LAS VEGAS — More than 7,000 Teamster delegates from across the North America are gathering for the 27th International Convention June 26-30 at the Paris Hotel Convention Center in Las Vegas.
The convention’s theme, “Moving Forward Together,” represents the successes of the union in the past five years, including winning strong contracts, organizing thousands of new members and strengthening the lives of working men and women throughout the country.
The convention delegates, selected by their fellow local union members, are the supreme governing authority of the International Union. It is these members who have the very important role of shaping the leadership and the direction of the largest democratically elected union in the nation – 1.4 million members strong.
The convention is held every five years for the purpose of nominating the candidates to the General Executive Board, which includes the offices of General President and General Secretary-Treasurer.
The General Executive Board also consists of 22 regional and at-large vice-presidents, as well as three International trustees. Voting for these candidates occurs in October and November, when ballots are mailed to all IBT members.
The number of delegates each Local Union can send to the convention is determined by its size. In addition to selecting candidates for the General Executive Board, the convention also debates proposed by-law changes to the IBT Constitution and votes on the proposals.
The delegates will also recommend, discuss and vote upon resolutions addressing key issues that are of interest to the membership.
Some notable issues include:
* IBT assistance to Hurricane Katrina victims;
* New initiatives for more effective and larger scale organizing campaigns;
* The Change to Win federation;
* Welcoming the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen (BLET), the Brotherhood of Maintenance of Way Employes (BMWE) and the Graphic Communications International Union (GCIU) to the IBT; and
* Recognizing representative recipients of the James R. Hoffa Memorial Scholarship Award.
Guest speakers include Sen. Joe Biden, D-DE; Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-MI; 2004 Democratic Vice Presidential Nominee Sen. John Edwards; actor Danny Glover and radio host and best-selling author Al Franken.