July 20, 2005
(CHICAGO, IL) – The International Brotherhood of Teamsters General Executive Board unanimously authorized James P. Hoffa, General President, and C. Thomas Keegel, General Secretary-Treasurer, to withdraw from the AFL-CIO if the labor federation “does not agree to changes that substantially accomplish the goals set forth in the amendments and resolutions that have been submitted to the AFL-CIO Convention by the Change to Win Coalition.” The decision was made today during a regularly scheduled meeting in Chicago.
"This is about the future of the American labor movement," said Hoffa. "We demand real change, real reform of the AFL-CIO. This vote is one more sign of the determination of the Teamsters Union and the other unions that are part of the Change to Win Coalition that the AFL-CIO must be restructured in order to survive in the future."
The decision follows the recent formation of the Change to Win Coalition, which includes the Laborers, SEIU, UFCW, UNITE-HERE and the Carpenters, in Washington, D.C. The General Executive Board also authorized the formal affiliation of the Teamsters with the Change to Win Coalition.
The Change to Win Coalition is calling for numerous reforms of the AFL-CIO as outlined on its website
"These six unions are poised to grow," Hoffa continued. "We are committed to organizing the unorganized and negotiating the wages and benefits workers deserve."
The General Executive Board's decision comes just days before the AFL-CIO's quadrennial convention is set to begin in Chicago on Monday, July 26, 2005.
Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents more than 1.4 million hardworking men and women throughout the United States and Canada.
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