Teamsters local # 541 For information on the members that are opposing Jed please visit www.newbeginningslate.com
Update 7/2/08 JK Concrete totally free to use rat contractors
We have found yet another company signatory with 541 that freely ignores their contract with the union. JK Concrete otherwise known as Jamie Kidwell Concrete uses finishers to drive equipment hauling trucks and contracts out rat ready-mix on nearly every job they have. Right now JK is working on the massive expansion of Adams Diary Parkway. We could not find a single Teamster on the job site and Whistle ready-mix was being brought in from Pleasant Hill to pour non union mud. This work is going on within seeing distance of Lafarge ready-mix. JK was brought into the union 4 years ago by then Business Agent, Jim Delaney. For awhile they played by the rules but as anyone can see now like so many other 541 companies they have been freely allowed to do as they please.
Update 6/28/08 Carpenters take a stand against rat contractors while Teamsters do nothing
We all know that our local 541 officers refuse to acknowledge that rat contractors are taking over most of our job sites and spreading like a cancer. It is well established that under the table deals have been made with some, while with others your overpaid union officers are simply too lazy to go out and do anything about. Thankfully not every union in town has this self destructive attitude, as you may have seen the Carpenters have banners on several jobs around town right now. We stopped to talk to a group of them that were manning a picket on 7hwy in Blue Springs were a large strip mall is being built. They informed us that they are out there to make sure the public knows that many of these contractors are getting public funds from state and local governments and then turning around and hiring non union companies and even illegal immigrants to do the job. We asked if the local 541 had ever offered to join them and support any of the banners they have up around town. Not surprisingly we were told that they had never seen the Teamsters put a banner on a job even though they seem to be the ones most affected by rat companies.
Update 6/10/08 D.F. Freeman using Laborers to drive trucks and contracts out non union Ready-Mix
D.F. Freeman joins the long list of companies that ignore their contract with Teamsters Local 541. Recently we spoke to some workers at this company whom we thought were fellow Teamsters but what we found was that Laborers and Finishers are doing Teamster work. As if that wasn’t bad enough these workers informed us that this company almost exclusively uses Century ready-mix. One of the Laborers on the job stated that he had been with the company off and on for 5 years and not once had he ever heard of a Teamster business agent demanding that D.F. Freeman abide by their contract. These Laborers also stated that they had been told at their last union meeting that they would be taking over more Teamster jobs with other companies in the near future. Why is this happening? Because it is cheaper to have Laborer apprentices in those jobs then it is Teamsters. It is also well known now that no one from the Teamsters hall will put up a fight when jobs are lost. At the most a contractor might have to pay a little money under the table but it’s big savings for them and big losses for local Teamster members.
Update 5/18/08 Superior Bowen Using Laborers in Teamster Positions
Recently I had the chance to speak to several workers from Superior Bowen as they are re-paving streets in a local neighborhood. I spoke to what I thought was a fellow Teamster driving a truck hauling equipment. Turns out this guy was actually a laborer with a CDL doing teamster work for apprentice wages. He said that laborers actually do most of the driving for his company and that his local union encourages and helps their members get CDL’s so that they can take the Teamster positions when needed. Not surprisingly he stated that he had never seen a Teamster Business agent on a job site and that most of the Teamsters he did interact with are fully aware of how little cope and company are wrecking their union.
Update 5/7/08 DOL Releases new accounting figures for 541
The LM2 reports for local 541 are in and as everyone can imagine they paint a very grim picture. We lost right around 100 dues paying members between 2006 and 2007. The local made up for this loss by raising dues on members at Air Gas, Fordyce, Lafarge and several others.
Dues increases will also be in store for other companies who’s contracts are coming due soon. Our biggest jump was in legal bills which for just one year went up to around $110,000. That was up from 2006 where legal bills were around $79,000. The increases can more then likely be attributed to Cope paying his sons legal bills with the local’s money and the cost of rigging the 2007 election.
Little jed was the only person in the office that saw much in the way of a pay increase with his salary jumping from $104,700 to a whopping $109,501. Another item of interest is the $10,883 the local shelled out for Boom Truck Training. Did anyone hear of such a training class being held? Was there any notification of this? Sounds like jed’s imaginary training program is now costing us real dollars. This is also the first time that our local has paid into an employee severance fund. Looks like little jed had set around 40k aside just in case his elections scheme failed. You can check out all of the numbers for yourself by clicking on this link http://erds.dol-esa.gov/query/getOrgQry.do. Under union abbreviation select IBT, then under Designation Number enter 541. To read the LM2 report click on 2007 report.
UPDATE 5/5/08 Little Jed hit with civil rights lawsuit
We all know what a racist bigot little jed cope is and now it seems he has let his hatred for African-Americans cause this local to be sued. Brother Terry Williams is bringing the case against jed. Mr.Williams posted his story on this site nearly one year ago. Please read what he had to say about the lack of representation from 541 at http://541teamsters.com/user/Discussion.aspx?id=32123 We will keep the members posted as to how this case turns out. Details follow:
Williams v. International Brotherhood of Teamsters et al
1. Plaintiff: Terry Williams
Defendant: International Brotherhood of Teamsters and Jed Cope
Case Number: 4:2008cv00276
Filed: April 15, 2008
Court: Missouri Western District Court
Office: Kansas City Office [ Court Info ]
County: Jackson
Presiding Judge: District Judge Dean Whipple
Nature of Suit: Civil Rights - Employment
Cause: 28:1331 Fed. Question: Employment Discrimination
Jurisdiction: Federal Question
Jury Demanded By: Plaintiff
Update 5/01/08 Mcray Lumber lays off half its workforce then advertises openings
Over the last year Mcray which is the largest union lumber company in the Kansas City area has been laying off its union workers because of the slowdown in construction. Now it seems that there may be other reasons then just economic downturn for the mass lay-offs. Recently Mcray advertised job openings for drivers in the Kansas City Star, oddly it seems they are looking for new hires and not calling back their laid off drivers. What’s behind all of this goes back to the contract negotiations that took place last year between Mcray and the local 541.
Little jed cope inserted himself into the negotiations when vice-president Chris Heitzman refused to back down when Mcray management demanded a two tier pay scale along with other concessions. Heitzman was pulled out and little jed and his buddy Chandler Mcray (represented by his union busting attorney, Jeff Place) carried out the contract negotiations in the manner they had planned out before talks even started. The two tier pay scale was implemented cutting new hires pay by nearly $7 per hour. The next phase of the plan was to lay off as many people as possible, which has been carried out, then to bring in new hires at the severally reduced rate, which is what is happening now. Even though there is policy in the contract on lay off and re-hire the 541 is sitting back silent and allowing that company to carry out their plan. Reason being? Little jed was in on it from the start. This is what him and Chandler Mcray were having their secret meetings about over a year ago. What was in it for little jed? Good question.
Update 4/26/08 Concerned members start new Teamster website
Teamster members from Across the country have come together to form a new web forum to discuss issues facing members today. Many of them realize that their officers and agents serve their own interests instead of the dues paying members leaving them to take matters into their own hands. Several local 541 members are posting in this forum now and we encourage all of you to sign up and take part in the discussions that are going on at WWW.TEAMSTERMEMBER.COM . Stand up, be heard and tell your story. In these terrible economic times why should we pay for representation that does not even really exist?
Update 4/12/08 Is your contract being fairly negotiated?
How is a local 541 contract negotiated? There are several ways it can be done but most often the following steps are taken. First little jed cope will set up a meeting with whoever in management is going to be at the bargaining table for the company. This meeting will take place either at the union hall or possibly at a restaurant either way it is meant to be out of site of members. At this meeting everything that will be in your new contract will be ironed out. Once everything is complete and agreed upon a proposal meeting will be scheduled between the union and the members. At this meeting members are allowed to submit what they want in their next contract, of course unknown to them everything has already been agreed on. Negotiations will then be set up between the union and the company, sometimes union stewards or other member representatives are allowed to attend and sometimes they are kept out. At this meeting little jed or one of his incompetent stooges will pretend to be fighting for the members going back and forth with management on all of the concerns brought up by members. After the meetings someone from 541 will go to the members with a new contract and say “This is the best your going to get, take it or your going on strike”. As anyone can imagine the offer that is being called “The best your going to get” is nothing more then the original agreement worked out between little jed and the company beforehand.
Members should realize that you have the right to collective bargaining, a company cannot just through out an offer and the dare you to go out on strike. You have every right to tell little jed that you do not wish to go on strike but demand that the union continue to negotiate until a better agreement is reached. To date no one has called little jed’s bluff and contracts continue to be negotiated with management calling all of the shots from the start. Stand up for your rights and fight for a contract that benefits you.
Update 4/9/08 Members get hit with phony dues increases
Several members have reported that they received memos at their place of work saying that their cost for insurance and pension were going to increase. They also were informed that a certain amount would be deducted to pay for a training program that actually does not even exist. What’s behind all of this? Bottom line, little jed and his business agents haven’t brought any new members into the union and they continue with the losses we have seen over the last 3 years. Business agents are not enforcing contracts and allowing union contractors to sub out non union companies on construction sites all over town.
This means less work for our members and less dues money coming into the hall, which intern also means it will be harder for little jed and big money Lyle to maintain their six figure incomes and double pensions. Now of course they cannot raise dues without a vote of the membership but they can raise the cost of the pension and health and welfare. They can also create a new fund that is suppose to be for training and force members to pay into it. In actuality there is no training center, no training program and no fund where money is set aside for training. Whatever money being deducted from your check under the guise of training is in fact going to keep little jed and his office staff from having to take pay cuts.
Little jed and his crew only need to maintain for another 3 years and then of course they can bail out with their double pensions and leave the 541 to be merged into another union and forgotten. However the loses are coming to fast and at this pace the local will be bankrupt before the three year term is up. Therefore they must derive the extra income from somewhere, which as many of you have seen that somewhere is from your paycheck. Why do the members of this local owe these people who have done nothing for them so much? It’s a good question. You may have problems finding 541 office employees on job sites or in the office. If you would like to discuss these issues with little jed himself you might drop by sticks and stones bar on 24 hwy in Independence MO some night and give him a piece of your mind. Lyle Farrand can be found at either Secrets bar on 40hwy in Independence or various other bars in Raytown. These scumbags should have to answer to the membership for what they are doing.
Update 4/4/08 Department of Labor still investigating 541 election
Lately we have had a number of emails to the site asking for updates on the DOL investigation into our local’s election. As anyone can imagine there is a lot of information that cannot be discussed at this time. However we will share with the membership what we do know at this point.
On February 13, 2008 there were 26 different charges filed against the incumbent officers of local 541. The charges were filed with the Office of Labor Management Standards by members of the New Beginning Slate. So far there have been at least twenty witnesses give statements to investigators concerning criminal activity by jed cope or members of his staff. We know from some of the witnesses that the main charge the investigators are looking at has to do with absentee ballots disappearing that were cast for the New Beginning Slate. In fact it seems that anyone that little jed knew was going to vote against him either did not receive their ballot or their ballot was removed before the official count began. It has also came to light recently that ballots with members names on them were sent to friends or relatives of office staff. These ballots were then filed out with the members information on them and sent in. If the particular member whom’s name was used to cast the fraudulent ballot showed up to vote, the election committee simply discarded the fake absentee ballot. It is a scheme that has been used in union elections for many years and several union officers as of late have went to prison for taking part in such actions. So far it is alleged that jed cope, Lyle Farrand and Diane Rothen all took part in the rigging of the election. There will be more suspects named as the investigation wraps up. As stated in an earlier update little jed has continually referred the investigators to the unions attorneys. Its interesting to note that they are not actually denying their guilt as far as the charges are concerned. Instead they are arguing that the charges were not filed in a timely fashion and should therefore all be thrown out. The attorneys, who are paid with your dues money, are working overtime trying their best to have charges dismissed on technicalities, but as the investigators continue to talk to witnesses and pursue information it seems they are not phased by little jed and his member paid for law firm.
The investigators have a total of sixty days to complete their investigation. At the end of that time period their findings are sent to the Secretary of Labor whom will decide within thirty days what course of action to take against the incumbent officers. That being said, we should know what is going to happen sometime in May. We will keep everyone updated as new information comes in.
Update 4/1/08 Same old nonsense and lies at 541 meeting
You couldn’t pick a better day then April fools to have a meeting for the local 541. How fitting that an office full of fools would come together and spread their usual lies on this date. Anyhow, is anyone else sick and tired of hearing how business agents are taking care of grievances and organizing in their fields? Has this not become a joke by now? We have been hearing this bullshit line from little jed for years now and it seems he doesn’t even care that we all know what a liar he is. What organizing are your dumb shit business agents doing jed? You have organized no one since you came into office, none of your business agents have organized anyone either. Why don’t you fill in the membership as to just what companies you are “attempting to organize”. Why don’t you fill us all in on all the grievances that are being taken care of for members. Why don’t you tell the members how you go behind their backs with management and screw them over. You sure didn’t take care of Roy Davis’s grievance or our brother at Blue Linx lumber that you allowed to be railroaded out of a job. So what are these so called business agents doing all day? Well as most people know little jed sits in his office smoking and staring at the wall for most of his day. Lyle Farrand, Scott Ritzinger, Ron Johnson and Sean Gillihan all spend about an hour or two at the office in the morning telling jokes and talking shit about our members, then they simply go home until about 3:00pm when they head back into the office to repeat the same process from that morning. Where else could you make this kind of salary and benefits and be this incompetent?
Update 3/27/07 Mcray lumber using supervisors to take union jobs.
Mcray lumber in Lee’s Summit MO is allowing supervisors to drive trucks while our members sit at home. Several employees report that they have called and complained about this but as expected little jed and his band of do nothings refuse to enforce their own contract. One employee at the Lee’s Summit yard stated that the practice of management doing union work began shortly after Chris Heitzman was fired as their business agent. He went on to say that they have only seen their new b/a once in the last year. Like many other of our members they’re phone calls are not returned and their needs are ignored. Much like most of the rest of our membership, these men have realized just what kind of lousy representation they are paying for. Does anyone wonder why union membership is on the decline
Update 3/19/08 Update on Roy Davis, union steward Carter Waters
It has now been over a month since Roy Davis was terminated without cause from his job at Carter-Waters and still 541 refuses to take action. In fact it seems that without Roy’s knowledge they have given their stamp of approval to his termination without even having a grievance hearing. Last week Roy received a letter from the unemployment office denying his unemployment compensation. The reason? The unemployment office was furnished with a letter from Carter Waters Corporate stating that Roy’s termination had been upheld at all levels by the 541. We have been furnished with a copy of this letter and we must admit it is truly amazing that the very union Roy has paid dues to for so many years would rubber stamp his termination without even consulting with him or conducting an investigation. Honestly though it comes as no surprise when you take into account the reasons worthless Jed Cope would want to see Roy gone. First off little jed can’t stand people standing up to him and calling him out for what he is. This is why he had secret meetings with Carter-Waters management and planned Roy’s termination from the start. Secondly, Roy is an African American and anyone who knows Mr. Cope very well knows of his hatred for minorities and women in his local union. Sadly Roy will now be forced to take legal action against both the company and the useless union that was suppose to be protecting him. We know that Roy is not alone in his situation as many members have suffered due to the incompetence and pro management stance of 541. If you are in a situation like Mr. Davis and feel the local is working against you feel free to email us at angryemployee@sbcglobal.net and find out what can be done.
Update 3/ 5/08 Cope contradicts himself in last nights meeting
Last night little Jed Cope told members that him and Scott Ratzinger had attended a construction conference last month. During this week long meeting Mr. Cope claims that he learned that we must have both an apprenticeship and a training program in order to survive as a union. He of course also stated that plans are in the works to establish both. We find this a bit puzzling as during little jed’s campaign for re-election he sent out fliers stating that he had created the first ever apprenticeship and training programs in 541 history. He likewise told us in November that there were several apprentices in the local who were attending classes at night in the union office. Now it seems he’s forgotten all of this and is now back to square one, stating that he is still working on setting up training programs.
Does anyone find it a little odd that after 13 plus years working in the hall little jed has to be told by someone else that we need these programs to survive? Members should also take note that there are over 50 people on the out of work list as of today. Keep in mind little jed told us in January that we were gearing up for a very busy year with the multitude of bridge work that was coming up. The bridge work has begun, the problem is that due to a lack of representation from 541 most of it is going rat and will continue to do so. Jed should have told the members the truth last night, that he and his illiterate vice president used members dues money to attend a week long drinking festival called a construction conference where he learned what everyone else has known for some time now.
Update 2/25/08 Union Steward at Carter-Waters fired for standing up to little Jed
Roy Davis was terminated without cause from his job at Carter-Waters two weeks ago. Roy has served as union steward for over seven years and has never had past job performance problems. Roy’s biggest crime was exposing the collusion between little Jed cope and Steve Serra (company management) in causing the members at this company to lose their Mo-Kan pension. Roy brought this to the attention of the membership at the October 2 union meeting along with that he pointed out the favoritism that had been shown to little jed’s convicted felon son while he was an employee of Carter-Waters. Shortly before Roy’s termination employees witnessed little jed having secret meetings with Steve Serra. Im sure we can all put two and two together and see just what was agreed to in these meetings. Roy took his case to the union hall and little jed did not even have the guts to meet with him, instead Roy met with worthless, do nothing business agents Sean (where’s my daddy) Gillihan and Ron (we cant do anything about it) Johnson. As expected these two geniuses can’t seem to get Roy his job back even though the company violated the contract in firing him. It is obvious that once again little jed has conspired with management to deprive a dues paying member. We take heart in the fact that was goes around comes around and soon enough little jed cope will get exactly what he’s got coming to him.
Update 2/21/08 Jed cope again uses local’s attorneys for personal use
As many of you already know the Department of Labor is conducting an investigation into the various charges surrounding the 541 election of officers. Many witnesses that made claims against Jed and his cronies have been interviewed by federal agents. When it came time for the agents to get little Jed’s side of the story he choose to hide behind the local’s law firm and have attorney Bruce Jackson speak for him. It’s interesting to note that anything to do with elections and campaigns should be separate from the local. The rules are set up this way so that members dues money is not used to help anyone in the election process. It seems that rather then answer charges little jed is attempting to use the unions lawyer to have the complaints thrown out on technicalities. Being that your dues money pays this attorneys salary once again we have Jed using union resources for personal use. Why should members pay to keep little Jed from facing charges of vote rigging? Why is Jed too much of a coward to stand up and speak for himself? If jed truly did nothing wrong why not just answer the investigators questions and leave the attorneys out of it? The answer to all of these questions is, that he is flat out guilty. His only prayer is that the local unions attorney can hide the facts and through up smoke screens to save his hide. The fact of the matter is that it’s the end of the line for little Jed and his scams. Too many witnesses have come forward and too much evidence exists for him to weasel out of this one. Now on top of everything else little jed will face new charges of using union resources for personal use.
UPDATE 2/16/08 Noland Road bridge job going rat
Not that this should come to a surprise to anyone but Apac and Lexeco are using rat dump trucks on the highly publicized Noland Road bridge reconstruction. When this was first noticed phone calls were made to both Lexeco and Apac to find out if any business agents from Local 541 had even contacted them, representatives from both companies stated that they had not heard from anyone at our great local. Seems construction business agents are too busy in court fighting their DUI’s or falling asleep in the office to handle matters such as this. One would think that such a high profile job would give our local an opportunity to put our collective foot down and get rat contractors off of union job sites. Can you imagine how these general contractors would react to a picket on a job that is being covered by both television and newspaper reports?
Sadly we will never find out what the effect would be simply because the employees at our local union have either been bought off under the table or are too lazy and ignorant to put a stop to it. After all when you make six figures and have three retirement plans to fall back on, why should you give a shit about the members that make that possible for you.
Update 2/9/08 Joint council 56 refuses to validate 541 election!
As reported earlier on this website Joint council 56 held a hearing on December 13, 2007 into allegations made against little jed and his slate which included ballot tampering and election fraud. The hearing lasted more then six hours as the counsel poured over the charges which included witness statements and testimony from several 541 members.
The council, which little Jed is a member of, has refused to issue a decision in the matter. By federal law the charging parties must give the union 90 days to investigate protests before referring them to the Department of Labor. The election protest were filed on November 8th, 2007 therefore the 90 day window closed yesterday. As for the reason that no ruling was made, a source close to certain joint council members has stated that “ Even though the council did everything they could to protect Jed Cope there was simply too much evidence against him to rule in his favor”. It was also revealed that Mr. Cope was caught submitting altered documents to the council. When little Jed was questioned as to why he would change documents and submit them as originals he blamed his secretary. Anyone who knows Jed would not be surprised by him trying to weasel out of charges by blaming his staff. This source went on to say that Joint Council members know that the election will be appealed to the Department of Labor and they do not want to go on record supporting little jed with him being so obviously guilty of election fraud.
The council has taken a neutral stance because they are fully aware Mr.Cope’s time in office will be very short. If the council would have ruled in Jed’s favor they could very well themselves face charges of covering up little Jed’s criminal behavior. This is why no decision was made and this is why the 541 election will be overturned.
Update 2/3/08 Bridge work already going rat
Have you noticed the massive bridge project going on near 470 and 50hwy in Lees summit? Take a good hard look next time you go by and notice who is pouring the concrete. Its none other then the formally union company known as Geiger. Yes the company that paid an unknown amount of money under the table to Jed Cope and Bob Gillihan in order to get out of their union contract are taking what was suppose to be all union work while our members sit home. Remember, Little jed stated that there would be an abundance of bridge work coming up soon and that our members would reap the benefits. Everyone must understand that the funds for bridge projects in Missouri are coming from tax payer dollars so the contractors must pay prevailing wage. Are your 541 business agents going out and making sure this is being done, which is their right to do? No. Are they sitting down with contractors before the projects begin and demanding that only union companies be used? No. As usual they are doing nothing, in fact its highly doubtful that they even know what is going on. Sadly it is our members that pay the price by sitting at home while a company that pays sub-standard wages and offers un affordable insurance takes the work that should be ours.
UPDATE 1/22/08: Local area unions disclose money spent on training
Every year all area construction unions report exactly how much their locals spend training their members to the local Building and Trades Council. In 2007 the Sheet metal workers local 2 topped the list spending 1.4 million on various training for their membership. Not far behind them were the Operators, Plumbers, Pipe fitters, Glaziers, Bricklayers etc etc. All of these unions report spending anywhere from 200,000 to 1 million a year helping their members gain new skills thereby making them more valuable in the workplace. In a recent publication the Business Manager for one of these unions was quoted as saying that “ A training center is the lifeblood of any unionized industry”. Of course we couldn’t agree with him more.
In case anyone was wondering just how much local 541 invests into helping their membership improve their job skills that answer is a big fat Zero. The local 541 has never spent a dime on training their members nor do they have a training center. Many members know that if little Jed is asked about training members he will respond by saying that him and Lyle have been looking at land to build a training facility on. It seems they have been looking for this magical piece of land for three years now, one would think by now they would have come across something usable. Of course many of us know that the only land these two clowns are looking at is the parking lot of whatever bar they are blowing your dues money at. Again it should be obvious to everyone why this local is in a state of decay.
UPDATE 1/19/08 541 continues its downfall in construction
In the December 5th issue of the Labor Beacon newspaper there is a story on page 7 about building and trades organizers going out and checking various job sites. The organizers are from all various construction unions. Their goal is to see to it that our union contractors don’t sub work out to non union companies. They are also checking to see that all jobs meet the highest possible safety standards.
These men do this in the best interest of their dues paying members, they realize that in order for their unions to grow they must keep members working year round. Another goal of this group is trying to find non union workers on job sites and explain to them the benefits of joining the union, they understand that without bringing in new members constantly a local union cannot survive. I would encourage all of you to check out this story in the labor beacon to get an idea of how a real union should be run.
That being said it goes without saying that even though the 541 pays over $2000 per month to be members of building and trades they refuse to take part in these work site visits. In fact little Jed Cope has not seen fit to even send anyone to one of these weekly meetings in nearly a year. Is it any surprise why we have non union companies like Geiger or All American pouring on union job sites? Are we shocked to see non union lumber companies delivering to union jobs? What about companies like Dave Eaton or Chisum trucking that simply got out of their union contract but still reap the benefits of working on union commercial jobs? All of this comes from a lack of drive on the part of the local 541 officers and business agents. They would rather sit in the office all day telling the same old jokes then go out and enforce our contracts. Sadly it is our members that have suffered and will continue to suffer while 541 agents enrich themselves with under the table deals and double pensions.
UPDATE 1/7/07 Cope again goes around members on the out of work list in favor of a family member.
Once again little Jed has gone around dues paying members to hand a job to one of his relatives. While Jed is telling members there is no work out there he has managed to not only get his convicted felon son several jobs but also got another relative of his, Jay Cope a job at George Shaw Construction last month. Those of you who are signing the out of work list every week to no avail might try changing your last name to Cope, as this seems helpful in gaining employment with companies represented by local 541
UPDATE 1/3/07 Little Jed spreads lies and gives members false hope at last nights meeting
Last night little Jed told members that he understood that 2007 was not a good year for union construction but 2008 was looking a lot brighter. Many of you may remember this is the same bullshit speech he gave at the beginning of 2007. It seems Mr. Cope is too blind to see that the past year was only slow for members of 541 as all other construction unions saw great prosperity. Operators local 101 reported this last fall that they did not have a single member on their out of work list as jobs were plentiful this year. As the 101 continues to take work away from our members next year is sure to be just as busy for their members. In fact if you talk to any other construction union in town about how 2007 went for them you will hear a much different tune that what little jed is singing.
Little Jed went on to talk about all the upcoming projects for 2008 which included the massive amount of bridge work that will be taking place. What Cope failed to mention is that most of the companies that will get contracts for bridge work either no longer employ teamsters or have very few on the payroll. Radamacher Construction, which was recently awarded a multi million dollar contract for road development in east Independence is a perfect example. Even though they are under contract with 541 they employ no Teamsters and freely use non union contractors. This is the case with most of our companies thanks to lazy business agents that refuse to get out and enforce contracts. Clarkson Construction will be another 541 company working on bridge construction but as stated earlier on this site they are phasing out most of their teamsters with no protest from anyone at 541. This year it will become painfully obvious to our members just how much damage has been done to our local by its gutless, self serving leadership. While members of all other construction unions will be reaping the benefits of the surge in commercial construction and roadwork, 541 members will be stuck on the out of work list or working for a rat company while little Jed and his cohorts pillage what is left of the unions general funds to pad their double pensions.
Interestingly enough little Jed ended last nights meeting with a phony swearing in ceremony for him and his officers. It seems it must have slipped his mind that the election was never certified and the joint council is still investigating the validity of the election itself. It also seems that the Federal Governments Office of Labor Management Standards will soon start an official investigation into the 541 election also. Mr. Cope not surprisingly forgot to mention last night that he is under investigation for embezzlement and misappropriation of union funds. With these charges piling up on Little Jed, 2008 could actually turn out to actually be a good year for our members. Lets all keep our fingers crossed!
UPDATE 12/26/07 Cope and Company set to end most dismal year in 541 history
2007 started out bad for the members of Teamsters local 541 and has only continued to get worse. Once again we see another year end with absolutely no organizing as we continue the loss of our current membership. This year members were forced to sit back helpless as Clarkson Construction began the plan to phase out Teamsters from what is one of the biggest construction companies in town. Not all Teamsters stand to lose because of the loses at Clarkson, both Scott Ratzinger and little Jed himself have done very well while making their under the table deals to sell out the membership. This year also saw Little Jed introduce his phantom apprenticeship program which he claims has over $100,000 set aside for training programs for members. However after investigating these claims it turns out that all money taken from members checks for the apprenticeship has actually gone into health and welfare. This means the program was nothing more than a sham created to funnel more money into MO-KAN. This explains why you have no training of any kind going on in this local. Mr. Cope has also boasted about all of the 541 members working on the pipeline in St. Joe. When this job first became open to our members Little Jed told them it would be between 1 and 3 years worth of work. The sad reality as many found out was that the job was for less then six months and in many cases even less as our members were laid off and replaced by lesser paid laborers. Several members working on the pipeline complained of this but with our total lack of representation nothing could be done.
This year also saw a group of members led by Vice-President Chris Heitzman run a campaign to oust little Jed and get our local back on track. It was obvious to anyone paying attention that Heitzman and his New Beginning Slate had the support of the membership. They had support from Heavy construction, Lumber, Warehouse and Equipment rental, they even had strong support from Little Jed’s ready mix industry. Considering all of this the majority of members were puzzled, confused and even baffled as to how Mr, Cope and his slate of do nothings won on election day by 60 votes in an election that saw the largest turnout in 541 history. None to our surprise though after the election as charges began to mount against Cope the answers as to how the election was stolen became clear. A hearing was called by Joint Council 56 on December 13 th. To this date the council has still not made a ruling on the charges made against Jed Cope. What we do know is that there were more charges filed against Jed Cope than any other Teamster official in the history of the Teamsters Union. We also know that the council is still going over the 100+ pages of documents concerning the election charges, therefore it could be the beginning of 2008 before an initial decision is made.
Even in the last month of the year little Jed continued with loses of membership and lack of representation. As reported earlier on this site Huttig Lumbers has decided to close their union yard and move all operations to their non union side. Still to this date no one from 541 has attempted to do anything for these dues paying members. Also in the lumber industry McCray Millwork in fairfax began laying off workers out of line with seniority. As expected 541 is doing nothing to remedy this situation and has no intention of enforcing their own contract.
Mr. Cope does have one big accomplishment of the year which he features in the latest newsletter. He had a picnic for the members, which was paid for by the members. It seems little Jed thinks the members should be grateful for this honor on which he has bestowed us all. 2008 already does not look good for Cope and Company as not only will the election for officers be overturned but Jed himself is facing a litany of federal charges aside from the election which will no doubt rid our local of this corrupt menace.
12/14/07 Members at Huttig lumber soon to be out of a job and little Jed offers no help
Today our fellow members working for Huttig Lumber were informed that the company is choosing to close its union yard in Kansas City and move operations to their non-union facility in Springfield. By January 18th 2007 nearly 30 teamster 541 members at Huttig will be out of a job. Is little Jed trying to effects bargain and help his members get severance or health care after the closing? The answer is no. Is little Jed going to the labor board and filing charges against Huttig for closing their Kansas City plant to get out of their union contract? Again the answer is no. Members at Hutting who tried to reach Mr.Cope were told that he is on vacation until next Friday. There have been no meetings set up by the local and no business agent has bothered to visit these members or attempt to find them other employment.
UPDATE 12/10/07 Members at Woodbridge Sequencing file charges against Little Jed
Members at Woodbridge are fed up with the total lack of representation from the local they are paying dues to. These folks are fed up with paying big salaries to business agents that don't return phone calls and routinely conspire with management against the membership. Failure to represent charges have been filed with the National Labor Relations Board in an attempt to bring to light the outright failure of this local to represent their members. The 120 plus 541 members at Woodbridge are now seriously considering getting out of this union due to the fact that they do not believe in paying for nothing. It's only a matter of time before other members of this local wake up and realize that paying dues to this local is a waste of your hard earned money. We will keep you informed as to how these charges are handled and the end results.
UPDATE 12/5/07 Cope again spreads lies at last nights meeting
Last night a member questioned little Jed as to why there has been no effort to organize rat dump truck companies that are putting our people out of work. Little Jed responded by asking this member if he had attended the organizing meeting put on by the local. The member of course responded that he had not, the reason he had not attended such a meeting is because it never took place. Did anyone hear of such a meeting? Was there any such announcement in the local's newsletter? Did Cope ever mention an organizing meeting for members at any of the past monthly meetings? The answers to all these questions are no. Little Jed did what he always does when confronted by members, he lies. One would have to question how someone like Jed would hold class on organizing when he has no experience in the field.
UPDATE 11/26/07 A picture is worth a thousand words.
In the latest issue of the Teamster magazine put out by the International you will see a story on page 3 about Missouri locals and how the are teaming up to lobby in our states capitol. The article features a picture of lobbyists from every local in our state except one. Can you guess who the missing local is? Of course its the local 541. We must wonder where they could have been on this all important day of lobbying. Seeing how the 541 reports to the Department of Labor that they spend over $70,000 per year on lobbying you might think they would be taking part in these events. Where they to hungover? Maybe sitting in jail from yet another DWI? Its anyones guess.
UPDATE 11/21/07 Local 541 office sends out bogus election results.
If you haven't already you will soon receive a letter in the mail which declares Jed Cope and his staff won the 541 election of officers. Jed does not mention in his letter to the members that Joint Council 56 has scheduled a hearing into the numerous violations committed by Jed and his crew during the campaign. Even more members have come forward now to say that they did not receive their ballots in the mail until after the election or did not receive ballots at all. The list of complaints and violations is growing everyday, most of us though are not surprised in the least as we know the kind of people we are dealing with here.
UPDATE 11/16/07 little Jed goes around members on out of work list and gets his convicted felon son yet another job:
David Cope who was recently terminated by Foley for not showing up to work has had no trouble at all finding another job. David Cope never once had to sign the out of work list or come down to the hall to beg one of the do nothing business agents for a job. Little Jed had no problem sending his son to US Engineering to work in the warehouse. Jed has claimed in the past that he does not have to adhere to the list if someone off the list has more qualifications, we must wonder did US Engineering need someone experienced in armed robbery? All out of work dues paying members need to ask little Jed to show them the same attention he shows his family members and get them to work.
UPDATE 11/13/07 Teamster 541 members sent packing at Iatann in Weston
Yes thats right the job that little Jed Cope claimed would last our members three years appears to have went belly-up for us. Several 541 members driving articulated haul trucks were laid off today without warning, while Kissick Construction has eight operators driving these pieces of equipment which should exclusively belong to the Teamsters. If you are a 541 member that is losing their job because little Jed doesn't have the guts to stand up and claim our work, your best bet would be to join the Operators. Stop working to fund little Jed's retirement and go to work for a union that will actually get you to work and stand up for you, call the 101 today and inquire about how to become a member at (816) 737-8600. Jed and his bums have shown you no loyalty, its time to look out for your best interest instead of his.
UPDATE 11/12/07 Members at Clarkson confirm little Jed lied to them.
As reported last week on this website, little Jed Cope stated at the membership meeting that he had a meeting set up with Bob Frey from Clarkson Construction to remedy the situation of operators taking Articulated haul trucks. As expected no such meeting took place or was ever set up in the first place. This means that Jed stood before his membership and openly lied.
UPDATE 11/8/07 Election results held up as protests to Jed's obvious mail ballot scam mount.
Anyone attending last nights election could tell that the fix was in, Little Jed and his fellow cheaters worked hard at covering up their cheating ways but it looks as if they may have been caught red handed. Several members that casted absentee ballots did not show up in the tally likewise certain people that did show up in the tally claim they never even voted in the election. Jed Cope himself was even seen campaigning in the building thus violating his own campaign rules. What would we expect though from a group of lazy do nothing drunks, the fact that they rigged the mail ballots came as no surprise to anyone involved. Jed's slate is mostly made up of old ragged lying cheats like Orville Amos, whom was known to cross picket lines in the past and stab his fellow union brothers in the back. Orville was seen in front of the union hall passing out fliers that openly lied about why Chris Heitzman was fired. The sad thing is that with Orville being a trustee and going over the books every month he would know that Chris never stole gas or mis used a credit card. There again you can't hardly be surprised that a man with no integrity whatsoever would blatantly lie. The original count at the end of the night had the Cope members last team ahead by 80 votes with well over 500 votes cast. As of now the results of the election will not be made official due to the protest that have been filed. This site will keep all members up to date as to the situation concerning the election. We will also continue with our updates on the dishonest and criminal behavior of Jed Cope until the day he is sitting behind bars where he belongs
UPDATE 10/25/07: Jed Cope claims that he is organizing in the heavy industry, however when you take a closer look at what has been lost since he has taken office the facts tell a much different story. All of the companies shown below either had a contract when Cope took over or are still under a contract that is not being enforced.
NO LONGER UNDER CONTRACT
American Feed & Farm, CCS Roadway, D&D Masonry, W.A. Ellis Construction, Fordyce (Randolph), Harworth Construction, Industrial Excavating, Integris, Lafarge (Odessa), Lafarge (Olathe), Midwest Remediation, RSC (Raytown), Hertz (Manchester Trfwy), Transwood, Missouri Rock, Goucher, Chisum and sons, Dave Eaton Trucking, Continental Coal, Geo Will Company, Green ready-mix, Apac Harrisonville.
UNDER 541 CONTRACT BUT NO TEAMSTERS
Fogel Anderson, Highwood Reality, Glidden Paint, Muelberger Construction, TSC, Tasco Construction, Trio Masonry, Western Roofing, Baker Smith Sheet Metal and Zahner Sheet Metal.
OTHER CRAFTS DOING TEAMSTER WORK (Still under 541 contract)
(Only one or two Teamsters on payroll)
Shweiger Construction, Sellers & Marquis, Stadium Sheet Metal, Standard Sheet Metal, Radmacher Brothers, Rew Materials, Lexaco Construction, Intec Construction, Kaw Roofing, Holmes Drywall, Garney Companies, A2MG Metals, Comanche Construction, Cornell Roofing, Builders Steel, Carter Glass, AT Industrial Sheet Metal, Beemer Construction, Apac KS Wilkerson, Realm and Kissick.
This list shows the losses Mr. Cope has been party to in the last three years. It also shows how our construction business agents have been neglecting their jobs while drawing fat salaries from the membership.
