November 20, 1996
VIA UPS OVERNIGHT
Pat Connell
November 20, 1996
Page 1
Pat Connell
60-60 60th Street
Maspeth, NY 11378
Supermarkets General
301 Blair Road
Woodbridge, NJ 07095
Joseph Tramontana, Secretary-Treasurer
Teamsters Local Union 863
209 Summit Road
Mountainside, NJ 07092
James P. Hoffa
2593 Hounds Chase
Troy, MI 48098
Ron Carey Campaign
c/o Nathaniel Charny
Cohen, Weiss & Simon
330 W. 42nd Street
New York, NY 10036
Bradley T. Raymond
Finkel, Whitefield, Selik, Raymond,
Ferrara & Feldman
32300 Northwestern Highway, Suite 200
Farmington Hills, MI 48334
Pat Connell
November 20, 1996
Page 1
Re: Election Office Case No. P-1140-LU863-NYC
Gentlemen:
Pat Connell, a member of Local Union 807, filed a pre-election protest pursuant to
Article XIV, Section 2(b) of the Rules for the 1995-1996 IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election (“Rules”) alleging that on October 24, 1996, he and other witnesses noticed a “significant number of employer trucks, tractors and trailers . . . with Hoffa campaign bumper stickers and placards” entering and leaving the Woodbridge, New Jersey facility of Supermarkets General. Mr. Connell lodges his protest against general president candidate
James P. Hoffa, the Hoffa campaign and Supermarkets General.
Mr. Hoffa responds that he has no knowledge of the alleged incident. The employer states that the stickers have been removed and that it sent a letter to the local union reiterating its policy that no materials are to be put on company trucks.
New York City Protest Coordinator Barbara C. Deinhardt investigated this protest.
Pat Connell
November 20, 1996
Page 1
Mr. Connell states that on October 24, 1996, at approximately 7:00 a.m., he was standing outside the entrance to the Supermarkets General facility when he saw Hoffa campaign stickers on numerous tractors and trucks. Several of the tractors with Hoffa campaign stickers were blue “Paul’s Trucking” tractors. The investigation revealed that Paul’s Trucking is a wholly-owned subsidiary company of Pathmark Stores, Inc. (“Pathmark”), as is Supermarkets General. Paul’s Trucking delivers to Pathmark and its subsidiaries.
Mr. Connell estimates that about 10 percent of the tractors at the facility had Hoffa campaign stickers on them and that about half of the trailers entering the facility had Hoffa campaign stickers on them. Mr. Connell further states that he was not allowed to walk around the facility, but that he did not see any Carey campaign stickers.
Pathmark states that it sent a letter signed by Vice President for Labor Relations
Gerald P. Campbell to Local Union 863, stating:
We have been made aware that certain political literature in the form of stickers have been affixed to our trucks. We have a policy against the defacement of our trucks and property caused by the affixing of stickers, literature or any other writing. Please make your members aware of this policy.
Pathmark adds that it has done all it can do get the stickers off its property, including calling the police. Pathmark states that it does not want any involvement in the International officer election.
Local Union 863’s secretary-treasurer, Joe Tramontana, states that announcements that literature should not be placed on employer trucks have been made at the shop stewards’ meetings. He states that stewards have been told to remove any campaign stickers they see on employer trucks. Mr. Tramontana states that he has told the employer that stickers should not be placed on trucks and states that he has posted the letter from the employer at the employer’s site and at the local union hall. Mr. Tramontana states that he does not know who is posting the stickers and that he has seen both Hoffa and Carey stickers.
Pat Connell
November 20, 1996
Page 1
As the Election Officer has stated in several recent matters, “[n]othing in . . . the Rules authorizes members to affix campaign material to employer-owned trucks . . .” Hoffa, P-992-LU707-NYC (October 7, 1996); Knox, P-1046-LU337-MOI et seq. (October 30, 1996); Sweeney, P-1058-LU807-NYC (October 28, 1996). While the Rules protect the ability of members to support candidates of their own choosing, that protection does not extend to affixing campaign stickers and other material to property that belongs to an employer.[1] As the Election Officer stated in Phelan, P-711-LU550-NYC (April 23, 1996), aff’d, 96 - Elec. App. - 184 (KC) (May 6, 1996), “[t]he Rules protect campaigning as a personal right of IBT members and require that it be exercised that way.”
Affixing campaign material to employer property has other consequences as well. Putting such material on an employer’s truck or equipment has the effect, under the Rules, of causing the employer to make an improper campaign contribution, in violation of Article XII, Section 1(b)(1), even if the affixing of the sticker was against employer policy.[2] Putting stickers on employer trucks or equipment can also create a false impression of employer endorsement, which would be another form of making an improper campaign contribution. See Hoffa, P-1048-LU572-CLA (November 1, 1996); Aguilar, P-1080-LU848-CLA (October 31, 1996); Feeley,
P-874-LU817-MGN (September 17, 1996); Maney, P-956-IATSE-NYC et seq. (October 2, 1996), aff’d, 96 - Elec. App. - 251 (KC) (October 15, 1996); Knox, P-1006-SFD-MGN
(October 14, 1996).
Furthermore, under Article XII, Section 1(b)(9) of the Rules, International officer candidates “are strictly liable to insure that each contribution received is permitted under the Rules.” Therefore, affixing a campaign sticker or sign to an employer truck or other piece of equipment results in a violation of the Rules on the part of the candidate the member intends to support.
The Election Officer finds that campaign stickers have been affixed to Paul’s Trucking tractors, in violation of the Rules. The Election Officer also finds that most of those stickers were appropriately removed after the protest was filed. There is no evidence in the record as to the identities of the person or persons who are affixing the stickers.
With respect to Pathmark, the Election Officer notes that the evidence of the witnesses is that many of the stickers have been removed. The Election Officer finds that the employer has taken appropriate measures to ensure the continuing removal of stickers and to prevent further occurrences. “Immediate removal ends any potential impact of the improper campaigning.” Hoffman, P-1050-LU817-NYC (October 28, 1996); Sweeney, P-1029-RCS-NYC et seq. (October 28, 1996).
The response of Local Union 863 in the context of this protest was inadequate. Its position, as communicated to the Regional Coordinator by its secretary-treasurer, was that it had informed shop stewards that they are to discourage the pasting of stickers and that they should remove any stickers they see. In the meantime, however, improperly affixed campaign material continued to appear. The Election Officer requires more effective action to ensure prompt removal of all campaign bumper stickers from employer property.
Pat Connell
November 20, 1996
Page 1
For the foregoing reasons, the protest is RESOLVED with respect to Pathmark and GRANTED with respect to the Hoffa campaign.
In this matter, the Election Officer notes that Local Union 863 posted the employer letter at the Pathmark facility in Woodbridge and at the local union hall. The Election Officer orders that the notice remain posted on all local union bulletin boards at both facilities until
December 10, 1996.
Although the Election Officer does find the local union in violation, she nevertheless notes that since there has been repeated improper use of employer property, the local union need to post a notice. Therefore, within two (2) days of receipt of this protest, Local Union 863 shall post the attached notice at the local union hall and on the bulletin board at Pathmark. The notice shall remain on the bulletin boards until December 10, 1996, and shall not be covered or obstructed in any manner. Within three (3) days of the completion of this posting, the local union shall submit an affidavit to the Election Officer demonstrating compliance with this order.
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:
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
NOTICE TO LOCAL UNION 863 MEMBERS
RE: IMPROPER USE OF EMPLOYER PROPERTY
Local Union 863 is issuing this notice to remind members that the Election Rules prohibit misuse of employer property and resources during the International officer election. Putting International officer candidate campaign material on employer property, or using employer resources in order to campaign, violates the Election Rules.
The Election Rules protect campaigning as a personal right of members. Employer resources and property do not belong to members and cannot be used by them to campaign. Therefore, no member has a right to affix any International officer campaign material to employer-owned or employer-supplied vehicles or equipment.
You are hereby requested to stop such activity if you see it and to remove any International officer campaign material from employer property when you find it.
_______________________ _______________________________
Date Joe Tramontana, Secretary-Treasurer
Teamsters Local Union 863
This is an official notice which must remain posted until December 10, 1996, and must not be defaced or altered in any manner or be covered with any other material.
Approved by Barbara Zack Quindel, IBT Election Officer.
[1]Article VIII, Section 11(a) of the Rules states, “All Union members retain the right to participate in campaign activities, including the right to . . . support or oppose any candidate, to aid or campaign for any candidate, and to make personal campaign contributions.”
[2]This section states, “No employer may contribute, or shall be permitted to contribute, directly or indirectly, anything of value, where the purpose, object or foreseeable effect of the contribution is to influence, positively or negatively, the election of a candidate.” Knowledge on the part of the employer is not an element of this violation.