May 31, 2008

On April 24, 50 delegates from the Midwestern States Regional Conference of the Graphic Communications Conference (GCC/IBT) participated in the group’s 84th Conference in Cleveland.  In addition to regular conference business, this year’s program included several informational/training workshops.

Jim St. Louis, from the Teamsters Organizing Department, presented a session on the many aspects of corporate campaigns. Iliana Flores, Southern Region Training Coordinator from the Teamsters Department of Training and Development, conducted a workshop on increasing union strength through member participation.

The workshops generated a lot of discussion among the participants. They were willing to share ideas and learn from each others’ experiences. The participants were all eager to return to their locals and implement some of the strategies discussed at the workshops.

“The participants provided good feedback which contributed to making the workshop and the conference a success,” Flores said.

The Department of Training and Development conducts more than 100 workshops a year throughout the United States and Canada, as well as at the International Union's headquarters in Washington, D.C.