Association of Pizza Delivery Drivers (Union)

OrganizingAdvocate

[color=blue:f78ef50480]In response to a question poised within our 'Ask the Expert' option, "[b:f78ef50480]Question[/b:f78ef50480] -This may sound a bit silly, but I would very much like to know if there is already a Union in existence for people who make pizza. I just started a job with a local fast-food pizza place and we make $4.50 an hour, no insurance, no benefits, etc. I thought finding a Union might be a step in the right direction. Thanks for any help you might be able to offer me!", I thought it best to provide information here, where we have a little more room for discussion. Below is information I received from a former Secretary Treasurer of the Association of Pizza Delivery Drivers (APDD). I'll attempt to locate more information in regards to the question for labor unions well-suited for the purpose of representing employees of pizza restaurants.

Thank You, M. Ruby, for the opportunity to address your question.

Fraternally,

Dustin
OrganizingAdvocate
Unions.org [/color:f78ef50480]

Hello Dustin,

Thanks for writing. In order to give you an accurate answer, I will give you a very brief history.

During the time I was with the Association, we almost never had a budget, for all intents and purposes. We made just about enough from contributions to keep the website up and make occasional payments toward our legal expenses. The few NLRB votes we had ended poorly due to lack of knowledge amongst those in the field about how to counter management anti-union strategies (which were pretty primitive, but very effective for those who did not know their rights and management's legal limits). We did what we could to educate and promote, but as mentioned, we had no budget. No officers or board members were ever paid, as we were living on delivery driver income and trying to support our families. Therefore, no one could afford to travel to election locations to offer assistance. These losses were, as you might imagine, both embarrassing and demoralizing.

There was a movement amongst some of the board members toward the end of my time with APDD (and encouraged by our attorney) to form some sort of partnership or merger with the Teamsters (IBT). However, in our discussions with them, it was clear that there was no future for anyone in APDD with IBT unless they were gung-ho about the deal. The IBT's idea of a "partnership" was our turning over the rolls of those who had registered at our website as organizing volunteers, and immediately disbanding the APDD. This was not acceptable to either President J. W. Callahan or myself, as we believed (and I still do) that the Teamsters would have been too large of an organization to focus on the specific issues of pizza delivery drivers.

.......

I turned over all funds and access to the website in March of this year to those remaining board members who were in favor of the IBT partnership. Apparently, they let everything lapse within a couple months. I don't know if they have decided to fold APDD, or if they are pursuing other avenues of keeping it running, or what. They've probably hung it up, though, if they have let the website lapse - the website was our only "storefront".

If your contact is interested in drumming up new support for starting a union, he could try visiting the website http://www.tipthepizzaguy.com/ and checking out the very active discussion board there, although I can't guarantee what sort of support for it he will find. He may also consider approaching SEIU to see if they have any interest in it. Of the larger unions, they seem to have a better reputation of activism and responsiveness to their members, and our (admittedly very limited) contact with them was always knowledgeable and courteous, even very early on in APDD's existence. Also, I still believe that pizza delivery drivers desperately need a union, and if your contact would like to approach me in email personally to "pick my brain", by all means, feel free to share to pass along my address to him.

Please let me know if I can be of any further help.

Sincerely,
Tim Lockwood

OrganizingAdvocate · Posted: Mon Aug 28, 2006 12:46 am Post subject:

I'm pleased to present some rather positive information in regards to the progress of organized pizza delivery workers. The American Union of Pizza Delivery Drivers ( http://www.aupdd.org ) is a new labor union which has already won a NLRB overseen election providing them with the right to help the workers of one pizza restaurant location bargain collectively. I hope you'll check out their site!