Prairie Farms Teamsters are celebrating major contract gains and increased bargaining power under the Central Conference of Teamsters Master Dairy Agreement.

Before this contract fight, Prairie Farms kept members divided under separate contracts according to building and classification. “People stuck to their groups and barely talked to one another,” says Clerical Steward Holly Wilhite.

This campaign changed all of that. Prairie Farms Teamsters stuck together to defeat divide and conquer, moving into the Central Conference of Teamsters Master Dairy Agreement and into one bargaining unit.

“It made a difference to have everyone under one umbrella,” says Tom Cooper, chief steward for Prairie Farms drivers at the Indianapolis facility. “You’ve got a lot more power that way, and the company knew that.” 

Prairie Farms caved in on key demands just days before members were set to take a strike vote, offering a strong TA. 

“When the company saw people talking to one another and learning how to support one another–it made them so nervous, they knew they had to give us what we deserved,” says Wilhite.

Members won MLK Day as a union holiday, a fifth week of vacation after 25 years of service, and won back retiree insurance which had been lost in a previous contract. 

All plant classifications won up to a $3 increase to their hourly wage, and increased shift differential by over 50%.

Clerical members won at least a 23% pay increase for all classifications. 

Both hourly and commission drivers won the highest pay increases ever seen at Prairie Farms, plus more power over bids and routing.

“We got so much stronger over the course of this contract campaign,” says Wilhite. “I saw a light begin to shine in coworkers who felt defeated before. I’m so excited to see what we can achieve in the future!”