Hello from the bunker in Sacramento. The first thing that is readily apparent in our collective response to COVID-19 is that there are so many heroes on the front lines providing vital services to communities all around the state, and many of these heroes are Teamsters. Governor Newsom even acknowledged this in one of his recent televised briefings, thanking our union and members for doing what needs to be done in this crisis.
Speaking of Governor Newsom,
Keep readingU.S. CONGRESS
District 1
Audrey Denney
District 2
* Jared Huffman
District 3
* John Garamendi
District 4
Brynne Kennedy
District 5
* Mike Thompson
District 6
* Doris Matsui
District 7
No Endorsement
District 9
* Jerry McNerney
District 10
* Josh Harder
District 11
* Mark Desaulnier
District 12
* Nancy Pelosi
District 13
* Barbara Lee
District 14
* Jackie Spier
District 15
* Eric Swallwell
District 16
* Esmerelda Soria
District 17
* Ro Khanna
District 18
* Anna Eshoo
District 19
* Zoe Lofgren
District 20
* Jimmy Panetta
District 21
* TJ Cox
District 22
Phil Arballo
District 23
Kim Mangone
CALIFORNIA SENATE
District 1
No Endorsement
District 3
* Bill Dodd
District 5
* Susan Eggman
District 7
* Marisol Rubio
District 9
* Nancy Skinner
District 11
* Scott Wiener
District 13
* Josh Becker
District 15
* Dave Cortese
District 17
John Laird
CALIFORNIA ASSEMBLY
District 1
Elizabeth Betancourt
District 2
* Jim Wood
District 3
No Endorsement
District 4
* Cecilia Aguiar-Curry
District 5
No Endorsement
District 6
Jackie Smith
District 7
* Kevin McCarty
District 8
* Ken Cooley
District 9
* Jim Cooper
District 10
* Marc Levine
District 11
* Jim Frazier
District 12
Heath Flora
District 13
* Christina Fugazi
District 14
* Tim Grayson
District 15
* Buffy Wicks
District 16
* Rebecca Bauer-Kahan
District 17
* David Chiu
District 18
* Rob Bonta
District 19
* Phil Ting
District 20
* Bill Quirk
District 21
No Endorsement
District 22
* Kevin Mullin
District 23
No Endorsement
District 24
* Marc Berman
District 25
* Anna Song
District 26
Drew Phelps
District 27
* Ash Kalra
District 28
* Evan Low
District 29
* Mark Stone
District 30
* Robert Rivas
Local Endorsements
Alameda County
BOS
BOS
Nate Miley
Keith Carson
Contra Costa County
BOS
BOS
Diane Burgis
Federal Glover
Fresno County
Fresno Mayor
Andrew Janz
Marin County
BOS
BOS
BOS
Katie Rice
Stephanie Moulton-Peters
Dennis Rodoni
Napa County
BOS
BOS
Belia Ramos
Alfredo Pedroza
San Mateo County
BOS
BOS
BOS
David Canepa
Dave Pine
Warren Slocum
Santa Clara County
BOS
BOS
San Jose CC D-4
San Jose CC D-6
San Jose CC D-10
Kansen Chu
Magdalena Carrasco
Huy Tran/David Cohen
Jake Tonkel
Jenny Higgins Bradanini
Solano County
BOS
BOS
Mitch Mashburn
Erin Hannigan
Sonoma County
BOS
BOS
Lynda Hopkins
Susan Gorin
Yolo County
BOS District 5
Angel Barajas
Washoe County –
Keep readingEvery day, Teamsters business agents throughout the country get requests from employers for new workers. Across our core industries, from trucking to warehousing to busing, workers are in high demand. This is especially true for workers who have commercial drivers licenses.
Economists predict a major shortage of truck drivers in the next decade. Some estimate that 160,000 driving jobs will go unfilled. Much of the blame goes on the trucking industry and the shippers themselves.
Keep readingThis year’s legislative session came to one of its weirder ends in recent memory. Perhaps it was the full moon or the fact that it was Friday the 13th. Whatever the reason, it was crazy.
The halls were packed with protesters, mostly from the so-called “anti-vax” movement. These folks were there to protest the Legislature’s passage and ultimately the Governor’s signature on two bills to toughen our state’s vaccination laws. I’ve seen many protests over the years—human rights groups,
Keep readingMore than 32,000 Teamsters across the nation work in the Solid Waste and Recycling Division. Every morning, Teamsters are out at the crack of dawn collecting America’s garbage and recyclables.
Unlike other Teamster industries, waste and recycling is concentrated into the hands of a few powerful corporations. Waste Management and Republic Services alone provide collection services to more than half the country. Despite this, the Teamsters are growing and organizing in this industry.
Keep readingWe’ve made it halfway through this year’s Legislative session and we continue to move our agenda here in California despite significant pushback from the Trump Administration.
First, Trump and his Labor Department have moved to take away meal and rest breaks from truck drivers. Then, they tried to take away funding for High Speed Rail. They recently declared “gig” workers, such as Uber drivers, independent contractors and are now going after meal and rest breaks away for bus drivers.
Keep readingTeamsters from more than 15 local unions within California Joint Councils 7 and 42 took part in a hearing and lobby day in Sacramento in support of legislation to help end misclassification. The Lobby Day was sponsored by the California Labor Federation.
In April, the California Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Dynamex Operations West, Inc. vs Superior Court of Los Angeles, referred to as “Dynamex,” simplified the test for determining whether a worker is classified as an employee for minimum wage and overtime protections.
Keep readingThe Legislature and our Governor have settled into the 2019 legislative session poised to tackle some big issues. A good economy and the tight fiscal policies of the Brown administration have provided the state with a record surplus, resulting in lots of pressure to spend it on a variety of worthy policies. Expanded healthcare, child care, universal preschool, free community college, among many other things, are all on the agenda to put on the Governor’s desk.
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The merger of Joint Councils 7 and 38 in 2010 united more than 100,000 Teamsters in 23 local unions covering a vast territory—50 of California’s 58 counties and all of Northern Nevada. Despite this, our 2010 endorsement list was only two pages long. We made endorsements in most of the federal and statewide races, but at the local level – city councils, county boards of supervisors, school boards, and ballot measures – we mostly stayed out.
Keep readingBy all measures, 2018 was an incredibly successful year for the California Teamsters. We were able to accomplish our biggest legislative priorities, and in a midterm election year, we saw Democratic super-majorities increase in both the Assembly and Senate. Teamster-backed candidates also largely prevailed in their state and congressional races. With super-majorities in both houses of the Legislature, we are well-positioned for 2019.
Below are some of our most important accomplishments this year.
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