LAS VEGAS, April 30 – Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa stressed the importance of electing a labor-friendly White House and the need to “take back America in 2008” during his Unity Conference presentation here yesterday.
Thousands of Teamsters from across the United States have gathered here for the annual Unity Conference, which builds Teamster pride and generates donations to support the James R. Hoffa Scholarship Fund.
Teamsters General President James P. Hoffa at the podium during his Unity Conference address.
General President Hoffa said that labor did an outstanding job in November of 2006 by leading the drive to elect a pro-union majority in the House and Senate. “However, we must do more to increase our DRIVE membership,” President Hoffa said. “It’s all about organizing and DRIVE as we fight to take back America in 2008.”
DRIVE, or Democrat Republican Independent Voter Education, is the Teamsters’ PAC fund. BLET members are encouraged to support the BLET-PAC fund.
Congressman Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.) spoke on behalf of the pro-union majority in the House of Representatives.
“I have three main things I wanted to say today: Thank you, we have a lot of work ahead of us, and thank you,” Rep. Becerra said. “We understand what you gave us in November of 2006 and we thank you. We are going to fight for you.”
BLET representatives give General President Hoffa a standing ovation during the Unity Conference. From left: NASLBC Chairman Tim Smith; Secretary-Treasurer Ken Kertesz; National Legislative Representative John Tolman; Special Representative Ken Kroeger; and Ohio State Legislative Board Chairman Tim Hanely.
Mike Mathis, Director of Governmental Affairs for the Teamsters, urged organizers to involve politicians during their organizing campaigns. To show that the strategy works, Mathis introducing several organizers who used that strategy to successfully unionize workers such as school bus drivers and police officers. He also said that politicians must be held accountable for their actions once they are elected. “The days of just throwing money at politicians has to end,” he said.
He spoke optimistically about the 2008 elections, but said plenty of hard work must be done in order to achieve labor’s goals.
“We are 632 days from voting George Bush out of the White House,” he said. “But the work starts now. We simply cannot win without money, and we all need to support DRIVE.”
El Salvador””s Human Rights Ombudswoman, Dr. Beatrice Alamanni de Carrillo, was recognized for her tireless work on behalf of victims of social injustice in her country, and was presented with the first annual Gilberto Soto Human Rights Award.
On November 5, 2004 Teamsters Union International Representative Gilberto Soto was brutally murdered by a death squad in front of his mother””s home in El Salvador while visiting the country on union business. The investigation by local authorities was held in secret and never explored the possibility that Soto was murdered because of his union work.
Dr. de Carrillo repeatedly questioned the validity of the investigation. Despite her continued efforts, Soto””s murder remains a mystery to this day, as the Salvadoran government ignores pleas from his family, the Teamsters Union and the Human Rights Ombudsman””s office for a comprehensive and transparent investigation.
The Unity Conference provides an excellent opportunity for organizations within the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen to schedule their own meetings. It gives BLET members the opportunity to meet with Teamster officials and to increase the exposure of the Brotherhood. For example, President Hoffa addressed the BLET’s National Association of State Legislative Board Chairmen (NASLBC) at meetings here on April 27, and will do the same for the BLET’s Western General Chairmen’s Association (WGCA), which has meetings scheduled from April 30 through May 3.