of us to improve the contract even more and make DHL CVG a better place for all workers.
The campaign for the next contract begins right now, and it’s important for all DHL CVG sort workers to do their part to make the next negotiations go even better. Local 89 encourages all our Sort members to talk to their co-workers and show them what the Teamsters Difference has already achieved at DHL CVG, and how much more it can do in the future. Make sure everyone you know has signed up to be a full member of Teamsters Local 89 so that, together, we can continue to strengthen your contract and make life better for every DHL CVG worker.
“We’re going to continue to build off of this victory to improve the lives of our DHL CVG members and ignite a passion for being Teamsters in them,” said Business Agent Tim Morris. “By the time we get to the next contract negotiations, this place will be a proud Teamsters shop through and through.”
In November, votes will be held for members to elect their area stewards. Local 89 will also make new contract booklets available soon, which will include the Sort specific agreement.
We would like to thank our rank-and-file negotiating committee consisting of Liam Burke, Loretta Darle, Cathy Davis, Dave Henson, James Lamb, Michael Morency and Judy Morgan. We also want to give special thanks to the IBT Organizing Department and our friends at Teamsters Local 100 and their Ramp and Tug members for paving the way for this victory. We look forward to working together in the trenches with you in the future as we fight to make the Teamsters Difference a reality for working people.
From everyone at Teamsters Local 89, congratulations to the 1,300 DHL CVG Sort workers on your new agreement, and welcome to our proud union family!
