Central Valley DRIVE Campaign Kicks into High Gear

As the largest union in the Central Valley, the Teamsters are gearing up to take on politicians who don’t support working families. From Stockton to Merced County and down to Visalia, we find elected officials going after our jobs, our pensions, and our right to organize. Well, I have news for them: we fight back!

Members throughout the Central Valley are getting organized for next year’s elections. Since October, more than 1,000 Teamsters in the Valley have registered to vote. That’s new voters.

Over 1,000 Teamsters have also registered to vote by mail. This is the most surefire way to exercise your right to vote. You can grab a cup of coffee, research the candidates and initiatives at your own leisure, and drop the ballot in the mail.

And more than 1,000 members have signed up for DRIVE— our political action committee. DRIVE stands for Democrat, Republican, Independent Voter Education. Contributions go to pay for electing politicians who will fight about our issues, and taking out the ones who don’t.

Recent events in San José are good examples of why it’s important for Teamsters to get involved in politics. When the San José Airport proposed to eliminate the prevailing wage for Local 665 members at the parking facilities—a likely $5/hour pay cut—City Council members helped us beat that back.

And in the last few months, Local 287 enlisted political support to organize about 200 school bus drivers into our union. Politicians wrote letters to the employers, made phone calls, and even marched in on a captive audience meeting meant to crush our organizing drive!

So it’s no wonder that Locals 386, 431, 439, 517, 601, and 890 are working with the Joint Council, the California Teamsters Public Affairs Council, and the International Union on a coordinated DRIVE and voter registration campaign. It just makes sense.

The success of this new campaign hinges on our Shop Stewards—the most important job in our union. At C&S Wholesale Grocers in Stockton, Local 439 stewards and officers led the charge, registering more than 400 voters and more than 300 new DRIVE members in only a few days. They showed us that Teamsters want to be involved, and that we know how to get things done.

Look for this campaign to come to your Local Union soon!