Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, September 7, 1995 TAG: 9509070055
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B8 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: FROM STAFF AND WIRE REPORTS
DATELINE: DETROIT LENGTH: Medium
The three car-hauling operations of Miami-based Ryder System Inc. each year handle about 6 million new vehicles built in the United States or shipped to U.S. ports from overseas.
The union contends Ryder and other car haulers have violated federal labor laws by refusing to share economic and operations information in negotiations for a new national contract. Bargainers for 12,000 Teamster truck drivers and dockworkers have been meeting on and off since January with representatives of the companies.
``For months, we've tried to reach an agreement that protects good jobs, pensions and health benefits in the car-haul industry, but Ryder and several other companies continue to violate the law,'' Teamsters union President Ron Carey said in a statement announcing plans for the strike.
The walkout was set to start at 6 a.m. The talks broke off Friday, and no meeting between the sides was scheduled.
The most immediate impact likely would be on auto dealers, many of whom are awaiting shipments of 1996 model cars and trucks.
"We always have cars in the pipeline, so this would affect us," said Bill Pinkerton, owner of Pinkerton Chevrolet Geo in Salem. If the Teamsters were to strike, he said, about 120 of his 1996 models would be stranded in transit.
"Every vehicle we get from the factory is hauled in some way by the Teamsters," said Bob Kaplan, vice president of Dominion Car Co. of Salem.
Kaplan said a strike potentially could slow - or even halt - production of new cars as well, because factories typically don't have large storage lots and ship cars to dealers right off the assembly lines.
Kaplan, a Chrysler dealer, said a strike could take him out of the Neon business temporarily. He has only one 1996 Neon in stock. If the strike occurs, the 15 Neons he has ordered won't be delivered.
But the dealers remained optimistic that the strike would be settled before any real effects are felt at the local level.
Mike Cox, new-car sales manager at Salem's Hart Motor Co., said most dealers probably have enough inventory on their lots to get them through a short strike.
No members of Roanoke-based Local 171 of the Teamsters will strike or take any job action at this time over the negotiating stalemate, said President Jim Guynn.
About 90 members of the local union transport new trucks out of the Dublin plant of Volvo Heavy Truck Corp. They work for Keal Driveaway, based in Cleveland, as drivers or deckers - employees who stack the trucks piggyback-style before the trip begins, Guynn said.
Guynn said the union international called a "selective strike" affecting Ryder System Inc., and he does not know of any plans to strike Keal.
Norfolk Southern Corp. provides rail service to several auto plants, including factories in Buffalo, N.Y., and Wentzville, Mo., which also are served by Ryder, said NS spokesman Bob Auman.
Contingency plans have been developed to deal with a strike if it develops, Auman said. If the strike is brief, it shouldn't have any serious impact on Norfolk Southern, he said.
Staff writers Greg Edwards, Megan Schnabel and Jeff Sturgeon contributed to this story.
by CNB