Protest Decisions

OFFICE OF THE ELECTION SUPERVISOR

for the

INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS

IN RE: HOFFA-HALL 2016,                      )           Protest Decision 2016 ESD 270

                                                                        )           Issued: July 15, 2016

            Protestor.                                           )           OES Case Nos. P-266-042116-MW 

____________________________________)

            Hoffa-Hall 2016 filed a pre-election protest pursuant to Article XIII, Section 2(a) of the Rules for the 2015-2016 IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election (“Rules”).  The protest alleged that Joe Darmento violated the Rules by sending a blast email to the membership of Local Union 2727 after the delegate election in that local union had concluded.

            Election Supervisor representative Joe Childers investigated this protest. 

Findings of Fact and Analysis

Darmento was a candidate for the sole delegate seat in Local Union 2727’s delegate and alternate delegate election.  Darmento is also a candidate for International office on the Teamsters United slate. 

On April 7, 2016, Darmento sent a blast email to the Local Union 2727 membership, thanking the members who supported him in the delegate election and promoting the Teamsters United slate of candidates for International office over the Hoffa-Hall 2016 slate of candidates.  Darmento filed a protest alleging that an email response to the membership from Tim Boyle, president of Local Union 2727, constituted an impermissible use of union resources.  We decided that protest in Darmento, 2016 ESD 269 (July 15, 2016). 

Darmento’s protest was dated Saturday, April 16, 2016 and was acknowledged by OES on Monday, April 18.  The acknowledgment was distributed to all interested parties, including counsel for Hoffa-Hall 2016, the protestor here.  On Thursday, April 21, 2016, counsel for Hoffa-Hall 2016 filed what he characterized as a “pre-election protest” alleging that Darmento and the Teamsters United slate of candidates for International office violated the Rules by using the email campaigning process established by Local Union 2727 for the delegate election to campaign for the International officers election.  All of the facts on which the protest of Hoffa-Hall 2016 relied were presented in the Darmento protest and attachments that were distributed by OES on April 18. 

Article XIII, Section 2(b) requires that pre-election protests be filed within two working days of “the day when the protestor becomes aware or reasonably should have become aware of the action protested or such protest[] shall be waived.”  We conclude that Hoffa-Hall 2016 became aware of Darmento’s April 7 email blast at the latest on April 18.[1]  The slate’s deadline for filing a protest of Darmento’s action under Article XIII, Section 2(b) therefore was April 20, and its April 21 filing was untimely. 

            On these facts, we DENY this protest as untimely filed. 

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:

Kathleen A. Roberts

Election Appeals Master

JAMS

620 Eighth Avenue, 34^th floor

New York, NY 10018

kroberts@jamsadr.com

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, 1050 17^th Street, N.W., Suite 375, Washington, D.C. 20036, all within the time prescribed above.  A copy of the protest must accompany the request for hearing.

                                                                        Richard W. Mark

                                                                        Election Supervisor

cc:        Kathleen A. Roberts

            2016 ESD 270

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