Teamsters Running Organizing Drive at Sims Recycling in Sunset Park (Updates)

UPDATES: Alex Moore, a spokesman for the Teamsters, said Friday that the union has yet to decide its course of action if Sims doesn't recognize its organizing effort — specifically, that it hasn't determined whether it will call for an NLRB-monitored election.

Additionally, when asked about accusations that Sims managers were trying to discourage employees from joining the Teamsters, communications consultant Andrea Garcia, who speaks for the company, said she was "unable to get in touch with anyone at Sims."

SUNSET PARK, BROOKLYN — The Teamsters are attempting to organize about 70 works at the Sunset Park Material Recovery Facility operated by Sims.

Teamsters organizer Plinio Cruz said that between 70 and 80 percent of the facility's workers want the union, more than the 30 percent required to officially request union recognition from Sims.

That request was made on Dec. 12, Cruz said, but Sims has yet to respond. If the company doesn't recognize the union, he continued, the Teamsters will contact the NLRB to request an official union vote.

Jordy Lopez, a quality specialist at Sims and a member of the organizing committee, said a union would give employees at the facility "a voice."

"We know that we deserve respect and equality for all employees," he said.

As an example of what's lacking at Sims, Lopez said he recently tried to talk to his supervisor about changing his schedule around Christmas, but was waved off. The supervisor, Lopez said, then said he didn't know why workers were attempting to organize, adding that the effort was "bull***t."

Vinny Ambert, another quality specialist, said that workers at Sims are told to keep quiet when they try to raise issues with managers. He said he hasn't had too many bad interactions with managers, but then recounted a situation where he said he was publicly — and he felt unfairly — blamed for carelessness after accidentally sticking himself with an EpiPen while attempting to remove it from the recycling line.

Ambert said managers have been speaking to workers individually in an attempt to discourage them from joining the union. One of Sims' arguments, he said, is that the union will go bankrupt one day, taking worker pay with it.

Ambert and Lopez said they've both worked at Sims for approximately two years, and make about $42,000 per year with overtime pay. They each receive a 401K and and healthcare, they said, but Lopez said he has a high deductible that makes him unlikely to use his insurance. Ambert said he pays $520 per month for insurance that also covers his wife and child, and which has a lower deductible.

The workers said that in addition to improving their relationship with management, they hope to get a better retirement package and improved health insurance if they're unionized.

Top image by John V. Santore