Organize Columbus. Organize Central Ohio.
When you and your coworkers stand together, you can win a contract: better pay, fair schedules, safer work, and respect, in writing. It starts with a conversation and a card.
How organizing works
Talk
Compare notes with coworkers you trust. What would you fix if you had the power to?
Sign
Sign a union card. It's confidential, and your employer never sees it.
Vote
Once a strong majority has signed, we ask the NLRB to hold a secret-ballot election.
Bargain
Win the vote, and the company is legally required to bargain with the committee you choose.
Ratify
You vote on the contract. Nothing takes effect until members approve it, and nobody pays dues before then.
Workers here keep winning
Recent Local 413 union elections in Columbus.
Sign your union card
Your card says you want a union. When enough of your coworkers have signed, we take the next step together.
Online signing opens soon
- PrivateYour employer never sees your card. The NLRB checks cards confidentially and doesn't tell the company who signed.
- ProtectedFederal law makes it illegal to punish you for supporting a union.
- FreeNo dues and no initiation fee until you and your coworkers vote to approve your first contract.
Before you sign
- Use your own phone, not a work computer, tablet, or scanner.
- Turn off work Wi-Fi and use cellular data.
- Use your personal email, not your work email.
Your card is in.
Answer our confirmation
Expect a call or text
An organizer will reach out on your personal phone, on your own time.
Talk to coworkers you trust
Face to face first. When they're ready, share the card.
Questions people ask
Is signing a card the same as joining the union?
Not quite. The card says you want the Teamsters to represent you. You pay nothing, no dues and no initiation fee, until you and your coworkers vote to approve your first contract.
Will my employer find out?
Not from us, and not from the NLRB. The NLRB checks cards privately and doesn't give the company names. Be careful who you tell at work, and keep this off work phones, computers, email, and Wi-Fi.
What happens when enough people sign?
By law, at least 30% of the group has to sign before we can ask the NLRB for an election. We wait for a much bigger majority than that, because support gets tested once the company finds out. With a strong majority, we ask your employer to recognize the union or file for a secret-ballot election.
Can I get fired for signing?
It's illegal to fire, discipline, or punish you for supporting a union. If anything happens, tell us right away. There's a six-month deadline to file a charge.
I'm part-time, or I came in through a staffing agency. Can I sign?
Yes. Regular part-timers are usually part of the group. If you work through an agency, list both the agency and the company where you work, and we'll sort out the details.
What if I work for the government, an airline, or a railroad?
Different laws apply. Ohio public employees are covered by state law through SERB, and airline and railroad workers fall under the Railway Labor Act. Reach out and we'll point you the right way.
Watch out
Most companies fight organizing, and many hire consultants who do nothing else. Their playbook is predictable. Once you can name it, it loses its grip.
It's illegal for your employer to…
Remember TIPS. Tap each one to hear what it sounds like.
Threaten your job, hours, pay, or benefits, or threaten to close, because of the union.
- “Keep this up and you won't have a job.”
- “If the union gets in, this building closes.”
- “Say goodbye to your flexible schedule.”
Interrogate you about your union support, who's involved, or what happened at a meeting.
- “Did you sign a card?”
- “Who's behind this union stuff?”
- “What did they tell you at that meeting?”
You never have to answer. “I'd rather not talk about that” is a complete answer.
Promise raises, promotions, or fixes if you vote no, or roll out new perks to buy your vote.
- “Vote no and we'll take care of the raises.”
- “Give us a year. We'll make it right.”
- A surprise bonus or new benefit right before the vote.
Spy on union activity, ask coworkers to report on you, or act like they're watching.
- A manager who suddenly hangs around wherever coworkers talk.
- Asking people to report who's involved.
- “I hear you've been talking to the union.”
Punishing union supporters is illegal too: firing, write-ups, worse assignments, or cut hours because you support the union.
What they'll say, and what's really going on
“The union is a third party that will come between us.”
The union is you and your coworkers. You choose who sits at the bargaining table, and you vote on the contract. The real outsider is usually the consultant the company hired to stop you.
“You could lose what you have. Bargaining starts from zero.”
Organizing doesn't erase your pay. Once you win, the company can't change your wages, hours, or benefits without bargaining with you first, and no contract takes effect until you vote yes.
“Dues will eat your paycheck.”
You pay nothing until you vote to approve your first contract: no dues and no initiation fee. Dues are set by members, and at least 78% of Teamster dues stay with your local.
“The union will force you to strike.”
Teamsters vote before any strike can happen, and most contracts are settled without one.
“Give us another chance. Our door is always open.”
Ask why they're listening now. A manager's promise can disappear with the next manager. A contract is in writing, and it's enforceable.
“Nobody else wants this.”
That's what they need you to believe. Talk to your coworkers yourself, and don't take management's word for how people feel.
“The Teamsters are corrupt.”
That's a story from the 1950s. Today every member votes directly for the union's top officers, and you'll vote on your local's officers and your contract.
Meetings and one-on-ones
Expect group meetings and one-on-one talks where managers argue against the union. The law still applies in every one of them: no threats, no promises, no grilling you about your support.
Whether a company can make these meetings mandatory has been fought over at the NLRB and in court, and the answer has changed. Check with us before you skip or walk out of one. Stay calm, don't take the bait, and write down what was said as soon as you can.
Protect yourself
- Keep union business off work phones, computers, email, and Wi-Fi.
- Talk union on your own time, like breaks, lunch, and before or after your shift, in break rooms and parking lots rather than on the work floor.
- Follow every rule to the letter. Don't hand them an excuse.
- Write things down right away: date, time, place, who said what, and who saw it.
- Don't sign anything from management about the union until you've talked to us.
- Keep group chats small and trusted. Assume anything you post can be screenshotted.
- Tell your organizer the same day something happens.
What's a ULP?
An unfair labor practice, or ULP, is when an employer breaks the National Labor Relations Act, the federal law that protects your right to organize. Unions can commit them too.
Your rights, even before you have a union
- Talk with coworkers about pay, safety, schedules, and how you're treated.
- Form, join, and support a union.
- Act together with coworkers to improve your job, with or without a union.
- Wear union buttons or shirts at work, in most jobs.
Common ULPs during a campaign
- Firing, writing up, or cutting the hours of union supportersSec. 8(a)(3)
- Threatening layoffs, closing, or loss of pay or benefitsSec. 8(a)(1)
- Pressuring you with questions about your union supportSec. 8(a)(1)
- Promising or handing out perks to stop the unionSec. 8(a)(1)
- Spying on union activity, or making it look like they areSec. 8(a)(1)
- Banning union talk while allowing other non-work talkSec. 8(a)(1)
- Punishing you for filing a charge or talking to the NLRBSec. 8(a)(4)
- Refusing to bargain in good faith after you winSec. 8(a)(5)
The law covers unions too. We can't threaten or coerce you either.
If it happens to you
Write it down
Date, time, place, who did it, their exact words, and who else saw it. Use the note tool below.
Tell us the same day
We'll decide the best response together. Sometimes that's a charge. Sometimes it's the whole crew standing up at once.
We file a charge
Charges go to NLRB Region 9 in Cincinnati, which covers Columbus. The deadline is six months from when it happened.
The NLRB investigates
An NLRB agent takes sworn statements from you and any witnesses.
A remedy, if they find a violation
Most cases end in a settlement or a hearing. Remedies can include your job back, back pay, and a notice posted at work telling everyone their rights.
The hard truth
The NLRB can't fine a company or award punitive damages, and cases can drag on for months or years. That's why some companies break the law anyway. Your strongest protection is a workforce that sticks together.
Write it down
Fill in what you remember. Nothing here is saved or sent until you choose to share it.
Who the law covers
Most private-sector workers. The National Labor Relations Act doesn't cover supervisors and managers, independent contractors, or farm and domestic workers.
- Called an independent contractor? You may still be an employee under the law. Ask us.
- Work for a city, county, state agency, or school district? Ohio public employees are covered by state law through the State Employment Relations Board (SERB).
- Work for an airline or railroad? The Railway Labor Act applies instead.
In any of these cases, reach out. We'll point you the right way.
NLRB Region 9
The regional office that covers Columbus and central Ohio.
550 Main St., Room 3-111Cincinnati, OH 45202
Weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Eastern. National line: 1-844-762-6572.
Anyone can file a charge for free, and you don't need a lawyer. Talk to us first and we'll help you do it right.
Teamster history, fast
Why “Teamsters”? The first members drove teams of horses hauling freight. That's where the horses on the emblem come from.
- 1903
Drivers unite
Two unions of wagon drivers merge in Niagara Falls, New York, to form the International Brotherhood of Teamsters.
- 1907
Horses to trucks
Daniel Tobin begins 45 years as president. Trucks replace horses, and the union grows with them.
- 1934
Minneapolis
Truck drivers strike three times in one year, face down police and a powerful employers' association, and win their union. Organizers take that playbook on the road, signing up long-haul drivers across the Midwest.
- 1964
One national contract
Under Jimmy Hoffa, the first National Master Freight Agreement puts freight drivers across the country under one contract.
- 1991
Members take the vote
After a 1989 federal consent decree, members vote directly for the union's top officers for the first time. They've done it every five years since.
- 1997
The UPS strike
185,000 UPS Teamsters strike for 15 days and win, including a commitment to create thousands of full-time jobs.
- 2023
A historic UPS contract
Raises for every UPS Teamster, $21 an hour to start for part-timers, an end to the two-tier driver system, and air conditioning in new delivery vehicles.
- Today
1.3 million strong
Teamsters across the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico work in freight, warehouses, delivery, airlines, rail, health care, public services, film, food, and more.
You'll hear old stories
Companies love to bring up the 1950s. Here's what's true today: every Teamster member votes directly for the union's top officers, and you vote on your local's officers and on your contract.
Here at home
Local 413 union elections in Columbus, from NLRB results.
Talk to us
Questions are free and confidential. We'll talk on your personal phone, on your own time. Never at work, and never with your boss.
Not sure what to say?
Send something like this. It's enough to get started.