Several members of the new App Drivers Union were invited to sit in on an International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) union breakfast meeting on Saturday, May 31.
I thought I was going to observe this meeting of the Machinists State Council but that wasn’t true. Not close. We and the other drivers invited were treated like guests of honor. As the ADU formally progresses as a union it will eventually be affiliated with the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers as the App Drivers Union. This is just a simple report on this breakfast meeting. Here’s some information from an information packed breakfast.
First, this is Mike Vartebedian. He is the man leading the organizing for drivers. It was mentioned at the breakfast that IAM leaders thought for a long time that the NY drivers had the best chance for success but we in Boston with Mike’s leadership passed them by. Now they, IAM, are putting resources into us. This is the man who leads the effort. I cannot understate how much he and his organization has done for drivers.
I’ve seen Mike at a lot of events but never understood where he fit in or what the relationship is between the various organizations such as Drivers Guild, SEIU, IAM and now App Drivers Union (ADU). There is a tight association between SEIU ad IAM. Most of my involvement is organized through 32BJ SEIU at their offices by Boston Common on West St. However without the efforts of Mike Vartabedian we’re nothing but a disorganized group. Organizing is key and both unions, SEIU and IAM, know how to do that.
Pretty much everyone in this photo is a driver. We sat together up at the front of the room.
The event location was the Plainridge Park Casino in Wrentham, MA. Must have been a union hall sort of choice. Nice facility. Basic group breakfast buffet.
As non-IAM drivers we were only allowed to be there for the part of the meeting that was NOT union business. It turned out that union business was only a small part at the end of the morning. Most of the meeting was politically based on an issues basis. What choice is there as let’s face it…republicans are not a friend to labor and don’t support middle class families. Time and again the speaker would look to the audience and say, “if you voted for Trump because you thought your life would get better you were wrong”. A lot of union people did vote for Trump and now they have to face that mistake. Speakers were careful not to make it about Democrat, Republican, or Independent ideologies. They kept it to the issues. Our welfare is not a team sport. We all win or we all lose.
Here’s the agenda for the public part of the meeting. Keep in mind that it’s the Stanley Cup Finals and Marty Walsh took the time to come here and speak. That says something about the importance of what is going on.
Every single speaker spoke to the importance of the App Drivers Union as it relates to the future of working class people in America. Every single speaker commented on that. Income inequality is a huge issue and has gotten so much worse over the past 40 years. It’s time to turn that around .
This is the head table of organizers and mostly they did not speak. They were there for the business meeting. Speaking here from the podium is Norm Shreve. He spoke mostly of some the tactical issues facing the union and it’s organization.
Next up to speak was Dave Sullivan who started his career at Bath Ironworks in Maine building ships. He is now a General Vice President of the eastern territory for IAM. A lot of labor experience with this guy.
Following Dave was Hasan Solomon who is the political and legislative director for IAM. He spends most of his time in Washington lobbying for union interests. He hustles up the votes to get bills passed or defeated as the case may be. He has an expert command of the issues and how they relate to middle class working families. He is the man on the ground in DC fighting for the union. He’s good at it and that comes across loud and clear. Emphasis on the loud. Pretty clear too.
Following Hasan was hometown favorite Marty Walsh. The son of Irish immigrants, long time union member, mayor of Boston, Secretary of Labor, and now Executive Director of the NHL Players Association. No one has a better understanding of working issues and the current state of affairs, politically speaking, than Marty Walsh. He stressed that these issues we face are not Democrat issues, not Republican issues, and not Independent issues but issues affecting the income and long term security of working American families. But he didn’t mince words. If you thought Trump shared your values and voted for him you were wrong.
Following Marty was MA State Senator Paul Feeney. A life long union member he is our biggest supporter in the MA Legislature. When we got to this point in the program I have to say I was more than a little impressed by the amount of support and particularly political support we have for the ADU. In fact it would be fair to say it was a bit overwhelming. We as rideshare drivers are seen as the point of the spear in fighting against exploitation of good working Americans in the app/gig economy. There will be no effort that is too great nor any expense to big in order to win this battle.
That last speaker I’ll comment on here is Roxanna Rivera because she is the last speaker that relates to the ADU (App Drivers Union). For us day-to-day drivers Roxanna is the lead organizer. She is employed by SEIU as Assistant to the President. She has a LOT of years of experience working with SEIU. Decades of experience. Roxanna runs the program on the ground on a daily basis. She spoke to the basic issue of pay, deactivations, etc.
Following Roxanna a driver spoke, Felipe, as well as Autumn Weintraub whom I’ve gotten to know well and to be a solid contributor to the effort. She is knowledgeable about the history and structure of the ADU effort.
As a driver I joined all other drivers in standing at the front behind Roxanna just about right after I took this photo. So I did not get photos of Felipe or Autumn nor did I get a photo of the drivers.
Closing thoughts
It has been a long learning path I’ve been on since randomly showing up to a rally on May 1, 2024 in East Boston. I was immediately impressed with how well organized the then called “Drivers Guild” was. I approached the event in my car and they had people helping me park. They had QR codes posted so I could sign in and register my contact information. There was a set agenda with speakers. They offered a nice lunch. If it weren’t for this well organized event I would not be here today. I wouldn’t have come back. I have little patience for inefficiency and wasted time. No time wasted here, it was a good investment.
I still don’t know a lot of the names of people and sometimes when I do I can’t put those names to faces. For example, I sat next to Roxanna, was told she was coming, but didn’t know who she was even when she sat down next to me.
The support by 32BJ SEIU and IAM is huge. The accomplishments so far are huge. Historic. First in the nation. Ballot question #3 passed. The process of making Question #3 into formal MA law has begun and is progressing.
The only solution and course of action I see for myself and which I recommend to all interested parties is to get behind the ADU. It has the backing of SEIU and IAM which are two organizations with almost 150 years of combined labor experience and a few 100 thousand members. Going it alone hasn’t gotten anyone anywhere by comparison.
Good working men and women around the country are watching what we’re doing here and we can’t let them down.