Several months ago, we reported that FedEx trucker drivers in Massachusetts had voted to join the Teamsters Union. We thought that such a move might portend an unfortunate trend, and it now seems that the trend is picking up speed.
FedEx drivers in Windsor Connecticut want to join Teamsters Local Union 671.
The National Labor Relations Board has given them a green light to get in high gear and drive themselves to unionization. The NLRB had ruled against the FedEx position that the drivers are independent contractors; it has said they are employees and so are eligible to vote in an upcoming union election.
FedEx is driven by the concept that its truck drivers would be independent contractors, and that would give the company the leverage to compete with other companies who had higher labor costs. It would also benefit those drivers who are hard-working entrepreneurs, for they would be able to augment their routes and even add trucks.
Now neither FedEx nor its drivers will ultimately benefit. Unionization is bad for FedEx, bad for its drivers, and ultimately bad for Corporate America.
