News
‘Our Kids Are Not For Sale’: Union Workers Protest Loosening of Iowa Child Labor Laws
DES MOINES — Union workers from across Iowa gathered Monday at the State Capitol to protest proposals making their way through the Legislature loosening state child labor laws.
Ryan Drew with Operating Engineers Local 150 and Jesse Case, secretary-treasurer and business agent with Teamsters Local 238 in Cedar Rapids, called on legislators to get to work on solving problems facing working families and their children, including low wages, wage theft, unsafe work, lack of access to affordable child care and underfunded public schools.
“Don’t relieve employers from liability when kids get hurt, strengthen work comp laws that you’ve weakened, because our kids are not for sale,” Case said. “Don’t cut school funding and send our kids to work in the factory — that’s the exact opposite of the direction our state should be moving in.”
Local 238’s Newest Executive Board Member
Dave Miller, Local 238 President, swears in Andre Johnson as the newest Executive Board member of Local 238 as a Trustee.
An Evening with Art Cullen and Kevin Burt
Join us for an evening with Art Cullen and Kevin Burt
Wednesday, November 16th, 2022 at 5:30pm
Teamsters Local 238, 5000 J St. SW, Cedar Rapids, IA 52404
Fundraiser for striking Ingredion Workers from BCTGM Local 100G
DONATIONS ACCEPTED – $20.00 Suggested But Free To Attend
Food Donations Also Accepted
Hors d’oeuvres, Beer and Wine (Provided)
RSVP to teamsters238@iowalabor.com
ADM Teamsters Ratify Historic Agreement
ADM Teamsters Ratify Historic Agreement
Strike Averted With Increase In Wages and Benefits
Cedar Rapids, IA – The Teamsters Union announced that a new 3 year agreement with ADM at their Cedar Rapids plant was ratified at a meeting early Tuesday morning.
According to Jesse Case, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 238, the agreement includes an immediate 6% across the board raise the first year plus a $5,000 ratification bonus, 40 hours of sick leave, 8 additional hours of personal leave and additional premium pay for many classifications.
“Although we would like to see higher wages overall in the industry, we have made gains in working standards that helped avert a job action” Case said. “ADM’s multi-billion dollar profit margin exists off the labor and sweat of working Iowans and CEO pay remains out of alignment with the workers who make the company profitable.”
Teamsters Local 238, headquartered in Cedar Rapids, negotiates around 200 collective bargaining agreements across the state of Iowa and says they have been negotiating historic wage increases due to the pandemic, cost of living and shortage of workers.
Teamsters 238 represents around five thousand members working in a wide variety of industries, including transportation, warehousing, manufacturing and public service.
ADM Teamsters Preparing For Tuesday Strike
ADM Teamsters Preparing For Tuesday Strike
Union Contract Expires At Midnight Tonight
Cedar Rapids, IA – The Teamsters Union says it’s preparing for a strike at the ADM facility in Cedar Rapids as soon as Tuesday morning, effecting over 200 Teamster members in the corn processing industry.
According to Jesse Case, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 238, wages at ADM have not kept up with the factors facing today’s workforce.
“ADM had an operating profit of $1.6 billion in the past quarter” Case said. “Our members kept the company open during this period. Workers are tired of record company profits while they struggle to make ends meet. The combination of the pandemic, the increase in the cost of living and the shortage of workers in the job market have changed the attitude of workers. Our members are fed up with the gap between corporate profits and their own paychecks.”
If the Teamsters go on strike this week, they’ll join more than 100 other workers in the corn processing industry in Cedar Rapids who are currently on strike. Ingredion workers, represented by BCTGM Local 100G went on strike earlier this year to protest proposed cuts in their working conditions.
Teamsters 238 is the largest local union in the state of Iowa, with around five thousand members working in a wide variety of industries, including transportation, warehousing, manufacturing and public service.