Teamsters Local 399, including our Driver/Coordinator Committees, & all of the Basic Craft Locals are recommending the contract for ratification. 

PLEASE READ THE INFORMATION BELOW CAREFULLY. 

“Black Book” Electronic Voting FAQs:

Please carefully read our informational guide to voting electronically for our “Black Book” Contract Ratification. We’ve provided as much information as possible to avoid any confusion about the electronic voting process. “Black Book” Contract Ratification Voting will OPEN on Monday, September 24th around 8am and CLOSE on Saturday, September 29th at 6pm. Should you have any questions PRIOR to the start of voting, or should you want to update or check on your contact information on file, please call the Union Hall at: 818-985-7374 or email: office@ht399.org.

     1. I did not receive a text message or an email with my ballot. What do I do?

Ballots will be sent via text message around 8:00AM on Monday, September 24th. After the initial send, ElectionBuddy will be sending emails and text messages to our Members to remind them to vote before the Saturday, September 29th 6:00PM deadline.  After you have cast your vote, you will no longer receive notifications about voting from ElectionBuddy.

If you did not receive your ballot on Monday September 24th via email or text message, please contact Election Buddy at:

  • EMAIL: SUPPORT@ELECTIONBUDDY.COM

    • In the Email simply mention you are a Teamsters Local 399 Member voting on the “Black Book” Contract
    • It helps if you email from the email address you intend to have them dispatch a ballot to 
    • Remember that you MUST be a Member in good-standing (not on withdrawal or suspended) as well as have the ability to work under this contract in order to vote. 

      2.  How can I best prepare to receive my ballot by email to ensure it doesn’t end up in my junk mail or is treated like spam? 

To help ensure emails are delivered successfully, Members should be on the lookout for an email:

  • “From” Teamsters Local 399
  • With a subject line that states “Vote now: Teamsters Local 399 – “Black Book” Contract Ratification”
  • That has invitations@app.electionbuddy.com as the sending email address.

Members should also take a minute to add invitations@app.electionbuddy.com to their contact list. This teaches your email program that you are expecting an email from us, and will decrease the chances that a spam filter will catch it.

       3.  I did not receive a text message or an email with my ballot and ElectionBuddy is telling me they cannot find me in their system as someone eligible to vote. How do I get my ballot?

Please contact the Union Hall at 818-985-7374 to obtain your ballot.  Please remember, in order to be eligible to vote in our “Black Book” Ratification vote, you must be a Member in good-standing, not retired, suspended or on withdrawal, and you must also be eligible to work under the “Black Book” Agreement. Should you have questions regarding your eligibility, please contact the Union Hall at 818-985-7374.  

       4.  I click on my ballot link provided to vote and my password (last 4 of my SSN) is reading incorrect. What do I do?

Please contact the Union Hall at 818-985-7374 to ensure we have  your correct information on file. If the information is correct, please contact ElectionBuddy to let them know you are experiencing issues when inputting your information.

       5.  I click on the ballot link provided to vote and after entering in my password (last 4 of SSN) it says I have already voted, but I haven’t. What do I do?

Please contact ElectionBuddy directly for assistance if this issue should occur.

       6.  I do not have access to a smartphone or a computer and cannot cast my vote. What do I do?

The Teamsters Local 399 “B” Building at the Union Hall will be open Monday September 24th – Friday, September 28th from 5AM – 10PM and Saturday, September 29th from 8AM – 6pm when the polls close. You can also vote anywhere where you have access to a computer such as a public library. No 399 Staff will be present if you decide to vote at the Local. Printed instructions will be placed next to the computer with contact information for the election company should you have questions. Members will only be allowed to vote one at a time to ensure the confidentiality of each Members vote.

       7.  What is the password I am expected to enter in order to access my ballot?

In order to protect vote security, personal unique voting keys are created and used only once. Election Buddy will be requiring you to input the last 4 of your SSN linked to your unique voter key to ensure your vote is protected and fulfilled by you.

      8. What is the Election Company we are using for our Electronic Voting?

The Election Company we are utilizing for our electronic contract ratification vote is called ElectionBuddy. “ElectionBuddy is about voting processes for Member-based organizations. Our Staff strives to simplify and secure elections and votes for voters, Members and Election Administrators.”

Source: ElectionBuddy Website: www.electionbuddy.com

      9.  How did we come about selecting ElectionBuddy to manage our “Black Book” Contract Ratification Vote?

We were referred to the platform by other Teamster Locals that have been using the ElectionBuddy system for their contract campaigns over the years. Local 399 Secretary-Treasurer Steve Dayan received permission from the International to use ElectionBuddy and the electronic voting process for our upcoming contract ratification vote as the company is certified by the Department of Labor. Teamsters Local 399 first tested this platform for the ratification vote of our Quixote Drivers agreement earlier this year and were met with no complications in the setup or execution of the process. We will also be using this method of voting for our upcoming Locations and Casting Agreements. Also, all of the Basic Crafts Locals are using the same system to vote their Memberships.

See list of other organizations that have trusted ElectionBuddy to manage their elections: https://electionbuddy.com/customers/overview

      10.  Is ElectionBuddy Secure?

Fairness and independent observation of an online election system is enhanced using technology. Proper audits start with proper security. ElectionBuddy uses 256KB encryption used by banks and credit card companies, and follows stringent election security guidelines for election processes, such as the United States Department of Labor Office of Labor-Management Standards for elections. They also follow PCI standards for secure storage of information. Vote audits are always conducted to protect voter anonymity; none but you and the election company will ever know the voting choice you made.

      11.  How much involvement will the staff of Local 399 have in overseeing and managing the “Black Book” Contract Ratification Vote?

Teamsters Local 399 will be utilizing ElectionBuddy’s “Fully Managed” option for our “Black Book” Contract Ratification Vote. What this means is that ElectionBuddy will be in charge of overseeing every aspect of the voting process, and will be the one assisting our Local 399 Members should they run into any issues while casting a vote or if they do not receive a ballot. Teamsters Local 399 will simply be providing a list of eligible voters to ElectionBuddy, which is determined by what is stated in our Local 399 By-laws. Remember, a Member must be in good-standing (i.e.: not be suspended or on withdrawal) and have the ability to work under our “Black Book” Agreement in order to vote. We have ensured there will be ElectionBuddy staff available for the duration of our Contract Ratification Vote.

  • ElectionBuddy’s Office Hours to assist our Members & ElectionBuddy’s contact information will be provided closer to the opening of the vote.

     12. What is the timeframe in which I will be able to vote in the “Black Book” Contract Ratification Election?

We will be leaving the polls open from Monday, September 24th around 8am until Saturday, September 29th at 6pm giving our Local 399 Members plenty of time to cast their vote. 

     13. How will the votes be tabulated and when will the results of the Contract Ratification be announced?

Results are automatically tabulated. Results will be posted to the Teamsters Local 399 Website, via email and text message as well. Results will be announced to the Membership as soon as we receive the official results from ElectionBuddy. All votes will remain anonymous even after the results are revealed and Local 399 will not know how individual Members voted. Your anonymity is protected throughout this process.   You will also be able to ensure your vote was properly included in the results.

       14. Will we be able to review the results of the Contract Ratification Votes after the voting has closed?

Teamsters Local 399 will be sending out an email with the results from the “Black Book” Contract Ratification. Make sure you are subscribed to receive emails from Teamsters Local 399. To subscribe, visit : https://www.ht399.org/our-members/get-connected/

    15.  Why did Local 399 & the Basic Crafts decide to utilize electronic voting for our Contract Ratification?

The decision to utilize an electronic voting method was to ensure our Members had enough time to thoroughly review the proposed “Black Book” MOA and still be able to vote in a timely manner. We believe this method will simplify the voting process while also adding extra security checks and balances that are to be monitored by ElectionBuddy. All voter ballots and results are observable and audit-able to verify votes are correctly cast and to avoid any election fraud.