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IN RE: ELIGIBILITY OF DUANE ALLEN, Local 614 Jeffrey Duncan, member and delegate candidate in Local Union 614, filed an eligibility protest pursuant to Article XIII, Section 2(b) of the Rules for the 2005-2006 IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election (“Rules”). He alleged that Duane Allen is ineligible for election as delegate to the 2006 IBT Convention under the Rules. Election Supervisor representative Steven R. Newmark investigated this protest. Findings of Fact At the nomination meeting held January 8, 2006, Allen was nominated for delegate to the 2006 IBT convention. The protest alleges that the dues Allen has paid are less than the amount required by IBT constitution and local union bylaws. TITAN records show that Allen paid dues timely for the 24-month eligibility period by check-off authorization to the local union. Allen earns an hourly wage of approximately $22.00 as a Rite Aid warehouse employee. His monthly dues rate is $30.00. The local union calculated the monthly dues of all Rite Aid warehouse employees by averaging the hourly wages of those employees and multiplying that average by 2.5. The average hourly rate of Rite Aid warehouse employees is $12, according to the local union. Their monthly dues rate, therefore, is $30.00. Had Allen’s dues been calculated on his rather than the average hourly wage, his monthly dues rate would be $55.00. The check-off authorization Allen signed directs the employer to deduct from his wages the dues assessed by the local union. As such, Allen does not calculate the dues he pays; instead, the local union calculates the dues and notifies the employer of the amount to withhold from Allen’s wages. Analysis Article VI, Section 1 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; [and] (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.” Article X, Section 3(d) of the IBT constitution provides the following, in relevant part:
Pursuant to this constitutional formula, Allen’s monthly dues should be $55.00, instead of the $30.00 he is assessed monthly. However, the International Union has issued extensive guidelines to its local unions permitting, under particular circumstances, the local unions to calculate their members’ monthly dues obligations by averaging the hourly wages of the members employed in particular job classifications by particular employers. Whether the local union properly calculated Allen’s dues is beyond the scope of this protest. It is, however, well-established that a member on dues check-off retains his good standing even if his dues were remitted late or not at all, provided he gave a check-off authorization and had sufficient earnings in the month from which dues could have been deducted. IBT Constitution, Article X, Section 5(c); Dunn, E9 (October 31, 1995); Reynozo, 2005 ESD 18 (October 25, 2005); aff’d, 06 EAM 05 (January 4, 2006). Extending this principle, a member on check-off whose dues remittance is less than the constitutionally required amount nonetheless retains his good standing, provided he had sufficient earnings to fund the properly calculated dues amount. The member’s check-off authorization directs the employer to remit to the local union the full amount of his dues; if the local union miscalculates that amount, the member is not to suffer the prejudice of that miscalculation in the form of a declaration of ineligibility because the member has done all that is necessary to authorize remittance of the correct dues amount. Accordingly, we DENY the protest and find Allen ELIGIBLE to run for delegate to the 2006 IBT convention. 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 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,
1725 K Street, N.W., Suite 1400, Washington, D.C. 20007-5135, all within the
time prescribed above. A copy of the protest must accompany the request for
hearing. Richard W. Mark cc: Kenneth Conboy DISTRIBUTION LIST (BY EMAIL UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED): Bradley T. Raymond, General Counsel Sarah Riger, Staff Attorney David J. Hoffa, Esq. Barbara Harvey Ken Paff Judith Brown Chomsky Stephen Ostrach Jeffrey Duncan Duane Allen Earl Walker, President William Broberg Steven R. Newmark Jeffrey Ellison
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