News Updates
Delivering Justice
October 27, 2009
Alsco Workers Win Major Arbitration
“It was kind of an emotional thing. What they did was wrong and we had to stand up to it,” said John Blough, a 10-year route sales representative and shop steward with Alsco.
An arbitrator’s ruling recently came down as a major win for the bargaining unit of about 60 Alsco workers in Denver and Colorado Springs who are members of Local 455.
“This was a very good victory for these workers,” said Steve Vairma, Secretary-Treasurer of Denver-based Local 455 and President of Joint Council 3. “We had a lot of members who took great financial hardship and that will be remedied.”
Alsco route sales representatives (RSR’s) deliver linen items to customers ranging from restaurants to hospitals. They work hard, building relationships with their clients, and earn a living through commissions.
In November 2008, the RSR’s economic livelihoods were jeopardized when Alsco restructured its routes, severely impacting the workers’ earnings.
“I lost $300 a week in pay. When you’re paid strictly on commission, the more you work, the more you deliver, the more you make. You get out of it what you put into it,” said Jason Abbott, a 10-year RSR based in Denver. “There were quite a few of us that worked the same route and built it up so we were making a very good wage and it was taken from us.”
The Decision
Vairma and Local 455 Business Agents Dean Modecker and Vince Shaw were not consulted by the company about this restructuring, despite such a requirement in the contract. They worked hard with their members to right this wrong, taking the case to arbitration.
The arbitrator found in favor of the Teamster RSR’s stating that the route revisions violated the contract. He ordered the company to restore all routes to their pre-restructuring position within 30 days of the decision and provide back pay to the RSR’s for all lost earnings and benefits, with interest on the back pay from the date of loss.
The arbitrator found that the restructuring of routes for the purpose of limiting or cutting weekly sales volume or the earnings of RSR’s violates the collective bargaining agreement. Cutting RSR sales volume, and thereby wages, or capping volume/wages were not legitimate business reasons and were barred by the language in the agreement.
“I testified at the hearings, and I’m glad we won this ruling,” Abbott said. “I give credit to Local 455 for stepping up and really helping us out. They went to bat for us and we appreciate that.”
Strike Against Aunt Millie's Ends
September 15, 2009Aunt Millie's Strike Ends; Workers Back On Job
September 15, 2009Mexico Bakery Bimbo Pays Back $600M Loan Ahead Of Time
June 18, 2009Mexican bakery Grupo Bimbo SAB (BIMBO.MX) has paid back a $600 million bridge loan ahead of schedule, using money from a share issue last week, the company said Wednesday in a filing with the Mexican stock exchange.
The bridge loan was set to come due in January 2010. Bimbo took out the loan to finance the acquisition of Weston Foods Inc., a U.S. subsidiary of Canada's George Weston Ltd (WN.T), which it bought for $2.38 billion in January.
Last week, Bimbo placed 10 billion pesos ($732 million) in notes on the local debt market to refinance the loans.
-By Peter Millard
Bimbo Bakeries Workers Vote Overwhelmingly To Join Teamsters
April 21, 2009Drivers and mechanics with Bimbo Bakeries recently voted by a near 2-to-1 margin to become members of Teamsters Local 997 in Fort Worth, Texas. The 73 workers joined the Teamsters in seeking job security and protections provided by a strong Teamster contract.
“It’s a hard place to go to work when you don’t know where you stand on a daily basis,” said Bart Eads, a driver with more than 15 years experience. “We needed to know where we stood, and we hope to have the same protections against the contracting out of work that other Teamsters at this company have.”
Until the recent vote, the Fort Worth hub was the largest and only nonunion Bimbo location in Texas. Bimbo Bakeries USA is the U.S. division of the Mexico City-based Grupo Bimbo, a major producer of baked goods. More than 4,000 Teamsters work at Bimbo Bakeries nationwide.
“The workers were concerned about work being contracted to independent operators, and they were looking for the security of a Teamster contract,” said Arthur Burns, Secretary-Treasurer of Local 997. “We have a real strong membership with this group of workers and we’re happy to welcome them as our members.”
“We’re honored that these dedicated and united bakery drivers and mechanics are now a part of our union and we look forward to providing them with strong Teamster representation,” said Richard Volpe, Director of the Teamsters Bakery and Laundry Conference.
Founded in 1903, the Teamsters Union represents more than 1.4 million hardworking men and women in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico.
Linen Service Workers Join Local 25 in Boston
March 20, 2009On March 20, 2009, the helpers at a hospital linen service in the Boston area voted unanimously to join their coworkers as members of Local 25 in Boston.
The four helpers at Angelica Textiles in Somerville, Massachusetts voted 4-0 to join Local 25. They will be covered under a contract that already provides protections for 39 drivers at the company.
“The helpers wanted the same collective-bargaining rights that the drivers have—protections covering wages, hours and working conditions,” said George Slicis, Business Agent for the drivers.
Jose Perez, a steward for the drivers, helped with the latest organizing victory.
“Jose did a great job for his coworkers,” said Sean M. O’Brien, Local 25 President. “We need more of our members like Jose to step up and help us with wall-to-wall organizing.”
Interstate Bakeries Emerges From Bankruptcy, Has Financing Plan Finalized
February 4, 2009A Kansas City company that four years ago looked like it was toast has extricated itself from bankruptcy, preserving 22,000 jobs and a host of iconic brands.
Interstate Bakeries Corp. on Tuesday announced that a $600 million financing plan had been finalized, giving control of the company to a New York investment fund, but leaving its management and work force in place.
“With this period behind us, we can now unleash and empower 22,000 IBC employees to better serve our consumers and customers, revitalize our core brands, and launch product innovation that will profitably grow our business,” Chief Executive Officer Craig Jung said in a statement.
New York investment firm Ripplewood Holdings made an investment of $130 million to take control of the maker of such brands as Wonder Bread, Hostess Twinkies and Ding Dongs. The remainder of the wholesale baker will be held by lenders, which are providing Interstate with its post-bankruptcy financing.
Ripplewood partners John Cahill and Greg Murphy will serve on Interstate’s board. Cahill was previously chairman, president and chief executive of The Pepsi Bottling Group, and Murphy had been president and CEO of Kraft Food Bakery Cos.
Interstate’s 19,000 union employees have also been promised a future equity stake in the company if it grows, in exchange for concessions in pay, benefits and work rules. The Teamsters represent about 8,500 of Interstate’s 22,000 workers. TheBakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers, and Grain Millers International Union represents about 8,200 Interstate workers, and other unions represent the rest.
“The Teamsters Union fought hard to save good-paying jobs at the company. I am proud of the battle we waged for 4½ years to see this company survive,” Teamsters official Richard Volpe said in a separate statement.
James Baker Jr., a 25-year shipping employee at Interstate’s Dolly Madison plant in Columbus, Ind., on Tuesday expressed the relief of employees around the country who had worried they might lose their jobs.
“I think it is great that we are out of bankruptcy now,” Baker said. “Everyone thinks we are going to get somewhere now.”
Interstate was once the largest wholesale baker in the U.S. The company in 2004 filed for bankruptcy court protection after running into liquidity problems as sales were undercut by the low-carb diet craze and a consumer shift to so-called premium breads, which Interstate didn’t have at the time. The company also had a high cost structure and an outdated delivery network.
For 2½ years, the company was run by restructuring company Alvarez & Marsal, the same company now operating bankrupt Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.
Jung was hired in February 2007. Among other positions in the food industry, he was CEO of Panamerican Beverages, the third-largest Coca-Cola bottler in the world, with operations across eight Latin American countries.
Interstate has closed nine of 54 bakeries and more than 300 outlet stores, and sliced its work force from 32,000 to 22,000 since filing for bankruptcy. It has pulled out of some markets entirely, including selling bread in Los Angeles and the rest of Southern California.
In the quarter ended Nov. 15, Interstate lost $41.4 million on revenues of $643.9 million, but reported an operating profit on continuing operations of $3.9 million.
In a recent interview, Jung said the company was prepared to compete without the benefit of court protection.
He said the company had new products in the pipeline, including an all-natural bread to be introduced in February, and would begin testing a new delivery system that should improve service and save money.
“We need to be very mindful in providing meaningful value to our customers, and we need to be competitive in prices and promotion,” Jung said. “I am absolutely not going to start a price war in the category, but we will be competitive where we need to and when we need to.”
Interstate Bakeries Emerges From Bankruptcy
February 4, 2009Interstate Bakeries Corp. on Tuesday emerged from more than four years of Chapter 11 bankruptcy, just days before exit financing commitments were set to expire.
The Kansas City-based company, known for such iconic brands as Hostess, Dolly Madison and Wonder Bread, said in a release after the market closed on Tuesday that it had wrapped up financing to emerge from bankruptcy as a standalone company. Interstate, which employs about 100 workers at a Wonder Bread plant in Columbus, had capital commitments with a number of firms for capital and credit.
The last major obstacle to its emergence was a deal for a $125 million revolving loan with General Electric Capital Corp., which a bankruptcy judge approved last week.
“Today marks a new beginning for Interstate Bakeries,” CEO Craig Jung said in a release. “We are now a stronger and more competitive company. With this period behind us, we can now unleash and empower 22,000 IBC employees to better serve our consumers and customers, revitalize our core brands and launch product innovation that will profitably grow our business.”
Interstate’s financing looked to be in jeopardy as recently as last month, when the company hired a law firm to help enforce its exit financing commitments. But on Jan. 26, the company said it had reached an agreement in principle with GE Capital for a credit facility and was working to finalize terms.
Officials with one of Interstate’s largest unions, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, lauded the accomplishment.
“Today is a great day for the 23,000 employees of (IBC),” Richard Volpe, director of the Teamsters Bakery and Laundry Conference, said in a Tuesday statement. “The Teamsters union fought hard to save good-paying jobs at the company. I am proud of the battle we waged for four-and-a-half years to see this company survive.”
All of Interstate’s 423 union locals ratified revised labor agreements that allowed the company the flexibility to adjust to the changing market, Interstate said. In addition, all of its secured lenders voted in favor of the reorganization plan, which a Kansas City bankruptcy court approved Dec. 5.
Although employees kept their jobs, shareholders wound up empty handed as part of the emergence plan. In Tuesday filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Interstate canceled all its publicly traded shares.
Officials from investor Ripplewood Holdings LLC said they were glad to see the deal close and hope to use Interstate’s main bread and snack cake brands to position it for success.
Interstate Brands Corp. Emerges From Bankruptcy
February 3, 2009Richard Volpe, Director of the Teamsters Bakery and Laundry Conference, issued the following statement today regarding the announcement that Kansas City-based Interstate Brands Corp. has emerged from bankruptcy:
“Today is a great day for the 23,000 employees of Interstate Brands Corp. The Teamsters Union fought hard to save good-paying jobs at the company. I am proud of the battle we waged for 4 ½ years to see this company survive.”
Forbes: Judge Approves Changes in Twinkie-Maker Reorg Plan
February 2, 2009- 1 of 3
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