May 15, 2008

On April 19-20, Local 628 hosted a training seminar in which more than 70 stewards and members participated. The seminar, conducted by Bill Munger, Eastern Region Coordinator of the Teamsters Department of Training and Development, focused on the roles and responsibilities of the Teamster steward, the grievance process, Teamster history, and building membership participation.

"We are very excited to provide this seminar to the members of our local union,” said Jack Quigley, Secretary-Treasurer of Philadelphia-based Local 628. “You are on the front line and education is critical to our success.”

The stewards engaged in a wide variety of exercises and discussions related to the topics. Joe Curran, Director of Business Development for the Livengrin Foundation, Inc., gave a presentation on substance abuse and its effect in the workplace.

“This program gave me a better understanding of my role,” said steward Roy Herman. “I appreciated how we could examine and discuss various case scenarios in detail.”

“The literature, exercises and information provided will be very useful to me as a steward,”  said steward Andy Williams. “I am ready to put the skills learned into practice.”

“The program was a huge success due to the participants’ eagerness to learn. The assistance and support of Local 628’s leadership was also critical to the program’s success,” Munger said. “I look forward to future programs with Local 628.”