Protest Decisions

OFFICE OF THE ELECTION SUPERVISOR for the INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS

 

IN RE: SANDY POPE,                                  )           Protest Decision 2011 ESD 331
                                                                         )           Issued: September 28, 2011
            Protestor.                                            )           OES Case No. P-327-092211-NA    
____________________________________)

 

            The Sandy Pope campaign 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 “get out the vote” materials produced by the IBT communications department “blatantly duplicate the themes and slogans used by the Hoffa campaign” and therefore constituted a prohibited union endorsement of Hoffa-Hall 2011.

            Election Supervisor representative Jeffrey Ellison investigated this protest. 

Findings of Fact and Analysis

As it did in past election cycles, the IBT communications department produced “get out the vote” (GOTV) materials for use in the current International officer election.  Among other things, the GOTV materials included postcards and a letter to be sent to the membership of those local unions that requested it.  Under the terms of the offer, the printing and postage costs of the mailings were the responsibility of the local unions requesting the GOTV mailings. 

The mailings from which each local union could select included three postcards and a letter.  Two of the postcards were not challenged by the protestor.[1]

The postcard the protestor challenged read, “VOTE!  Dear Local xxx Member:  Ballots have been mailed for the Teamsters election of International Union Officers.  Voting in the election shows employers, politicians and anti-union forces that our union is vibrant and strong.  Please complete your ballot and mail it back, postage-paid, today.”  Beneath this message was to be printed the name and title of the principal officer of the local union sending it. 

The protest also challenged the GOTV letter prepared by the communications department for local union use.  The first three paragraphs of the letter stated the following:

It has been a very rough year for the labor unions.  Our way of life is under attack and we have seen no shortage of forces trying to stamp out the labor movement.  In the last year, we’ve had overzealous politicians roll back century-old labor rights.  But we’re fighting back and you can too.

On October 6, ballots for the election of International Union officers will be mailed to your home and we, the members of this great union, will have the opportunity to vote for International General President, General Secretary-Treasurer, At-Large Vice Presidents, Regional Vice Presidents and Trustees.  As principal officer of Local XXX, I encourage you to educate yourself about the candidates and to VOTE in this important election.  Each member of our union has an equal voice and every vote counts.

Voting is your chance to tell anti-labor politicians and those who want to destroy unions that you will take action.  By participating in this election, you show enemies of labor that we are united in our fight to preserve our rights.

The protest challenged the text of the postcard, asserting that Hoffa-Hall 2011 has used the words “anti-union forces” and “enemies” in its campaign rhetoric.  As such, the protestor argued that the union’s use of these words in GOTV materials echoed the themes of the incumbent candidate and constituted an endorsement of that candidacy using union resources.  The protest also argued that the primary reason to vote in the election was to elect union leaders and not to prove a point to outsiders; therefore, the GOTV materials were not directed squarely at the intended purpose of improving voter turnout.

As part of our pre-publication review of materials intended for distribution to the membership by the union, we directed the communications department to revise the materials.  The revised postcard reads as follows: “VOTE!  Dear Local xxx Member:  Ballots have been mailed for the Teamsters election of International Union Officers.  Voting in the election shows employers, politicians and anti-union forces that our union is vibrant and strong.  Please complete your ballot and mail it back, postage-paid, today.”[2]  This revision deletes the phrase “anti-union forces” that has appeared in Hoffa campaign rhetoric.  In addition, although not sought by the protest, we deleted the name and title of the principal officer from the postcard to eliminate the possibility that the GOTV message will be sent over the name of an officer who is a candidate in the election or whose support for a particular candidate is well-known.

We directed a revision of the first three paragraphs of the GOTV letter to state as follows:

It has been a very rough year for labor unions. Our way of life is under attack and we have seen no shortage of forces trying to stamp out the labor movement. In the last year, overzealous politicians have rolled back century-old labor rights. Now, you can stand up and show your commitment to a strong and vital labor movement.

On October 6, ballots for the election of International Union officers will be mailed to your home and we, the members of this great union, will have the opportunity to vote for International General President, General Secretary-Treasurer, At-Large Vice Presidents, Regional Vice Presidents and Trustees. Take the time to educate yourself about the candidates and to VOTE in this important election. Each member of our union has an equal voice and every vote counts.

Voting in the International officer election tells tell anti-labor politicians and employers that our membership is active and involved in the union. Voter participation in this election makes our union stronger.[3]

We also directed that the letter appear on local union letterhead that does not list the names of any local union officers or employees and that the letter not be signed by or appear over the name of any particular person.  The revisions accomplished two things: they eliminated terms that have appeared in Hoffa campaign material, and they made the GOTV message from the union as an entity rather than from a person whose partisan position may be known.  In evaluating the letter, we concluded that urging members to vote in order to send a message to persons outside the union is a valid GOTV message, and we did not direct a revision of that message.  Indeed, as revised, the content of the challenged postcard and letter is consistent with that of the two other postcards to which there was no objection.  Finally, we find no evidence that the language of the original GOTV message was intended to coordinate with themes of the Hoffa campaign.[4]

            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:

Kenneth Conboy

Election Appeals Master

Latham & Watkins

885 Third Avenue, Suite 1000

New York, NY 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 331

 

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