Dr Pepper Presents Insulting Opening Economic Offer for Inside Workers which Includes Massive Health Care Cuts
Teamsters Local 727 and the American Bottling Company, a subsidiary of Keurig Dr Pepper, reconvened negotiations for a new Inside collective bargaining agreement earlier today. The Company opened the day’s bargaining session by presenting the Union with an incredibly insulting opening economic offer.
Dr Pepper’s opening economic offer included 2% wage increases, the same retirement package that is currently included in Dr Pepper’s Outside CBA, and 5 paid sick days for all workers that would only begin in 2020. Although the Company has proposed increases to wages and retirement, Dr Pepper seems to be taking back these increases by proposing to eliminate the current PPO health care plan and replace the current HSA plan with a new HSA plan that would increase employee costs.
“If our members are forced to pay more for health care coverage, then a 2% raise won’t get them very far,” said John Coli, Jr., Secretary-Treasurer of Local 727. “Our members won’t be fooled by such bait-and-switch tactics. This Union will not allow health care to gobble up our members’ well-deserved raises.”
When the parties last met on March 22nd, Dr Pepper representatives agreed to arrive today with changes to their previously presented sales warehouse productivity and efficiency standards. However, the Company did not stick to its word and instead merely resubmitted its last proposal, prompting Local 727 to emphasize once again the importance of resolving the remaining non-economic issues, including strike language and the productivity and efficiency standards.
Local 727 has previously proposed the new successor Inside contract include language that secures the right of Inside workers to honor strike lines, including any sanctioned strike or picket lines formed by Outside Dr Pepper workers. Additionally, the Union has proposed contract language that specifies a process through which the productivity and efficiency standards—which were revealed to not be based on any relevant data or measurement—can be checked and ultimately resolved by an industrial engineer, as well as language that secures Local 727’s ability to challenge the standards should they become unachievable in the future.
The parties will continue discussions on all outstanding matters when negotiations resume on Monday, April 8th.
Members with questions should contact Business Representative Caleen Carter-Patton at (847) 696-7500 or [email protected].
Nothing in this article should be read as the union’s waiver of any legal argument, position or additional grievance. The union does not forfeit its right to make any and all supplemental arguments.
Category: BEVERAGE
