It’s political season again, as lawmakers in Washington State returned to Olympia today for the start of the 2019 legislative session.

He is a machine operator by night, but at daybreak his steel-toed boots, the chemical resistant smock, mask, and goggles come off, and he puts on his cape. Now, Halem is on a mission.

What an incredible show of solidarity today for Teamsters who work at Transdev.

Now that 2019 has arrived, Teamsters who work at the WA State Department of Corrections can look forward to much-deserved wage increases that our union achieved through the interest arbitration process.

All Teamsters 117 bargaining units have voted resoundingly to ratify the total comp agreement and their individual appendix agreements.

It was another fun-filled holiday meeting at the Teamsters hall last night. Hundreds of members and their families packed the main auditorium and overflow room as we raffled off dozens of gifts, including a couple of mammoth tvs!

Seattle-area drivers employed by Chariot, a micro-transit service owned by Ford Smart Mobility LLC, have chosen to join Teamsters Local 117.

Teamsters at Lake forest Park win a stipend for work clothing and boots through their new contract gearing up for windy winter.

On December 20, hundreds of Local 117 members will gather at the union hall in Tukwila for solidarity and our annual raffle drawing.

We have good news to report from Olympia. We've just received word that the Office of Financial Management (OFM) has deemed our DOC interest arbitration award financially feasible.

Teamsters 117 Secretary-Treasurer John Scearcy will join officers elected to represent affiliates and partner organizations of the Washington State Labor Council, AFL-CIO for the next four-year term as a new member of the Executive Board.

Marci Solomon is a force of nature. Within moments of my meeting her she’s launched into stories about cross-country road trips on her Harley, rescuing bulldogs, and navigating the machismo she confronts while working as a female in a male-dominated trade.

Hertz was withholding union negotiated wage increases, but the workers fought back to receive their retroactive pay and increases for 2019 and 2020.

Cemetery work is not for the faint of heart. It takes someone with incredible compassion and the ability to routinely perform end-of-life rituals that most of us would prefer not to think about.