Preamble

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The International Brotherhood of Teamsters was formed in 1903, by representatives of independent local unions who had the foresight to recognize that the ability of each local to provide assistance to its members could be improved by the formation of a great labor organization which pooled the resources and talents of the individual locals. In creating the foundation for what has become the largest trade union in North America, those local unions agreed to subordinate some of their individual independence in order to obtain services, support and expertise which none alone could provide but which all could obtain through coordinated action by the International Union.

In entering this new relationship, the local unions preserved their autonomy and identity and structured an International based upon the concept that the heart of the local is the membership and that the core of the International must be its locals. As the local unions must reflect the interests of their members, so too must the International Union be responsive to the needs of the locals which brought it into existence.

This Constitution recognizes and protects the autonomy, integrity and identity of each indispensable part of this great Union--the members, the locals and the International. It constitutes an agreement among equal partners who are united by and dedicated to the common goal of achieving social and economic justice for workers everywhere.

Today, as we are confronted by the challenges of a global economy dominated by multi-national corporations that sweep past national borders and forage, the globe in search of new workers and resources to exploit, we reaffirm our belief that only through their unions can workers be protected and prosper and only with the allegiance of its members and the mutual support of united labor organizations can the Union survive.

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