Hoffa vows support for school staffs

Terry Webster

Wednesday, Dec. 5, 2001 | 9:53 a.m.

James P. Hoffa, president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Tuesday threw his support behind the local effort to represent Clark County School District support staff workers.

Meanwhile, members of the teachers' union voted overwhelmingly to keep their union's health trust, despite financial troubles.

Hoffa, in Las Vegas for the national AFL-CIO convention, spoke to about 60 support workers at Teamsters Local 631 on North Lamb Boulevard.

"We're very excited about the 7,000 members and we think things are going very well," Hoffa said.

The School District, the country's sixth largest, has more than 7,000 support staffers, including janitors, clerical workers, bus drivers and maintenance workers.

Hoffa pledged to get district workers "expert negotiators," economists and lobbyists.

"We'll stand behind you and get you a good contract," he said.

The School District's Education Support Employees Association, the group currently representing support workers, has firmly opposed the Teamster effort and has pledged to block the movement at every turn.

Some support staffers turned to the Teamsters after their ESEA-run health plan, now defunct, left some members with tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid medical bills. The School District has since taken over the health trust.

A decision on whether the issue will be put to a vote by support workers is expected by Dec. 20.

School District teachers overwhelmingly voted in favor of maintaining their health trust fund, but now must fight for more district support to keep it afloat.

Teachers chose the union-run health trust 4,798-373 Tuesday over turning their health care coverage over to Sierra Health.

Election workers and staffers hand counted the mailed-in ballots throughout the day Tuesday and into the early evening at the teachers' union office.

To keep their current health coverage, teachers will pay about $50 per month for every person covered by the plan.