(Editor’s note: Post-initial publication, FreightWaves was contacted by a beneficiary of the fund about the nature of the Oregon Warehouseman Trust, noting that it was used for the payment of health benefits rather than pensions. There is no firm reference in any of the legal documents connected to the litigation that clearly delineates the fund as solely for health benefits. As a result, the article has been edited to refer to the fund as one that is used to pay benefits). In September 2008, workers at West Coast LTL carrier Oak Harbor Freight Lines represented by the Teamsters went on strike. The strike dragged on until the following February, when the workers returned without having secured contract terms they sought. Last week, more than 17 years after the workers first walked the picket line, a group of several Teamsters locals learned of the dollar amount–more than $23 million–one of their benefit funds was entitled to from Oak Harbor in what could be the final legal action in this lengthy dispute. The dispute involved Oak Harbor actions to halt payments to a benefits fund and the imposition of a new health care plan after the launch of the strike. As NLRB administrative law judge Brian Gee said in his recent decision regarding what Oak Harbor needed to pay into the fund, “this controversy has been rigorously litigated before administrative law judges, the (NLRB) board, the Courts of Appeal and the U.S. Supreme Court.” The latter body denied certiorari from Oak Harbor…
