INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS PUBLIC AND LAW ENFORCEMENT EMPLOYEES’ UNION
LOCAL 320
STATE OF OUR UNION VOL. I - ISSUE 2
STATE OF OUR UNION
Dear Teamster:
I’m here to report that the state of our Union is strong —
Teamster strong! No court decision such as Janus v.
AFSCME, Council 31 can stop Teamsters’ commitment
to their coworkers and community.
Disabled Veterans of Minnesota (DAV MN)
In May 2018, Teamsters Local 320 invited the Minnesota Dis-
abled American Veterans (DAV MN) organization to address the
more than 100 Teamsters at its Member Appreciation and General
Membership Meeting. DAV Minneapolis Chapter 1 Commander
Jim Kline and Membership Chairman
Joel James Schilling joined the meet-
ing. Both DAV representatives spoke
and discussed the various programs
DAV MN provides to disabled veter-
ans. Commander Kline informed the
group that more women are in active
duty than any other time in the his-
tory of the U.S. Armed Forces. Many
are returning home with disabilities
from the “Global War on Terrorism”
and DAV MN is working to meet the
new challenge. Brian Aldes presenting $1000 to DAV MN
Teamsters Local 320 presented Commander Kline with a check for
$1000 on behalf of the Local Union. Donated items were collected
from Teamsters Local 320 members has been turned into cash for
DAV MN through its partnership with Savers Thrift Store.
We are so honored to support DAV MN. Many thanks to all the
members who donated items to help Minnesota’s disabled veterans.
We will continue this proud tradition and valued partnership as
long as I am the Secretary Treasurer of our Local Union. Our veter-
ans have given us so much and now it’s our turn to give back.
Local 320 Joins St. Paul Regional Labor Federation
More than 100 affiliate local unions make up the St. Paul
Regional Labor Federation, representing more than 50,000
union members who live or work in Ramsey, Washington,
Dakota and Chisago counties. The Regional Labor Federation
supports political, organizing and issue-oriented campaigns
by mobilizing – and growing – a network of committed union
volunteers.
Four labor assemblies, open to rank-and-file members of affili-
ated unions, carry out the work of the Regional Labor Fed-
eration on the local, grassroots level in Ramsey, Washington,
Dakota and Chisago counties. Assemblies meet monthly in
each county, providing union activists with
opportunities to volunteer in their commu-
nities, support local organizing campaigns
and screen candidates for local office.
The Saint Paul Union Advocate is the official
publication of the Saint Paul Regional Labor
Federation. The Advocate is mailed monthly
to members of unions affiliated with the
Regional Labor Federation.
Teamsters Local 320 is happy to join with the
St. Paul Regional Labor Federation and gain
a seat on its executive board, its Committee
on Political Education (COPE), and access to the Saint Paul
Labor Studies and Resource Center, the nonprofit arm of the
Regional Labor Federation.
The St. Paul Regional Labor Federation assisted Local 320 in
its tenuous contract negotiations for teaching assistants and
food service workers at the St. Paul School District. Local 320
ultimately won competitive raises for its membership and a
$15.00 minimum wage. By joining the Regional Labor Fed-
eration Local 320 hopes to build lasting solidarity with other
unions and with the communities our members serve.
Continued on page 2
 OFFICERS AND STAFF
Brian Aldes
Secretary-Treasurer and The Pension Protection and Stabilization Act PTSD Presumption for Public Safety
Principal Officer Teamsters Local 320 is proud to have been part of The 2018 Minnesota State Legislative Session
Sami Gabriel the multi-organizational effort to pass the 2018 produced sweeping changes to Work Comp laws
President/Business Agent to benefit public safety workers including first
Curt Swenson
Pension Protection and Stabilization Act.
Vice President/Business Agent
responders, State Patrol, county sheriffs deputies,
Craig Johnson The Act, formerly known as S.F. 2620, was a major 911 dispatch personnel, corrections officers, some
Recording Secretary/ lobbying initiative by Local 320 and Minnesota emergency nurses, and state security counselors.
Business Agent
Marcia (Marty) Lamb
Teamsters Joint Council 32. It provides for public
employee pension stabilization and solvency for a Teamsters Joint Council 32 Political Director,
Trustee, St. Paul ISD 625
Richard Wheeler thirty-year amortization period. It also reduces the Ed Reynoso, is a labor appointee to the Minne-
Trustee, MSUAASF pensions’ unfunded liabilities by over $3.3 billion. sota Workers’ Compensation Advisory Council
Alston Dutchin (WCAC). The WCAC submits recommendations
Trustee, U of M for proposed changes to the workers’ compensa-
The passage of this legislation reflects favorably by
national rating agencies and will keep the state’s tion statutes to the proper legislative committees.
Local 320 Business Agents
Hannah Benardson bond rating AAA—the highest rating possible.
Mike Horton Reynoso and other labor appointees on the Coun-
Josh Loahr The Act, signed into law by Governor Mark cil were adamant in passing a Work Comp bill that
Roger Meunier included Post-traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD)
Terry Neuberger Dayton, is the culmination of work from multiple
Vance Rolfzen stakeholder groups and pension fund directors, presumption for public safety workers in 2018.
Erik Skoog trustees, and staff. The umbrella organization that Business leaders on the WCAC, most notably the
Teamsters Local 320 jointly worked under is the Minnesota Chamber of Commerce, opposed such
Communications | Lobbyist Public Employee Pension Coalition (PEPC). The legislative changes for public safety workers due to
Assistant Business Agent cost concerns to insurers.
Gus Froemke
PEPC is comprised of the assorted fund directors
and staff, public employee unions and associations,
Organizer | Business Agent and retiree groups. This Act is truly historic as it PTSD presumption signifies a presumption that
Claire Thiele passed every assigned committee and legislative a PTSD injury is work-related for certain public
body with unanimous safety and emergency workers. Workers in public
Support Staff support. This is indeed safety can be exposed
Susan Bastian to traumatic events that
Katie Glaser a rarity for public em-
Ron Phillips ployee pensions and can change their entire
Suzanne Slawson bipartisan efforts. psychological tem-
Joni Spaulding perament long after the
Kristi Ziegler
Local 320 must rec- incident occurred.
Minneapolis, MN ognize the hundreds
of Teamsters who This change is impor-
Local Union Office
8:00am - 4:00pm made phone calls and tant not only for pro-
P: 612-378-8700 sent emails to their viding access to services
F: 612- 331-8948
legislators in support that public safety work-
1-800-637-5430 ers might need, but also
of the pension bill.
Online Teamster members First Responders with State Rep. Nick Zerwas (R-Elk River) for reducing the stigma
www.teamsterslocal320.org sent over 200 emails around seeking treatment
and made over 1,000 phone calls to State Legisla- for mental health issues.
Email
local320@teamsterslocal320.org
tors. We must also recognize the dedicated Local
320 members who attended the 2018 Lobby Day at The chief authors of the presumption legislation,
the State Capitol, and those who volunteered their Rep. Nick Zerwas (R-Elk River) and Sen. Nick
time to phone bank other members. These efforts, Frentz (DFL-Mankato) were instrumental in over-
and the efforts of our partner groups, are what put coming the business community’s opposition and
this legislation over the top. for ensuring unanimous, final passage of the much
needed changes.
Though we have protected our pensions for the
foreseeable future, we must never become compla-
cent. There are so-called academics, think tanks, In solidarity, Secretary Treasurer
and other organizations promoting pension priva- Brian Aldes & Principal Officer
Published by tization and they continue with their efforts.
Teamsters Local 320
3001 University Ave SE #500
Minneapolis, MN 55414
Page 2
 STATE OF OUR UNION
PAGE 1 & 2
MN DRIVE PRESIDENT OUTLINES PLAN
In May 2018, Teamsters Minnesota Democratic, For many generations the first district was con-
MN DRIVE PRESIDENT sidered solidly Republican with very little DFL
Republican, Independent Voter Education,
OUTLINES PLAN traction. In 2006, Republican Representative Gil
(DRIVE) President, Sami Gabriel, outlined the
PAGE 3 Gutknecht was defeated by Tim Walz. However,
political program for Minnesota Teamsters.
Gabriel presented the plan and details to an in- the district continues to lean more conservative.
LOCAL 320 VOLUNTEER
ternational audience of Teamsters and supporters
POLITICAL ACTION TEAM What Congressman Walz has proven in six con-
at the annual Unity Conference in Las Vegas.
PAGE 3 secutive elections is that he can
Gabriel also serves as compete state-wide. For too
DEGREES NOT DEBT long the Republican Party has
Teamsters Local 320
PAGE 4 divided Minnesota by urban
President and is over-
seeing the joint efforts and rural regions, thus an-
320 WEBSITE IMPROVED tagonizing one group of Min-
between Minnesota
PAGE 4 nesotans against another. Tim
DRIVE and Local 320
to elect a governor Walz offers an alternative to this
JANUS TALKING POINTS inharmonious and shortsighted
who serves the inter-
AND INFORMATION SHEET political strategy.
ests of Minnesota’s
PAGE 5
working families, not
the super wealthy or Minnesota DRIVE also made
corporations. the decision to endorse State
Sami Gabriel at Teamsters Unity Conference Representative Debra Hilstrom
(DFL-Brooklyn Center) for
Minnesota DRIVE began its member-involved Minnesota Attorney General.
program in January when it hosted a non-par-
tisan gubernatorial candidate forum open to all Minnesota DRIVE endorsed Representative Hil-
Teamsters to attend and submit questions. All strom because she has been the most sincere and
of the announced DFL candidates participated consistent legislative advocate for Teamsters at the
while not one announced Republican candidate State Capitol. Whether she is fighting on behalf of
made themselves available. state employee contracts that require legislative
approval, walking the picket lines with workers on
Though every DFL gubernatorial candidate is strike, or supporting public defense employees,
FACEBOOK Debra Hilstrom has been and continues to be our
a proven friend of the Teamsters, Minnesota
www.facebook.com/team- advocate!
DRIVE, with the approval of Joint Council 32,
sterslocal320
made the decision to endorse Congressman Tim
Walz. Congressman Walz is currently serving his In the coming weeks and months Minnesota
TWITTER DRIVE will continue to roll out its 2018 political
sixth term representing Minnesota’s First Con-
www.twitter.com/IBT_320 action plan and recruit volunteers. Please remem-
gressional District. The District spans the south-
ern part of Minnesota – from the South Dakota ber to vote in the Primary Election on Tuesday,
border in the west to the Wisconsin border in the August 14, 2018.
east.

The coming November election promises to be the most important

election for Local 320 members. The governors of both Iowa and
Wisconsin decimated public employee union rights.

We cannot allow it to happen in Minnesota. We must be proactive!

You can join Local 320’s Volunteer Political Action Committee on

the website at TEAMSTERSLOCAL320.ORG/VOLUNTEER

Page 3
 Teamsters Local 320 has teamed up with Education Minne- The education debt crisis cannot be addressed by one single
sota and the Minnesota Association of Professional Employ- policy or program. Attacking a massive, billion-dollar prob-
ees (MAPE) to confront the student debt crisis at the state lem requires energy at all levels. Because we do not anticipate
level. Your union wants to help relieve your debt burden changes at the federal level to be successful, state-level policy
and make college more affordable and accessible to all. This changes are the best bet for making any progress on the sky-
is particularly important for public employees. If public rocketing cost of college and fixing a broken system of loan
service becomes unaffordable, it will become even more dif- repayment.
ficult to attract and retain high-quality employees.
Teamsters Local 320, Education Minnesota, and MAPE sup-
Student debt is no longer just a burden—it’s become a bar- port a package of legislative reforms and policy changes that
rier to the American Dream. Minnesota ranks fifth in the will address student debt.
nation for student debt, with the average student debt load
at $30,894 for state college students. AFFORDABLE COLLEGE FOR MINNESOTA RESIDENTS
In 2000, students at Minnesota’s two-year public colleges paid
The Degrees Not Debt program is rallying public support to a little more than one-third of college costs in tuition and fees,
decrease the cost of college and make it easier and cheaper with the state picking up the rest. Now students pay for nearly
to pay student loan debt. three quarters of the cost. This cannot continue!

We know that student loan debt makes life hard for many PUBLIC SERVICE LOAN FORGIVENESS PROGRAM AT THE
young workers, driving some away from public service. STATE LEVEL FOR ALL PUBLIC EMPLOYEES
Many see the cost of college as a barrier to getting into a Creating a program that forgives some or all of any public
good profession in the first place. These challenges weaken loans after workers have made 60 qualifying monthly pay-
the diversity and depth of Minnesota’s workforce. ments (5 years) under any repayment plan while working
full-time for a qualifying employer would provide all public
We want to make sure you, as a union member, know about employees with a significant benefit that offsets lower public
existing student loan forgiveness programs, how to find out sector salaries.
if you’re eligible and how to apply for them. For anyone who
works in public service. There are 23 million people eligible Follow Teamsters Local 320 on Facebook for more informa-
nationally for public service loan forgiveness, but only about tion and opportunities to get involved: www.facebook.com/
3 million are taking advantage of it. teamsterslocal320

There has been a change to the Teamsters Local 320

website where unit pages are no longer password
protected. A user can now access a unit page and
its information without having to create an account
or password.

The unit page selection module is located on the left

side of the website at TEAMSTERSLOCAL320.ORG

Page 4
 Janus talking points
• Janus does nationally what right-to-work laws did state-by-state—make all union fees
voluntary. This latest Supreme Court case is the culmination of decades of attacks on working
people by corporations and the wealthy – and the politicians who do their bidding – to rig the
economy in their favor.
• Janus is about politics and weakening the voice of working people. Corporate interests not
only want to reduce pay and benefits for working people to fatten their own offshore bank
accounts, they are advancing cases like this so they can have more power in the political
process. Weakening the voice of unions and working families makes it easier for a handful of
billionaires to elect candidates and write laws to their own benefit.
• If our union is weakened, it will be harder for us to stand together to negotiate fair wages and
benefits. It will be harder for us to fight for the things our students need. And if we cannot
stand together, it will be easier for administrators to make harsh cuts that hurt our students
and their families.
• Unions have spent decades fighting for fair and equitable wages for all workers. They are
key to unrigging our out-of-balance economy because when working families do better, our
communities are stronger.
f Unions raise wages for both union and non-union workers. As union membership has
decreased because of the attacks on working people, income inequality has risen in the U.S.
f Children in communities where more people belong to unions can expect to have higher
earnings and more social mobility. (Source: Center for American Progress, “Bargaining for
the American Dream: What Unions do for Mobility”)
• Strong unions level the playing field for women and people of color so they can earn
equitable wages and benefits, and work in a workplace without fear of harassment or
reprisal.
f Women in the U.S. represented by a union earn an average of $212 more per week than
women in non-union jobs. (Source: Institute for Women’s Policy Research)
f Workers of color particularly benefit from union representation. Hispanic and black
workers earn 23.1 percent and 17.3 percent more respectively when they are represented by
a union. (Source: Economic Policy Institute)
• No one is forced to join a union. But unions are legally required to represent all workers,
even those who do not join the union. Public employees who don’t want to join only
contribute toward the costs of bargaining and representation they receive. None of those fees
may be used for political activities of any kind.
• The government would never force a business to give its products away, but that’s just what
this lawsuit wants the courts to do. It’s unfair by any measure to say a union must represent
workers who don’t pay their fair share of the union’s costs.

Updated: Dec. 20, 2017

Page 5
 Our professional counselors
The Teamsters Service Bureau provides FREE
can help you with:
CONFIDENTIAL services for you and your family.
• Emotional Concerns
We can assist you with balancing and managing many
• Financial Problems
of life’s challenges.
• Family/Marriage Issues

• Chemical Dependency
Remember... Problems and stress can and do happen!
• Stress/Anxiety and
Call the Service Bureau today. We’re here to help!
Depression
612-676-3700 (or 24-hour toll free 1-800-979-9725)
• Legal Concerns

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