Correia & Sauceda, 2021 ESD 97

OFFICE OF THE ELECTION SUPERVISOR

for the

INTERNATIONAL BROTHERHOOD OF TEAMSTERS

IN RE: DEREK CORREIA                         )           Protest Decision 2021 ESD 97

and NORMAN SAUCEDA,                         )           Issued: April 9, 2021

                                                                        )           OES Case No. P-113-031721-FW

Protestors.                                          )

____________________________________)

Derek Correia and Norman Sauceda, members of Local Union 542, filed a pre-election protest pursuant to Article XIII, Section 2(b) of the Rules for the 2020-2021 IBT International Union Delegate and Officer Election (“Rules”).  The protest alleged that the notice of nominations meeting results was not posted on the union bulletin board at LBC Mundial Corp., in violation of the Rules.

Election Supervisor representative Michael Miller  investigated this protest.

Findings of Fact and Analysis

Local Union 542 will elect 10 delegates and 6 alternate delegates to the IBT convention.  The Members for Members 542 slate, comprised of rank-and-file members, is competing against the Teamsters 542 Members First slate, consisting of local union officials and rank-and-file members.  The protestors here are candidates on the Members for Members 542 slate.

Protestors alleged they visited LBC Mundial on March 16, 2021 “to check the Union Bulletin board to verify if the Delegate list for the upcoming election was posted.”  The protest alleged that the notice “was not posted on the union board.”  Protestor Correia signed the protest electronically, verifying that “the factual statements are true and have evidentiary support.”

Photos provided by the protestors demonstrated that, in contrast to the plain language of the protest, the notice of nominations meeting results indeed was posted on the union bulletin board.  The photos showed that the board is a small, open, cork board overcrowded with notices.  The notice that is the subject of this protest was affixed to the board with a pushpin.  Posted atop that notice was a general membership meeting notice that had been posted a day or two before protestors visited the worksite.  The photo series protestors submitted showed the board as it appeared when they first viewed it.  The notice of nominations meeting results was posted to the board beneath the general membership meeting notice but could be viewed simply by lifting the bottom edge of the meeting notice.

Investigation showed the meeting notice was posted by the steward who works at that location.

Immediately after the protest was filed, the business agent with responsibility for LBC Mundial rearranged notices on the board so that the notice of nominations meeting results could be viewed without lifting any other paper.  On this basis, we deem the protest allegation RESOLVED.

We address in Vasquez, 2021 ESD 104 (April 9, 2021), the impermissible subterfuge protestors used to gain access to the area where the union board is situated at LBC Mundial and the improper purpose for which they sought that access. 

We also address there the protest allegation protestors made in this case, an allegation they knew to be false – that the notice “was not posted on the union board.”    

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.  Any party requesting a hearing must comply with the requirements of Article XIII, Section 2(i).  All parties are reminded that, absent extraordinary circumstances, no party may rely in any such appeal upon evidence that was not presented to the Office of the Election Supervisor.  Requests for a hearing shall be made in writing, shall specify the basis for the appeal, and shall be served upon:

Barbara Jones

Election Appeals Master

IBTappealsmaster@bracewell.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, all within the time prescribed above.  Service may be accomplished by email, using the “reply all” function on the email by which the party received this decision.  A copy of the protest must accompany the request for hearing.

                                                                  Richard W. Mark

                                                                  Election Supervisor

cc:        Barbara Jones

            2021 ESD 97

DISTRIBUTION LIST (BY EMAIL UNLESS NOTED):

Bradley T. Raymond, General Counsel

International Brotherhood of Teamsters

braymond@teamster.org

Edward Gleason

egleason@gleasonlawdc.com

Patrick Szymanski

szymanskip@me.com

Will Bloom

wbloom@dsgchicago.com

Tom Geoghegan

tgeoghegan@dsgchicago.com

Rob Colone

rmcolone@hotmail.com

Barbara Harvey

blmharvey@sbcglobal.net

Kevin Moore

Mooregp2021@gmail.com

F.C. “Chris” Silvera

fitzverity@aol.com

Fred Zuckerman

fredzuckerman@aol.com

Ken Paff

Teamsters for a Democratic Union

ken@tdu.org

Derek Correia

Dmcorreia13@aol.com

Norman Sauceda

Pureflow7@gmail.com

Jaime Vasquez

jvasquez@teamsters542.org

Michael Miller

Miller.michael.j@verizon.net

Deborah Schaaf

dschaaf@ibtvote.org

Jeffrey Ellison

EllisonEsq@gmail.com