IN RE: TOM LEEDHAM RANK AND FILE POWER SLATE,
Protest Decision 2001 EAD 433
Issued: August 29, 2001
OEA Case No. PR082211WE
The Tom Leedham Rank and File Power slate filed a pre-election protest pursuant to Article XIII, Section 2(b) of the Rules for the 2000-2001 IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election ("Rules"). It alleges that employer Anaheim Manufacturing ("AM") and Local 952 business agent John Davis violated Article VII, Section 11(e) of the Rules by denying the parking lot campaign access rights of IBT member and International officer candidate Maria Martinez, and other IBT members.
Election Administrator representative Lisa Sonia Taylor investigated the protest.
Findings of Fact and Analysis
The AM facility is located in an industrial park. As one enters the gates there is a front parking lot and a side parking lot, in both of which the non-IBT office staff parks. Inside the gated area, there is another gate leading to the parking area for IBT member factory employees. The campaigners stood at this gate. Outside the front gate and behind a wall there is a grassy "sidewalk" area. AM human resource manager Leah Prieto claims that employees have lunch on or near the grassy sidewalk.
We interviewed Prieto and received her statement. She claims that Martinez and an older gentleman, later identified as Mauricio Terrazas, an IBT retiree, entered the AM building at approximately 10:20 a.m. and told the receptionist that they were there to campaign. The receptionist asked the campaigners to wait while she called the human resource manager. The campaigners did not wait but instead headed towards the employee parking lot near the side entrance to campaign. Prieto called business agent Davis and asked him to come down to the facility because she did not understand why the campaigners were there. Davis said that he could not get to the facility but told Prieto that he did not know who the campaigners were and she should ask them to leave the premises or call the police.
Prieto went out the side entrance and told the campaigners that they were on private property and they had to move onto a sidewalk outside of the gates. She claims that Terrazas became highly abusive to her and accused the company of supporting Hoffa who is a "gangster." Prieto says she asked Terrazas to move to the sidewalk three times. Terrazas then asked for her card and the name of the business agent to whom she spoke. Prieto told him that if he went to the lobby the receptionist would give him a card.
Terrazas then went to the lobby, where he proceeded to shout at the receptionist and Prieto's assistant, Karina. Prieto says that she entered the building through the side door and while in the back she could hear Terrazas shouting. At this point, she called the police. The receptionist later told Prieto that Terrazas approached Karina, who is eight months pregnant, in an aggressive and intimidating fashion with his finger in her face. Karina had to take three steps back in order to avoid him. Terrazas then attempted to enter a door leading to the offices but Karina blocked the entrance.
Prieto stated that the man's behavior was witnessed by the VP of operations and one or two customers who were in the lobby, and she was sure that persons on the phone could also hear him. Prieto entered the lobby and again asked Terrazas to leave. Throughout the episode, Martinez tried to control Terrazas without success. Martinez asked Prieto for her number and eventually encouraged Terrazas to leave with her. Martinez and the Terrazas sat in their car for approximately 15 minutes making phone calls and then left. The police came after this and told Prieto that the campaigners had no right to be on private property.
Prieto's letter included a statement from the receptionist. She stated that she told Terrazas that he was making it impossible for her to answer the phone and to help the incoming customers, and that Terrazas insulted, yelled and pointed his finger as everyone in the lobby. The receptionist says that he then threatened, "you will regret this day, damn it, you are working for them, but you don't know who I am. I have connections, you don't know who you people are messing with."
Davis says that Prieto called him regarding a man that was causing a disturbance on the premises. Prieto told him that the man was near the loading dock where trucks unload and where employees have lunch. She stated that she asked the man to go onto the sidewalk and he refused to do so but instead went to the front lobby. Davis told Prieto that he did not know who the people were. Davis advised Prieto that she could call the police. He says that he did not make an inquiry as to the location of the campaigners nor did he advise Prieto about the access rule. Davis claims that he was not aware of the access rule.
Martinez stated that when she and Terrazas arrived at the AM facility they went to the hourly parking lot to campaign. She says that Prieto came out a side door and told them that they had to leave because they were on private property. Martinez says that she explained that employees would not see them if they were outside the gate, and identified herself to Prieto, who returned to the building to call the local. Martinez stated that she returned to the car to call Matt Ginsberg while Terrazas went inside. Martinez says that when she later went inside, Prieto informed her that she had called Davis, who said he did not know them and that she could call the police. She and Terrazas left before the police came. Martinez confirms that Terrazas seemed upset, but that she did not witness any abusive behavior. She admitted that at the time when Terrazas was in the building she was outside speaking with a campaign operative and did not witness what happened in the lobby.
AM's policy is to prevent IBT members from campaigning in the parking lot used by its IBT-represented employees solely because the lot is private property. The maintenance of that policy violates Article VII, Section 11(e) of the Rules, and we accordingly GRANT the protest to the extent that it challenges such maintenance. See Villa, 2000 EAD 53 (December 1, 2000), aff'd, 00 EAM 14 (January 18, 2001). We accordingly order AM to cease maintaining its overly restrictive policy and permit IBT members to campaign in its hourly employee parking lot in accordance with Article VII, Section 11(e).
We DENY the protest in all other respects. We credit the AM representatives' description of Terrazas' unruly behavior, which we find gave AM ample reason to exclude both he and Martinez from AM property on the day in question. We further note that Terrazas is a non-IBT member, and accordingly has no right to parking lot access under Article VII, Section 11(e) of the Rules. See Lopez, P667 (April 8, 1996).
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 upon evidence that was not presented to the Office of the Election Administrator in any such appeal. 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, Tenth Floor, Washington, DC 20005 (facsimile: 202-454-1501), all within the time 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
2001 EAD 433
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
Penobscot Building
Suite 1800
645 Griswold
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
Todd Thompson
209 Pennsylvania Ave. SE
Washington, DC 20003
Matt Ginsburg
30 Third Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11217
James L. Hicks, Jr.
Suite 1100
2777 N. Stemmons Freeway
Dallas, Texas 75207
Anaheim Manufacturing
Attn: Leah Prieto
4240 E. La Palma Avenue
Anaheim, CA 92807
Maria Martinez
IBT Local 556
1750 Portland Avenue
Walla Walla, WA 99362
IBT Local 952
140 S. Marks Way
Orange, CA 92868