Teamsters

Supplies at Southland supermarkets appeared to be a mixed bag Friday, with some Ralphs stores boasting nearly full shelves even though Teamsters are now honoring United Food and Commercial Workers union picket lines at warehouses. Perishables such as fruit and vegetables were considerably scarcer at Vons and Albertsons, according to a spot-check of several stores.

The Teamsters' announcement that they will refuse to deliver to the grocery stores beginning a few days before Thanksgiving is a classic example of why unions lack public support (Nov. 25). Their disregard for the effects of their actions on others reinforces my perception of unions as groups of aloof, self-centered bullies. I have been asked to forgo convenience and choice for the last two months; now I am expected to accept a holiday food shortage for the purpose of gaining an attractive benefit package for grocery workers.

The Teamsters' support for striking grocery clerks created a delivery-truck bottleneck at warehouses in Southern California on Tuesday, but supermarket chains said they continued to ship goods to stores without major interruption. The Teamsters' action also didn't appear to have an immediate effect on shoppers buying groceries for Thanksgiving, though supplies varied from store to store. The three supermarket companies -- Safeway Inc., which owns Vons and Pavilions, Kroger Co.

Giving a boost to striking supermarket clerks, the Teamsters union Monday ordered its drivers and warehouse workers to honor picket lines at grocery distribution centers in Southern California, disrupting food deliveries during one of the busiest shopping weeks of the year.

The Teamsters union is expected to endorse the presidential candidacy of Missouri Rep. Richard A. Gephardt, sources said Thursday, support that would give a well-timed boost to his bid for the Democratic nomination. The executive board of the Teamsters, which, with 1.3 million members, is one of the nation's largest unions, planned to confirm its choice in a telephone conference call today, according to the sources.

Leamon Lee Kearney, who rose from poverty to become one of California's most powerful labor leaders, has died. He was 89. Kearney died Thursday of complications from pneumonia at his home in Orange. In 1949, Kearney cofounded a new Teamsters local in growing postwar Orange County, and served as its secretary-treasurer for 33 years until his retirement.

The Teamsters union and 15 U.S. trucking companies that deliver new cars and trucks reached a tentative five-year agreement, preventing a disruption of vehicle deliveries for General Motors Corp. and other automakers, both sides confirmed Sunday. Allied Holdings Inc. and 14 closely held companies hammered out a deal with the Teamsters late Saturday before the strike deadline of midnight set by the union, which represents 9,500 drivers who deliver 80% of U.S.-sold vehicles.

Curtis Gamble has been a bus driver for the Orange County Transportation Authority for 14 years, 11 of them on Route 43 along Harbor Boulevard from La Habra to Costa Mesa. It is one of the busiest, most demanding lines in the county. Driving a bus is all the 36-year-old Anaheim man has wanted to do since he was a teenager in Chicago. OCTA, he says, has honored him with numerous merit awards for safe driving. Now, the transit agency wants to fire him for violating several rules.

Waste Management Inc. said Sunday its unionized truck drivers who collect trash from more than 110,000 homes in the South Bay area rejected a company-proposed contract offer over the weekend and authorized a possible strike. The nation's largest garbage hauler said Teamsters Local 396, representing 500 drivers in Los Angeles, rejected a company offer to increase salaries and benefits by 38% over the next five years, raising the average base salary to $58,000 from $45,000 a year.

The Teamsters union pledged Monday to shut down two Rolling Stones concerts this weekend at Pacific Bell Park if the promoter, Clear Channel Communications, does not agree to use union workers. "We've been having trouble with Clear Channel for years," said William Cromartie, president of Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 85. "They want to bring in kids to work for $6 or $7 an hour and give them a T-shirt."