ORLANDO, Fla. — Drivers at Imperial Dade have freed themselves from the unwanted “representation” of Teamsters Local 385 union bosses.
The workers’ effort was spearheaded by Lionel Powell, who filed a petition with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), seeking a “decertification” election to end the Teamsters’ monopoly bargaining control over the workers. Powell’s petition was filed with free legal aid from the National Right to Work Foundation.
A Secret Ballot Election
The NLRB is the federal agency responsible for enforcing federal labor law, a task that includes administering elections to install (or “certify”) and remove (or “decertify”) unions. Powell’s petition last year was signed by enough of his coworkers to trigger an NLRB-administrated secret-ballot election among all full-time and regular part-time drivers and shuttle drivers employed by Imperial Dade at its 4522 E. Wetherbee Road facility in Orlando.
The drivers’ election took place on Aug. 7, 2025, in which a majority of the employees voted against the continued presence of Teamsters Local 385 at their workplace. However, before the workers’ election result could be certified, Teamsters union bosses filed baseless charges against the employer and objections to the election with the NLRB in an attempt to disenfranchise the drivers and overturn their vote…