One look at the IBT International Constitution will show what's really at stake.
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There are 9 pages just on finances, revenue, collecting dues and fees. And the union is serious about collecting money from members as the constitution states "all such financial obligations imposed…shall be legal obligations of the members…and are enforceable in a court of law". - Article XXVII, Section 1
There are 15 pages devoted to how strikes work with one clause stating that members can vote on a contract, but Teamster officials have the power to approve or disapprove it. - Article XII, Section 10
Another clause says that if a majority of members vote against a contract proposal, then that automatically counts as approving a strike, with no further vote required. - Article XII, Section 2d1
Then there are 12 pages on Discipline and Trials and what happens to a Teamster who breaks any of the union's rules. It states that the accused can only be represented by another member, not an attorney. - Article XIX, Section 2f
If found guilty, the section called Decisions and Penalties outlines what happens. Members can face reprimands, fines, suspensions, expulsion from the union and more. - Article XIX, Section 10
The IBT's Constitution is some 110 pages in length. Compare that to the Constitution we're all a little more familiar with - the Constitution of the United States of America, the document that grants the basic freedoms we enjoy as U.S. citizens.
At only 7 pages long, the U.S. Constitution pales, if only in regard to length, to the IBT Constitution's page after page of policies. Why does the union need such a lengthy set of rulebooks? One reason might be that while the United States Constitution grants freedoms, many provisions of union Constitutions take freedoms away. In other words, it takes more words to tell people what they can't do than it does to tell them what rights and freedoms they enjoy.
Union Constitutions restrict the freedom of their members and violations of these rules can and do result in disciplinary action, including fines, for their members. The fact remains that the only way to avoid having to work with these restrictions is to avoid working under a union.
