Teamsters back to work at Pa. Convention Center

While union Teamster Local 107 remains unable to work at the Pennsylvania Convention Center for over a year, a few union members are currently back to work in the property.

The Teamsters and Carpenters Local 8 unions have not worked at the Convention Center since last May after failing to sign a new customer satisfaction agreement. The broken deal led to many protests, although Local 8 leaders said they would refrain from picketing during the pope's visit to Philly.

In March, two members, Mike Bell and John “Sneakers” Griffin, were hired by Convention Center management firm SMG for loading-dock work and internal freight handling, according to Philly.com. They then asked to be represented by the Teamsters — “their lawful right.”

They are able to work in the Convention Center because they are under a different contract than the ones unable to work at the center.

SMG negotiated a contract with the Teamsters to allow more union members to be on hand if necessary, Philly.com reports, although they will not do work covered by the new customer satisfaction agreement.

Last July, it was reported that a six-member crew of Carpenter union members were at work at the Convention Center while the rest of the union protested what they call a “lockout.”

Similar to the Teamsters' situation, the Carpenter crew was under a different contract from the Carpenters protesting outside and only worked maintenance in the center, spokesman Martin O'Rourke said last year.

But he said it's putting the entire legal battle between the unions and the Pennsylvania Convention Center Authority on weak footing.

"In that Local 107's circumstances were identical to those confronted by the Carpenters, this is highly contradictory and substantially weakens the Convention Center's already flimsy legal basis for continuing to lock out the Carpenters," O'Rourke told Philly.com. "We trust that one way or another a similar solution will be reached with the Carpenters."

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The unions maintain that they had until May 10 to reach the agreement and that they signed by that date.

The work of the Carpenters and Teamsters has been assigned among the four signatory unions.

Source: Philadelphia Business Journal