Hartford Courant Update on Windsor HD Election - June 28, 2007

The local Hartford paper printed an article following the news of the Connecticut Department of Labor decision that a multi-vehicle contractor was an employee. 

The reporter also focused on the next step in the NLRB process - a hearing into frivolous objections filed by the company in its latest delay tactic.

FedEx Corp. is challenging the validity of two ballots, as well as the union's conduct. Under federal law, either side may challenge an election.

The hearings, which begin Monday, are expected to last about a week, said Michael Cass, supervisory examiner for the Hartford NLRB office, one of 33 for the federal agency.

The NLRB in Hartford oversaw the election, which took place in mid-May. The ballots were not counted until this month because FedEx requested a review by the agency's Washington, D.C., headquarters of the Hartford NLRB's decision to allow the election. The national headquarters denied the company's request and allowed the votes to be tallied.

As the article notes, the law allows either side to file objections to challenge the integrity of the election or the election results.  The NLRB generally holds a hearing into the legal merits of the objections.  If the objections have no legal leg to stand on, then the Board regional office will reject the objection and recommend that the NLRB certify the election outcome. 

Sound familiar?  This is the exact process of what happened in Wilmington for the two Home Delivery units there.  In Boston, FedEx denied the drivers their rights, delayed the process every step of the way and lost each and every ruling.  And in the end, those HD drivers prevailed and they became members of Teamster Local Union 25.

So what is happening in Windsor is more of the same (even if the company fired its other law firm and brought in another firm): Fedex is sticking to its strategy of deny, delay and lose.