Congratulations to UPS Teamster Mike Mackey, who retired today from UPS after 40 years of service! Brother Mike started at UPS in 1975 as a loader and worked at the very first building which was located at Bellamah & Rio Grande. He was part time for 10 months then took a driving route that encompassed a large portion of the city; from Central & Loams to Louisiana & the Foothills. There were only 27 drivers for UPS covering the whole state of NM at that time. Mike then changed to the North Edith/Sandia Pueblo route which he stayed on for 25 years. He had the Placitas area for 5 years and retired on the 80d route.

Brother Mackey married Judy in 1979 and they have 2 children. His Jess also works for UPS Aspen and his daughter has 3 degrees, in bio engineering, and has her Masters in Molecular Engineering from Princeton.

Congratulations to Brother Mike Mackey for a well deserve Teamster retirement! We wish you all the best!

New Mexico Supreme Court Sides With Unions In Wage Case

SUSAN MONTOYA BRYAN Associated Press

The New Mexico Supreme Court on Monday sided with a group of unions and ordered state labor officials to revamp the way they set prevailing wage and fringe-benefit rates for certain public works projects.

The court said Gov. Susana Martinez’s administration has a duty under a 2009 change in state law to set rates based on collective-bargaining agreements rather than on wage surveys and other information.

Justice Petra Jimenez Maes wrote in a 15-page opinion that the failure of the director of the state labor relations division to do that has resulted in stagnant rates for public projects for the last five years. As a result, payments to workers have been anywhere between 5 and 35 percent below what would have otherwise been required.

“The director’s delay in setting new rates and his failure to comply with the act is inexcusable,” Maes wrote.

The court gave state labor officials 30 days to set new rates.

The New Mexico Department of Workforce Solutions said the ruling will compromise the right of New Mexicans to have their money spent wisely. “This is a huge loss for New Mexico taxpayers and a victory for special interests that will grossly inflate the cost of public construction projects, including roads and schools, in New Mexico,” spokeswoman Joy Forehand said in a statement.

The New Mexico Building and Construction Trades Council, along with unions representing electricians and sheet metal workers, first raised concerns about compensation in 2011. At the time, state officials told the justices they would be able to set new rates within four to five months.

The labor department answered by implementing new regulations; that move prompted litigation. The unions filed another petition with the Supreme Court seeking to force officials to abide by the language adopted in 2009.

Efforts to repeal the law have been unsuccessful, and union officials said Monday that more challenges are expected given the court order.

Shane Youtz, an Albuquerque attorney who represented the unions, said the order means thousands of plumbers, electricians and sheet metal workers should see wage increases in the next 30 days.

Teamsters Local 492 held OSHA 10 (General Industry), Haz-Com Refresher Classes, & Forklift training certification for Teamster 492 Members at the Local Union Hall this weekend.  

We had a very good turnout this year; 11 Teamsters received their OSHA 10 (General Industry) certification, 58 Teamsters received their Hazard Communication certification, and 23 received their Forklift Certification.

These Teamster Members took time out of their busy schedules to obtain their certifications in these areas and we were proud to be there for them. Thank you to Brother Chuck Richardson of Local 631 for coming out to run the training classes. A special thanks goes out to both, Brother Kevin Pohl and Brother Moises Ortega for setting up the class and volunteering their weekend to keep the classes running on Saturday & Sunday; these classes would not be possible without their dedication to the members of Teamsters Local 492.

Finally, thank you to United Rentals for providing the forklift and pettibone forklift.   

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NCRTD (Blue Bus) Driver Nick Molina, who is a Teamster Local 492 Union Steward, was recently given the “Above and Beyond Award”. Nick recently celebrated his seventh anniversary, making him one of the longest employed drivers at NCRTD. The Company was quoted as saying “He has been tremendously valuable as an employee during these years.”

Earlier this year, Brother Molina helped NCRTD achieve second place in the Los Alamos Winterfest Light Parade. He is a dedicated Driver and gave 100% to the parade, including several hours on his own time. Because of his extensive knowledge and enthusiasm for the project, NCRTD was welcomed in both the Espanola and Los Alamos communities. NCRTD received a second place award in Los Alamos, and a warm reception as well as some loud cheers for RTD in Española. NCRTD was very thankful for Nick’s hard work and dedication.

Brother Molina also took part in the 2015 NMTA Transit Roadeo this year, taking second place in the Van Competition scoring a total of 678 points out of 775!  The Roadeo Includes competition events for both bus Drivers and bus Mechanics. Awards are given in each practice area and there is an overall grand prize for the transit system with the highest combined score for the bus operator and bus maintenance team.

Through sportsmanship, pride of work and extensive knowledge in all of his interests, both personal and professional, Brother Nick Molina excels in what he does and makes us proud to have him on our team!

Al Weddle has been with YRC Freight for 57 years, the longest tenure of any employee at YRC freight.

From YRC Drive On Magazine

Al Weddle has always been behind the wheel because it's what he loves to do. He began his career with Watson brothers in Phoenix Arizona, and he has been with YRC Freight ever since. Eventually he move to Albuquerque New Mexico, and he is there today, working as a line haul driver.

When asked why he has done this job for so long Al replies that it's just what he likes to do. Born into a family of truck drivers, it comes naturally to him. His father was a driver as well as his uncle, and later his own two sons became drivers.

Al’s love of the open road spills into his personal life as well. When he’s not driving for work, you can find him driving on vacation and spending time with his wife after 53 years marriage.

Although he loves life on the road, he explained that there are still some tough things that come along with it. Traffic and animals are the worst, he says and weather is most bad at night. His advice to drivers is to stay alert at all times.

According to Al, things are pretty much the same on the road now as they were back when he started except for the fact that things are a lot more crowded now. Al says he has just a few pieces of wisdom he would pass along to newer drivers. He reminds them to keep their eyes on the road. After all, just one second of distraction can be disastrous. “Get enough rest and don't fight it, it's much better to pull over and get a few minutes of rest rather than take the chance of getting in an accident. Watch out for those other people and be a good defensive driver.”

Remembering the advice his father passed down to him, Al says when you're on the road, you just have to remember to give yourself room, rest and be patient. Then you'll be just fine.

Al Weddle embodies the spirit shared by YRC Freight; hard work, determination and focus on safety and exceptional customer service. Employees like Al are the ones who contribute everyday to the legacy of YRC Freight.

YRC Freight held an employee safety ceremony to celebrate a safety streak from January 2013 to January of 2015, which set an all time YRC company record, 19 million consecutive accident and injury-free miles accomplished by all 85 Albuquerque Line drivers. This article is an Updated version of an article originally posted on Teamsters492.org in September of 2014. 

Shown in the picture (you can see more pictures by clicking here) the Company presented the specially designed and updated trailer saluting the drivers' achievement at the safety celebration which proudly includes the names of all 85 drivers and the logos of the New Mexico Teamsters and the IBT.  It was altered to read 19 million miles in honor of the more current streak. 

The trailer was originally presently in September 2014 at the 15 million mile celebration, when each driver received a die-cast replica of the equipment and tee-shirts commemorating the amazing accomplishment. You may have noticed the trailer originally showed “TEN” million miles, the tee-shirts given out said 14 million but they celebrated 15 million. That is because when they hit 10 million they started working on the trailer, they had passed 14 million when the shirts were printed, and by the time the celebration actually took place they had hit 15 million. In January of 2015 they hit the 19 million mark and the trailer was updated to reflect that.  

As of September, 35% of these YRC Teamster drivers had driven one million miles or more, two had driven over 4 million miles, two over 3 million miles & 27 drivers had worked more than 25 years injury free.

Also honored at the September 2014 ceremony were:

Al Weddle, 57 years and over 4 million miles injury and accident free

CB Montoya, 42 years and over 4 Million miles injury and accident free

Joe Wright, 37 years accident free

Wes Johnson, 36 years injury and accident free

In attendance, Johnny R. Johnson, Managing Director of the New Mexico Trucking Association and American Trucking Association Chairman Phil Byrd, who spoke at the event. Also in attendance, Teamsters Local 492 Secretary-Treasurer Walter R. Maestas and Business Agent Kevin Pohl, representatives from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, and New Mexico Transportation Police, who distributed the 85 donated new child car safety seats to families in need, in the name of each member of the YRC Freight Albuquerque driving team who has contributed to the safety milestone.

YRC Freight President Darren Hawkins said at the September ceremony, "Having 85 drivers work together to achieve 15 million consecutive accident and injury-free miles is a testament to the professionalism of the Albuquerque team. It is a real honor to be in Albuquerque with the drivers today so that we can personally pay tribute to their achievement. The YRC Freight Albuquerque driving team's safety record is evidence of what a team can do when collectively focused not only on their own safety, but also on the safety of others." (There has been no press release from the company about the 19 million mile achievement yet)

Also speaking at the event was Albuquerque YRC Freight Linehaul Manager Hoss Salehian who said, “These Albuquerque drivers set an all time record of 15 million miles driving without lost time and preventable accidents. To put that in perspective, 15 million miles is equivalent of 60 trips between here and the moon and over 600 trips around the earth. I am pleased to recognize these 85 men for their achievement in transportation safety; this is a significant accomplishment that attests to their dedication to safety. These drivers embody the values and professionalism that is YRC Freight. I am very proud of these men and thankful for their dedication and remarkable achievement.”

Teamsters Local 492 is also very proud of our brothers at YRC and wish to congratulate them on this amazing record. As the sign says above the door at the AQE facility, (see picture) “Through This Door, Pass The Finest Union Drivers In North America,” and they have certainly lived up to that! 

This was another good year for the Teamster represented Companies at the 2015 Truck Roadeo. New Mexico Teamsters Local 492 Secretary-Treasurer Walter R. Maestas was there to lend his support to all the Teamsters in the roadeo which included drivers from ABF, Sysco, TeamOne, UPS Freight, and YRC. Individual Teamsters from ABF, TeamOne & YRC took home 10 placement awards, 2 DOM awards and CB Montoya of YRC received the Driver of the Year Award.

Click Here to View Photos provided to us by Ruby Wilson, Thanks Ruby!

This article will be updated as info and pictures are provided to us. At this point only ABF & YRC have responded to our requests for info.

 ABF 

ABF had a  large showing of supporters at this year’s roadeo which included ABF Freight President Tim Thorne, VP of Line haul Mark McMinn, Regional VP Andy Upchurch, West Regional Director Ed Myers, ABF Local Management and employees from the shop, dock, line haul, and office.  

Here are their results:

1^st place in Sleeper class Ralph Garcia, which is his13^th win in a row

1^st place in 5-axle class Charlie Estrada                  

1^st place Straight Truck class Donald Woods

2^nd place Flatbed class Tito Torres                         

3^rd place 4-axle class Ricky Lucas

3^rd place Twins Chad Sullins, his 7^th year in a row placing

3^rd place 5-axle class Michael Contreras          

ABF Freight had 2 drivers honored as “Driver of the Month” for 2014; Carroll Weaver for February and Fred White for March.

ABF won two Fleet safety Awards, the city operation won the 100,000 to 500,000 mile category which they also won last year, and Line Haul won the over 5,000,000 mile award for the 4^th consecutive year!

Line Haul Manager Randy Archer received the 2015  “Jim Wilcox Award" recognizing service in the field of safety.

Also competing from ABF; Randy Amberman (out of Farmington, NM) and Kirk Weis in 3-axle, Gerald Benavidez in 4-axle, Craig Arellano in flatbed, Robert Delgado in tanker, Duane Oldfield in twins.

ABF Freight Safety department has agreed to sponsor a new award, to be called the “Ralph Garcia Award".  It was awarded to ABF driver and 13 time winner Ralph Garcia this year and he will present it to other deserving competitors in the future.  It is for continued excellence in safety and participation in the NM TDC’s. The NM Safety Management Council was inspired by National "Neal Darmstadter Award" when creating this award.

 YRC 

YRC recently celebrated 19 million miles accident and injury free, the streak was from January 2013 to January 2015 (see picture above). Congratulations to all the Teamster drivers at YRC that made this happen! You truly have made us proud. YRC received the “Carrier of the Year” award at the NM TDC this year because of your phenomenal record!  To read an article we posted when they hit 15 million, click here.

Jack Rojas took 2^nd in the 5-axle sleeper and Michael Mcafee took 3^rd in the 5-axle sleeper. CB Montoya received driver of the year for his 6 million miles accident and injury free. CB has been with YRC 43 years, is 77 years old and is still driving safe.  Other Participants from YRC were Leroy EyHcio in 3-axle, Manny Gomez in 5-axle, James Aragon in Twins and Frank Sandoval in Twins.

Team One

Brian Thais took 2^nd place also participating Cameron Misner in 4-axle.

Sysco

Participants included Sean Smartt, Thomas Humphreys, Jose Salas, Pascual Montes all in 3 axle and Aaron Clonan in flatbed.

UPS Freight

Participants included Luis Soliz, Jr & Jose Seijas in 3-axle, Keith Brewer & Stephen Lopez in Twins.

Congratulations to everyone and we look forward to 2016! To view the 2014 TDC article, Click Here.

To View The Score Sheet, Click Here

The Teamster Horsemen Motorcycle Association is starting a new chapter in New Mexico. We are a nonprofit organization set to bring our Teamster Brothers & Sisters together to ride. We will raise funds to help out brother and sister members within the Teamster Union. Our purpose is to help charitable organizations, especially children's causes. We reflect the values of Teamster Brotherhood and camaraderie and support our local communities and greater biker community. We are open to all union members who ride any make of bike as well as others sponsored by a Union member.

For information on joining the NM chapter of the Teamster Horsemen, as well as other officer information, please contact Chuck W 505-401-8346 or Jason P 505-918-4270.

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