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The Teamsters Human Rights Commission is looking for a few good men and women to help create a Teamsters Veterans Caucus
Commission Director and Central Region Vice President Cheryl Johnson is asking that all Teamster veterans
register online
, so the union can get a better idea of how much support the proposed caucus would receive.
“We’re just counting heads at this point,” Johnson said. “We believe that a large proportion of our members are veterans, but we don’t have any hard and fast numbers.
“By filling out the form, members aren’t obligating themselves to anything,” she said. “We will follow up with them at some point to see what their interests are and how much they would be willing to help out.”
Mike Yauger, President of Local 786 in Chicago and a Vietnam veteran, is leading the caucus organizing effort.
As part of its primary mission, the Teamsters Veterans Caucus would focus largely on returning veterans of the Iraq and Afghanistan wars to the civilian workforce. “Only a veteran understands the problems and the transition involved,” Yauger said. “When I returned from Vietnam, it was 10 or 15 years before I was really able to adjust.”
Yauger, also the Joint Council 25 liaison for the Helmets to Hardhats program, hopes to use the Veterans Caucus to get more returning soldiers, airmen, sailors and Marines placed in Teamster jobs.
“Veterans are a natural fit for a union workforce,” Yauger said. “They’re skilled. They show up for work. They’re drug-free. They’re in the best shape of their lives. They’re motivated. What better example for a trade union could you have but these young men and women?
“Teamsters are advocates for change and good, and that’s what this is all about,” he concluded. “Veterans don’t have to stop serving their country when they take off that uniform. They can continue to serve by
joining the Teamsters Veterans Caucus.
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