Protest Decisions

OFFICE OF THE ELECTION SUPERVISOR

for the

INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS

IN RE: TONY CORNELIUS,                      )           Protest Decision 2010 ESD 260

                                                                        )           Issued: May 17, 2011

            Protestor.                                           )           OES Case No. P-005-060410-NA

                                                                        )

____________________________________)

            Tony Cornelius, member of Local Union 662, filed a pre-election 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 the IBT and the Hoffa campaign retaliated against him for his support of Fred Gegare’s candidacy for IBT General President.

            Election Supervisor representative Deborah Schaaf investigated this protest.

Findings of Fact

Cornelius filed this protest on June 4, 2010, stating that the IBT had just notified him that his “pay as an International Representative assigned to work under the direction of Dairy Division Director Fred Gegare has been slashed, without giving any reason, notice or explanation and without any change or reduction in my job duties.”  His protest alleged that this pay cut was retaliation prohibited by the Rules, viz.

This severe cut occurred just after Gegare (my long-time friend and fellow Local 662 Officer) announced his candidacy for General President of the IBT.  This action retaliates against me and the Gegare Campaign for running in the IBT Elections.  I want to be made whole for any losses sustained; the IBT should be required to post a notice; and the IBT should be ordered to cease and desist from any form of retaliation in the future, along with whatever additional remedies may be appropriate to deter such violations in the future.

            Tony Cornelius became a Teamster in 1967.  Over his career, he has held a number of positions within his local union, his joint council, and the IBT.  Among these are his current positions of principal officer of Local Union 662, vice president of Joint Council 39, chairman of the Master Dairy Joint Area Council Grievance Panel, and Central Dairy Representative for the IBT Central Region. 

Cornelius has worked with and for Fred Gegare for more than 35 years.  He currently serves as treasurer of Gegare’s campaign for IBT General President.  Gegare is IBT vice president at large, director of the IBT dairy conference, and director of the IBT food processing division, among other union positions.

The precipitating event of this protest occurred on June 2, 2010, when Cornelius received a paycheck for service in his IBT position of Central Region Dairy Director in an amount less than he was told he would to expect (at that time, an annual rate of $50,000).  That controversy was resolved promptly after the protest was filed, and Cornelius has since been paid at the $50,000 rate.  To understand how the controversy arose, however, it is necessary to review facts from a period before the Rules were in effect. 

On October 15, 2004, General President Hoffa appointed Cornelius “as a Full Time International Representative for the Dairy Conference, … reporting directly to Fred Gegare.”[1]  The title of International Representative was in addition to the title of IBT central region dairy director, which Cornelius held continuously beginning in 1989.  Cornelius had been paid approximately $37,000 annually for his work as dairy director prior to the addition of the International Representative title.[2]  The appointment letter to International Representative set Cornelius’ total International union salary at $67,500 per year.  That sum was for the dairy conference work Cornelius performed at Gegare’s direction. 

Cornelius’ International Representative appointment was terminated some six and a half years later, in March 2010.

As context for that termination, the IBT in 2009 and 2010 was engaged in staff reductions to cut its operating costs.  Some 130 IBT positions were cut in 2009 by attrition or layoff, including International Representative appointments of Jack Barnard, Robert Bell, Robert Blanchet, Victoria Gray, William Lichtenwald, Tim McPhail, Jesse Medina, Douglas Norris, Kathleen O’Connor, Aaron Sawyer, Ryan Sherard, and Robert Turner.  The terminated International Representative positions encompassed assignments at-large and within various divisions as well (e.g., airline, freight, port, warehouse).  Positions of similar or higher salary than that of International Representative were also among the jobs the IBT cut in 2009 (e.g., field representatives and organizers).  According to the IBT, in late 2009 the former Executive Assistant to the General President proposed cutting an additional eighteen IBT employees, including Cornelius.  Ultimately, in the first part of 2010, fifty IBT jobs were cut.  International representative positions listed as terminated included Charles Byrnes and Lawrence McDonald, in addition to that of Cornelius.

Cornelius and Gegare learned of the decision to terminate Cornelius’ International Representative appointment as follows.  On March 18, 2010, IBT vice president at large John Murphy phoned Gegare at the Southern Region Joint Area Committee grievance panel in Miami, Florida to tell him that Cornelius was being “let go.”[3]  Murphy was a member of the IBT finance committee.  Gegare objected to this decision immediately.  He said he told Murphy that he could not carry out his responsibilities as dairy director and food processing director without Cornelius because Cornelius, Gegare’s only International Representative, chaired his grievance panels in the dairy division. 

Cornelius, who was with Gegare at the Southern region panel in Miami, returned a phone message from Kristin King, IBT human resources director, when he returned to Green Bay on March 18.  According to Cornelius, King told him he was being “let go” as an International Representative effective at the end of March.  He asked her why; according to him, she replied that she did not know.  He asked her if he was still being retained by the IBT as Central Region Dairy Director; he said she replied that he was not.  When he asked her who had made the decision to terminate him, he said that she replied that she wanted a witness to the conversation, at which time she brought someone onto the phone whose name Cornelius could not recall.  King then told Cornelius that she did not know who made the termination decision.  When Cornelius asked if anyone else was being terminated, he said she replied that she could not give him any information about other IBT representatives.

Cornelius said he then called Keegel.  According to Cornelius, Keegel told him he was sorry to hear that Cornelius was terminated, that he did not learn of the termination until the evening of March 16, and that he would do what he could to help Cornelius.

Cornelius said he then called Dick Bell, assistant to Keegel.  According to Cornelius, Bell said he did not know whether Cornelius was terminated from all IBT positions, including the Central Region Dairy Director position, or merely from the International Representative job.

The next day, Friday, March 19, 2010, Cornelius called General President Hoffa.  When Hoffa’s secretary informed Cornelius that Hoffa was on a conference call, Cornelius left a message asking for a return call.  Cornelius also left a message for vice president Murphy the same day, asking why he was terminated from both positions, the International Representative job and the Central Region Dairy Director post, relying on Kristin King’s statement that he was indeed terminated from both jobs.

When the call to Hoffa was not returned, Cornelius called him again on Monday, March 22, finally reaching him on his cell phone.  When Cornelius asked Hoffa why he was being terminated, Cornelius said Hoffa attributed it to economics.  When Cornelius asked whether he was also being terminated from the Central Region Dairy Director position, Hoffa replied that Cornelius would have to speak with vice president Murphy.

The same day he spoke with Hoffa by phone, Cornelius said he received a return message from Murphy.  According to Cornelius, Murphy’s message said he did not know that Cornelius served as Central Region Dairy Director and would have to do some checking and get back to Cornelius about that job.  Cornelius said that he and Murphy exchanged voice messages again on March 24, with Murphy’s stating that he had not yet had the opportunity to check on Cornelius’ status as Central Region Dairy Director; the message also stated that Murphy was only one of three IBT vice presidents on the finance committee and had not alone made the decision to terminate Cornelius as International Representative.  After Cornelius learned that IBT vice president Ken Hall was on the committee, he phoned him on March 25 and left a message.  He then called Keegel again, updating Keegel on what he had learned since their last conversation.  According to Cornelius, Keegel said he would speak with Hoffa about Cornelius’ situation.  Keegel said that the work of the Central Region Dairy Director was there and someone would have to do it.  Cornelius also stated that Keegel told him he believed Murphy was not aware that Cornelius served as Central Region Dairy Director when the decision was made to terminate the International Representative appointment.

In the meantime, Gegare worked to reverse the termination so that Cornelius would continue to do the dairy work.[4]  On March 21, 2010, at a pension trustees meeting in Scottsdale, Arizona, Gegare complained to Ken Hall that he could not do his job as IBT vice president without the assistance of Cornelius, saying that without Cornelius upcoming grievance panels would be canceled because no one from the union would be available to attend.  Hall, a member of the IBT finance committee, said he was unaware of Cornelius’ additional position in the Central region but said he would look into the situation.

On March 29, Gegare was in Washington, D.C. to attend the General Executive Board meeting.  He spoke with Hall in the lobby of the Hyatt Regency and asked what was to be done about Cornelius.  Gegare repeated that he would have to cancel grievance panels if Cornelius’ dismissal stood.  According to Gegare, Hall said he would go to Hoffa with a proposal to reinstate Cornelius as an International Representative immediately at a $50,000 annual salary, with a possible increase to his old rate of $67,500 in the fall.  Gegare said he understood that Hall would be able to gain Hoffa’s assent and, once that conversation occurred, an appointment letter would be issued. 

Hall confirmed to our investigator that he had conversations with Gegare about reinstating Cornelius.  He stated that Gegare told him the duties he needed Cornelius to perform and that he wanted Cornelius reinstated at his old salary of $67,500 plus benefits.  Hall denied that he had any discussion with Gegare at that time concerning the title – International Representative or Central Region Dairy Director (or both) – that Gegare was seeking for Cornelius.  Instead, Hall said that the discussion centered on the duties (rather than the title) Gegare needed Cornelius to perform.

While these conversations were occurring, IBT HR director King processed Cornelius’ termination as an International Representative.  She sent him a letter dated April 5 thanking him for his service to the IBT and asking him to complete some final accounting paperwork concerning the IBT credit card issued him.  Cornelius said he received an IBT paycheck on April 2 for his March work as International Representative and was told it would be his last paycheck.

According to the IBT position statement in this matter, Gegare persuaded the IBT leadership to retain Cornelius as Central Region Dairy Director.  Gegare was told in April that Cornelius would be reinstated as Central Region Dairy Director at a salary of $30,000.  According to Cornelius, Gegare reported this development to him and advised him not to accept the appointment on those terms.  Cornelius said that Gegare told him he was awaiting word from Hall about Hall’s recommendation to Hoffa that Cornelius receive a salary of $50,000.

While these discussions continued, Cornelius kept performing representational work in the dairy division, both within and outside the Central region, and Gegare received additional assurance that reinstatement was forthcoming.  Thus, in late April 2010, Gegare attended another pension trustees meeting where he saw W.C. Smith, executive assistant to the General President.  According to Gegare, Smith assured him the letter reinstating Cornelius “in full” (Gegare’s phrase) was on the way.  At the IBT Unity conference held in Las Vegas on May 10-11, 2010, Gegare saw Hall, who also assured him that Cornelius would be reinstated and the letter confirming it was on the way.

A letter dated May 4 bearing Hoffa’s signature appointed Cornelius as “Central Region Chairman for the Dairy Conference, effective April 1, 2010, reporting directly to Fred Gegare.”  The letter put Cornelius’ salary at $30,000 annually.[5]  The letter concluded: “Your acceptance of this position, by return mail, is appreciated.”  On the same date, General Secretary-Treasurer Keegel sent a memo to IBT accounting and HR stating that Cornelius’ compensation was to be adjusted from $30,000 to $50,000 annually, effective April 1, 2010.  The memo further directed accounting to issue a supplemental check to Cornelius to make up the difference between the two rates for April and to pay the compensation beginning in May at the $50,000 rate.

Cornelius received pay for April at the $30,000 annual rate.  He contacted Dick Bell to ask about this rate.  According to Cornelius, Bell said there were mistakes in the May 4 letter from Hoffa setting his compensation at $30,000 and in the check issued him (at the $30,000 rate).  Cornelius said Bell told him he would be receiving another letter from Hoffa setting the annual compensation at $50,000 and that another check would be issued to make up the difference between the two rates.  The supplemental check reached Cornelius during the third week of May 2010. 

Before the supplemental check arrived, Cornelius received additional assurance at the Unity conference from W.C. Smith.  According to Cornelius, Smith confirmed that Cornelius would receive $50,000 annually.

Cornelius was terminated from the titles of International Representative and Central Region Dairy Director in March 2010 and was reinstated only to the latter title effective April 1, 2010.  Although Bell said that Cornelius would receive a revised appointment letter setting the annual compensation at $50,000, Cornelius did not receive such a letter.

On June 2, 2010, Cornelius received his check for May and saw that he was being paid at an annual rate of $30,000, not the promised $50,000.  Cornelius said he called Bell on June 3 to tell him the check amount was wrong.  Bell’s response surprised him:  he said that Cornelius had again been cut back to an annual rate of $30,000.  Bell told Cornelius that the decision was made the day before the check was mailed.    

The preceding week, Gegare sent an open letter to Hoffa criticizing Hoffa’s leadership of the IBT and declaring that he would run against Hoffa for the position of General President.  The letter reached Hoffa on or about May 26.[6]  Cornelius’ compensation was cut on May 28. 

During the phone call Cornelius had with Bell on June 3, Cornelius asked whether his compensation was cut because of his friendship with Gegare.  According to Cornelius, Bell did not respond to the question.

Cornelius’ compensation, like others the IBT employed on a monthly salary, was paid at the end of each month for the services performed that month.  Thus, just as the check Cornelius received on April 2, 2010 paid him for the work he did in March, the check he received on June 2, 2010 paid him for his May work.[7]  Although a decision was made in late May 2010 (May 27, according to Bell) to return Cornelius’ compensation to the $30,000 annual rate, that decision did not apply retroactively to the May work Cornelius had already performed.  Instead, it applied prospectively to the period beginning June 1, 2010.  As such, when Cornelius called Bell to report that the May check was incorrect, it was.  The information Bell gave Cornelius in response was that the decision had been made that Cornelius’ future work would be compensated at the $30,000 annual rate, and Cornelius would receive the first payment at that rate in July.  Investigation produced no document to contradict Keegel’s May 4 memo to accounting and HR setting Cornelius’ compensation at the $50,000 annual rate.  Although the IBT concedes that the decision was made in late May 2010 to reduce Cornelius’ compensation to $30,000, that decision was apparently never formalized into an appointment letter from Hoffa to Cornelius or into an internal memo to accounting and HR. 

Cornelius filed this protest on June 4.  The protest was acknowledged by OES and distributed to interested parties, including the IBT, by email on Saturday, June 5.  Immediately upon receipt of the protest, the IBT reversed the decision – never implemented – to reduce Cornelius’ compensation to $30,000 and maintained it at the $50,000 annual figure.  It also issued him a supplemental check for the May 2010 compensation, which had been paid at the erroneously low annual rate of $30,000.  The internal IBT sign-offs for the supplemental check for May were completed on Wednesday, June 9, and the check was issued and mailed to Cornelius, who deposited it on Saturday, June 12.  Cornelius has been paid at the $50,000 annual rate in all months since, in a single check each month. 

The issue this protest presents is whether Cornelius suffered retaliation prohibited by Article VII, Section 12(g) of the Rules when the decision was made to cut his salary in late May 2010, a decision that was never implemented.  Cornelius and Gegare supporters contend that retaliation occurred; the IBT argues it did not.

The sole evidence Cornelius advances to support his claim that the June 2010 pay cut that Bell announced to him on June 3 was retaliatory was its timing, coming within a day or two of the IBT’s receipt of Gegare’s announcement of his candidacy for the office of General President.

During the investigation of this protest, Cornelius presented additional evidence contending that his March termination as International Representative and Central Region Dairy Director was retaliatory – a termination he did not protest .  During the investigation of the May 2010 pay cut decision, Cornelius contended that the March termination decision he had not protested occurred to get back at Gegare for Gegare’s vocal opposition to certain policies advanced by the IBT under Hoffa’s leadership.  This evidence can be briefly summarized in the following points:

• Hoffa allegedly stated in December 2008 that Cornelius’ IBT job was “being looked at” for possible termination because Local Union 662, of which Cornelius was (and is) principal officer did not donate sufficiently to the Obama presidential campaign and because Gegare opposed the IBT’s position with respect to the 2008 strike by Milwaukee Local Union 200 against Waste Management.  Local Union 200 is a member of Joint Council 39, of which Gegare and Cornelius are both officers.
• Hoffa allegedly stated in February 2009 at a meeting with Gegare and Brad Slawson, Sr., that Cornelius would not be terminated but his name was “on the list.”
• In August 2009, Gegare led a meeting of several IBT vice presidents with Hoffa to express their displeasure at decisions Hoffa had made concerning the direction of the IBT.  Hoffa allegedly told Gegare at that meeting that he intended to reduce IBT expenditures by a substantial amount and that Cornelius’ name was on the list.
• Slawson, Sr., told our investigator that on or about January 26, 2010, he was in a one-on-one meeting with Hoffa in Hoffa’s office concerning union issues.  According to Slawson, Hoffa said, “If he [Fred Gegare] doesn’t get back on board, I’m going to fire Tony [Cornelius].”  Slawson stated that Hoffa asked him to talk to Gegare and get back to him.  Slawson said he called Gegare to tell him that Hoffa was upset about his opposition to Hoffa and advise him there would be trouble if he continued to criticize Hoffa’s actions as General President.
• On or around March 9th 2010, Slawson said he again was in Hoffa’s office in a one-on-one meeting when Hoffa said, “Fred [Gegare] is still off the reservation and I’m going fire Tony [Cornelius] because it appears Fred is going to run [for General President].”  Hoffa told Slawson to talk to Gegare about getting “back on board.”  A few days later, Slawson said he called Gegare again and told him specifically that Hoffa was going to fire Cornelius if Gegare did not support Hoffa and his issues.  Gegare said he could not support Hoffa because he felt strongly that Hoffa was wrong on many issues facing the union. 
• On or about March 15, 2010, Slawson said he called Hoffa and told him that Gegare was entrenched and was not going to change his position.  Slawson said he told Hoffa, “It is what it is,” which he said meant that nothing could be done to gain Gegare’s support for Hoffa’s position, and that it appeared Gegare was going to run for General President.  Slawson said he told Hoffa to do what he had to do.  Three days later, on March 18, 2010, Cornelius was terminated from his IBT positions.

Cornelius contends that this evidence demonstrated that he was terminated from his IBT positions because Gegare would not support Hoffa’s policies as General President and because Gegare intended to run for the position himself.  Cornelius did not, however, protest that termination.  Instead, he presented that evidence to show retaliatory animus for the pay cut decision made in late May.

            In response to the evidence presented by Cornelius, Gegare and Slawson, Hoffa denied that he ever connected Cornelius’ IBT employment with Gegare’s support for Hoffa’s decisions and policies.  He further denied that he ever told Slawson such a thing or asked Slawson to urge Gegare to get back on board or back “on the reservation.”  Hoffa confirmed that he had meetings with Slawson in January and March 2010, but he denied that Cornelius or Gegare was discussed at either meeting.  W.C. Smith, Hoffa’s executive assistant, said he was present at the meetings with Hoffa and Slawson; he confirmed that neither Cornelius nor Gegare was discussed.  Instead, Hoffa and Smith stated that the meetings with Slawson concerned the Teamsters Affiliates Pension Plan (TAPP), on which there was substantial controversy at the time.  

            Hoffa, Hall, Smith, and Bell all confirmed to our investigator that the IBT was engaged in a significant effort to cut costs in 2009 and 2010.  The 2008 recession had substantial impact on IBT membership overall, both in terms of the number of active members and the compensation those members earned from covered employment.  In addition, the IBT’s investment portfolio suffered significant losses.  As a result, dues and investment income were down, and the IBT finance committee (comprised of a number of vice-presidents) sought to identify staffing cuts that could be made to reduce expenditures.

            As noted above, the finance committee recommended elimination of some fifty IBT positions in 2010, in addition to many more positions eliminated since 2008.  As a further cost-cutting measure, the compensation paid for many additional positions was reduced in 2009 and 2010.  Cornelius’ position was among those recommended for elimination in 2010.  After the decision was announced and Gegare protested that he could not function as director of the dairy conference without Cornelius running his grievance panels, the finance committee examined Cornelius’ duties and recommended reinstatement at a reduced salary ($50,000, instead of the $67,500 he had been paid previously).  The evidence indicates that the finance committee was unaware that Cornelius also served as Central Region Dairy Director, an IBT position, when it recommended his appointment be terminated.  After Gegare’s intervention, Cornelius was reinstated to the Central region post (although he performs duties for the IBT outside that region) but not the International Representative title.  Cornelius did not protest the elimination of the International Representative title or the reduction in salary from $67,500 to $50,000.

            The IBT’s explanation for the decision in late May 2010 to reduce Cornelius’ salary prospectively from $50,000 to $30,000 was that it was attempting to standardize compensation at $30,000, had done so in the freight division and was seeking to extend that to Cornelius in dairy as well.  That decision was never implemented as to Cornelius and he has continued to be paid at the $50,000 rate, even though counterparts in freight have been paid at the lower rate. 

Analysis

 

The Rules, at Article VII, Section 12(f), prohibit “retaliation or threat of retaliation by the International Union, any subordinate body, any member of the IBT, any employer or other person or entity against a Union member, officer or employee” when directed toward the exercise of any election-related right. See Parisi, P1095 (December 2, 1991).  A protest claiming retaliation cannot be sustained unless an actual act of retaliation is established. Giacumbo, P100 (October 13, 1995), aff’d, 95 EAM 27 (October 25, 1995).

To demonstrate retaliation, a protestor must show that conduct protected by the Rules was a motivating factor in the decision or the conduct in dispute.  The Election Supervisor will not find retaliation if he concludes that the union officer or entity would have taken the same action even in the absence of the protected conduct.  See Miner, 2005 ESD 1 (May 27, 2005). Cf., Wright Line, 251 NLRB 1083 (1980), enf’d, 662 F.2d 899 (1st Cir. 1981), cert. denied, 455 U.S. 989 (1982).

            First, as we have noted, Cornelius did not protest the March 2010 termination of his IBT appointment as International Representative and Central Region Dairy Director.  His appointment to the Central region post was reinstated effective April 1, 2010, so there was no break in service between appointments.  Further, although his compensation was reduced from $67,500 to $50,000 upon reappointment, he did not protest that reduction in salary.  Accordingly, the question is not before us whether the termination of Cornelius in March 2010 constituted prohibited retaliation under the Rules.[8]

            Second, with respect to the late May 2010 decision to reduce his compensation that is the subject of this protest, we find that the decision was reversed before it was implemented; as such, Cornelius suffered no adverse employment action as he was neither terminated nor his compensation reduced in May or June 2010.  The check he received on June 2 for services he performed in May, calculated incorrectly at the annual rate of $30,000, was promptly supplemented to reflect the correct annual rate of $50,000, and he has been paid at that rate since that time. 

Third, we do not view the initial underpayment of Cornelius for his May 2010 work, promptly rectified, as retaliatory. Although the issuance of that check followed on the heels of Gegare’s announcement of his candidacy for General President, evidence gathered in this protest shows that the IBT bureaucracy may proceed with general policies even when responsible policymakers have made exceptions.  The best example of that bureaucracy acting in this case is presented by two documents carrying the same date (May 4, 2010), issued from different offices to different recipients (Hoffa to Cornelius for one; Keegel to accounting and HR for the other), stating contradictory things ($30,000 salary versus $50,000).  Accordingly, we find that the May 28 check that underpaid Cornelius at the annual rate of $30,000 was the result of an internal bureaucracy slow to respond to Keegel’s directive that Cornelius be paid at the $50,000 rate, rather than an intentional decision to short his compensation for a retaliatory reason.

With respect to Bell’s statement to Cornelius that the decision had been made to cut his salary to $30,000, Cornelius suffered no adverse action because this decision was never implemented.  A key element of a retaliation case under the Rules is adverse employment action.  In Zuckerman, 2010 ESD 2 (June 7, 2010), we rejected a claim by candidate Zuckerman, IBT national carhaul director, that Hoffa’s appointment of a person to be included in carhaul activities was retaliatory, finding that Zuckerman suffered no adverse employment action, viz.

With respect to the second element – adverse employment action – we have previously held that discharge, removal from appointed position, and the transfer of membership from one representative to another can satisfy the adverse action element of a retaliation claim. Williams, 2001 EAD 152 (February 8, 2001); Thornsberry, 2001 EAD 172 (February 16, 2001); and Bundrant, 2005 ESD 19 (October 25, 2005), aff’d, 05 EAM 4 (November 15, 2005).  Here, we find that Zuckerman has not suffered the adverse action necessary to make out a retaliation claim.  The May 27 appointment of Moore to be included in all carhaul meetings does not constitute action adverse to Zuckerman.  Zuckerman remains national carhaul director with the same rights, responsibilities and duties he had before Moore’s appointment was announced.  Further, Zuckerman’s compensation and the terms and conditions of his IBT employment are unaffected by Moore’s appointment.  Moore has not assumed, or been delegated, any right to represent members previously delegated to Zuckerman’s stewardship.  Accordingly, we find that General President Hoffa’s appointment of Moore to be included in all carhaul meetings does not constitute adverse action against Zuckerman.

As was the case in Zuckerman, Cornelius did not suffer any change in compensation or diminution in responsibilities in or after late May.  The IBT has maintained Cornelius at the rate of $50,000 for all months since April 2010 and continued to employ him in the duties to which Gegare assigns him.  We therefore deem this protest RESOLVED.

            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, NY  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 260

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. Box10128

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

3541 N. Summit Avenue

Shorewood, WI 53211

scottsoldon@gmail.com

Fred Zuckerman, President

Teamsters Local Union 89

3813 Taylor Blvd.

Louisville, KY 40215

fredzuckerman@aol.com

Robert M. Colone, Esq.

P.O. Box272

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

Brian Lytle

5005 Charlotte Avenue

Ft. Wayne, IN 46815

bclytle@comcast.net

Dennis Arnold, Secretary-Treasurer

Teamsters Local Union 414

2644 Cass Street

Ft. Wayne, IN 46808

deb.teamsters@frontier.com

Fred Towe

429 E. Vermont Street, Suite 200

Indianapolis, IN 46202

ftowe@fdgtlaborlaw.com

Joe F. Childers

Getty & Childers, PLLC

250 W. Main Street, Suite 1900

Lexington, KY 40507

childerslaw@yahoo.com

William C. Broberg

1108 Fincastle Road

Lexington, KY 40502-1838

wcbroberg@aol.com

Maria S. Ho

Office of the Election Supervisor

1801 K Street, N.W., Suite 421 L

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