It's a stone cold fact that management will usually oppose a union organizing drive. Your managers and supervisors will make empty promises, lies and threats when you try organize. To win, you must use straight talk about the facts. If you want a union, read this page and discuss it with your co-workers. Management has been using these same tired old deceptions to intimidate workers for years. Don't be fooled again.

Deception #1
Supervisors and plant managers usually come around begging for another chance to change problems on the job, once an organizing drive gathers a head of steam. They may tell you that they didn't know you and your co-workers were so unhappy. Your supervisor may well start treating you better and sweet talking you. That obnoxious foreman might get fired or reassigned.

The Truth:
When workers give the company a second chance, they are always bitterly disappointed. Once the pressure is off, it's back to the same-old, same-old. In most cases, your chance of winning an organizing drive is best the first time around. Don't be tricked out of your first, best chance.

Deception #2
Although it is illegal to say so, the company will say you'll be bargaining from scratch. Management will tell you that when you negotiate a contract, you'll lose everything you already have. They'll ask what you think you can afford to lose.

The Truth:
It is illegal for an employer to threaten to reduce benefits if a union is voted in. When you negotiate a first contract, you start from the pay and benefits you already have and build on them. You decide what to ask for in your contract. The contract's strength will depend largely on the unity, strength, and teamwork of you and your co-workers.

Deception #3
The company may tell you you'll never benefit from a Teamster contract because they'll never sign one. Since it is illegal to say this directly, they may say, "Remember, we don't have to agree to what you want in the contract."

The Truth:
Your company is legally required to negotiate with the union you choose. Every company talks tough before workers organize; never let them bully you. It's in the company's interest to keep its employees satisfied and keep the work flowing. Once you present them with reasonable contract proposals, management usually compromises.

Deception #4
They'll tell you the plant may close if they have to deal with a union. They'll tell you that unions are bad news for business. They'll say outrageous things to convince you that unionizing will threaten your job.

The Truth:
Forget the crying game! Companies fold for economic reasons. The vast majority of failed businesses are non-union. If your company is really in bad shape, let them prove it by opening their books.

Deception #5
Management may tell you that strike-happy Teamsters can force you out whether you want to go or not. They may threaten that if you leave your job for a strike you could lose it forever. They may ask you how your family will survive if you are forced out on strike.

The Truth:
When a company threatens that a union will force you out on strike, they break the law. No union can force you to strike. A strike is a decision voted on by you and your co-workers. If the majority doesn't want a strike, there is no strike. Almost 99 percent of all Teamster contract negotiations are resolved without a strike. Just as important: when we do strike at Local 638, we have our own resources, and those of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters and Minnesota's Teamster Joint Council 32 to back us up, including our own Food Shelf and our Service Bureau. Teamsters help Teamsters, and there are1.5 million of us!

Deception #6
The company will tell you that the union just wants your dues money. They may lie about the amount of dues you will pay to be a Teamster.

The Truth:
The improvements in pay and benefits you get with a Teamster contract outweigh the cost of your dues, usually by a huge margin. You can't even begin to put a price tag on improvements in your working conditions and in the dignity with which you are treated. Teamster dues average 2 1/2 hours pay per month. Members who earn $11 or less per hour pay only two times their hourly rate per month. An organization that works for you is worth paying for. Remember: You don't pay dues until you win a contract!

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