Local 710 Continues Negotiations for ReaderLink Contract
Chicago Teamsters Exchange and Review Initial Proposals with Company
Negotiations for ReaderLink continued Tuesday, January 19, with both Teamsters Local 710 and the company exchanging initial proposals. The next bargaining session is scheduled for Tuesday, February 16.
The company went through their proposals for each article of the current agreement in conjunction with Local 710’s proposals. Both parties will review the proposals and respond at the upcoming session.
Local 710 proposed the following:
- Non-Guaranteed Employees to be no more than 15 percent of the workforce
- Establish a Joint Training Committee to address training issues
- Language regarding how overtime is offered to the workforce
- Adding additional specified holidays in place of the current floating holidays
- Changing the four personal days to paid days off
- Adjustments to the funeral leave policy regarding travel distances
- Changes to earned vacation time after a certain length of employment
- Amendments to allow for employees to move up the seniority list by removing employees who have not worked for a period of time from said list
- Reduction of reckoning period for warning letters from nine months to three months
- Specified wash-up time of five minutes
The membership has made it clear that there are several issues we need to address in the upcoming contract. The goal of our proposals is to
strongly improve the fairness of the working conditions for our hardworking members at ReaderLink.
Bernie Sherlock
Local 710 Business Agent
Local 710 represents 190 warehouse Teamsters at the ReaderLink Central Distribution Center in Romeoville, Ill. who handle the distribution of books to various retailers.
Any questions regarding negotiations may be directed to any member of the bargaining committee or Local 710 Business Agents Demetrius Morton or Bernie Sherlock at (773) 254-3200.
Bargaining Committee
- Bernie Sherlock, Local 710 Business Agent and Negotiating Chairman
- Demetrius Morton, Sr., Local 710 Business Agent for ReaderLink
- Rupa Baskaran, In-House Counsel for Local 710
- Drew Gniewek, Union Counsel from Willig, Williams and Davidson
- Jesus Pantoja, 1st Shift Steward
- Donnette Triplett, 1st Shift Steward
- Nickolas Medina, 2nd Shift Steward
- Carlos Lozano, 2nd Shift Steward
- Terrenai Scott, 1st Shift Mod Lead
Teamsters Local 710 is an affiliate of Teamsters Joint Council 25, America’s premier labor union for Chicago, Illinois and northwest Indiana.