Family, strength, community - those are our values as union members.

Teamsters in our South Sound shops met in Tacoma on Saturday to talk about how to promote those values. 

"We want to find out what matters most to members so that we can continue to build strength through our commitment to each other and our communities," said John Scearcy, Secretary-Treasurer of Teamsters Local 117.

Para lograr ese objetivo, estamos llevando a cabo las entrevistas de Every Voice Counts. Estas son conversaciones cortas, uno a uno, en las que los miembros entrevistarán a otros miembros sobre las formas de construir la unidad en su lugar de trabajo.

Nuestro compromiso mutuo es importante, especialmente ahora, con los continuos ataques a las familias trabajadoras.

Wealthy special interests have dismantled laws that protect union members in Wisconsin, and elsewhere. They are also behind a pending Supreme Court case - Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association that could lead to a union-hostile environment for members in public sector workplaces across the country. (See who's funding the Friedrichs case here.)

If the Court rules against unions in the case, a "freeloader" dynamic would arise.  Members could abandon their union membership, but continue to receive all of the benefits of union representation without having to pay for it.  Unions would lose resources, and the membership as a whole would suffer. The Court heard oral argument in the case today.

"I'm new to the Teamsters," said Tracy Lyons, a Shop Steward from South Sound 911 who attended Saturday's training. "For our job - we're making life and death decisions every day - there's an important protection that the Union provides. We need to make sure that it stays that way."

Para obtener recursos adicionales y para obtener más información sobre Friedrichs, hemos creado un nuevo sitio web en www.FamilyStrengthCommunity.org. Compruébelo y asegúrese de compartirlo con sus compañeros de trabajo.