What real union people say about unions

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And Canada too.

Back by popular demand: Comments about unions from real union members, taken from the Teamsters Facebook page:

Bill Atkins 

Thank You Teamsters Local 8, only through the benefits, pay raises and years of good contracts has all of this been possible. Send kids to college, have vacations, and pay the bills. PLUS make a fair level playing field for job biding.

Walter Borowiec 

I retained a teamster card when I left my job loading trucks at a union shop warehouse.I am proud to have been a teamster!Thanks to the living wage they got for all these hardworking guys,I was able to cover a good chunk of my college tuition though a summer job held for 3 years.I shake my head at the stupidity of guys and gals who are anti union because they hate paying union dues.

Walter Borowiec

BTW my college degree eventually led to a life long career as a college prof....and I was proud to be a member of another union!!!

Walter Schwartz

i wear my local 344 teamsters jacket all the time it says on the back RETIRED WITH BENEFITS and proud of it

Susan Sides Echols

My husband was a Teamster. He was a great believer in his union. When he suddenly died one Saturday, it was Teamsters who made sure his family was taken care of. Heard nothing from the company he worked for. It was Vernon Gammon from Local 391 who took care of everything and answered all of my questions. I am proud of the Teamsters and will always support them in public and in my heart.

Cecilia Martin Anderson

Isn't it wonderful to have someone backing you up....and I do not mean in a corner where corperate business puts you. Good Luck from a retired Teamster

Kevin Duquet

Proud to be a TEAMSTER been through tough times but only makes me a stronger Teamster at heart.I had a lot of good times as well with my Brother and Sisters especially when out there on organizing campaigns, Membership meetings, and Labor Day Parade in L.A.Harbor Wilmington, Ca. I started as Construction Teamster then Freight, Port,Grocery Divisions,Heavy haul,and back in Construction Division when first started. I encourage the nonunion to become union for wages health benefits, retirement, and future.
Out of LOCAL 848,166,63,36 So.California

Jerome Blaha

the interesting thing about the Teamsters is that they are basically a conservative group, not socialists or communists as some as mistakingly lead to believe. We believe in the "American Dream", and don't want to see it become limited to the executive class only.

Joe DePaul

started working in construction at the age of 13 for a non union small contractor making decent money under the table no benifits no paid holidays nothing towards retirement droped out of high school at 16 placed my trust as a loyal employee in my employer got hurt at 19 was left out to dry I spent years of my life and youth making this man rich and bettering his business and I was left with nothing on a few occasions we encountered union picket lines and ralleys on sites and I didn't really understand much about unions and all I ever heard from my employer and other employees was that this was a group of lazy people who don't want to do anything and want everything givin to them. After my injury I tryed various jobs and started to drive a taxi as a sub contractor in the city of philadelphia a working 60 to 80 hours per week having to cough up lease money every week to a multimillionare medalion owner regardless of conditions I had had enough of making people rich and not getting anything back so I got my cdl and started driving a truck o.t.r. it was a great job but I was paid 22 cents per mile sometimes stuck days with no load making no money miles from home. Landed a local job hauling fuel with a carrier was paid by the load and again in dangerous conditions could not afford the benefits package they offered and the pay was cut 3 times and there excuse everytime was we lost an account so we have to take a pay cut mean while people in management were getting promotions and the company was adding terminals and expanding there fleet in other citys any time my self or another employee confronted them about stuff I was told from management that I was lucky to have a local job and the economy is bad so we can't afford to pay I tryed to organize driver meetings and eventually tryed to organize a union mysteriously I was penalized from the saftey dept for false things they put a bunch of false stuff on my DAC report to blackball me on getting other trucking jobs and eventually they cut my loads back and had me making no money so with the help of family I found a great job which happens to be a teamster job and here I am today making someone rich but I am getting paid by the hour time and a half after 8 full paid benifits pension paid vacation and I work for a great company that treats me with respect its a long story but its my story and I'm proud to be a teamster and living the american dream thanks to all the members of all unions.