Cardboard Manufacturers Secure Five-Year Contract

Local 743 Works Eight Months to Win Substantial Package

Local 743 representative Jose Silva (far left) discusses the new contract with members at Capitol Carton in Chicago.

Eight workers are reaping the benefits of eight months of contract negotiations after Teamsters Local 743 hammered out a new five-year agreement at Capitol Carton.

The cardboard manufacturing and box company in Chicago’s West Loop signed the long-term contract with workers in October. Local 743 members, many of whom have served Capitol Carton for the past 15 years, will receive substantial wage increases, bonuses and other benefits each year over the length of the contract.

“Teamsters at Capitol Carton should be proud of themselves for working with management to reach the best possible agreement,” said Donnie Von Moore, Local 743 President. “I’m sure this company will be a part of the Teamster family for years to come, and we’re committed to its growth in the Chicago area.”

Just six years earlier, tense contract negotiations forced the manufacturing workers out on strike, in a far cry from the current mood at the bargaining table. In addition to the new wage increases, Capitol Carton has agreed to hire three additional full-time workers over the course of the contract to replace existing temporary employees. The hires will expand the current Teamster bargaining unit by nearly 40 percent.

“Because of the economy right now, we wanted to get the best contract that we could,” said Gabriel Arczate, the unit’s steward. “Without the union, we probably wouldn’t have been able to do this. Management would probably try to keep as much as it could for themselves.”

Workers at Capitol Carton produce cardboard, cartons and corrugated boxes for customers throughout the United States, including Abt Electronics and Appliances, an Illinois company.

Teamsters Local 743, an affiliate of Teamsters Joint Council 25, represents more than 10,000 hardworking men and women in warehouse, health care, clerical, mail-order and professional industries across metropolitan Chicago.

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