March 12, 1996
VIA UPS OVERNIGHT
Richard Volpe, Secretary-Treasurer
Teamsters Local Union 550
6 Tuxedo Avenue
New Hyde Park, NY 11040
Ken Spillane
961 Commack Road
Brentwood, NY 11717
Re: Election Office Case No. P-399-LU550-NYC
Gentlemen:
A pre-election protest was filed pursuant to Article XIV, Section 2(b) of the Rules for the IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election (“Rules”) by Richard Volpe, secretary-treasurer of Local Union 550 and candidate for delegate on the Local 550 First slate. Mr. Volpe contends that Ken Spillane, vice-president of Local Union 804, threatened Tom O’Donnell, president of Local Union 817, with being merged with another local union in retaliation for a remark Mr. O’Donnell allegedly made against General President Ron Carey.
This protest was investigated by New York City Protest Coordinator Barbara C. Deinhardt.
On January 31, 1996, officials from various local unions attended a rally held by Local Union 584 to support members on strike at the Farmland Dairy Company in Wallington, New Jersey. Mr. O’Donnell gave a short speech that was later alleged to be improper campaigning. See Ranita, P-383-LU804-NYC (March 5, 1996). One of the allegations in that protest was that Mr. O’Donnell made an improper remark about Mr. Carey.
In this protest, Mr. Volpe charges Ken Spillane, an officer of Local Union 804 where Mr. Carey is a member, with retaliating against Mr. O’Donnell for the alleged remark.
Richard Volpe
March 12, 1996
Page 1
Mr. Spillane is a member of Mr. Carey’s slate of delegates. Mr. Volpe asserts that
Mr. Spillane is a “very close confidant and active supporter” of Mr. Carey.
Specifically, Mr. Volpe asserts that after Mr. O’Donnell finished his speech,
Mr. Spillane said loudly to another Local Union 804 officer, “Hey didn’t you hear that they were going to merge Local 817 [Mr. O’Donnell’s local union] into Local 805?” The other Local Union 804 official said, “What?” and Mr. Spillane turned toward Mr. O’Donnell and smirked.
Mr. O’Donnell generally corroborates this version. He states that Mr. Spillane came up to him after the speech and asked if he had heard that “they’re going to merge Local 817 into Local 805?” Mr. O’Donnell replied, “Bullshit; who’s 805?” Then Mr. Spillane turned to Jerry Ranita, a Local Union 804 business agent, and said something like, “Do you remember which local they’re going to merge 817 into?”
Mr. Spillane denies this sequence of statements. He states that he approached
Mr. O’Donnell before Mr. O’Donnell’s speech and asked him if he was merging with local union 805. When Mr. O’Donnell said he knew nothing about it, Mr. Spillane said, “OK, I must have gotten you mixed up with Local 917 or 719.” Mr. Ranita corroborates
Mr. Spillane’s version, stating that Mr. Spillane only mentioned the merger before
Mr. O’Donnell’s speech.
The protester asserts that Mr. Spillane’s remarks violate the Rules, as they will chill the participation of those representatives at the International convention. The Election Officer does not find that the remarks support such a violation. In Giacumbo, P-029-IBT-PNJ
(August 4, 1996), the Election Officer found that mere speculation about merger, without any evidence of an actual merger process, did not prove retaliation in violation of the Rules. The current record contains no evidence of actual merger discussion or activity.[1]
Accordingly, the protest is DENIED.
Any interested party not satisfied with this determination may request a hearing before the Election Appeals Master within one day of receipt of this letter. The parties are reminded that, absent extraordinary circumstances, no party may rely upon evidence that was not presented to the Office of the Election Officer in any such appeal. Requests for a hearing shall be made in writing and shall be served on:
Richard Volpe
March 12, 1996
Page 1
Kenneth Conboy, Esq.
Latham & Watkins
885 Third Avenue, Suite 1000
New York, NY 10022
Fax (212) 751-4864
Copies of the request for hearing must be served on the parties listed above as well as upon the Election Officer, 400 N. Capitol Street, Suite 855, Washington, DC 20001, Facsimile
(202) 624-3525. A copy of the protest must accompany the request for a hearing.
Sincerely,
Barbara Zack Quindel
Election Officer
cc: Kenneth Conboy, Election Appeals Master
Barbara C. Deinhardt, New York City Protest Coordinator
[1]The Election Officer also notes that any merger would not have an impact on the election. Local Union 817 held its nomination meeting on January 27, 1996, and it resulted in the uncontested election of one delegate and one alternate delegate. Mr. Spillane’s remarks at the strike rally were four days later.