International Union denounces strong political divisions and few commitments from candidates
Press contact: Kara Deniz Phone: (202) 497-6610 Email: kdeniz@teamster.org
(WASHINGTON) — The General Executive Committee of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters decided Wednesday not to endorse any candidate for president of the United States.
After reviewing six months of national member surveys and concluding nearly a year of roundtable interviews with all the major presidential candidates, the union was left with few commitments on key Teamster issues from former President Donald Trump or Vice President Kamala Harris — and found no definitive support among members for either party’s nominee.
According to data released earlier today, President Joe Biden won the support of Teamsters in informal polls of local unions between April and July before he withdrew from the race. But in an independent electronic and telephone poll from July to September, a majority of voting members twice chose Trump over Harris for a possible Teamster endorsement.
The extensive poll of union members showed no majority support for Vice President Harris and no universal support among members for President Trump.
“The Teamsters thank all candidates for meeting with their members in person during our unprecedented roundtables. Unfortunately, neither major candidate was able to make serious commitments to our union to ensure that working people’s interests always come before big business. We sought commitments from Trump and Harris to not interfere in critical union campaigns or key Teamster industries – and to respect our members’ right to strike – but were unable to secure those commitments,” said Teamsters General President Sean M. O’Brien.
“Our mission as union representatives is clear: to be honest and forthright, to be inclusive, and most importantly, to be transparent with our members. As the strongest and most democratic union in the United States, it was essential that our members lead this endorsement process. Democrats, Republicans, and independents are proud to be part of our union, and we have a duty to represent and respect all of them. We strongly encourage all of our members to vote in the upcoming elections and stay engaged in the political process. But this year, no presidential candidate has received the endorsement of the Teamsters International Union.”
At the Teamsters Presidential Roundtables, the union shared feedback from rail and airline members who work under the Railway Labor Act (RLA) and are at the mercy of government intervention that often prevents work stoppages. While 10,000 United Airlines Teamsters are currently negotiating a new deal, tens of thousands of railroad Teamsters were forced to accept a new contract implemented by Congress without membership support in 2022. At roundtables with Trump in January and Harris this month, neither candidate promised not to intervene to impose similar RLA contracts, undermining workers’ bargaining power.
While Harris has pledged, if elected, to sign the PRO Act, a landmark labor law that strengthens union protections, and criticized dangerous “right to work” laws that are enacted to bankrupt unions, Trump would not commit to vetoing national “right to work” legislation if he returns to the White House.
“Right-to-work laws exist only to try to kill unions,” said Teamsters General Secretary-Treasurer Fred Zuckerman. “It is a red line for the Teamsters and should be a red line for any union when a candidate for office fails to oppose such anti-labor legislation. This is too important an issue for the labor movement as a whole to be left to state legislatures.”
Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters represents 1.3 million workers in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Visit Teamster.org for more information. Follow us on Twitter @Teamsters and “like” us on Facebook at Facebook.com/teamsters.
