Teamsters at DHL’s Largest Hub Threaten to Strike
Teamsters at DHL’s largest hub, the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport, voted to authorize a strike if their demands for a contract are not met.
The DHL Teamsters voted by an overwhelming 98 percent to allow its negotiating committee to call a work stoppage if DHL refuses to come to terms on a contract covering 1,100 ramp and tug workers. The workers, who are members of Teamsters Local 100, load and unload places at DHL’s largest and busiest logistics hub in North America.
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“DHL Teamsters deserve a strong contract now. Our hardworking members know the value of their labor and they are ready to withhold it if DHL doesn’t get serious about remedying its bad behavior and bargaining a fair contract,” said Bill Hamilton, director of the Teamsters Express Division. “This company needs to stop wasting time and come to an agreement that respects these skilled and dedicated Teamsters. If not, DHL will be leaving workers with no choice but to strike.”
DHL’s ramp and tug workers joined the Teamsters in April, and the negotiating committee has been bargaining with DHL since July for a contract that includes improved pay and working conditions.
The Teamsters said in a statement that DHL has failed to address unfair labor practices, including retaliation against pro-union workers. As a result, Local 100 filed unfair labor practice charges with the National Labor Relations Board.
DHL told the Teamsters it will not schedule negotiations with the union past Dec. 7.
“Our members are fed up with the company’s stall tactics. The members have voted and are prepared to walk. DHL will not get away with denying working people good wages and safe conditions on the job,” said Bill Davis, president of Local 100. “If DHL continues to drag their feet, they will inflict a work stoppage on themselves.”
This strike threat comes a few months after the Teamsters threatened similar action against UPS over the summer, coming to a five-year $30 billion contract agreement in July ahead of a proposed strike of 340,000 employees.
The Teamsters also recently supported a bid by Sarah Riggs Amico, executive chair of Jack Cooper Transport, to take over roughly 170 terminals once operated by defunct trucking company Yellow Corp. Yellow long had a contentious relationship with the Teamsters, who represented 22,000 of the company’s employees and maintained the company had been mismanaged for years.
Global shipping slowdowns due to softened consumer demand and inflation have hit companies like DHL hard this year. The logistics firm posted a 19.3 percent decline in the third quarter, while net profit dropped 36.5 percent to 847 million euros ($918.8 million). And in October, DHL Supply Chain revealed it would close an Ohio fulfillment center on Dec. 31 after a customer discontinued service, with 254 employees losing their jobs.
Yet despite those hits, the company has focused on growth this year, DHL announced the opening of a newly expanded Central Asia Hub in Hong Kong, which came with a $409.7 million price tag. To date, the total investment for DHL’s Central Asia Hub amounts to 562 million euros ($611.8 million) since it was established two decades ago.
