Unions fight for garbage
Pension, 401(k) contentious issues
THERE’S SOMETHING rotten going on at a Queens carting plant where two rival unions are battling over workers — with the owner hinting that the future of his business rests on the outcome.
Tom Tolentino, owner of Planet Waste in Maspeth, told the Daily News the contract he has with Teamsters Local 813 could “bankrupt” his company because of its underfunded pension plan — and he says that concern motivated his workers to consider moving to a new union that only offers 401(k)s.
“It’s the workers, not me. My men don’t feel secure,” Tolentino said Friday. “It’s up to the workers.” Local 813 has a different take. “This has nothing to do with our pension fund, which is 70% funded by the way, or our severance fund, which is now 100% funded,” said Local 813 president Sean Campbell. “This is about taking advantage of scared workers and trying to bring in a sham union to lower wages and benefits because it’s better for the owner.”
Tolentino told The News he feared he would be driven out of business regardless of how his 15 drivers voted on March 22. Staying with Local 813 might drag him into more pension liability that could sink his company, he claimed. But leaving it would mean having to pay a withdrawal liability fee to the pension.
Tolentino is part of a multiemployer pension plan — meaning he’s one of several companies that pay into Teamsters Local 813’s fund. Even if he chooses to pull out, by law he has to pay a certain amount into the pot to offset the burden on remaining companies.
Even if Tolentino does pull out, Campbell noted, the Planet Waste owner has the option to stretch his withdrawal payment over 20 years or offer a lump sum the pension fund might accept.
The issue, according to Campbell, is the presence of the League of Independent Federated Employees Local 890 — which is trying to raid the Teamsters’ shop. LIFE is registered with the Department of Labor — but is not affiliated with a larger federation, such as the Teamsters or the AFL-CIO. It represents workers at several other private carting companies — but generally keeps a low-profile, operating out of a Brooklyn townhouse linked to its president, John Mongello.
Based on Department of Labor filings, LIFE appears to consist solely of Local 890. The two entities share the same Brooklyn address and many of the same officers.
LIFE was created in the 1990s when Mongello and other officers in Local 445 of Laborers’ International Union of North America came up with a scheme to break away from LIUNA and steal its contracts.
This is about taking advantage of scared workers and trying to bring in a sham union to lower wages and benefits. LOCAL 813 Head SEAN Campbell