University of Minnesota and Teamsters trade misconduct allegations as strike continues

Days after starting a strike at the University of Minnesota, Teamsters Local 320 is alleging that law enforcement are using excessive force, arresting picketing union members and blocking public sidewalks with barricades to prevent protesting.

The union said it filed an unfair labor practices complaint Thursday with the National Labor Relations Board.

About 1,400 Teamsters, who are service workers for the university across the state, began a strike on Monday. A Teamsters representative said the strike will likely stretch through the end of the week or into the weekend.

It’s part of a volley of accusations of misconduct from both the U and the union in what has become a contentious strike in just three days.

A U spokesperson said that 12 people were issued citations and released “for obstructing a lawful order after receiving multiple warnings outside Pioneer Hall yesterday” but didn’t provide more details.

The Teamsters’ attorney said between six and 12 people were handcuffed, cited and released by University of Minnesota Police, though Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office deputies were present. The picketers were cited with a gross misdemeanor for allegedly intentionally interfering with the use of public property.

Sam Thibert, a cook at Pioneer Hall, said he was one of six people put in a van by University of Minnesota police and taken to Huntington Bank Stadium for 30 minutes; another van of protesters was also picked up. Four of the six were union members. All received citations for being in the entrance to a parking lot.

He called it an overreaction and said he didn’t think police would be so aggressive so soon and during a peaceful protest.

In a letter Thursday to Ken Horstman, the U’s vice president of human resources, the Teamsters’ attorney, Kevin Beck, alleged that University of Minnesota police and Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office deputies “executed a coordinated effort to intimidate protesters engaged in a lawful picket on public property.” Picketers were handcuffed and charged with crimes “for daring to engage in their ... right to protest and picket.” The incident was recorded by several people, the letter said.

On Wednesday, a news release from the U said it had received a report that picketers had threatened to report temporary workers to Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) if they worked during the strike. The U also said a Teamsters leader smashed a sign on a vehicle in Duluth and was issued two citations, and that picketers had blocked the “deliveries of essential supplies” to M Health Fairview University of Minnesota Medical Center.

“Threatening people based on their national origin, damaging private property and preventing supplies from being delivered to a critical healthcare facility are unacceptable actions and will not be tolerated,” the U release said.

The Teamsters disputed the allegations in their own news release, saying that they didn’t hear about any picketers threatening to report workers to ICE and that such a claim “defies logic as the workforce on strike is comprised largely of immigrants.”

Beck also alleged that an elderly picketer was shoved to the ground by U police officers while trying to walk across a driveway on Wednesday.

It’s the first Teamsters strike at the U since the union organized there in the 1970s. Workers rejected the U’s offer of a 3% pay increase and are aiming for a raise of at least 3.5%. The two sides have been in negotiations since March.

The U said its final offer was “fair and equitable” and reflects “its continued commitment to all employees throughout the University and its obligation to be fiscally responsible.”