Bush, FedEx Deliver an Economy That Profits Rich, Exploits Workers; Official Statement of Jim Hoffa, Teamsters General President
October 06 2006 - 1:27PM
PR Newswire (US)
WASHINGTON, Oct. 6 /PRNewswire/ -- The following is an official
statement of Jim Hoffa, Teamsters General President: Today,
President Bush used mediocre monthly payroll figures to give
himself a self-congratulatory pat on the back about an economy that
is failing American workers. It is fitting that the White House
chose to spin their skewed economic message at a FedEx facility in
Washington, D.C., one of the most anti-worker companies in the
United States. FedEx has created a business model with a cutthroat
mentality even Machiavelli would admire. CEO Fred Smith will
collect over $10 million in compensation and dividend income this
year alone, money that he earns by exploiting thousands of FedEx
Ground drivers through an "independent contractor" model. FedEx has
abused this independent contractor status to shift risks and costs
onto the drivers and taxpayers. The drivers take on costs that
should be paid by the company, including trucks, uniforms and
digital scanners. As a bonus, this model allows FedEx to avoid
paying income tax withholding, unemployment insurance premiums and
worker compensation contributions while dodging state labor laws
and federal laws like the Family Medical Leave Act and Equal
Employment Opportunity Laws. The good news is that this model is
unraveling as state and federal agencies expose this business model
for what it is -- a scam perpetrated upon the American workforce. A
California court ruled this business model to be illegal in 2005.
California found that FedEx Ground owed nearly $8 million in back
taxes. Since 1988, the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has
ruled seven out of eight times that the FedEx Ground drivers are
employees and not independent contractors. The Teamsters won two
such NLRB decisions in Massachusetts this year and drivers at three
FedEx Ground locations are on their way to joining the Teamsters
and securing their rights through collective bargaining. With every
record profit reported by corporate America and new stock market
high, working men and women in America are reminded that they are
expendable, a disposable part in a machine that is designed to make
money in the most efficient manner possible. The rich get richer,
lining their pockets with profits earned on the backs of exploited
workers, while the majority of Americans have not seen any
appreciable increase in their income. It is fitting that Bush held
his press conference at FedEx, a company that is blatantly
violating its workers' rights every day. The White House should be
more careful in selecting the company that represents our "healthy
economy," rather than choosing one as political payback because the
CEO hosted a $2,100-a-plate fundraiser last week in Memphis, where
Bush was the headliner. DATASOURCE: International Brotherhood of
Teamsters CONTACT: Leigh Strope of International Brotherhood of
Teamsters, +1-202-624-6911, Web site: http://www.teamster.org/
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