Austin DePaolo

Worker Rights Leader, Secretary-Treasurer and Organizer

[Austin DePaolo @AustinDePaolo]

@Teamsters This is exciting. I love the one on ones and the round tables. The stories of our past can inform our future. From the look on people’s faces, it seems like this was a very engaging event!

[Ron Wyden @RonWyden]

The proposed merger between Kroger & Albertsons is a bad idea for consumers in Oregon and nationwide. Glad to have the @Teamsters Western Region & advocates for seniors with me today in NE Portland to raise concerns about a merger’s impact on prices of prescription drugs & more.

[Teamsters @Teamsters]

Douglas County public sector workers represented by #Teamsters Local 223 in Portland, OR held an information picket this weekend to demand a fair contract that includes the very best union health care.

These essential workers deserve a fair contract now! #1u

[Teamsters @Teamsters]

Yesterday, #Teamsters began preparing for the upcoming lobby day on Capitol Hill. Cole Scandaglia, Senior Legislative Representative and Policy Advocate, spoke in detail about one of our next Teamster fights – closing the FedEx Express carrier loophole.

“In 2023, Teamsters want to do big things,” said Scandaglia. “One of those big things is organizing FedEx. There is no doubt in our mind that FedEx workers want to be Teamsters – especially after the ratification of the UPS contract.”

Scandaglia detailed how FedEx Express workers are misclassified under the Railway Labor Act. Under the Railway Labor Act, workers must be organized network wide and not just location by location.

“It’s time to put an end to FedEx hiding behind the Railway Labor Act and ensure that FedEx Express workers can stand up for themselves and join a union,” Scandaglia added.

Teamsters also heard from several guest speakers during the afternoon session, including @RepBrianFitz (R-PA), Congressman @MaxwellFrostFL (D-FL), Congresswoman @ValHoyle (D-OR), and @SenSanders (I-VT).

“I am proud to be a co-lead on the bipartisan PRO Act,” said Congressman Fitzpatrick. “This legislation is the baseline, bedrock, most pro-union, built in America solution and we will not stop until we get it across the finish line. This important piece of legislation has passed the U.S. House of Representative and because of the bill’s bipartisanship we are building a coalition in the Senate to get it done.”

“Union support with young people is at an all-time high. This is a generation that sees the world through the eyes of the most vulnerable. Unions provide an organizing space for working class people to come together from all walks of life and discuss how a wide variety of issues come together and impact us in the workplace,” said Congressman Frost.

“The way we hold swing seats, you have candidates that stand up for working people,” said Congresswoman Hoyle. “Labor and organizing rights should not be a partisan issue. You either stand with workers or you don’t – and working people know who stands with them.”

“Today in America, 60 percent of Americans live paycheck to paycheck. This calls for a massive increase in organizing. This calls for workers to become engaged in the political process like never before. If the working class of this country stands up and fights for an agenda that works for everyone – not just the one percent – we can bring transformational change. There’s nothing we cannot accomplish if we stand together,” said Senator Sanders.

Teamsters will regroup this morning in Washington, D.C. for the second day of the 2023 Political Coordinators meeting.

[More Perfect Union @MorePerfectUS]

We're in a new era of labor.

Teamsters President @TeamsterSOB refuses to take disrespect from Republican Senator Markwayne Mullin in front of the Senate today.

Because unions are ready to fight back. via @People4Bernie

[Aurora Biggers @aurorabiggers]

Teamsters 162 workers at Maletis Beverage in Portland voted to authorize an unfair labor practice strike. Workers could go on strike as early as Saturday, March 11.

[Austin DePaolo @AustinDePaolo]

@MalloryGruben @EverettHerald @nwlaborpress Look forward to having you in the Portland area! Welcome from Teamsters 223!

[Don McIntosh @nwlaborpress]

Washington County may soon pick a union ambulance firm. That's because for the first time in decades, American Medical Response (AMR) has a chance to outbid anti-union Metro West. | nwLaborPress @AMR_Social @WashcoOregon https://t.co/68AiIbVD0w

[CBS Evening News with Tony Dokoupil @CBSEveningNews]

Nearly every industry dealt with staffing shortages during the pandemic, but an EMT shortage is one that can mean the difference between life and death. The Bureau of Labor Statistics lists EMTs as one of the lowest-paying jobs in healthcare, and roughly a third quit in 2021.

[Austin DePaolo @AustinDePaolo]

@craiggoodwin Love this! Thank you!

[The STAND @TheStandWA]

Teamsters 839's Russell Shjerven: "This is another example of how the unparalleled autonomy and lack of accountability the Sheriff enjoys has gone to his head and the safety and security of our Corrections Deputies gets compromised." #1u @TeamstersJC28 https://t.co/RYCoSq991Y

[The New York Times @nytimes]

Breaking News: Mark Lanegan, a singer for Screaming Trees and Queens of the Stone Age and an integral part of the 1980s and 1990s grunge scene, has died at 57. https://t.co/OJEfIBDFKS

[Chicago Cubs @Cubs]

Javier Báez.
El Mago.
The Magician.

[Craig Goodwin @craiggoodwin]

Palouse Falls was created by ice age floods, and during cold winter months, it's not hard to imagine that history.

[Austin DePaolo @AustinDePaolo]

.@RepNewhouse As our country’s most at-risk families aim to recover from the economic aftershock of COVID-19, Head Start must be fully funded to support their needs, meet additional staffing, sanitation supplies, mental health supports and personal protective equipment needs!

[Chris Murphy 🟧 @ChrisMurphyCT]

Don't be afraid, says the guy with a team of a dozen doctors, access to experimental treatments that no one else gets, a four room hospital suite, who lives in a house with top doctors on site 24/7.

All of which is provided to him for free because he refuses to pay taxes.

[Austin DePaolo @AustinDePaolo]

Teamsters target Tyson plant after COVID-19 spreads https://t.co/UpLu7SK97g

[Austin DePaolo @AustinDePaolo]

Frontline Workers: Megan DePaolo via @RollingStone

[Teamsters @Teamsters]

Thank you Gov. @GavinNewsom for the shout-out & recognizing the important role of #Teamsters during this crisis. From processing & delivering food to transporting & stocking essential items, picking up garbage, staffing our hospitals and so much more! #1u #COVID19outbreak

[Mike Lydon (mikelydon.bsky.social) @MikeLydon]

When we say streets should support cycling by people of all ages and abilities, we mean this.