Local 282 members take pride in knowing we have played a part in the creation of nearly every landmark building and major construction project in the greater New York area. We, and our union brothers who preceded us, have literally helped to create modern New York - from the Manhattan skyline to the post war suburbs of Long Island.
The origins of Teamster Local 282 go back to the founding of the Teamsters union.
While much has changed over the past century, the strength and power of our union has remained constant. The success of Local 282 is a testament to those who came before us, who stood together to form a union and a labor movement. Together, they achieved the 40-hour workweek, healthcare and pension benefits and health and safety standards.
In 1903, the year the International Brotherhood of Teamsters was founded, the national union launched an aggressive effort to organize all drivers in the New York Metropolitan area. That year, two building material locals were founded, Local 654, which represented 700 members working in Manhattan and the Bronx and Local 60, which represented 200 members working in Brooklyn.
These early Teamsters, who drove horse drawn wagons to deliver materials to construction sites, worked during a period of profound change in the transportation industry. Within a few years, horses were increasingly replaced by “motor trucks.”
In 1915, shortly after locals 654 and 60 were dissolved, a new local was chartered to represent these pioneer motor drivers in the greater New York area; Local 282, the Building Teamsters Union. With few labor laws in the early years, workers were often forced to strike simply to gain union recognition.
In the decades that followed, we improved our working conditions through tough contract fights that often involved militant union action and company lockouts. An early victory occurred in 1938 – during the depths of the Great Depression - when Local 282 members struck for a shorter workweek. With Teamsters shutting down construction in the City, Mayor LaGuardia finally agreed to a 44-hour week with no reduction in pay.
Local 282 members have always been dedicated to both union and country. Countless Local 282 members have served in the armed forces during wartime, from World War One through the present conflict in Afghanistan. Like other unions, Local 282 pledged to refrain from striking during the Second World War, but the Teamsters were the only union that assured that returning soldiers would retain their seniority upon return.
Victory in the Second World War gave way to post war prosperity and with it, an unprecedented level of development and building construction. Local 282 guaranteed that members shared in that prosperity. It was during this period that Local 282 members moved solidly into the middle class.
And we responded to our nation’s call once again, after the attacks on the World Trade Center, were we supported rescue operations and the rebuilding of the site.
Today, we find ourselves in a climate of economic recession and anti-union animus. Today our struggle is to maintain our rightful place as members of America’s middle class. We know, as did generations of Local 282 members, that through solidarity we will prevail.
