Teamsters Open Port Trucker Hiring Hall Recommended by Blue Ribbon Commission

Independent Contractors to Become Employee Owner Operators

MIAMI, Sept. 16 -- Teamsters Local 769 announced today the opening of a hiring hall for the truck drivers who haul containers from the Port of Miami, Port Everglades and local rail yards. The hall will officially open on Saturday, September 17 at 9:00 a.m.

"We are taking applications from drivers who have cancelled their independent contractor leases or who are not currently leased to motor carriers," said Mike Scott, President of Teamsters Local 769 in Miami, Florida. "Hundreds of drivers are telling us they want to work as employee owner operators with all the rights under U.S. labor law to which other employees are entitled."

An investigative report by a Blue Ribbon Commission appointed by City of Miami Commissioner Tomas Regalado recommended the establishment of a port driver hiring hall. The report found that drivers' frustration with extreme exploitation and poor equipment that placed the drivers and motor public in danger of preventable accidents was the root cause of last summer's two-week protest at the Port of Miami. The report predicts a hiring hall will:

   * Ensure that only qualified truckers service the port;

   * Give the drivers employee status and the right to engage in collective
     bargaining;

   * End the "extreme exploitation" of these hard working drivers;

   * Allow truck drivers to receive sustainable pay and benefits including
     health insurance;

   * Create a level playing field for the motor carriers;

   * Prevent future work protests.

According to the local union, drivers will obtain seniority based on the day and time they register with the hiring hall.

"We have heard that drivers will be lining up starting at dawn," Scott said. "This event is not a rock concert, but the drivers hope to rock the industry and create a new system allowing them to better support their families. The Teamsters are committed to helping them."