VIDEO: Veteran UPS Teamsters warn of what happens to 'scabs.'
With a national strike looming at UPS, veteran Teamsters share their perspective on crossing a picket line.
It has been more than 25 years since the last Teamster strike at United Parcel Service (UPS) and some UPS workers may still work for the company. However, many UPSers are either too young, and some may not even have been born yet, to remember that far back.
Nevertheless, whether it was the icepick stabbing of Rod Carter or the cancellation of 5-year old Callie West’s medical treatments, the 1997 strike at UPS showed that working behind a picket line can carry consequences for both workers who are union members, as well as non-unionized workers that those younger union members may not know.
Individuals who cross picket lines to work are often referred to as ‘scabs’ and, as UPS and the 340,000 Teamsters who work for UPS prepare for the possibility of a another nationwide strike at the end of July, some are reminded of the strike more than a quarter-century ago.
“After God had finished the rattlesnake, the toad, and the vampire, He had some awful substance left with which He made a scab. A scab is a two-legged animal with a corkscrew soul, a waterlogged brain, and a combination backbone made of jelly and glue. Where others have hearts, he carries a tumor of rotten principles.” — Jack London
On the Youtube channel Roswell Hub, its host is joined by Greg Kerwood (Local 25) and “John”—both Teamster members who work(ed) for UPS. During the video (in full here), the guests talk about some of the things that occur to those who cross picket lines.
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As referenced by Kerwood in the video, Teamster members who cross picket lines can be fined by their union executive board.
In fact, according to the Teamsters’ constitution (the union’s rule book), a union member can be placed on trial for “Crossing an authorized primary picket line established by the member’s Local Union or any other subordinate body affiliated with the International Union [IBT Constitution, p. 146.].”
And, in fact, “Any member who (1) knowingly goes to work or remains in the employment of any person, firm, or corporation, whose employees are on strike or locked out, unless he or she has permission of the International Union, the Joint Council, or the Local Union, may be tried by the Executive Board of the Local Union.”
Further, ”It is recommended that the penalty for violating this Section shall be a fine equal to wages earned while working in violation of this Section. For repeated violations, suspension, or expulsion in addition to a fine should be considered [Ibid. pp 147-148, Emphasis added.].”
While workers have the legal right to cross and work behind a union’s picket line, there are costs to doing so and these Teamsters appear eager to remind workers of those costs.
Whether or not the Teamsters do strike UPS is uncertain. However, with members still seething about a contract they feel was forced on them in 2018, the odds seem pretty high as of now.