International Vice president Sean O’Brien was suspended from union office for illegal threats—including vowing to “punish” any member who runs for local union office against his friends. Rhode Island Local 251 members defied the threats and elected reform leaders anyway. Hoffa kept O’Brien on the Hoffa-Hall slate and gave him a promotion—putting O’Brien in charge of negotiating the supplements to the UPS national contract in 2013. When members rejected 18 of them, O’Brien and Ken Hall launched a nationwide campaign to sell the concessions. UPS Teamsters in three of the supplements refused to cave in. The Hoffa administration ratified them anyway and imposed the concessions—even though the members had Voted No three times! O’Brien’s tough guy routine is reserved for the members; employers get a pass.

CHECK THE FACTS: Independent Review Board report on Charge Against International VP Sean O'Brien, October 17, 2013.