floyd_hoffa
A NEW CHAPTER: International Brotherhood of Teamsters President Jimmy Hoffa Jr. (third from left) administered the oath to swear-in Gregory Floyd (to his left), president of the union’s largest local, at Local 237’s headquarters Jan. 17. Several elected officials came to congratulate Mr. Floyd on gaining his third full term, including U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer and Congressman Peter King.
The Chief-Leader/Michel Friang
For both Gregory Floyd, president of Teamsters Local 237, and the union’s International President Jimmy Hoffa Jr., the greatest challenge they face is protecting members from attacks on the labor movement.
At his swearing-in ceremony at Local 237’s headquarters Jan. 17, Mr. Floyd spoke of the declining image of labor unions.
Laments ‘Fighting Within’
“We’re not just fighting the 1 percent and the elected officials who try to do their bidding, we’re also fighting within our own base, many who wrongly claim we’re not aggressive enough, progressive enough, and think they can do a better job,” he said. “To them I say, ‘Check the facts and read the history books.'"
He pointed to successes such as the implementation of a $15-an-hour minimum wage in the city, as well as expanded health benefits and paid leave. “They have become practice, policy and law because of the push by unions,” Mr. Floyd stated.
The ceremony marked the beginning of Mr. Floyd’s third term. He has headed the union since 2007, when then-president Carl Haynes retired prior to the end of his term, and was elected for his first full term in 2009.
Elected officials including U.S. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, Congressman Peter King and State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli, along with state Labor Commissioner Roberta Reardon, gathered to witness Mr. Hoffa swear-in the local’s officers.
Mr. Schumer said that it was crucial to work with the union to boost Federal funding for public housing, including in the city Housing Authority where 8,000 Local 237 members work, which faces a $40-billion deficit.
Push on Pension Relief
Mr. King noted that Mr. Hoffa had been the “quarterback” pushing the Butch Lewis Act, which if implemented would establish an office called the Pension Rehabilitation Administration within the U.S. Department of the Treasury and allow severely underfunded pension plans to borrow money to continue providing pensions to retirees. The AARP has estimated that about 12 percent of workers with multiemployer pensions are in plans that will run out of funding within 20 years.
The bill, sponsored by U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, is currently under review in the U.S. Senate.
“There’s unprecedented power against us. To be politically strong, we’ve got to build bridges with Chuck Schumer, with Peter King and the other elected officials in this room—it’s about working together for justice for workers,” said Mr. Hoffa, who was first elected president of the 1.4 million-member International Brotherhood of Teamsters in 1998.
He called the union’s largest local “a shining example” of what unions can achieve, highlighting a successful 2014 lawsuit concerning a $7,000 wage gap faced by School Safety Agents—who were mostly black and Latina women—in comparison to other titles performing similar duties in other city agencies.
“Greg brought new justice and recognition for the people who do these hard jobs in the public schools, which are dangerous jobs. These safety officers have been neglected and he has brought respect to those public-safety officers,” Mr. Hoffa said.
Mr. Floyd noted that during the five years of his previous term, the union has had to face the deterioration of discipline in schools.
“Our standards for what is ‘normal’ or ‘acceptable’ behavior have become less normal to me and less acceptable,” he said. “Behavior that would have resulted in at least a summons, like when students bring in bags of marijuana to schools, students won’t even get slapped on the wrist. These policies have led to violence in our schools, and there is an epidemic.”
We depend on the support of readers like you to help keep our publication strong and independent. Join us.