(The Associated Press circulated the following article on September 13.)
Teamsters President James P. Hoffa told Michigan business leaders on Monday that a national labor-business coalition is needed to solve the country’s health care crisis.
“The health care crisis contributes to the export of our manufacturing base,” Hoffa said in remarks prepared for his appearance at the Detroit Economic Club. “It’s the cause of strikes. It’s pulling wages and family income down.”
Hoffa also used the speech to plug the “Jobs Tunnel,” a Teamsters-backed proposal to expand an old rail tunnel to create a dedicated truck conduit between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario.
Hoffa said the project would alleviate gridlock at the Ambassador Bridge.
“To preserve and expand manufacturing jobs in the Michigan-Ontario corridor, we must increase capacity across the border,” he said.