AAA seems to be on the run from Teamsters Local 665 aggressive efforts to finish unionizing AAA employees. AAA is stalling negotiations for the workers that voted last summer to unionize, so Local 665 is putting on a full-court press.
Here’s what AAA recently did to stall negotiations and limit union outreach to their employees.
- After 30 years, AAA moved their annual meeting 720 miles from Walnut Creek, California, a union stronghold state, to Salt Lake City, Utah.
- At their annual meeting, AAA closed down the public comments section of the meeting after five minutes, which prevented any pro-union employees or union leaders from speaking.
- AAA also closed down their local Salt Lake branch with a vague notice stating, “The branch is temporarily closed due to an emergency.” This action prevented Union members from passing out Union information to AAA employees, a standard practice legally protected by the National Labor Relations Act.
In the battle between corporations and unions, these tactics of avoidance are common in an attempt to buy time to weaken union momentum.
To keep up the pressure, Teamsters Local 665 packed up and traveled the 720 miles to bring their Union voice and the fight to AAA.
“I think it’ll be a little bit of a shock to the leadership at AAA,” said Tony Delorio, secretary-treasurer of Teamsters Local 665, on Tuesday. “They can run three states over. But we’re going to not only make our presence felt there at the annual meeting but also take the time to outreach to the workers in Utah.”
Delorio said the AAA workers are the first insurance agents the Teamsters have organized, and he hopes workers in Utah and Nevada will think about unionizing as well.
You can read more here in an article published in the Salt Lake City Tribune. https://www.sltrib.com/news/2022/03/03/unionized-insurance/
