Comments on The Real UTU: Letters of Support

This was an open letter sent to the Save Our Union...

2008-04-20T14:09:00.000-04:00

This was an open letter sent to the Save Our Union web site. It was signed by me and if you post this I want to be sure that no one thinks I am ashamed or afraid to be associated with my comments.

Don Lindsey
Member, UTU Local 533

April 14, 2008

Open Letter in response to Plaintiff’s Arnold, Eubanks, Hasenauer and Michael’s letter to UTU delegates titled An Informed and Fair Vote received by e-mail from Save Our Union.

As I was preparing a few thoughts on the above subject matter, I received a piece in the mail entitled Breaking News. It was nothing that anyone, who loves this union, should be proud of. It made unfounded allegations toward individuals who have a difference of opinion regarding the merger of UTU and SMWIA and denigrated into name calling and personal attacks.

The biggest problem in all of this dissension is, that the brave and bold individual known only as Anonymous is alive and well in both camps. Neither side is without guilt in trying to tear down the reputations and integrity of anyone who dares speak out with a different point of view. If this type of action continues to be condoned, regardless of our personal feelings, the union that we have loved and defended these last forty (40) years will cease to exist. This now brings me to why I started this letter in the first place.

I need to make a disclaimer, so that there is no confusion or question regarding my personal thoughts on the UTU/SMWIA merger and its effect on our membership.

I am and continue to be a close and personal friend to Paul Thompson. Any thoughts, opinions or statements made below are mine and mine alone and are made as a member, not an officer of any UTU entity. I stated at the meeting held in New Orleans that I supported the merger with SMWIA when it was presented and still believed, if it were allowed to be consummated, it would prove to be beneficial to the membership of both unions. I believe that every human being is entitled to his or her own opinion and should be free to express it for all to know, regardless of ones position.

Also, before I come under attack from that brave soul, Anonymous, I must stress that I have had no contact with the six (6) Vice Presidents who are currently facing charges before the Executive Board and have talked with our NLD, James Brunkenhoefer twice in the last 3 weeks, both times regarding federal candidates running for office in Kansas.

At the New Orleans meeting, those present heard one version of how this merger agreement came about without the benefit to question Mike Sullivan and Paul Thompson on their response to the allegations which were made.

However, since I had heard only one side and one opinion of the actions leading up to the vote, after returning from New Orleans, I did something that no one else felt was necessary. I asked someone who had intimate knowledge of what took place, Paul Thompson.

I asked him to explain the questions and statements made regarding his conduct prior to, during and following the UTU/SMWIA merger. As one would expect, Paul’s perspective differed somewhat from the allegations which have been bandied about. I apologize for this lengthy disclaimer but feel it necessary before Brother Anonymous accuses me of being unable to think on my own and finding it necessary to remind me of who pays my salary, as he did recently on the Save Our Union web site.

The plaintiff’s point out in their first paragraph, “This case is not that difficult. Simply put this case asks whether or not the members had a legal, informed and fair vote last summer.”

My opinion is we did. However, the plaintiff’s feel we should merely accept their version of what transpired without allowing those who actually had an integral part in the merger to tell their side of the story.

I wrote one of the Plaintiff’s, Brother Hasenauer, on January 26, 2008 to express my thoughts on an e-mail he had sent to friends and members under the subject line “UTU Board members do your homework”. As one would expect from someone who deals with politicians on a regular basis, it took three pages before I got to the point that if we truly wanted to get to the truth of what transpired prior to and following the Merger Agreement, possibly a court of law was the place to settle these allegations. John was much more succinct than I was when he responded “Then court it is.”

It appears, and appearance is everything in today’s world, that the Plaintiff’s and their attorney, Mr. Fox, want to tell only their side of what transpired. I believe instead of trying to shut out Thompson, Sullivan and the current Board of Directors from this case, they should be demanding that they be brought before the court, placed under oath and have all parties explain their actions. Only then can the membership get a fair and impartial look at the facts being disputed.

I believe President Futhey missed a golden opportunity to show strong leadership, when he refused SMWIA General President, Mike Sullivan’s offer to attend the New Orleans meeting and directly answer questions, from those present, pertaining to the Merger Agreement. This would have erased any perception that President Futhey opposed the merger and would have been an excellent opportunity to address the many accusations which were raised at the meeting and in the plaintiff’s lawsuit. It would also have been an excellent time for the two Presidents’s to sit down privately and try to iron out what a SMART Constitution would actually look like.

I also asked Paul if it were true that he had stated at the General Chairman’s meeting in San Diego that the merger was a way to do away with Craft Autonomy. He said that he had brought the subject up. He thought that for the UTU to continue to provide for its membership, it was necessary to look at and address the possibility that we are at a point in our existence that we could have a situation where a small number of members working as Firemen or Brakemen could reject an agreement that was beneficial to the vast majority.

I have conflicting thoughts on this subject but refuse to believe that discussing it is cause to attack anyone’s loyalty or freedom to express a different point of view. Paul also admitted that he had probably gotten a little loud in expressing his disappointment and embarrassment regarding the actions of the Delegates when they amended Art. 92 by doubling the strike benefits from $50.00 to $100.00 per day by stating that SMWIA had a large strike fund and UTU should take advantage of it while SMWIA officers were observing the deliberations. Again, if one hears the other side of any issue, it suddenly makes rational minds stop and process both points of view rather than jump to an unsubstantiated conclusion.

I would like to point out what I believe to be a major flaw in the Plaintiff’s cry for a Fair and Informed Vote. I believe that if they are successful in resubmitting the merger vote and it fails, we have set up a situation that would require another fair and informed vote regarding the actions taken at the last Convention. Delegates were told that they were electing officers under the Merger Agreement and that they would assume their duties on January 1, 2008 under the duties assigned them as officers of the Rail Department of SMART. Delegates and members alike were told that the Asst. President and GS&T positions would be eliminated through attrition at the first Smart Convention.

I am one member that hopes that the Intervenors are successful in their attempt to be a party to this case. It is the only way to get everyone on record as to what truly transpired leading up to this unfortunate time in UTU history. It should be imperative that any decision stemming from this case should be based on evidence developed from two different points of view, not one.

It appears to this member that the current administration’s actions have passively condoned the Plaintiff’s actions and the end result will be, in my opinion if they prevail, our International dues dollars being used to pay Mr. Fox’s attorney fees in a case where we sued ourselves with the help of various GCA’s, State Boards, Locals and individual members.

In closing, I hope that everyone understands that my purpose for writing this is not to attack anyone but merely to express my personal frustration at seeing a union that I love dearly appear to be self destructing. With hope for a brighter tomorrow, I remain,

Fraternally,

Don Lindsey Jr.
Member UTU Local 533

Our First Alt. Vice President Delbert Strunk and o...

2008-04-13T11:16:00.000-04:00

Our First Alt. Vice President Delbert Strunk and our Assistant General Chairman and General Secretary have preferred the charges against our new Board of Directors.
After reading the charges the only thing you can conclude is that the new Board of Directors are trying to do their job. Protect the members and adhere to a decision of the former Board of Directors and a majority vote of the members.
Question: Why the charges? Answer: Self-serving interest. Once the new Board of Directors is removed, our own Delbert Strunk would be elevated to Vice President and his assistants would be on the fast track to being moved up.
Why would Delbert Strunk want to be VP when he is the General Chairman of a large committee?
Delbert Strunk is a lame duck General Chairman. All of us know that Delbert Strunk can't win re-election in 3 years. Remember, in 2007, he faced stiff competition for the first time. During that election, he promised his committee that he would not run for a position with the International.
Did you know that shortly after his re-election Mr. Strunk and a Superintendent of NS intimidated and harassed a conductor into falsifying the report and covering up a personal injury? The NS Superintendent was fired and even though Mr. Strunk readily admitted his involvement, he kept his position with the UTU. This particular incident is being investigated by the FRA. It is hard to believe that he continues to pretend to be a union representative while the NS provides tee time on the golf course, lunches, dinners and special trips. This is all properly documented in government reports. It is safe to say that Strunk will not be re-elected in 3 years. If he is, then shame on us.
During his campaign for International Alt. Vice President, Delbert Strunk presented a campaign brochure to the Delegates. Here is a quick review of what he told the delegates last year. 1) He states he "recovered over 3 million dollars for Conrail Trust Fund". Fact: A Local Chairman discovered, investigated and documented the shortage and is truly responsible for the recovery. 2) "First General Committee to implement trip rates". Fact: Trip rates have been around longer than Moses' camel. Ask some of Strunk's Local Chairmen about Strunk's handling of trip rates. Those chairmen had no input, they were told this is what you get. 3) "Instrumental in leading the fight against BLET in an attempted raid on ground service members". Fact: In figures distributed on the A-Card raid in Delbert's territory he actually lost. Hardly any members came to his meetings. If not for the B LET's arro gance and misstep by not passing A-Cards on individual contracts Mr. Strunk's territory would now be BLET. The actual victory belongs to International Officers (soon to be ex-Vice Presidents) and the other NS General Chairmen for defeating the BLET. All of this did not go unnoticed by Association of General Chairmen. Last month they removed Strunk by a majority vote of 3 to 1 in his bid for Chairman of the General Chairperson Association. 4) Strunk states "Responsible for continually maintaining General Fund balance over $ 700,000.00" . Fact: Mr. Strunk's fund balance as of Sept. 1, 2004 was at a negative - $ 1,888.77 only after decisive action by the Local Chairman in his Committee did the flow of red ink stop; and it was not until January 1, 2007 did the fund reach $ 700,000.00 dollars.
At the New Orleans State of the Union meeting in January, Mr. Strunk embarrassed himself and all of us when he stood on his bully pulpit and stated
" If we would have known certain vice president would not support this President 100% we would have run some against them"
Who is we? "WE" is the Futhey political machine made up of self serving political loyalists who are now standing in line for the payoffs. first order of business for Futhey, he assigned Strunk to the DIP review committee. Keep an eye out for some real changes in DIP.
Brothers and Sisters it is time to ask Delbert some important questions.

1 Why did you lie to your General Committee, when you promised not to run for an international position?
2 Why did you compromise the integrity of this great Union when you conspired with NS in covering up an injury?
3 Why did you mislead the Association of General Chairman when you presented an anti merger letter on their behalf?
3 Why did you present false and misleading information to the Delegates of this Union?

It is quite apparent that Strunk is loyal to Futhey. Strunk thinks that the members are not paying attention and he thinks that the members do not care how he behaves. Strunk believes that the President is entitled to total support. He believes that we should dump the new Board of Directors and protect King Futhey. We have a message for Delbert, the members are tired and disgusted with self-serving UTU officers protecting the UTU Monarchy.
The members are entitled to a Real Union that protects and practices sound democratic principles with checks & balances. The members want a Board of Directors that are more than mere lackeys and a collection of rubber stamps. This new Board of Directors is trying to protect the members' interests. This is the first time in UTU history that the members have a Board of Directors with the courage to hold the President accountable.
Strunk does not understand, it is members who make up this Union, its the members' money that King Futhey is spending to pay back political favors. The President, Vice President and Director are not the Union the members are the union. Lets take it back.

Brothers and Sisters let us stand in support our new
Board of Directors.

I am glad to see that not everyone has been fooled...

2008-04-03T10:39:00.000-04:00

I am glad to see that not everyone has been fooled by the "4 teamsters of the apocalypse." There is still some hope left for our union.

we need to stop fulfilling our personal agendas an...

2008-04-02T10:58:00.000-04:00

we need to stop fulfilling our personal agendas and start getting on with moving our union forward. throwing the 7 vps out will just continue our downward spiral and chill dissent within our union.

Does anybody know how long Ed Michael has even bee...

2008-03-31T01:54:00.000-04:00

Does anybody know how long Ed Michael has even been a member? Is he even a member of the UTU?

How do you go about filing charges aginst Presiden...

2008-03-31T01:53:00.000-04:00

How do you go about filing charges aginst President Futhey for trying to turn our union into a dictatorship?

It's good to see that the Vice Presidents are no s...

2008-03-31T01:29:00.000-04:00

It's good to see that the Vice Presidents are no standing alone.