[Congressional Record Volume 158, Number 83 (Tuesday, June 5, 2012)]
[Senate]
[Page S3725]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                         TRIBUTE TO ERNIE YATES

 Mrs. BOXER. Mr. President, today I wish to pay tribute to my 
friend Ernie Yates, the dynamic California labor leader who is retiring 
next month after 49 years as a member, business agent, and officer of 
Teamsters Local 665 in San Francisco.
  Ernie was born in San Francisco in 1946 and attended Mission High 
School. At age 17, he got a job at Allright Parking and joined Local 
665.
  In 1977, Ernie was appointed as the business agent for Local 665 and 
his assignments included policing labor agreements and processing 
grievances in a variety of crafts, including the rent-a-car, parking 
garage, shuttle bus, and taxicab industries. Three years later, he was 
elevated to the executive board of Local 665 and became its president. 
Throughout the next decade, Ernie negotiated Teamster regional, master, 
and white paper contracts in all of the core automotive industries 
under the local's jurisdiction.
  In 1992, with the active support of hundreds of Local 665 members, 
Ernie was elected secretary-treasurer, the principal officer of the 
union, a position he has held until his announced retirement in 2012.
  During his 35 years as an officer and business agent of Local 665, 
Ernie honed his skills as an expert labor negotiator. In both good and 
bad economic times, Ernie has used these skills to bring fair and just 
contract settlements to thousands of workers at Teamster worksites 
throughout the San Francisco Bay Area.
  Ernie has been married to his beloved wife Janet for 47 years. 
Together they have two sons, Michael and Mark; a daughter, Kimberly; 12 
grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren.
  On June 12, 2012, Teamsters Local 665 will celebrate Ernie's decades 
of service to the union's membership and the working families of 
California. I am honored to join them in saluting a great Californian 
and a great American, Ernie Yates.

                          ____________________