Teamsters vows to unionize DHL

The Teamsters union says it is stepping up its campaign to organize workers at DHL and at its package services provider, ABX Air.

Teamsters President James Hoffa led a rally with 300 ABX and DHL employees at the carrier’s main Wilmington, Ohio, hub late last week and pledged to ramp up efforts to organize ABX’s 1,200 aircraft mechanics and 5,000 workers at the largest hub in the DHL network.

The union said it already represents about 12,000 DHL-related workers, including drivers in the DHL network of independent cartage carriers. “The workers organizing as Teamsters in Wilmington is the next logical step,” the union said.

The union effort comes as DHL is undertaking a shift in its own operations, trying to bring more handling and trucking under its control.