Protest Decisions

OFFICE OF THE ELECTION SUPERVISOR

for the

INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS

IN RE: TEAMSTERS UNITED,               )           Protest Decision 2016 ESD 303

                                                                        )           Issued: October 10, 2016

            Protestor.                                           )           OES Case No. P-323-071116-NE     

____________________________________)                      

Teamsters United filed a pre-election protest pursuant to Article XIII, Section 2(b) of the Rules for the 2015-2016 IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election (“Rules”).  The protest alleged that Local Union 1150 impermissibly supported Hoffa-Hall 2016 with posts on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

            Election Supervisor representative Peter Marks investigated this protest.

Findings of Fact and Analysis

On Friday, July 8, and again on Monday, July 11, Local Union 1150 posted to its official Facebook page, Twitter feed, and Instagram account campaign materials and video of the Hoffa-Hall 2016 campaign imported from the campaign’s website.  In addition, the local union posted pro-union statements and graphics to its social media that were politically neutral in character[1], but labeled them with a hashtag associated with Hoffa-Hall 2016, just as it did the campaign posts.  As such, overt campaign material of the Hoffa-Hall 2016 campaign was posted directly on Local Union 1150’s social media feeds.  Moreover, use of the campaign hashtag caused both the partisan and politically neutral posts of the local union to be reposted to the campaign website, labeled as being produced by Local Union 1150.

Article VII, Section 12(c) prohibits use of union facilities “to assist in campaigning.”  Further, Article VII, Sections 8 and 9 bar use of a “publication or communication financed, sponsored or used, directly or indirectly, by a Union (including a social media site) … to support or attack any candidate or the candidacy of any person.”   

Local Union 1150’s posting of campaign material supporting Hoffa-Hall 2016 on its official social media and its use of a campaign hashtag that caused its partisan postings to be transferred to the campaign’s social media were prohibited by the Rules as impermissible union assistance and support for the campaign.  Moreover, use of the campaign hashtag on its politically neutral postings caused Local Union 1150 to appear on the campaign’s social media as an entity supporting the campaign, which unions are prohibited from doing.  Leedham Slate, 2006 ESD 380 (October 26, 2006). 

The protest was filed on Monday evening, July 11, 2016.  Our representative took immediate action to address the matter.  By afternoon of the next day, July 12, Local Union 1150 had removed all of the campaign posts and hashtag references from its official social media accounts, and the local union’s social media administrator had been instructed as to the requirements of the Rules.  By early afternoon on July 13, Hoffa-Hall 2016 had scrubbed its social media of the imports from Local Union 1150’s accounts and had muted its media to prevent further posts of any nature from that local union.

On this basis, we 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:

Kathleen A. Roberts

Election Appeals Master

JAMS

620 Eighth Avenue, 34^th floor

New York, NY 10018

kroberts@jamsadr.com

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, 1050 17^th Street, N.W., Suite 375, Washington, D.C. 20036, all within the time prescribed above.  A copy of the protest must accompany the request for hearing.

                                                                        Richard W. Mark

                                                                        Election Supervisor

cc:        Kathleen A. Roberts

            2016 ESD 303

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