IN RE: MARK MAY, Protestor.
Protest Decision 2011 ESD 148
Issued: March 5, 2011
OES Case No. P-162-021611-NE
Mark May, member of Local Union 317 and candidate for delegate on the Staring/Pekoff/May Members First Integrity Team, 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 campaign material of the Rank and File Power slate violated the Rules because it did not utilize the procedures under the local union election plan for distribution of literature and incorporated the IBT's horses-and-wheel logo in its message. In May, 2011 ESD 145 (March 2, 2011), we held that the slate was not required to use the distribution procedures under the election plan where it had available to it another permissible means of distribution; we also held that the campaign's use of the IBT logo did not violate the Rules.
In this decision, we address the protest allegation that the Rank and File Power slate violated the Rules with campaign text messages it sent to local union members.
Election Supervisor representative Deborah Schaaf investigated this protest.
Findings of Fact and Analysis
The Rank and File Power slate's text message read, "Have you returned your ballot in the Local 317 Delegate Election yet? Vote the Rank and File Power slate for a Positive Change in your union." At the top of the text was the IBT logo; the text concluded with a link to a facebook page that contained additional campaign information.
Investigation showed that the Rank and File Power slate text message was sent to members using a mobile phone list the Sandy Pope campaign obtained from a phone-match vendor. As we held in May, supra, the Pope campaign may permissibly use the IBT membership list it obtained as the result of Pope's accreditation as a candidate for International office to advance her candidacy for nomination, which may include supporting the campaigns of local union delegate candidates. Accordingly, the text message campaigning was permitted under the Rules.
No requirement in the Rules mandated that the Rank and File Power slate include a disclaimer in the text message indicating that the message was campaign material. Further, for the reason cited in May, the use of the IBT logo in the campaign message also was permitted.
Accordingly, we DENY the remaining allegation of the protest.
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, New York 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 145
DISTRIBUTION LIST (BY EMAIL UNLESS OTHERWISE SPECIFIED):
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. Box 10128
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. Box 272
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
Mark May
337 Westbrook Hills
Syracuse, NY 13215
markmay@twcny.rr.com
John DePietro
6878 Sand Hill Road, Apt. 4
East Syracuse, NY 13057
cosmo2121@yahoo.com
Gary Staring, Secretary-Treasurer
Teamsters Local Union 317
P.O. Box 11037
Syracuse, NY 13218
gstaring@twcny.rr.com
Deborah Schaaf
1118 Coddington Road
Ithaca, NY 14850
David F. Reilly
22 West Main Street
Wickford, RI 02852
dreilly@dfresq.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