Communications between Jeff Milum (Business Agent in District 1) and Paul Gonter

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Below is unedited communications between Jeff Milum (Business Agent in District 1) and Paul Gonter (Rank and File member of District 6)

Original E-Mail to local18membersvoice

Date: Sat, 26 Mar 2005 12:13:27 EST

To: contact@local18membersvoice.com Obviously I don't know who you are. But what you are doing, in my opinion, is shameful. If you want to run for elected office you should do so. It's your right as union members. But this DOL, antiunion crap you are circulating is disgusting, shameful and, in my opinion, slanderous to your union, if not the individual officers. Think of the damage you are doing. The government hates unions. Contractors hate unions. The press is antiunion. People all across the land think union members are overpaid, under-worked and corrupt. In short, lazy bums. And for you to call the department of labor, announce it on the Internet and insinuate that officers of your union, duly elected officers I might add, are engaged in concerted illegal activity is horribly damaging to the union you claim to love. And it's an outright lie. You should be ashamed of yourselves. Every officer, business agent and staff member of local 18, including me, has given their very best, yea, their heart and soul, to the members of local 18. In spite of all the difficulties facing unions in general and construction trades unions specifically, this local has prospered. Our pension is arguably one of the best in the nation. Our apprentice training sites are the pride of the nation. Our wages and working conditions are excellent. It's a good union, well run, and honestly administered. But the people who read your material would think otherwise. And regardless of what happens in the upcoming election, the lies and innuendo you are circulating, will be believed and remembered by many. The stigma you are creating will hang like a cloud over our local for along time. You are doing great damage to local 18 and the labor movement in America in order to promote your own agenda. In fact, I would venture to say the ABC will use your material to promote right-to-work legislation in Ohio . Think about it, the danger is real. You should protect your union, promote your union, defend your union, not run it into the ground. Run for office if you like, but run on our own merits. Stop the lies and innuendo. It's shameful. May God Bless Local 18, Not Anonymously, Jeffrey A. Milum

Response Date: Mon, 28 Mar 2005 02:34:49 -0000 To: jmilum@aol.com Thank you for your comments. That DOL crap is the only thing that will prevent our Local and the International from a witch hunt to punish those who exercise their right as an American citizen to Free Speech and a Free Press. Most of the last 50 years the Buckeye Engineer has been the good news magazine for the incumbant officers of Local 18. Its a forum to allow the line officers and certain employees of Local 18 to suck up to the Business Manager and President. Thankfully for the next 5 months we won't have to read everyone thanking the Business Manager and President for all their guidiance. If you think I'm exaggerating ask Local 18's Bill Fidel how much money the Local spent fighting Irv Shimans request to publish a response to then Business Manager Millers editorial comment in a previous Buckeye Engineer. Which the courts ordered the Local to publish anyway. How can you say Local 18 is a great union when only 25% of ballots are returned to be counted? If 70+% was returning their ballots that would be a great Union.Then the government and Politicans could really see how strong a Union we have. I will ask you to think about some of the election rules before you call any Officier past or present duly elected. 1. Once you become a candidate you must attend your home district meeting. Would that be to keep a candidate from campaigning outside his or her home district while the incumbant has been driving around the previous three years in a union car keeping his or her name circulating statewide. 2. You must sign your ballot. I've never heard an election committee member say that they had ever compared a envelope signature to the signature card on file at the Local's headquarters. When I became a member of Local 18 I didn't sign a card to identify my official signature. Many members have expressed reservations about signing that envelope for fear of reprisials. 3. The Business Manager appoints the Chairperson of the Election Committee. The President fills any vacancies that occur on the Election Committee. Both sound like a conflict of interest is possible. 4. When election rules violations by incumbants are identified Local 18 funds will be used to defend that person while the person filing the charges will be doing this at their own expense. Even an elected public official would have to pay for his own defense. Local 18 has had several Dept. of Labor supervised elections in the past. While changes to our election rules to make them more democratic have been passed before the International has always struck them down. And no attempt was made by the Local to fight the International striking these democratic changes down. If you really are interested in finding out about how undemocratic this Union (both International and Local) has been call Herman Benson at the Association for Union Democracy (718)564-1114. We need a union that encourages members to be involved in the governing process thereby encouraging a representative government with true checks and balances. Paul Gonter reg.# 1747801

Original E-Mail to local18membersvoice

Date: Tue, 29 Mar 2005 16:30:36 EST

To: contact@local18membersvoice.com Paul, Did you ever stop to think that perhaps seventy percent of the members are very happy with the way their union is being run? By the way, in the interest of accuracy, Local 18 has had ONE supervised election, not several. Jeff Milum

Response Date: Wed, 30 Mar 2005 00:09:57 -0000 To: jmilum@aol.com If not voting means that a person is happy how come George Bush was re-elected? By your way of thinking everyone who was happy with Bush's performance wouldn't have voted and John Kerry would have been elected. Maybe our membership is like so many of the voters during a public election. They can't get enough information because there is no free Press and they don't believe that their vote is counted. To paraphase a Russian leader "Its not who votes or how many votes are cast but who counts the votes." Wouldn't all unions be stronger if members could debate issues without fear of repercussions from the powers that be as we have? Most Local 18 members don't voice their opinions or cast their ballots because of this. The Labor-Management Act prohibits officers from such action against someone who speaks out or runs for union office against incumbants. I'm not aware of any union educating its members about the content of LMDA. While it is published in the Buckeye Engineer it in such small print I don't know of anyone but me that ever commented on it being there. Finally, I don't just speak for myself I speak for other members who believe that union members should enjoy the same rights within the union as the do as an American citizen. Freedom of Speech, Right to a free press, and Taxation with Representation (our dues are a tax on union membership) by fairly elected Officers. Paul Gonter

Original E-Mail to local18membersvoice

Date: Fri, 1 Apr 2005 14:07:39 EST

To: contact@local18membersvoice.com You know Paul, Do you even know any of the elected officers? Have you ever been to one of their houses? Spent some time fishing with them? Gone to a ball game with them? Have you ever even said anything nice about them? I doubt it. Consequently you can't honestly judge them, how hard they work, how hard they try, how much they care. But you sure can slander them. I've been a staff member for fourteen years and I know them. They all work hard. And they all give their best. I know because I've seen it. And they deserve better than to be slandered by someone (you) who can't even imagine the difficult decisions they make, or the responsibilities they face, daily. Do what you want. Tear your union down. Criticize the leadership. Tell the members all the things you can do for them---with your magic wand. Jeff PS You keep misspelling "incumbant." It should be "incumbent."

Response Date: Sat, 02 Apr 2005 14:47:30 -0000 To: jmilum@aol.com Jeff I have never once mentioned the work ethic of the officers or employees of Local 18. You keep referring to the destruction of Local 18 which I have tough time following your reasoning that a free press is going to harm Local 18 in the long run. A free press is going to hurt "the union within a union" that exists now in Local 18. Members will have all the facts available to them. Both pro and con. While I can see you might feel threatened by something new . The" information age" has reached Local 18 after 60+ years of keeping the membership separated by time and distance. Communication is just a "click away".