IN RE: ELIGIBILITY OF TIM PAGEL, Local Union 988.
Protest Decision 2011 ESD 90
Issued: January 28, 2011
OES Case No. E-028-011811-SO
Robert Mele, member and president of Local Union 988, filed an eligibility protest pursuant to Article XIII, Section 2(b) of the Rules for the 2010-2011 IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election ("Rules"). The protest alleged that Tim Pagel is ineligible for nomination as delegate to the 2011 IBT Convention.
Election Supervisor representative Maria Ho investigated this protest.
Findings of Fact and Analysis
Article VI, Section 1(a) of the Rules provides that "to be eligible to run for any Convention delegate, alternate delegate or International Officer position, one must: (1) be a member in continuous good standing of the Local Union, with one's dues paid to the Local Union for a period of twenty-four (24) consecutive months prior to the month of nomination for said position with no interruptions in active membership due to suspensions, expulsions, withdrawals, transfers or failure to pay fines or assessments; (2) be employed at the craft within the jurisdiction of the Local Union for a period of twenty-four (24) consecutive months prior to the month of nomination; and (3) be eligible to hold office if elected.
Local Union 988 held its nominations meeting on January 15, 2011. Accordingly, the 24 month period during which candidates must be in continuous good standing in order to be eligible for nomination ran from January 2009 through December 2010.
Pagel is one of only four members of Local Union 988 who pays cash dues. He regularly pays dues when he is at the local union hall for monthly membership meetings. Local Union 988 did not conduct membership meetings in June, July and August 2009. Accordingly, on June 29, 2009, Pagel mailed his check for $51 to the local union for payment of his June 2009 dues. The $51 rate was the same rate Pagel paid for each of the four preceding months.
The local union received Pagel's check on June 30, posted it to his dues record, and mailed him a receipt. The receipt notified Pagel that his dues for June were $52, one dollar more than the $51 he paid. When Pagel received the receipt by return mail, he sent a check to the local union for $1 on July 10, which was posted to his dues record on July 14 and paid his dues in full through June 2009.
Pagel is employed by YRC. Pursuant to collective bargaining agreement, YRC employees received an hourly rate increase in April 2009. Under Article X, Section 3(d)(i) of the IBT constitution, "dues for members employed in an industry in which there is a legal right to strike" are set at "a minimum dues rate of two and one-half (2.5) times the hourly earnings rate." Section 3(iv) of the same article states that "[w]hen calculating the rate of monthly dues based on the formula set forth above, the hourly earnings shall be multiplied and rounded to the nearest whole dollar." The hourly wage increase was sufficient to increase dues by $1 per month. However, although the hourly rate increase took effect April 1, the local union did not increase dues for YRC members on check-off authorization until June because the IBT constitution prevents implementation of a dues increase until "the second calendar month following the month in which the [wage] increase is implemented." Article X, Section 3(d)(iv). Anticipating the dues increase, the local union notified YRC in May to deduct and remit $52 from each employee for June dues. However, when Pagel paid his dues at the local union hall in May 2009, local union staff did not similarly notify him that dues would increase by $1 to $52 beginning in June. The local union does not send notice to its 4 cash dues payers when the dues rate increases.
Protestor Mele contends that because the dues Pagel paid in June 2009 were a dollar short of the amount required, he was not in good standing for that month and therefore is ineligible for nomination as delegate.
We DENY the protest. A member who pays the dues rate billed by the local union, even if it is less than that required by the IBT constitution or local union bylaws or is incorrectly calculated, does not lose eligibility for office because the rate is too low. Eligibility of Hoffa, 2006 ESD 85 (March 28, 2006). Local Union 988 did not bill Pagel for dues at the $52 rate or otherwise notify him of the new rate until the month after it implemented the new rate. Because he continued to work for YRC and his wage rate in June remained the same as it was in April and May when no dues increase was implemented, Pagel concluded that the June rate was the same rate he had paid in April and May. We find that Pagel acted reasonably and in good faith by paying the same rate in June, absent timely notice from the local union that the rate had increased. A member will not lose continuous good standing for not paying an increased dues rate where he was not timely notified of the increase. Further, when Pagel learned of the increase, he promptly paid the deficiency.
We find no interruption in Pagel's continuous good standing and therefore find him ELIGIBLE for nomination as delegate.
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 Supervisor 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
885 Third Avenue, Suite 1000
New York, New York 10022
Fax: (212) 751-4864
Copies of the request for hearing must be served upon the parties, as well as upon the Election Supervisor for the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, 1801 K Street, N.W., Suite 421 L, Washington, D.C. 20006, all within the time prescribed above. A copy of the protest must accompany the request for hearing.
Richard W. Mark
Election Supervisor
cc: Kenneth Conboy
2011 ESD 90
DISTRIBUTION LIST (BY EMAIL UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED):
Bradley T. Raymond, General Counsel
International Brotherhood of Teamsters
25 Louisiana Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20001
braymond@teamster.org
David J. Hoffa
Hoffa Hall 2011
1100 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Ste. 730
Washington, D.C. 20036
hoffadav@hotmail.com
Ken Paff
Teamsters for a Democratic Union
P.O. Box 10128
Detroit, MI 48210-0128
ken@tdu.org
Barbara Harvey
1394 E. Jefferson Avenue
Detroit, MI 48207
blmharvey@sbcglobal.net
Fred Gegare
P.O. Box 9663
Green Bay, WI 54308-9663
kirchmanb@yahoo.com">
Scott D. Soldon
Previant Goldberg
1555 North RiverCenter Drive, Ste. 202
P.O. Box 12993
Milwaukee, WI 53212
sds@previant.com
Fred Zuckerman, President
Teamsters Local Union 89
3813 Taylor Blvd.
Louisville, KY 40215
fredzuckerman@aol.com
Robert M. Colone, Esq.
P.O. Box 272
Sellersburg, IN 47172-0272
rmcolone@hotmail.com
Carl Biers
Box 424, 315 Flatbush Avenue
Brooklyn, NY 11217
info@SandyPope2011.org
Julian Gonzalez
Lewis, Clifton & Nikolaidis, P.C.
350 Seventh Avenue, Suite 1800
New York, NY 10001-5013
jgonzalez@lcnlaw.com
Robert Mele
11130 Fairway Drive
Houston, TX 77064
rbtmele@sbcglobal.net
Tim Pagel
726 W. 42nd Street
Houston, TX 77018
superruskie@hotmail.com
Dolores C. Hall
1000 Belmont Place
Metairie, LA 70001
hall1000@cox.net
Maria Ho
Office of the Election Supervisor
1801 K Street, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20006
mho@ibtvote.org
Kathryn Naylor
Office of the Election Supervisor
1801 K Street, N.W., Suite 421 L
Washington, D.C. 20006
knaylor@ibtvote.org
Jeffrey Ellison
214 S. Main Street, Ste. 210
Ann Arbor, MI 48104
EllisonEsq@aol.com