On Monday, it was reported that 80 FedEx employees went out on strike at the company’s Gardenia, California facility. However, that may not really be the case…
FedEx Freight workers are on a ULP strike in Gardena, CA! Think this may be first #FedEx strike in history. #1u pic.twitter.com/A5JwfFL2Jj
— Eric Robertson (@erictheteamster) November 9, 2015
#FedExOnStrike spreading beyond Gardena… pic.twitter.com/3tUrE8L6Uq
— Shaun Martinez (@shaunmartinez) November 9, 2015
As Holiday Shopping Season Nears, FedEx Faces First-Ever Strike in Southern California https://t.co/FnQUgpBIIa
— Teamsters FXF (@FxFUnionYES) November 10, 2015
It turns out that the number reported by both the Teamsters and the press may have been grossly exxagerated, according to FedEx employees.
A majority of demonstrators at a Monday protest billed as a labor strike outside a Gardena FedEx Freight shipping hub were Teamsters members rather than workers, employees said Wednesday.
Only about two dozen workers participated, though Teamsters Joint Council 42 spokesman Randy Korgan had reported that 85 employees initiated the strike. Afterward, many employees expressed frustration with union organizers for being disruptive and hostile to workers who don’t want to join them.
Teamsters members blocked employees from entering or leaving the building, forcing them to go through side doors to get to work, they said.
“They were intimidating drivers and dockworkers that were trying to get into work,” said Julian, a FedEx dockworker who did not give his last name for fear of retaliation. “They blocked the entrance and kept everybody from entering and leaving. They dragged one guy (who had worked all night and wanted to leave) out of his truck. He was just trying to leave the parking lot and they were hitting his truck with picket signs.” [Emphasis added.]
Read the rest here.
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