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Teamsters Are Set to Go on Strike This Week of the University of MN

1,400 Teamsters Local 320 service workers at the University of Minnesota have overwhelmingly voted to authorize a strike to demand dignity, respect, and living wages. After 24 hours of strike mediation with the university on Thursday and Friday this week, we have failed to reach an agreement. Unless the university changes course, a strike could begin as early as Wednesday, August 20 on the Duluth campus, Friday, August 22 on the Crookston campus, and Monday, August 25 on the Twin Cities campus.

Key Issues:

  • UMN has offered only a 3.0% wage increase to Teamsters in year one of a new union contract, and 1.5% in year two—less than the 3.5% annual raise promised to President Cunningham and agreed to with Graduate Labor Union - UE Local 1105 for both years.
  • UMN has proposed a 10.2% healthcare hike that would wipe out wage gains for many UMN service workers.
  • UMN refuses to agree to full anti-harassment rights for Teamsters or increases to the night shift differential.
  • In UMN’s food service operation in the Twin Cities, discipline cases have risen by 96%. Women make up 40% of staff but receive 50%+ of suspensions, with women of color facing even higher rates.

We ask our sister unions, student organizations and other solidarity groups to help in these ways:

1. Share the link below and encourage your organization’s membership to contact university administration. The university administration has until midnight on Tuesday to change course and avoid a strike. The more people that they hear from, the more pressure they will feel to agree to a real wage increase and our other core issues.

https://teamsterslocal320.salsalabs.org/UMNWidePreStrikeAction8182025/index.html

2. Send an official statement of support for UMN Teamsters to the individuals listed below by Tuesday, August 19. Share with media outlets and copy Jackson Kerr to any correspondence.

3. Join picket lines. Report to the nearest campus strike command center for instructions if there is a strike (list attached).

  • Duluth: Big tent at Kirby Dr and W. College St. (near sign and statue)
  • Crookston: Valley Technology Park
  • Twin Cities:
    • COMO - Corner of Como Ave and 29th Ave SE
    • SUPERBLOCK - Superblock courtyard
    • COFFMAN - Lawn by Coffman South Entrance
    • HEALTH SCIENCE - Washington Ave Lightrail Station
    • NORTH CAMPUS - Corner of 6th Street SE and 23rd Ave SE
    • EAST BANK - Northrop W Lawn near Arlington St & Pleasant St SE
    • WEST BANK - Entrance to Heller Hall
    • SAINT PAUL - Corner of Buford Ave and Eckles Ave (across the street from Saint Paul Student Center)
4. Provide material support—food, drinks, and supplies for strikers.

The University of Minnesota, as a public land-grant institution, has a responsibility to serve as a model employer in the state. Instead, it has chosen to prioritize executive compensation and surplus accumulation over fair treatment of the workers who make its mission possible. This fight is about more than wages and benefits—it's about dignity, respect, and the university's obligation to its workforce and the broader Minnesota community.

Let’s show UMN the strength of Minnesota labor solidarity!

 

In solidarity,

 

Jackson Kerr, Business Agent and Lead Negotiator

Teamsters Local 320

 

Erik Skoog, President

Teamsters Local 320

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