March 6, 2008

(Nashville, TN) – An overwhelming majority of 75 workers at the UPS Freight (formerly Overnite Transportation) terminal near Nashville have signed authorization cards to become Teamsters, bringing the total number of drivers and dockworkers seeking to join the union to about 7,200 since January 16, Teamsters General President Jim Hoffa announced.

The workers at the terminal in La Vergne, Tennessee are seeking to join Local 480 in Nashville.

“We couldn’t have done this without the hard work of Local 480 Organizer Dudley Blankenship, who met with workers day and night to answer their questions and keep them updated,” said David Mottern, President of Local 480. “Dudley did a phenomenal job. The workers are very excited that the Teamsters have returned and will be representing them.”

 “The Nashville-area workers are yet another group that has struggled for years to win a Teamster contract, and we will deliver that to them soon,” said Ken Hall, Director of the Teamsters Package Division. “Their persistence and patience will pay off.”

In addition to the Nashville workers, a majority of UPS Freight workers in West Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Maryland, New Jersey, Indiana, California, Florida, Arkansas, Texas, Illinois, Arizona, New York, Kentucky and New England, including the large cities of Chicago, Las Vegas, Dallas, San Antonio, Cleveland, Atlanta, Houston, San Diego, St. Louis, Orlando, Charlotte, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Oakland, Seattle, Memphis and Detroit, have submitted cards to become Teamsters.

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.4 million hardworking men and women in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.