NEWBURGH – Teamsters’ Local 445 has grown in active membership by between 1,200 and 1,400 over the last couple of years, making it a fairly solid union.

Yet, its principal officer and secretary-treasurer, Adrian Huff, said workers in general are gravitating away from unions.

“The reason for that, we believe, is that it is more difficult for an employee, when they make their choices to go for a union, the employers have a lot of tools to put up against the employees to draw them away from their want and desire for a union,” he said.

Huff said aside from training unions have to offer, they have benefits and contractual protections not available to non-union workers.