With Majority of Non-Economics Settled, Union Pushes to Begin Economic Bargaining With Pepsi

| April 22, 2016

With the vast majority of non-economic issues settled, the Teamsters Local 727 Bargaining Committee asked Pepsi management to begin bargaining over economics Friday afternoon, but the company refused.

“The clock is ticking, and we still have huge issues to tackle,” said John T. Coli, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 727. “It’s time for management to get moving.”

The Local 727 Bargaining Committee offered additional meeting dates, beginning at 4 p.m. on April 25 or April 26, and the company agreed to meet on April 26. The final day of negotiations is scheduled for April 28, the day the current contracts expire.

At the start of Friday’s meeting, the Local 727 Bargaining Committee said it was prepared to stretch bargaining into the night, and the company said it had no time limitations. After refusing to begin bargaining over economics, negotiations broke for the day and the subcommittee reconvened to tackle the four remaining items needed to complete the merging of the contracts.

Thanks to many hours of work by the subcommittee composed of Bargaining Committee members, union representatives and Pepsi management, the merger of the four contracts covering workers at 35th Street, 51st Street, Elk Grove Village and Kankakee is nearly complete.

“Negotiations always start with taking care of language issues, and this time around, we had an inordinate amount of language issues — partly because the old contracts were such a mess and partly because we are merging four contracts together,” Coli said.

During Friday’s meeting, the Local 727 Bargaining Committee secured an improved grievance procedure that is more streamlined and has more liberal timelines to allow the union to file and process grievances.

“The grievance procedure is the biggest step forward we’ve taken so far,” Coli said. “The old grievance procedure was designed to tie the union’s hands by imposing unreasonable deadlines, and the new language unties our hands and helps us better enforce the contract and protect our members’ rights.”

The Local 727 Bargaining Committee — which also includes attorneys Jon Magna and Bianca Saviano of Illinois Advocates — and Pepsi management also reached tentative agreements on the following provisions:

  • The employer shall not discipline or issue attendance violations to an employee when said employee is required to appear in court due to a subpoena or summons.
  • All discipline shall be removed from the employee’s record after 12 months.
  • The company will periodically, based on business needs, offer CDL training to interested employees by company seniority.

DOWNLOAD APRIL 22 TENTATIVE AGREEMENTS

Additionally, Teamsters Local 673 representatives and stewards met with Pepsi management on April 21 to discuss Aurora members’ health care. Pepsi has proposed the company’s flex benefit health insurance.

“We told the company that we would listen to their spiel, but that we would not entertain letting the membership leave our union funds. It was a short meeting,” said Local 673 President Brett Bartosik. “Our Aurora members enjoy their Teamsters health and welfare coverage, and we have no interest in making any changes.”

Local 727 will continue to update members throughout the negotiation process. If you have questions, contact your Local 727 business representative:

General Membership Meeting

All Pepsi members are encouraged to attend Local 727’s general membership meeting on Sunday, April 24. The good and welfare of the local union will be discussed, coffee and pastries will be served, and prizes will be raffled.

  • WHEN: Noon, Sunday, April 24
  • WHERE: Local 727 meeting hall, 1300 W. Higgins Road, Suite 114, Park Ridge, IL 60068

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Category: BEVERAGE, Pepsi

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