IN RE: RONNY HALE, JERRY WATKINS, JACQUELINE JOHNSON, and JOHN SHORTS
Protest Decision 2000 EAD 61
Issued: December 12, 2000
OEA Case No. PR102301SO, PR102401SO, PR102701SO & PR103001SO
Ronny Hale, Jerry Watkins, Jacqueline Johnson and John Shorts, members of Local 767, filed pre-election protests pursuant to Article XIII, Section 2(b) of the Rules for the 2000-2001 IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election ("Rules") against various officers and/or employees of Local 767 and Local 767. The protestors allege that the charged parties have engaged in campaign conduct on behalf of persons who are candidates both in Local 767's delegate election and its simultaneous election of local union officers. The protestors allege that this conduct violates Article VII, Section 11(a) of the Rules, which provides that "no candidate or member may campaign during his/her working hours." If proved, the allegations would also state a violation of Article XI, Section 1(b)(7), which states a similar prohibition, and Article XII, which incorporates the provisions of Section 401(g) of the LMRDA insofar as it regulates conduct related to the election of IBT convention delegates and International officers.
Election Administrator representative Lois Tuttle investigated the protests.
Because we find that the campaign activity here was limited to Local 767's officer elections, we find that the protests are beyond the purview of the Election Administrator under the Rules and must be dismissed.
Findings of Fact
The Hale Protest. Hale alleges that from 3:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. on October 20, 2000, Local 767 president Wesley J. "Chili" Jenkins, Local 767 secretary-treasurer Gerald "J.T." Thompson and Local 767 vice-president Shorts campaigned at the Weber Aircraft facility in Gainesville, Texas. Jenkins, Thompson, and Shorts admit they were campaigning at Weber at the time in question, but argue that they were not on union paid time when they did so, and further assert that the campaign materials that they were distributing related only to the local's officer elections (rather than its delegate elections) and that their conduct is beyond the jurisdiction of the Rules.
Two slates were formed at Local 767 for its local union officer and delegate elections. The "Strength Through Diversity" slate (the "STD slate") of local union officer candidates consists of Jenkins, Thompson, Shorts, Jill Shipman, Paul Tribble, Mark Hopkins and Terry Johnson. The same seven individuals are candidates for delegate or alternate delegate on the STD convention delegate slate, along with delegate candidate (but not officer candidate) Matt Laakso.
The second slate is known as the "United Teamsters" slate (the "UT slate"). Its candidates for local union office are Ron Scherer, Alton Green, Jerry Watkins, Custer Kesel, Ralph Compton, Mark Grant and Dennis Travis. The same seven individuals are candidates for delegate or alternate delegate on the UT convention delegate slate, along with alternate delegate candidate Ken Cole. Two other Local 767 members are individual candidates for delegate and alternate delegate, respectively.
Hale and Kesel both went to the Weber Aircraft facility on October 20 at 3:00 p.m. to campaign for the UT slate. Hale was on vacation and Kesel had finished work at 9:00 a.m. They stood outside the factory to hand out their materials. This was around the time of the shift change.
At around the same time Jenkins, Thompson, and Shorts -- who hold paid positions with the local union -- arrived and began to pass out campaign literature. Shorts discouraged workers from taking literature from Kesel and Hale. Thompson, Shorts, and Jenkins stated that their campaigning and literature at Weber concerned the STD local union officer candidacies, rather than those for delegate/alternate delegate to the International Convention. Kesel and Hale agreed that the opposing slate campaigners' conduct centered on the UT slate's candidacies for local union office rather than delegate and alternate delegate. The STD slate's "Liar, Liar" campaign literature distributed at Weber did not mention the delegate election. Instead, it listed the slate's candidates for each of the seven identified local union officer positions, did not mention STD delegate (but not officer) candidate Matt Laakso, and dealt extensively with local union officer issues. No evidence was offered of any discussions by the STD campaigners concerning the delegate elections.
The Watkins Protest. UT slate member Watkins alleges that on October 23, 2000, STD slate member Shorts campaigned at the UPS Fort Worth Hub in Fort Worth, Texas on time paid by the local union.
Shorts was at the UPS Fort Worth Hub from 7:45 a.m. until 8:43 a.m. on Monday, October 23. Shorts' assignment as a Local 767 Business Agent includes other UPS hubs, but not the Fort Worth hub. He concedes that he was there on October 23 to campaign.
Shorts stated that his activity at the Fort Worth hub did not concern the delegate election, and that his purpose was to campaign for the slate's local union officer candidates. In support of this, Shorts relies upon the fact that the literature he distributed did not mention the delegate election, and dealt only with the officer elections. Shorts further noted that protestor Watkins also limited his campaign activities to local union officer matters. Shorts provided copies of the campaign literature that was distributed by both he and Watkins, which indicated that each member's campaign activity was limited to solicitation of support for election to local union office.
The Johnson Protest. Johnson alleges that on October 26, 2000, from 7:30 a.m. until 8:50 a.m., Shorts campaigned at the Dallas UPS hub on time paid by the local union. Shorts agrees that he campaigned at the Dallas hub at the time in question.
Johnson works over at the Dallas hub. She arrived at 7:30 a.m. and saw Shorts and another member, Raul Lozada, exit a vehicle, go to the guard gate in the parking lot, and begin to distribute the STD slate's "Liar, Liar" handbill. As found above, this literature makes no mention of the delegate elections or delegate candidacies. There is also no evidence that Shorts discussed the delegate election with members.
The Shorts Protest. Shorts alleges that Scherer, a business agent for Local 767, delivered campaign materials to Watkins on union-paid time between 9:35 a.m. and 9:49 a.m. on October 26, 2000. On that date, Scherer was at work at Local 767's offices at the time in question. Scherer admits, as alleged by Shorts, that he gave Watkins a box of UT slate campaign materials during what the local union's policy manual describes as "normal office hours." Thus, at 9:35 a.m., Shorts noticed Watkins' truck pull up in the local's parking lot. Shorts saw Scherer go to his truck and hand campaign material stored in his truck to Watkins. Shorts saw Scherer talk to Watkins for a few minutes. Scherer claim the conversation lasted five minutes. Shorts claimed the conversation lasted 15 minutes. Scherer then returned to work in the local's office.
According to Scherer, he had prearranged the previous night with Watkins to transfer a box of campaign materials to Watkins in the local's parking lot. This UT slate material, as with that of the STD slate discussed above, concerned only the local's officer elections and officer candidates, and did not reference the delegate elections.
Analysis
The preamble to the Rules provides that "[t]he Election Administrator's authority to supervise the electoral process … is limited to the nomination and election of International Convention delegates and alternate delegates and the nomination and election of International officers. These Rules are not applicable to elections of IBT subordinate body officers."
Here, the investigative record establishes that the campaign material distributed by the respondents in each of these protests dealt only with Local 767's officer elections. Thus, even if this material was distributed on union-paid time by the local's officers or employees, this does not state a violation of the Rules. The question whether the distribution of the local union election campaign materials here occurred during union-paid time, in violation of Section 401(g) of the LMRDA, 29 U.S.C. §481(g), must therefore be left to another forum.
For the foregoing reasons, the protests are DENIED.
Any interested party not satisfied with this determination may request a hearing before the Election Appeals Master within two (2) working days of receipt of this decision. The parties are reminded that, absent extraordinary circumstances, no party may rely in any such appeal upon evidence that was not presented to the Office of the Election Administrator. Requests for a hearing shall be made in writing, shall specify the basis for the appeal, and shall be served upon:
Kenneth Conboy
Election Appeals Master
Latham & Watkins
Suite 1000
885 Third Avenue
New York, New York 10022
Fax: 212-751-4864
Copies of the request for hearing must be served upon all other parties, as well as upon the Election Administrator for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, 727 15th Street, NW, 10th Floor, Washington, DC 20005, all within the time period prescribed above. A copy of the protest must accompany the request for hearing.
William A. Wertheimer, Jr.
William A. Wertheimer, Jr.
Election Administrator
cc: Kenneth Conboy
Delores Hall
2000 EAD 61
DISTRIBUTION LIST VIA UPS NEXT DAY AIR:
Patrick Szymanski
IBT General Counsel
25 Louisiana Ave. NW
Washington, DC 20001
Bradley T. Raymond
Finkel, Whitefield, Selik,
Raymond, Ferrara & Feldman
32300 Northwestern Highway
Suite 200
Farmington Hills, MI 48334
J. Douglas Korney
Korney & Heldt
30700 Telegraph Road
Suite 1551
Bingham Farms, MI 48025
Barbara Harvey
645 Griswold
Penobscot Building
Suite 1800
Detroit, MI 48226
Betty Grdina
Yablonski, Both & Edelman
Suite 800
1140 Connecticut Ave. NW
Washington, D.C. 20036
Tom Leedham c/o Stefan Ostrach
110 Mayfair
Eugene, OR 97404
Ronny Hale
2515 Brooke Trail
Carrolton, TX 75006
Jerry Watkins
7048 Valhalla Rd.
Fort Worth, TX 76116
Jacqueline Johnson
P.O. Box 746614
Dallas, TX 75376
John Shorts
10009 Leatherwood Dr.
Fort Worth, TX 76108
IBT Local 767
6109 Anglin Dr.
Forest Hill, TX 76119