WASHINGTON -- The National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) ruled that Overnite Transportation, the trucking subsidiary of Union Pacific Corporation, must “repudiate its unlawful conduct” and refused to allow Overnite to proceed with a decertification attempt at the company's Laredo, Texas, terminal. The Overnite workers in Laredo won Teamster representation with 90 percent of the vote in September 1999. In November 1999, the Board issued a decision in which Overnite was ordered to repudiate its unlawful conduct and to post a notice at all its terminals promising its workers the company would stop violating their federally protected rights.

In October 1999, the workers began a strike against Overnite because of its pervasive and egregious unfair labor practices. The strike is currently in its 27th month and is the longest freight strike in history. The Overnite workers have vowed to remain on strike until the company promises to obey the law.

Overnite filed its decertification attempt in December 2000. In February 2001, the Regional Director informed Overnite that he was holding the petition in abeyance because Overnite has not yet renounced its unlawful conduct. Overnite appealed the decision.

The NLRB affirmed the Regional Director's decision. The NLRB viewed Overnite's unfair labor practices as so “pervasive and egregious” as to affect employees “on a nationwide basis” and required Overnite to post the notice at all its facilities nationwide promising to stop its unlawful conduct.

The NLRB views the notice posting as a necessary remedial step to assure all of Overnite's employees that the company is repudiating its unlawful conduct and that the NLRB's protection of employees' rights is being upheld.

Overnite Transportation Company has had more than 1,000 unfair labor practice charges filed against it since the workers began organizing for Teamster representation in 1994. With more unfair labor practice charges and complaints filed against it per employee, Overnite has earned the reprehensible reputation as the worst labor scofflaw in the United States of America.

The Teamsters represent approximately 45 percent of Overnite's drivers and dockworkers at 37 Overnite terminals across the county, including five of Overnite's seven largest service centers.

Founded in 1903, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters (IBT) represents more than 1.4 million hardworking men and women throughout the United States and Canada.