On November 23, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with the International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) Local 1408 (located in Jacksonville, Fla.), concerning the challenged election of officers conducted on June 24, 2014. The union agreed to conduct new nominations and a new election of officers before December 30, 2014 under OLMS supervision. The investigation disclosed that Local 1408 failed to provide proper notice of nominations and failed to provide proper notice of election when members were not notified that an eligibility requirement was being waived. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Atlanta-Nashville District Office.
On November 18, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local 1225 (located in Marina, Calif.), concerning its May 27, 2014 primary election for president and one executive board member. The OLMS investigation concluded that six members, who were ineligible to vote because they failed to pay dues, voted in the election. The inclusion of these six ballots may have affected the candidates for president and an executive board member who advanced to the subsequent runoff election. The union agreed to conduct a new election for president and an executive board member on or before February 13, 2015, under OLMS supervision. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Seattle-San Francisco District Office.
On November 14, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with the Philadelphia Security Officers Union (PSOU), located in Philadelphia, Pa., concerning the challenged election of officers conducted on April 28, 2014. The union agreed to conduct new nominations and a new election for president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, assistant secretary, and sergeant-at-arms under OLMS supervision. The investigation disclosed that the PSOU failed to elect its officers by secret ballot, failed to provide proper and timely notice of nominations, and failed to mail the election notice to each member’s last known home address. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On November 4, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 1 (located in Chicago, Ill.), concerning the challenged election of officers conducted on April 30, 2014. The union agreed to conduct new nominations and a new election for president, secretary treasurer, director of research and education, and trustee maintenance craft by February 28, 2015. The investigation disclosed that the union failed to mail ballots to all of its members potentially affecting the election of four positions. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On October 21, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 29 (located in Pittsburgh, Pa.), to conduct a new election for the fourth delegate to the international convention on or before December 11, 2014. The investigation established that the local failed to ensure adequate safeguards insofar as two ballots were given to a candidate to be hand-delivered to voting members. In this case, the voted ballots were returned to the candidate for mailing. The fourth delegate position was won by two votes and was thus affected by the violation. The new election will be amongst the 4th delegate with the lowest votes as well as the remaining non-winning candidates. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On October 8, 2014, the Department entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with American Postal Workers Union (APWU) Local 199 (located in Richmond, Va.), concerning a challenged election in April 2014. Local 199 agreed to install a candidate into office who had won more votes than the candidate originally declared the winner. The investigation concluded that the local failed to properly count the ballots. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office.
On September 17, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with the National Alliance of Postal and Federal Employees (NAPFE), located in Washington, D.C., concerning the challenged election of officers conducted on March 4, 2014. The union agreed to conduct new nominations and a new election for all offices under OLMS supervision. The investigation disclosed that the union failed to provide proper notice of election and denied eligible members the right to vote in that the union’s membership mailing list was inaccurate. The union also permitted ineligible members to vote in the election. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Washington District Office.
On August 28, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 98, located in Philadelphia, Pa., concerning its May 6, 2014 election of officers. IBEW Local 98 agreed to conduct a new election for five executive board positions under OLMS supervision before December 5, 2014. The investigation of the challenged election disclosed that the union improperly determined that two nominees for executive board were ineligible to run for office, in violation of Section 401(c) of the LMRDA. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Philadelphia-Pittsburgh District Office.
On August 25, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 124, located in Kansas City, Mo., to conduct a new election for vice-president, financial secretary, treasurer, business manager and seven executive board positions under OLMS supervision. The investigation disclosed that the union failed to elect its officers by secret ballot when members stood in line with their unfolded two-sided voted ballots and placed them in an open ballot box. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Kansas City Resident Investigator Office.
On August 13, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 2544 (located in Tucson, Ariz.), concerning the local’s failure to hold its regularly scheduled officer election in November 2013. The investigation concluded that the local failed to adequately inform its members of a meeting to amend its bylaws extending the terms of local officers from two to three years. Local 2544 agreed to hold an election under OLMS supervision. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On August 4, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 3320 (located in Houston, Tex.), to conduct a new election and installation for the offices of president, vice president, and secretary on or before October 31, 2014, under OLMS supervision. The investigation disclosed that a candidate was denied a reasonable opportunity to campaign by not being provided requested information about making a campaign mailing to the membership. In addition, employer facilities were used when the former president sent an email to all employees through the government’s email system prior to the election which praised the vice president who was succeeding him as president and who was the winning presidential candidate. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Dallas-New Orleans District Office.
On July 16, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with Amalgamated Transit Union (ATU) Local Division 788 (located in St. Louis, Mo.), to conduct new nominations, a new election, and installation for the office of 1st Shed Captain, DeBaliviere Station, before December 1, 2014 under OLMS supervision. The investigation into the union’s December 5, 2013 election of officers disclosed that the union failed to provide members a reasonable opportunity to nominate in that it failed to verify the eligibility of nominees and their nominators at the nomination meetings. This violation resulted in the union improperly disqualifying an eligible nominee for 1st Shed Captain, DeBaliviere Station, because of her nominator’s retiree membership status. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis Office.
On July 15, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) Local 96 (located in St. Louis, Mo.) to conduct a new election and installation for the offices of president and first vice president for professionals before October 17, 2014 under OLMS supervision. These two offices were the only contested offices in the local’s December 6, 2013 protested election. The investigation disclosed that members were denied the right to vote when no effort was made to find correct addresses for the combined nomination and election notices and the ballot packages that were returned as undeliverable. Additionally, there was no notice of the replacement ballot request procedure posted and the Fall Winter 2013 local newsletter contained articles from incumbent officers highlighting their accomplishments, one of which was reprinted in campaign literature. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis Office.
On July 11, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and its Local 3314 (located in Buffalo, N.Y.), to conduct new nominations, a new election, and installation for the office of president prior to October 17, 2014 under OLMS supervision. The investigation disclosed that the local improperly applied a candidate eligibility requirement and denied a member the right to be a candidate for president. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Boston-Buffalo District Office.
On May 28, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with Communications Workers of America (CWA) Local 31003 (located in New York, N.Y.), concerning the challenged election of officers conducted on November 13 - 14, 2013. The union agreed to conduct a new election for president, secretary-treasurer, local chairperson, 2nd and 3rd vice presidents, RA chair and 16 executive board members, including new nominations, if necessary, under OLMS supervision. The OLMS investigation disclosed that Local 31003 failed to provide proper notice of the election. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS New York District Office.
On May 6, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with National Association of Letter Carriers (NALC) Branch 116, located in Fort Wayne, Ind., to conduct a new election for president, vice-president, and one trustee under OLMS supervision. The OLMS investigation disclosed that the union did the following: failed to comply with a reasonable request to distribute campaign literature; failed to follow the NALC Regulations when observers were not notified when undelivered ballot packages would be picked up from the post office box; placed improper restrictions on observers during the tally; improperly counted ballots returned from unidentified individuals; and failed to maintain election tally sheets. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Chicago District Office.
On April 28, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with Service Employees International Union (SEIU), United Service Workers West (USWW), located in Los Angeles, Calif., to install Jacqueline Johnson as the Industry Vice President (IVP) South Security. Both Johnson and her opponent for the IVP South Security position, Margaret Hawkins, filed complaints with OLMS after the union installed a non-candidate to the position after the race in the September 20, 2013 election ended in a tie. During the investigation, it was determined the IVP South Security ballots had been miscounted by the outside election service and in fact, Johnson had won the race by one vote. The agreement specifically states that USWW will install Johnson to the IVP South Security position no later than May 7, 2014. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On February 26, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with the Kaiser Permanente Nurse Anesthetists Association (KPNAA), located in Westminster, Calif., to conduct a new election for president-elect and secretary under OLMS supervision. The investigation disclosed that the union’s email system was used to send a letter with the union logo from an officer to all members in support of a candidate. The investigation also disclosed that the web based system for conducting the election lacked secrecy. The agreement follows an investigation conducted by the OLMS Los Angeles District Office.
On January 31, 2014, OLMS entered into a voluntary compliance agreement with Laborers Local 720 (located in Denver, Colo.), concerning the challenged election of officers conducted on June 8, 2013. The union agreed to conduct a new election, including new nominations, for recording secretary under OLMS supervision. The OLMS investigation of the challenged election disclosed that Local 720 improperly applied its candidate qualifications. The agreement follows an investigation by the OLMS Denver-St. Louis District Office.
Last Updated: 1-19-16