Darmento, 2016 ESD 285

OFFICE OF THE ELECTION SUPERVISOR

for the

INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS

IN RE: JOE DARMENTO,                         )           Protest Decision 2016 ESD 285

                                                                        )           Issued: September 23, 2016

            Protestor.                                           )           OES Case No. P-318-070616-MW   

____________________________________)                      

Joe Darmento, member of Local Union 2727 and candidate for International office on the Teamsters United slate, filed a pre-election protest pursuant to Article XIII, Section 2(b) of the Rules for the 2015-2016 IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election (“Rules”).  The protest alleged that Local Union 2727 elected trustee violated the Rules by distributing campaign material using his official local union email address.

            Election Supervisor representative Joe Childers investigated this protest.

Findings of Fact and Analysis

On July 5, 2016, Ed Gronkiewicz sent blast campaign emails to Local Union 2727 members, disparaging protestor Darmento’s candidacy for International office as well as the Teamsters United slate, and promoting the Hoffa-Hall 2016 slate.  Gronkiewicz sent the same message in three separate batches to a total of 118 addresses.  Gronkiewicz obtained these addresses from campaign emails Darmento had sent during the local union’s delegates and alternate delegates election.[1] 

Gronkiewicz is an elected trustee of Local Union 2727 and a member of the local union executive board.  He does not work full-time for the local union.  His name and photo appear on the local union’s website.  Unlike most of the other members of the local union executive board, who use email addresses that end in a “local 2727.org” domain name, the email address listed for Gronkiewicz on the local union’s website is his personal gmail account.  He stated to our investigator that he has only the one gmail account, which he uses for personal communications.

Gronkiewicz told our investigator that he sent the email blasts from his personal computer on personal time.  There is no contrary evidence. 

Protestor Darmento complains that Gronkiewicz’s use of the same email address to send campaign material that is listed for him on the local union’s website constitutes an impermissible use of union resources.  On the facts presented here, we disagree.  The email address Gronkiewicz used is his personal address and does not convey to the recipient of his email message that it was sent or endorsed by the local union.  Cf. Ostrach, 2006 ESD 348 (September 24, 2016) (use of union-supplied email address, combined with other union resources, to send campaign solicitation violated the Rules).

Accordingly, we DENY this 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:

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 285

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