Another set of labor unions has endorsed the Chamber of Commerce-backed candidate for mayor.
Former U.S. attorney Jenny Durkan today announced endorsements from the Aerospace Machinists Union District Lodge 751, Teamsters Local 117, the Pacific Northwest Regional Council of Carpenters, Port of Seattle Fire Fighters Local 125, and Sailors' Union of the Pacific. Those groups join more than a dozen other unions that have endorsed Durkan.
One of those unions may stand out. If you're an average Seattle voter and you've heard of Teamsters 117, it's probably because of one thing: The union has undertaken an unprecedented and high-profile fight to get Uber and Lyft drivers in Seattle the right to unionize. In response, Uber has waged an anti-union campaign.
Durkan has a proximity to Uber, too. The private law firm Durkan works for, Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan, has represented Uber against allegations that the company mislead consumers.
(The law firm later dropped Uber because it couldn't make enough money off Uber's cases, then worked for Google's self-driving car spinoff Waymo when that company accused Uber of stealing confidential information.)
Teamsters 117 also supported a push for businesses to pay more to help fund the city's Office of Labor Standards, which enforces minimum wage and sick time laws. The Chamber, which has endorsed Durkan, fought that effort.
Teamsters 117 political director Dustin Lambro says the union was not bothered by Durkan's firm's work with Uber because Durkan did not work directly on that case. "I don’t question her commitment at all to worker rights issues in our city," Lambro said in an interview.
"Unions can’t just fight with employers all the time," Lambro said of the increasing labor/business consensus around Durkan. "There are times where we agree with the Chamber on issues. And where we disagree, we're going to strongly advocate for our positions. I don’t expect that to change if Jenny Durkan is mayor."
Teamsters 117 represents a range of workers, including truck drivers, taxi drivers, waste water treatment employees, some public sector workers, and Department of Corrections employees. Lambro says the union wants the next mayoral administration to increase labor law enforcement and increase pay for Uber and Lyft drivers in order to make their rates more comparable to taxi drivers.
Like most union endorsements, Teamsters 117's pick was not voted on by the entire union membership. Instead, a committee of union members recommends candidates and an executive board votes on the endorsement. (Among the members of the Teamsters' political committee: a City of Tacoma heavy equipment operator, a King County Recorder's Office employee, a Tacoma Convention Center janitor, a Monroe Correctional Complex sergeant.)
Durkan, who made an appearance at a recent Teamsters Local 174 strike, often touts her time as a member of the Teamsters when she worked as a baggage handler in Alaska in the 1970s.
"She’s proud of it," Lambro says, "so we’re going to hold her accountable to that when she’s in office."