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From the November 2006 issue of $100 Plus Club News #103
On the eve of elections in Musicians Local 802
AUD has been running comments on some of the events in Musicians Local 802 to illustrate how sharp differences of views are sometimes expressed in a democratic union. The letter, printed below, is the latest and last before members vote on December 5 for local officers. See also the reply from Michael Comins.
It's a truism that democracy can be messy at times. Two slates are completing this time in Local 802 One is headed by incumbent president David Lennon, running for reelection. His rival for the job is Mary Landolfi, an incumbent executive board member who is supported by Bill Dennison and Jay Schaffner, our most recent correspondents.
Bitter attacks have been exchanged between the two sides. Formal charges against Dennison were withdrawn. After formal charges were presented against Lennon, a membership meeting voted 196 to 83 not to process them. Rival websites debated the issue. The pages of the union's Allegro were open for discussion and each side got a page in the paper to campaign on the eve of the election. And finally, thousands of Local 802 members will be empowered to resolve the debate when they get the right to vote on December 5. Local 802 is one union where one can run for office without overcoming overwhelmingly burdensome obstacles. To run, you need at least 100 signatures on a nominating petition, to have been a member for two years, and to be paid up in dues before September 30. - the eds.
We write to defend ourselves against the scurrilous rumors circulated from the supporters of David Lennon on your website and to correct the record on his financial misdeeds. We will attempt to be as brief as possible.
Most importantly, the charge that we undermined the President and the committee during the Radio City Music Hall negotiations by consorting with management is completely untrue. What Bill did do was to speak with the president of Local 1 of IATSE on the picket line during the strike after numerous rank-and-file members of the orchestra came to him, fearful that the missteps of Lennon were about to cost them their jobs. Characterizing this as supporting or consorting with management is a slander against Bill, and also against one of the sister unions that helped Local 802 during the Broadway strike of 2000. This is completely irresponsible.
Both of us, like another member of the local 802 Executive Board, did vote to sign the letter demanded by James Dolan, president of Cablevision. We realize that this was an illegal demand on the part of the employer and we did not relish the idea of giving in to the demand. We did, however, realize that any other settlement reached would likely contain draconian concessions which would gravely injure the musicians on the job. One must ask what kind of democracy is there in an organization when one is permitted to vote only one way, rather than vote in accordance with one’s true beliefs. Unfortunately, in our view, Lennon put his interests ahead of those of the musicians in the course of this unfortunate event.. Space prevents us from detailing the final settlement which we were forced to accept; it is enough to point out that is was worse than management’s opening proposal.
There were charges pressed against both of us, but we believe that we were used as scapegoats by Lennon to distract from the debacle of the settlement and as a pre-emptive attempt to eliminate Bill as a rival to Lennon in the election this December. They were withdrawn after an overwhelming outcry from the membership made it clear that Lennon’s supporters would never prevail. At the time, Mr. Gale and others characterized the withdrawal as an “olive branch,” but Lennon and his supporters continue to refer to the charges as if they had been proven. This is reprehensible.
As to Lennon’s financial misdeeds, it is untrue that Lennon innocently used the union credit card and had repaid all of the moneys owed before the irregularities came to light. Lennon has been warned on numerous occasions by both the financial vice-president and Bill that his personal use of the credit card was illegal and, after Bill was finally forced to bring the matter to the executive board, Lennon was still in arrears. Furthermore, while his improper charges were still being investigated, it was discovered that he had cashed over $1,700 in checks from the AFM which properly belonged to the local. His claim that he thought the money was his and represented reimbursement for cash outlays is demonstrably false; Lennon never submitted expense reports to the federation with any cash outlays.
It is true that a majority of the board asked for his resignation and five members have now filed charges against him, but this was not political grandstanding as his supporters would have your readers believe.
Thankfully there will be an election in December and, in contrast to what was expected by Lennon and his supporters, he will be opposed by our former financial vice-president, Mary Landolfi, a highly respected member of the current board. Both of us are pleased to be running with her for our current posts. Look for Lennon’s associates to begin a smear campaign against her, now that her candidacy has been announced. Hopefully, these tactics will not succeed and the new administration will be able to put this unpleasant episode behind for the benefit of the membership. There is much more that has been written on your website that is inaccurate at best, or completely false at worst. Unfortunately, time and space do not allow us to respond to all of these allegations. Hopefully, setting the record straight about these two matters will allow your readers to interpret other assertions by Mr. Lennon’s supporters in a proper light.
Sincerely,
Bill Dennision
Recording Vice PresidentJay Schaffner
Executive Board member
Supervisor, Recording Department
Reply from Michael Comins MEMBERS Party candidate for 802 Exec. Bd. and Delegate to AFM Convention:
Landolfi is ON RECORD that she would have signed Dolan's extortion letter costing 802 $100,000 to print in the NY Times and THEN RESIGNED, leaving 802 to clean up the mess she would have left behind. She has resigned union board positions twice before.
Dennison is ON RECORD that doubling the size of an orchestra that would then earn half-pay is "creating work." Oh yes, he too would have signed the extortion letter and trusted the NY Central Labor Council, whose leader is now under Federal indictment, to bail 802 out.
Schaffner has negotiated an industrial buy-out in the Broadway contract potentially costing musicians hundreds of dollars without the input or even knowledge of the B'way Theatre Committee.
This is the proposed "new leadership" of "vision and integrity" that heads CM.
Radio City - What Really Happened?
The 2005 Radio City negotiations were severely undermined by the actions of Mary Landolfi, Bill Dennison and Jay Schaffner. Their conduct throughout the negotiations was more in support of management than the union. They were not part of the negotiating team, but interfered with the negotiations in an attempt to discredit President Lennon and further their own political agenda.
At an Executive Board meeting on November 4th, Landolfi, Dennison, and Schaffner supported a motion to submit to Cablevision's extortion demand -- the publishing of the notorious "Local 802 lied" letter -- against the expressed wishes of the rank-and-file committee, the entire orchestra and a majority of the Executive Board.
Dennison made this motion, which was seconded by Landolfi, immediately after President Lennon said he would resign before agreeing that 802 should sign the letter.
Here are just a few statements from members of the Radio City Committee who know what happened because *THEY* were there:
"Local 802's public statements citing management pay-cut proposals accurately described the prevailing and unrelenting management bargaining pattern and were not "lies" as Dolan (Cablevision's CEO) and Cablevision/Radio City claimed." -
*The Radio City Orchestra Committee*"I was alarmed to realize that Claffey and Dolan were aware that 802 officers supported signing the letter in spite of the unanimous objections of the Orchestra and the Committee." - *Bud Burridge Member: Radio City Orchestra Committee*
"There is no question in my mind that the actions of dissenting Local 802 officers, behind the scenes, was a major factor in our weakened position during mediation at Gracie Mansion which led to the disastrous contract." - *Andy Rodgers, Co-Chair - Radio City Orchestra Committee*
Landolfi, Dennison and Schaffner have accused Lennon of not having a "plan."
Lennon did have a plan - to stand by the will of the rank-and-file musicians' committee and orchestra, stand up to Dolan's extortion threat and work with the Mayor to defeat Dolan's plan to eliminate live music at Radio City.
Landolfi, Dennison and Schaffner's plan was to force Lennon to sign the letter, at any cost, in spite of the damage to 802's reputation and credibility -- in the first of their many attempts to oust Lennon from office for their own political gain.
See also:
Two
views: Recording musicians clash inside the AFM
New democracy battles in Musicians union
On the eve of elections in Musicians Local 802
Democracy
is alive in Musicians Local 802 ($100 Plus Club News #100)
More on Musicians Local 802 ($100 Plus Club News #101)
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