Sources: Teamsters Local 174, Tukwila, Wash.; CP staff
Nearly 11 months after joining Teamsters Local 174, 50 Corliss Resources drivers have voted overwhelmingly to ratify a contract with the Seattle market ready mixed producer. Contract terms include wage increases, employer-paid family Teamster health care coverage, pension contributions, and work rules to protect bargaining unit members.
Local 174 represents the majority of concrete mixer truck drivers at producers throughout the Puget Sound area, including Corliss Resources’ sister company, Cadman. Prior to its drivers joining Local 174 in November 2022, Corliss was one of the market’s largest nonunion outliers. A decision on Teamsters representation followed the producer’s January 2022 acquisition by Heidelberg Materials. Contract negotiations were slow and contentious earlier this year, Local 174 officials note, ahead of a June strike authorization vote signaling that Cadman rank & file would honor a Corliss picket line.
“This contract will improve the lives of Corliss drivers dramatically and is a testament to what happens when Teamsters stand together and remain ‘Rock Solid,'” says Local 174 Secretary-Treasurer Rick Hicks, referencing a slogan among his concrete mixer driver members. “This group was nonunion a year ago. Now their pay, benefits, and working conditions are within reach of the contract covering other Local 174 mixer drivers. These massive improvements are exceptional for a first contract.”