Part Time, Isn't Working

Brothers and Sisters, I have an update on the IAFF-FC federal district court lawsuit for you. On March 31, 2024, U.S. District Judge Angel Kelley in Boston ruled in favor of former IAFF-FC employee John F. "Jack" Hughes and rejected the Financial Corporation's attempt to strip his employee whistleblower protections for sounding the alarm with IAFF General President Edward "Edzo" Kelly, former IAFF-FC Chief Operating Officer (COO) Kurt Becker, and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). According to the Court, former Director Hughes' email (posted below) and his internal actions were sufficient to protect his employee's right to claim and receive whistleblower protection under the Dodd-Frank Act.

Five years ago, the IAFF invited Joe Biden to our Legislative Conference and we welcomed him with "Run Joe Run" signs. Hailed as a lifetime friend of fire fighters, Vice President Biden's commitment to our union members was unquestioned. Today, we can say that as President, Joe Biden has fulfilled his promise and delivered for fire fighters.

It was recently brought to my attention at ALTS that many of my concerns and critics of the IAFF seem more directed toward US locals only. And I was reminded that while our form of government is different, we have much in common. And I could not agree more. I would like to layout my vision and plan for our IAFF, with a particular focus on our union's Canadian locals and labour leaders. First, the IAFF must to a better job of highlighting the incredible political work and wins of Canadian Affiliates with US locals. We have an opportunity to allow your experiences and expertise to be a guide, as subject matter experts in complicated political, public employee labour matters. As some of you know, I worked for some time on the IAFF Strategic Campaigns team. In that time I was fortunate to work on a few Canadian campaigns and was always so impressed by the work and skill affiliate leaders had in leveraging digital tools like Nation Builder to build exclusive lists of electors . Self-managed data, at the macro scale, run at the local level! And then there are the shorter electoral periods and campaign finance limits. Canadian IAFF leader's ability to influence and win is a lesson that all IAFF affiliate leaders should hear and learn from. In practice…this means that I believe that the IAFF should stop relegating the Canadian delegation at trainings and events to excluding " Taught by Canada, for Canada " workshops and rather all of our local leaders in the education delivery and development of key curriculum for broad political action, digital fluency, data management, and strategic communications programs. Next, we must follow and learn from the recent labour wins, especially on the firefighter occupational health and safety front. I don't need to tell you how impactful and impressive Bill C-224 is. It's such an incredible and aggressive step in our generations fight against occupational firefighter cancer, but my question is…where is its IAFF US duplicate bill? I am concerned that instead of following the pathway and plan of C-224 our top IAFF US priority is to ask the United States Congress to add $150,000,000,000.00 (150 Billion) to the entitlement program Social Security. And even in our discussion of fire fighter cancer we fail to mention any effort or plan to adopt the groundbreaking legislative successes of IAFF Canada. Did you know that most US-based locals have no idea that Canadian IAFF members have secured fire fighter presumptive cancer coverage, for at least nine types of cancer, in all thirteen provinces. Travail bien fait! (which I hope means Job Well Done) Crafting and delivering on the approach to establish a national framework that is based in science, linked to regular screenings, and focused on the promotion of information collection, prevention, and treatment may not be the exciting propaganda that suing the NFPA and the process that we built and participated in is, but I say this my sisters and brothers...Bill C-224 is almost certain to save more fire fighter lives. As you know, political style and strategy matter, often as much as outcomes when you're an labour union representing in public employees in public safety. We must maintain our professional trade unionist, labour leadership approach to be successful. The lack of decorum, unprofessionalism, and foulmouth bullying from the top of our union, especially while on center stage, is weak, juvenile, rude, and a dangerous turn in our unions direction. Our newest members cannot be taught by the actions and example of a General President who uses foul words, bullying tactics, and loud mouthing lawsuit as their roadmap to labour politics or power. As our IAFF General President I will restore trust and work to fix the public perceptions and judgement that comes from the IAFF President being paid 15% more than the Canadian Prime Minister. I will work harder, show up more, and deliver more international collaboration than ever. And I'll do it with a nod to our past and a respect to our future. Professionalism leading the way. Many of us recognize that if our union allows the current leadership to continue to squander political influence in the United States, our shared future as the voice of public safety will be in jeopardy. The lack of labour leadership is threatening to tear us apart as we approach the 2024 US presidential election. Worse, the misguided and shortsighted lawsuit from the IAFF against the NFPA is likely to cause generational, international damage to our unions ability to influence fire research and policy. I believe that our members deserve better and today I'm asking for your endorsement so we can rebuild our IAFF and restore our commitment to a labour movement with open ideas led by our best and brightest. We need an international IAFF that utilizes, invests, and prioritizes all of our members and their unique experience, knowledge, and skills to make the whole of our union better. And we need IAFF leadership who speaks with the respect and professionalism the office and our members deserve. Brothers and sisters, always remember that YOU are the IAFF. Stay safe…and be well. Join me and let's get our union back to work. In solidarity and service.

As many of you can see, our federal legislative program is in trouble. Today, I'm sounding the alarm and asking each of you to consider the path our IAFF is headed down seriously. As you may know, the SAFER grants and AFG programs that often fund vital equipment and firefighter staffing nationwide expired last year , with funds drying up in the coming months. Yet at our recent ALTS conference, not a word was said by the leadership about renewing these critical resources. Now it appears that our legislative convention plan is to demand that Congress spend $150,000,000,000.00 (150 billion dollars) on Social Security to remove the WEP and GPO offset. With the deeply divided House and election-year politics, massive entitlement spending like this will never pass. And we're allowing reasonable, bipartisan, attainable goals to fall second to Edzo's secret plan for our union to march with the Fraternal Order of Police ( FOP link ) in DC next month. This all burns in parallel with the leadership grandstanding about the cause of occupational cancer, while hypocritically showcasing firefighters not even on air during fire attack. Meanwhile, immediate threats, like expired SAFER grants for real retention and recruitment program funds go unaddressed, with our members local needs unmet. We've all seen that "officer" who arrives on scene with more bugles than brains of a working fire. And we've all seen the disastrous results when they "take command" and scream orders to risk everything, saving nothing. That fire scene is our current legislative plan. Firefighters deserve principled advocacy tailored to today's political realities. As your General President, I'll focus on an IAFF legislative program that works with the Congress we have on achievable priorities that protect and benefit our members - not political theater meant to distract from hard truths about our union's declining influence. We have a duty and a responsibility to our union and our member's future to take action now and change our course. Join me and let's get our union back to work. In solidarity and service.

Brothers and Sisters, good morning from IAFF #ALTSHRC24! I'm honored to be here in Orlando with so many new union leaders who are ready learn the skills and strategies to best serve their members back at home. Yet the decline of our union's brand and power is on full display and I worry that that this new low could be what our newest members are taught is acceptable, when nothing could be further from the truth. Just a few years ago our union was a beacon of trade unionism and labor rights. Today we're a rudderless ship, too often silent on the firehouse kitchen table issues of forced mandatory overtime, endless short-staffing, and inflation. Ed Kelly has gone so far from the house of labor that he has invested our dues with national right-to-work strategists on no-bid contracts while personally raking over $403,576 in "gross salary disbursements, allowances, and other disbursements for official business" (per the IAFF LM2 2023 federal report) while also benefitting from the $500,000 we paid in to the "Principal Officers Pension" in FY23 and $1,000,000 paid in to the same pension in FY22. All of this while still on the full-time payroll and pension train in Boston. And that's all before the expense report full of 5 star dinners, first class travel, and the costs of commuting (hotels, rentals, drivers, etc). This week at ALTS, the Kelly team announced that the new brand of the IAFF would navy blue with white and red, ending decades of politically branding the gold and black as the most powerful color, of the most powerful union. He's completely changed the direction of our IAFF and turned our back on the principles of labor. And I expect that he's going to make a lot of noise at ALTS, howling at the moon, about Social Security and eliminating the WEP. Make no mistake brothers and sisters, this razor thin Republican majority Congress that hasn't been able to pass a budget to fund the government...the Congress that is about to allow SAFER and AFG funds to dry up...and the Congress who is holding the Speaker hostage with demands to CUT the federal entitlement programs is not the Congress that's going to add billions of dollars to the Social Security deficit and fund eliminating the WEP. That's the truth...and anyone who knows anything about federal politics in 2024 knows it. It's time to get our union back to work on the big issues that matter and restore our commitment to the political process, delivering on our decades of gold and black IAFF brand power. With so much is at stake for our IAFF, I am proud to speak on these issues that matter to our members and be our voice for trade unionism. If you're at ALTS/HRC 24 this week, come say hello and let's talk about how we can get our union back to work, together. Never forget that YOU ARE THE IAFF. In solidarity,

As some of you may know, I have been served with a Federal Subpoena to present my oral testimony in a Federal Deposition related to the case between Jack Hughes and the Baystate Financial Services, the IAFF Financial Corporation, and of course, Kurt Becker. The deposition will be held in Austin, Texas at 0900 on Monday, November 13, 2023 and will be held at The Overlook at Barton Creek at 317 Grace Lane, Suite 210, the law offices of "Super Lawyers" Brophy & Devaney, at least that's what comes up when you google the address. The subpoena requires that I not only testify but also provide "all communications by and between Braden Frame and John F. ("Jack") Hughes, including without limitation, all letters, text messages and emails, and all documents, recordings or other things provided by John F Hughes to Braden Frame and provided by Braden Frame ot John F. Hughes. As you all know, Jack Hughes is the former IAFF FC employee who was hired at the recommendation of IAFF 3rd District Vice President Colbert. Jack is also the whistleblower who filed a formal complaint with SEC for possible illegal behavior between the IAFF FC and Baystate Mass Mutual. This complaint is the reason why the SEC has subpoenaed documents and recordings related to their investigation of actions that were discussed involving the IAFF Financial Corporation. These facts are unquestioned and well documented. I have prepared all of the files, texts, and emails that Mr. Hughes and I have exchanged since we first met. All of the documents to be turned over in the Federal Subpoena are posted below for your review, inquiry, and investigation. Additionally, I am making formal notice as the deponent to all other interested parties today of my intent to designate an additional method of recording the testimony by audio-visual recording at my expense. This audio-visual recording will be maintained in accordance with the Federal Rule of Civil Procedure and will be unaltered and no technology will be used to alter the voices or visuals of the recording. The IAFF-FC attorney Brill Kettlewell and Sara Silva will likely be there and questioning me as well. Kurt Becker, a party to the lawsuit may attend too. No matter who shows up, I will honor my oath as a union officer, retired firefighter, and Pro Se officer of the court and deponent to answer all questions fully, truthfully, and honestly. I look forward to sharing the recording of the deposition with you next week. In Solidarity. Braden Frame

It's been too long. While I've been recovering from a terrible case of bronchitis for the last six weeks, the wheels have continued to fall off the wagon of Ed Kelly's IAFF. Here are the THREE THINGS YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY. 1. The watches are more than likely made in China or Hong Kong. 2. Ed Kelly signed up the IAFF to work with an agent of the Heritage Foundation and the political strategist of the National Right To Work Committee's Legal Defense Fund. 3. There's even more proof of the SEC investigation of the IAFF Financial Corp. The General President has sold out our logo to a company not based in the US or Canada, producing merchandise made in China. The lousy judgment and exploitation of our union continue as Ed and his band of cronies keep hacking away at anything they can find at headquarters to profiteer. Now, our union has sold out our trademark logo to be squandered by the William Wood Watch company to fleece our own membership with Made-in-China goods. The truth about who William Wood Watches is was recently covered by the New York Times. READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE .

Last week, I laid out clear, irrefutable proof of a scheme to hide bad actions from federal regulators at our IAFF-FC. Now, the part-time President is at it again, denying the hard facts, brass tacts evidence of the federal investigation while also trying to distract you from the news that his hand picked IAFF Financial Corporation Chief Operating Officer Kurt Becker is now gone. Why is the leadership actively hiding the fact that COO Kurt Becker is gone from the the membership? What really happened with COO Becker? And what is the current financial health of our IAFF-FC? Where is Ed’s hand-picked COO, the one currently being sued with the IAFF Financial Corp. and the one at the center of the pay-for-play scheme to receive kickback payments for financial corporation partnerships in the form of “we’ll figure it out” side accounting donations to the IAFF foundation? Here are some questions I think you deserve to have answers to. Is it more likely than not that three female employees of the IAFF and IAFF financial corporation filed workplace harassment complaints against Ed Kelly’s hand-picked choice to run the IAFF-FC? And is it more likely than not that Kurt didn’t just resign as Ed told the executive board but rather that his “effective immediately” resignation was just another same-day—no due process de facto termination, fitting the pattern of the part-time president appointing unqualified cronies who rapidly find themselves unable to fulfill their basic job duties? Brothers and sisters, I believe that it is more likely than not that the ongoing SEC investigation, lawsuit, and workplace harassment are why they’re trying so hard to cover up Kurt Becker’s separation and why the leadership is once again trying to distract you with fiery words about the mission rather than take responsibility for their actions. Ed Kelly didn’t mention his COO’s separation once in his letter denying the facts of the SEC investigation. Still, the fire fighters, labor leaders, and union members I’ve spoken with aren’t easily fooled. We know what a red flag is. We know what it sounds like when someone is trying to game the system. And we know what it means when someone says that they’ll find a way to “figure it out” with “side accounting” on a phone call that they don’t want to become an e-mail. Fire fighters know that the Securities and Exchange Commission is a federal agency . And when a federal agency is issuing federal subpoenas for documents and recordings , that’s called a federal investigation. Our union’s reputation is on the line, so I’m sharing the truth with you. My goal is simple. To restore and rebuild our IAFF with you. It’s time to end the rhetoric, own the truth, and lay out a true vision for trade union leadership. My name is Braden Frame, and I’m ready to be your full-time IAFF General President. You are the IAFF. Now let’s get our union back to work together.

Brothers and Sisters, Happy Labor Day! Today, as we pause to celebrate the history of the labor movement, I cannot think of a better time to start our conversation about our union. I’ve been a Texas firefighter, paramedic, local president, and union educator for over a decade. Though on-the-job injuries forced my early medical retirement, my commitment to the fire service and labor movement has not ended. If anything, it’s grown stronger. Working for locals across our two great nations, I’ve heard your concerns and seen firsthand, and from the inside, the growing leadership crisis at our IAFF. Today, you’re fighting on the front lines of the fire service staffing crisis. While you’re bearing the brunt of endless overtime, the IAFF is being compromised by a full-release, part-time president who's absent, chaotic, and directionless. The IAFF must be the beacon of trade unionism. Yet today, we have lost our way as firefighters are replaced with non-union consultants and overpriced corporations. Now, concerns about kickbacks, bloated expense accounts, and questionable vendor contracts are growing. It is clear that the promises made in his grab for power were never meant to be kept. We cannot ignore these issues, and I stand before you, ready to be a part of the solution for our 340,000-plus members. To rebuild our IAFF…I believe that we must start by re-engaging the best of our firefighter leaders. Some of the people who have been shoved aside, and others whose voices are silenced. To rebuild, we must end the sweetheart deals for corporate consultants and cronies. We need firefighters working for firefighters. So if you’re tired of all the empty promises, endless rhetoric, and a part-time suit collecting two full-time salaries while you’re on the front lines taking another pay cut from inflation, then let’s talk, and let’s rebuild together. Follow your campaign for our union online. @bradenframeIAFF - TikTok . Instagram . Facebook . Ask your local executive board to have the discussion and allow me the time to present my case for your issues and our union. Brothers and sisters, YOU are the IAFF. You matter. And your issues are my issues. I'm Braden Frame, and I’m ready to be your full-time General President. Join me, and let’s get back to work together. Braden Frame Candidate for IAFF General President braden@bradenframeiaff.org bradenframe.com