The federal monitor overseeing the UAW has issued a two-year suspension for a UAW official who posted an AI-generated photo depicting a candidate for the union’s presidency bound and gagged with a rifle pointed at his head.
Raymond Jensen is an organizer with the union, from Region 9A in upstate New York, who works for the UAW’s Department of Organizing and Bargaining Strategies under the oversight of UAW President Shawn Fain. His suspension follows the July 16 posting of the image on the Facebook page of the candidate, Will Lehman, a 38-year-old Mack Trucks employee from Pennsylvania.
The photo, viewed by the Detroit Free Press, depicted a figure resembling Lehman tied up and bleeding from the mouth with a murky, unidentified figure toting a rifle while standing behind him with the barrel pointed at the back of Lehman’s head. The AI-generated image was taken as a death threat by Lehman, a self-proclaimed Socialist, who is challenging Fain (whom Jensen supports) and four others for the top post of the union.
The court-appointed monitor overseeing the union, Neil Barofsky, agreed the photo was threatening and said Jensen broke election rules by posting the image. Barofsky is a New York-based attorney who has been tasked by a federal court with rooting out wrongdoing within the union as part of a court agreement after years of scandal.
Lehman wrote in a news release on July 19 that he contacted the federal monitor and requested an investigation into the comment. Lehman said specifically that he felt threatened because Jensen posted the depiction while Jensen’s own Facebook page bore a profile picture that read “I support Shawn Fain.”
Just over two weeks later, the monitor concluded his investigation and, on Wednesday, Aug. 5, issued the following rulings, to which Jensen agreed:
The monitor oversees the union’s elections and has the authority to issue discipline when election rules are violated. Barofsky wrote in the Aug. 5 filing, posted online, that Jensen violated Rule 4-4 of the election rules, which prohibits threats and intimidation during the election process.
According to Barofsky, Jensen confirmed to him in an interview that he had posted the photo, which appeared without any accompanying text. Jensen put the photo in the comments section of one of Lehman’s posts.
Members of the UAW will begin voting in late August with a choice to reelect Fain or opt for one of the five candidates opposing him. Fain, who appears to be the front-runner in the election, is facing an unrelated federal investigation into claims he improperly sought benefits for his family members. Fain denies the allegations.
Lehman, in a phone interview with the Free Press, said he was “surprised” the monitor took action on his complaint because, in his eyes, the monitor has not been tough enough on the union over allegations of malfeasance.
“I think it’s a lenient punishment, but it’s somewhat surprising that the monitor did anything at all, given his record,” Lehman said.
Lehman, who has frequently criticized both the monitor and UAW leadership on social media, said he felt the monitor stepped in because other workers raised awareness of the post and stood by Lehman in saying the image was a step too far.
“The only reason there was a response was because workers intervened. There was a lot of blowback from (the post),” Lehman said. “It’s not a victory of mine, it’s a victory of the rank and file against the bureaucracy of the UAW.”
Lehman added that he doesn’t blame Jensen specifically, but rather that there is a culture of bullying in the union that he hopes can change.
“It’s not about him, it’s not about me, it’s not an individual thing,” Lehman said. “This is a clash of different political tendencies within the union. It has nothing to do with him as a person or me as a person.”
The UAW did not respond to Free Press requests for comment. Jensen, when reached by phone, declined to comment.
Liam Rappleye covers Stellantis and the UAW for the Detroit Free Press. Contact him: LRappleye@freepress.com.
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: UAW official suspended for posting threatening image to union candidate
Reporting by Liam Rappleye, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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By Liam Rappleye, Detroit Free Press | USA TODAY Network
