What's a Union?

A Union is a group of workers who come together to build a stronger workplace and give working families a voice.

Union workers earn higher wages, achieve better benefits and have safer, more secure working conditions than workers who don’t have a voice on the job with a union.

But Unions are about more than higher wages and better benefits.  Unions are about having dignity and respect on the job. 

• To learn more about why it makes sense to join a Union, click here.
• To learn about the advantages you can achieve by being a Union member, click here.
• To learn about how Teamsters Local 117 can help you organize your workplace, click here.

Why Union?

Unions are the most effective way for working people to achieve family wages, better benefits, and respect and a voice in the workplace. If you’re thinking about joining a union, the best place to start is by asking yourself some basic questions about your job.

• Are you and your co-workers routinely left out of the decision-making process?
• Does your boss play favorites?
• Have you or one of your co-workers ever been unfairly disciplined?
• Do you have a sub-par health or retirement plan?
• Are your wages lower than others working in your industry?

If the answer to any of these questions is yes, then you probably need a union!

• To learn about how Teamsters Local 117 can help you organize a Union, click here.
• To hear what Local 117 members are saying about their union, click here.
• To speak with a Local 117 Organizer, call the Local 117 Organizing Department today at 206-441-4860. 

The Union Advantage

Union workers earn more than their non-union counterparts, they have better benefits, and they have a voice in the workplace. Union membership is especially helpful in raising wages for women and people of color.

• Union pay is higher than non-union pay
• Unions workers have better health care and pensions
• Unions give workers a voice in determining working conditions
• Unions help narrow the wage gap for women and people of color
• Unions help bring workers into the middle class

To download a flyer on the differences between non-union and union jobs, click here.

To speak to an Organizer about joining Teamsters Local 117, contact our Organizing Department at 206-441-4860 or contact us by email.

Contact a Local 117 Organizer!

Teamsters Local 117 is the third largest Teamsters Local in the country and one of the largest unions in the Pacific Northwest. We represent approximately 16,500 workers at more than 200 employers in both the private and public sectors.

This is Local 117's mission statement:

Passionately providing a voice to its membership, Local 117 empowers and unites workers. With integrity and an unwavering dedication to economic and social justice, we organize, educate, and lead collective and political action to protect and expand the rights, wages and benefits of working families. This is your Union.

For more information about how Teamsters Local 117 can help you organize your workplace, contact the Teamsters Local 117 Organizing Department today at 206-441-4860 or send us an email.

Union Quiz

To find out if you need a Union in your workplace, take the Union quiz.