INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS PUBLIC AND LAW ENFORCEMENT EMPLOYEES UNION

LOCAL 320
Summer 2014 Edition

Volume XVII - Issue #3

PROUD TEAMSTER

Charles
Snargrass:
Buffalo
Soldier &
Proud
Teamster

IN THIS ISSUE...
2. Secretary-Treasurers Report, Brian Aldes

4. Recording Secretarys Report, Curt Swenson

5.
Arbitration Report, Paula Johnston

6.
Volunteer Member Organizers, Josh Intemann

7.
Correctional Pension Referendum and Annual

Steward Training Announcement

Page 3
Charles Snargrass:
Buffalo Soldier &
Proud Teamster
By Sami Gabriel

OFFICERS AND STAFF

Brian Aldes

Secretary-Treasurer and
Principal Officer
Joanne Derby
President/Business Agent
Sami Gabriel
Vice President/Business Agent
Curt Swenson
Recording-Secretary/
Business Agent
Marcia (Marty) Lamb
Trustee, St. Paul ISD 625
Richard Wheeler
Trustee, MSUAASF
Alston Dutchin
Trustee, U of M
Paula Johnston
General Counsel

Local 320 Business Agents

Amy Hill
Craig Johnson
Michael Kopp
Roger Meunier
Terry Neuberger
Vance Rolfzen
Kari Seime
Erik Skoog

Communications | Lobbyist
Gus Froemke

Lead Organizer
Josh Intemann

Support Staff

Susan Bastian
Ron Phillips
Suzanne Slawson
Joni Spaulding
Kristi Ziegler
Katie Ziembo

Minneapolis, MN
Local Union Office
8:00am - 4:00pm
P: 612-378-8700
F: 612- 331-8948
Toll Free
1-800-637-5430
Online
www.teamsterslocal320.org
Email
[email protected]

LOCAL 320 SECRETARY-TREASURERS REPORT

BRINGING ON THE FIGHT

By Brian Aldes

Teamsters Local

320 is taking the fight

directly to employers
as we gear up for the
budget session at the
State Legislature.
We know that bargaining our wages and
benefits starts at the Legislature. Whether
you work in higher education, courts, public
defense or even at the local levelyour
economic well-being is tied to the state
budgetary process. For example, if you
work for a county, city, joint power or school
district chances are your employer is heavily subsidized through state aid programs.

Officer Patrick was standing next to his

patrol car when the assailant fired multiple
shots, striking him in the head. He was
transported to Regions Hospital where he
succumbed to the injury.

Regarding Local 320s state groups that

receive the majority of funding directly from
state coffers, such as higher education,
courts and public defense, Local 320 intends to actively lobby, testify and educate
State Legislators on the importance of fully
funding institutional budget requests.
At both the University of Minnesota and
Board of Public Defense we are engaging
in budget talks with employer representatives on how we can work together to secure additional funds from the Legislature.
If you would like to help us secure a greater
economic settlement for yourself and coworkers please consider contacting our
Local Unions Communications and Government Relations Director, Gus Froemke
at 612-378-8732 or [email protected].
We can use your help with our lobbying
and education efforts at the State Capitol.
Your assistance is critical to the success of
our activities and we look forward to hearing from you!

Published by
Teamsters Local 320
3001 University Ave SE #500
Minneapolis, MN 55414

Remember the Fallen

On Wednesday, July 30th, 2014 Mendota

Heights Police Officer Scott Patrick was
shot and killed while making a traffic stop
near the intersection of Dodd Road and
Smith Avenue, in West St. Paul, MN.

Page 2

Officer Patrick was a 19-year veteran of the

Mendota Heights Police Department and
is survived by his wife and two teenage
daughters.
Officer Patrick was not a Teamster brother,
but in law enforcement circles we are all
brothers and sisters fighting the good fight.
If you are inclined to help the family of
Officer Patrick please note the following:
The Mendota Heights Police Department
established an official memorial fund to
benefit the Patrick family.
Officer Scott Patrick Memorial Fund
Affinity Plus Credit Union
Donations can be made by phone at
651-291-3700 or by mail to:
Affinity Plus Credit Union.
175 West Lafayette Frontage Rd.
St. Paul MN 55107

Buffalo Soldier &

Proud Teamster
By Sami
Gabriel

Charles Snar-

grass is a member
of Teamsters Local
320 at the Inver Grove
Heights School District
formerly serving as a
bus driver and now as a
paraprofessional.
It is widely believed that the
Buffalo Soldiers
main charge was to
protect settlers as
they moved west and
to support the westward
expansion by building the infrastructure needed for
new settlements to become secure and thrive.

Born over 92 years ago in St. Joseph, MO, Snargrass has 5 children,12 grandchildren, 15 great
grandchildren and 3 great-great grandchildren.
Snargrass arrived in Minnesota in 1953 with his
wife and family to provide his children better educational opportunities and to escape segregated
Missouri.
Today Charles Snargrass is a proud Teamster and
knows the value of his Union. Charles is also active
in the Masonic Society and was past Commander
of Johnny Baker Post No. 291 of the American
Legion.

By the time Snargrass joined the 9th Cavalry in 1941

all cavalry regiments consisted of Buffalo Soldiers.
Snargrass was first posted in Ft. Riley, KS and rose
to the rank of Staff Sergeant. While an enlisted Buffalo Soldier at age 22 Snargrass was taught how
to ride remounts (wild horses) military style for
combat in the saddle.

One item from Snargrasss past that stands out

for him was his time with the 9th U.S. Cavalry as a
Buffalo Soldier. The term Buffalo Soldier became
synonymous with all African American regiments
formed after 1866 including the 9th, 10th, 24th and
25th cavalry regiments.

Towards the end of Snargrasss tour he was taught

how to ride a motorcycle and was charged with mail
delivery when he was later posted in Ft. Clark, TX.

The origin of the nickname Buffalo Soldiers has

been disputed over the years by academics, but
Snargrass holds to the most common theme. He
says that during the Indian Wars from 1866 to the
early 1890s Native Americans would see the curly
hair of African American soldiers and instantly
associate the feature with the fur of the buffalo.
The Apaches would say We called them buffalo
soldiers, because they had curly, kinky hair...like
bisons.

In 1947 President Truman ordered the military to

desegregate bringing an end to the Buffalo Soldier.
For Charles Snargrass his time as a Buffalo Soldier was long ago, but it is something he will never
forget.

Page 3

RECORDING SECRETARYS REPORT

U OF M TEAMSTERS LOOKING FOR KNOCKOUT!

By Curt Swenson

Teamsters at the Univer-

sity of Minnesota are excited

about the upcoming State
Legislative Session and subsequent contract negotiations.
For the first time, Local 320 will launch
a full scale contract campaign to
help get the University the funding it needs to increase salaries
for its Teamster employees.
We are calling this campaign the
counterpunch! You heard it right!
Many folks are asking why counterpunch? The answer is simple:
Teamsters Local 320 is getting in
the ring and mixing it up.

Secondly, you can become a campaign coordinator

on your campus. As a campaign coordinator you
will sign-up new union members (convert fair share
workers to full dues paying Teamsters). You will
participate in and recruit Union members to be in
our campaign video.
Lastly, you will be tasked with recruiting citizen lobbyists on your campuses.
Dedicated men and women
who will testify at the State
Legislature, attend a city
council or county board
meeting and those who will
write a letter to the local
paper.

We have a plan to increase base

wages, but members still have to
be vigilant! We are asking for a
wage increase in addition to step
increases and before we put any
more money on the table for rising healthcare costs.

This campaign will no doubt

be a heavy lift for all of us.
Currently, the Local Union
has commissioned an economic impact study from the
University of St. Cloud to
determine how the pay and
benefits of University employees contribute to the

Minnesota economy.

As always, we will rely on members proposals at

the bargaining table, but when we lobby the State
Legislature we have to be realistic and cannot
come across as self-serving.

We have to prove to both the administration and

Legislature that not only do our wages and benefits
support our local communities, but that together we
will become community leaders.

You may ask yourself why does this effort need to

be a campaign? Because the University of Minnesota administration has placed the burden of pay
increases squarely on the State Legislature. We
need to mobilize our membership like never before
to become campaign coordinators and union member lobbyists.

We need to reach out to civic organizations, ethnic

groups, student associations, churches and political
parties to spread our message to as many people
as possible. Only then can we begin to see the
changes we deserve!

What can you do to help? First, you can sign our

petition in support of the campaign. Please visit
www.teamsterslocal320.org

Page 4

LOCAL 320 WINS IMPORTANT CASE FOR MINNEAPOLIS 911 SUPERVISORS

ARBITRATION UPDATE: GENERAL COUNSEL

By Paula Johnston

Late last year, the City of

Minneapolis notified the

members of Local 320s
911 Supervisors Unit that
it would be changing the
length of their shifts from
ten (10) hours to eight (8)
hours. Business Agent
Craig Johnson objected to
the change because the
contract specifically states that shifts will be either
eight and one-quarter (8) hours or ten (10) hours.
Despite the clear contract language, the City made
the change to eight (8) hour shifts. The Union
grieved the contract violation and the parties proceeded to arbitration.
The issue in the case
was whether the City
had the right to modify
the shift length for the
members of this bargaining unit to a length
other than that which
had been negotiated.
Section 14.01 of the
contract states that
[t]he normal workday
for all employees shall
consist of shifts of eight
and one-quarter (8)
hours or ten (10) hours.
It defines workday as [t]he 24 hour period of time
during which an employee is regularly scheduled
to work an eight and one-quarter hour [or ten hour]
shift.
The contract also states that the City has the right
to modify the workday configurations with proper
notice to the Union. The City argued that the right
to modify the workday configurations was actually
a right to modify the shift length.

The Union argued that the definition of workday is

unambiguous. It does not define the length of the
shift, despite the fact that the shift length is mentioned in the definition. A workday is the twentyfour (24) hour period of time during which a shift
takes place. The parties negotiated very specific
language for this definition. If the parties intended
the word workday to mean the length of the
shift, they would have omitted the phrase the 24
hour period during which an employee is regularly
scheduled to work. The definition would simply
state an eight and one-quarter (8) or ten (10)
hour shift.
Because the definition of workday is so clear, the
phrase workday configurations cannot refer to the
shift length, as the
City argued. Rather,
the phrase means
the configuration
of 24 hour periods
during which an
employee is regularly scheduled to
work an eight and
one-quarter (8) or
ten (10) hour shift.
In other words, the
City has a right to
modify the shift rotation, for example,
or the start time of
a shift. But the City
cannot change the length of the shift.
The Arbitrator agreed with the Union and sustained
the grievance. He ordered the City to return the
members to either eight and one-quarter (8) or
ten (10) hour shifts within 60 days of the award.

Local 320 is extremely pleased with the decision
in this case, and congratulates its 911 Supervisor
members on this important victory.

Page 5

VOLUNTEER MEMBER ORGANIZERS

By Josh Intemann

Do you want to make Local 320

stronger? Do you want to help

workers fight for better wages
and benefits? Are you interested
in working on an organizing
campaign and learning skills that
can make the Local and your
workplace better? If you said
yes to any of these questions you
should become a Volunteer Member Organizer
(VMO). VMOs are members of the Local that work
with us to help bring new members into the union,
and help us become more powerful. All the VMOs
in the Local will make up
the Organizing Committee which will work with
the Locals Leadership in
carrying out the Strategic
Organizing Plan. This fall,
Local 320 is going to start
a campaign to recruit and
train VMOs for our various
organizing campaigns. We
want our members to be
organizers and engaged in
the process of growing our
Local and building power.
To accomplish the goals of
our strategic plan we are
going to recruit members to
become VMOs. We do this in organizing because
it increases our chances of success. We want our
members to share their union experience with others to help them bring democracy to the workplace.
Organizing works best when members can show
workers that change is possible in the workplace
and show them the advantages of being a Teamster. Each VMO will go through organizer training,
learning the best practices of union organizing
and strategies to win campaigns. Every organizing campaign that we win makes us more powerful
in each workplace and in the state. After a VMO
is trained they will then be a part of the organizing
committee. The committee will work on organizing
campaigns as well as meet regularly to discuss the
organizing that is going on as well as plan for future
campaigns.

Local 320 will utilize lost time for VMOs so that they
can be hands-on and available to work campaigns.
Lost time is when you get excused from work for union
business with your wages covered by the Local. When
campaigns are going on we will work with your employer to have you spend a couple of days working on
the campaign, instead of your normal job. We do this
so that we can utilize our members in the best way
without them losing any pay or benefits. Sometimes
a campaign will be in your backyard and other times
there might be some travel required. If you are working
a campaign away from your home the Local will cover
your lodging, meals, and travel expenses. When a
VMO is out on lost time they will
be talking to potential members
about the union, assessing their
support for the union, and asking
them to join the fight by signing a membership card. VMOs
will also home visit and phone
bank workers, hold meetings
in and outside the workplace,
and guide workers through the
election process. You will do this
with the support and help of your
fellow VMOs and the Local.
Teamsters Local 320 is committed to organizing. We know that
in these times there are a lot of
attacks on workers, especially
public employees. The more organized we are the
better we will be able to beat back these attacks and
strengthen our voice in the workplace. I urge you to become a VMO and help make Local 320 more powerful!

If you would like to become

a VMO, or have questions
about the program, you can
reach me at (612) 378-8717.

Page 6 Page 6

IMPORTANT INFORMATION FOR MEMBERS IN

THE PERA CORRECTIONAL PENSION
PERA Correctional Plan members are currently participating in both the
pension plan and Social Security. However, members who did not originally
transfer to the plan from the Coordinated (General) Plan in 1999 will be
voting in December on whether to retain their Social Security coverage.
When created in 1999, it was assumed new Correctional Officers would be
covered for retirement, disability and survivor benefits by both PERA and
Social Security, just as were original participants in the plan. Only recently
was it learned that the Social Security Administration requires a referendum
for that to happen.
Employees who were transferred from the PERA Coordinated Plan to the PERA Correctional Plan by their
employers when the plan was established in 1999, or when the plans membership criteria was changed by
the Legislature in 2000, are not eligible to vote in this referendum that is about 700 of the current plan participants. The SSA determined that these employees retained their Section 218 Social Security coverage as
correctional personnel who were directly transferred from the Coordinated Plan into the Correctional Plan.
That leaves approximately 2,900 current participants of the plan who are eligible to vote. PERA staff members are working with county administrators and human resource personnel to verify the employees eligible
to vote.
If the voters approve continuing Social Security coverage through a majority vote nothing changes. Members
of the Correctional Plan continue to pay into Social Security and PERA, and they will receive both sets of
benefits just like Coordinated Plan members.
Information about your Correctional Plan benefits is available on the PERA website www.mnpera.org. Click
on Members, then Correctional Plan. While you are on the web site, if not already registered, register in My
PERA to access your own account for estimates benefits, refundable balance plus interest or to check the
personal data maintained in your PERA account (such as your beneficiaries).
Social Security has an excellent website explaining benefits and a calculator you can use to estimate your
future SSA benefit. Go to www.ssa.gov.

Page 7

MINNESOTA TEAMSTERS PUBLIC & LAW

ENFORCEMENT EMPLOYEES UNION
LOCAL # 320
3001 UNIVERSITY AVE SE STE 500
MINNEAPOLIS, MN 55414-9946

The Teamsters Service Bureau provides FREE

CONFIDENTIAL services for you and your family.

Our professional counselors

can help you with:

We can assist you with balancing and managing many

of lifes challenges.

Remember... Problems and stress can and do happen!
Call the Service Bureau today. Were here to help!
612-676-3700 (or 24-hour toll free 1-800-979-9725)

Emotional Concerns
Financial Problems
Family/Marriage Issues
Chemical Dependency
Stress/Anxiety and
Depression
Legal Concerns