After months of tough negotiations, the 2,000-plus Contra Costa County members of Teamsters Local 856 won a strong contract in August. 

The victory comes after months of direct action from the workers of Contra Costa County, including two rallies at the Board of Supervisors, 14 worksite actions, and a successful strike school that brought together more than 400 attendees. Countless union members called into County Board of Supervisors meetings and lobbied the County’s elected officials for support.

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Thousands of Contra Costa County workers continue to fight for a fair contract. They’ve held 12 actions since late April and called on the Board of Supervisors to support workers by addressing the current staffing crises and agreeing to a fair contract for workers. 

“The more than 2,000 Teamsters Local 856 members at Contra Costa County are not just fighting for themselves,” said Peter Finn, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 856. “They are fighting for the dignity of all county workers and to protect the services for the people of Contra Costa.

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Teamsters General President Sean O’Brien has named Local 856 Director of Organizing Chris Rosell as the International Brotherhood of Teamsters National Director of Organizing.

Rosell started his career as a rank and file UPS Teamster in 1999, became a Project Organizer with the IBT in 2003, and was promoted to International Organizer in 2007. He has led and won major national campaigns in the Waste, Transit, Airline, and Warehouse Divisions, and more. In 2007,

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On October 2, nearly 200 Local 856 shop stewards gathered at the Westin SFO in Millbrae for the Local’s annual shop steward appreciation day.

The event included a retrospective on the past two years showcasing the essential work Local 856 members have performed in nearly every industry throughout the pandemic, including health care, public services, hospitality, airline, and school districts. 

“Our steward appreciation day has become a Local 856 tradition, and we are grateful that we were able to resume it this year,

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Local 856 Delta Dental members have overwhelmingly ratified a new four-year contract that provides for fully employer-paid health and welfare benefits for members and all dependents, protects jobs, and secures wage increases. 

The new agreement covers more than 500 Local 856 Delta Dental Teamsters administering important dental benefits throughout Northern California. 

 Although the previous contract did not expire until this November, Local 856 and Delta Dental management agreed to begin negotiations earlier this year in light of the global pandemic.

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Local 856 Food Processing Teamsters recently ratified an important contract extension, which guarantees the largest across-the-board wage increase in the history of the contract.

The Teamsters Cannery Council agreement, which covers 10,000 Local 856 and Local 948 Teamsters working at canneries throughout the Central Valley, also ensures no increases to healthcare costs and maintains important contract protections and language.

“Food Processing Teamsters have quite literally risked their own lives throughout the pandemic to make certain we could all put food on our tables,” said Ashley Alvarado,

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After long contentious negotiations, that included a one-day strike in December, front-line health care Teamsters 856 members at Sutter Health Eden Medical Center (EMC) in Castro Valley have ratified a new contract that increases wages and protects hard-fought contract language.

The 140 Teamsters 856 members at EMC include respiratory therapists, lab techs, imaging techs, and other health care professionals who have been on the front lines of the pandemic since its onset last spring.

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In November, three more rank and file Local 856 members were elected to office after each not only won their race, but were also the top vote-getters in their respective contests. In addition, Local 856 Staff Attorney Malia Vella was re-elected to the Alameda City Council. As the top vote-getter in her race, she will serve as the city’s vice mayor. 

 “It’s important for working families to have a seat at the table,” says Vella.

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Local 856 won hazard pay for more than 3,000 members working in its Food Processing Division during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic—recognizing the workers who have kept the nation’s food supply functioning and the inherent dangers they have faced just by reporting to work each day.

Ashley Alvarado, Director of the Local 856 Food Processing Division, said that despite no legal means to require the employer to provide additional compensation, the Local had secured hazard pay for members at Pacific Coast Producers plants in Lodi,

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SRMA, an association of public employees in Santa Rosa, has voted to affiliate with Teamsters 856. The 135-member association, originally founded in 2009, includes professionals who work in public works, planning and economic development, housing and community services, recreation and parks, and other departments providing valuable services throughout the City of Santa Rosa.

The affiliation agreement means SRMA members will stand with 450 existing Santa Rosa Teamsters Local 856 members, and over 17,000 members represented by Local 856 throughout Northern California.

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