Postal workers at Royal Mail in Britain have added their voices to the growing international condemnation of the public death threat made against Will Lehman, a Mack Trucks worker and candidate in the United Auto Workers (UAW) presidential election, by a senior UAW official.

Postal workers expressed outrage over the threat, which took the form of an AI-generated image depicting Lehman—an officially certified candidate for UAW president—bound and gagged while a masked gunman points an automatic rifle at his back.

The image was posted by Raymond L. Jensen Jr., a highly paid UAW official and prominent supporter of incumbent president Shawn Fain. The fact that the threat was issued by a senior official within the apparatus means it cannot be dismissed as the isolated action of an individual. Lehman has been targeted because he is campaigning for the abolition of the UAW bureaucracy and the transfer of the union’s vast resources and decision-making power to rank-and-file workers in every workplace.

The UAW apparatus is seeking to silence Lehman’s campaign because it fears growing support for a socialist program that challenges the pro-corporate union apparatus and advances the independent organisation of the working class.

George, a postal worker in Scotland, said:

“I stand in solidarity with Will Lehman and encourage UAW workers in the US and the working class to stand up and show support in opposing the death threat made against a rank-and-file worker and a socialist standing in the UAW Presidential election.

“The image Jensen posted of Will could not be a more cowardly threat to his life. Jensen must be removed from office, and the call to violence against Will Lehman must be publicly repudiated by the UAW.

“This incident makes clear the bureaucracy is in its death throes. They can no longer justify standing in the way of growing opposition by workers against the decimation of jobs and safety which has taken place under their watch. It is a desperate attempt to prevent the rank and file from having an alternative to fight. Will has campaigned for a rebellion against the union bureaucracy and for workers to take control of their struggles. This violent threat shows their fear when they resort to threats and illegality to hold on to their positions.”

A colleague, John, added:

“It was sickening to see the image put up by the UAW official about Will Lehman. This type of intimidation has been going on for a long time but its normally carried out behind the scenes by the bureaucracy. I know this from my own experience, but this takes it to a different level.

“Will is telling the truth, why else would they be going after him? They cannot discredit him as he has a clean slate, so they make violent threats. I think they are taking advantage of political climate created by Trump and the threats he put out on social media.

“This is not just a problem with the UAW; we need to look at all the unions. They are meant to be protecting our rights but instead they are the ones attacking them. Jensen who threatened Will is on £200,000, here Dave Ward is on £140,000 [Communication Worker Union general secretary]. When did we get a vote on their six figure salaries? They are not accountable to us but in bed with management and the companies looking after their profits.

“I’ve been following how Will has been gaining support among workers at the car plants against this act of intimidation. It is a real eye-opening experience for workers, and it shows why he is standing in the elections. He is not simply saying “Vote for Me” to change a name at the top, but building the rank-and-file committees for workers to take back the power.

“The bureaucracy doesn’t like workers communicating. They like to play them off either on a plant-by plant basis or by country. Rank-and-file committees mean we can make direct links with workers anywhere in the world. It is the companies and governments who are responsible for the inequality and the cost-of-living crisis we should be fighting, not each other.”

Members of the Postal Workers Rank-and-File Committee drafted the following statement, which was sent to the UAW leadership on July 21. To date, the UAW leadership has remained silent despite growing calls to repudiate the threat made against Lehman. The statement is being shared with postal workers to explain the issues at stake and broaden support for opposition to this act of violent intimidation:

“The Postal Workers Rank-and-File Committee (PWRFC) in the UK registers its strongest opposition to the death threat posted against UAW presidential candidate Will Lehman by UAW official Raymond L. Jensen Jr.

“The AI-generated image depicting Lehman bound, gagged and bleeding, with a masked man pointing a rifle at his back is deeply disturbing. It recalls the violent and inflammatory propaganda used against political opponents by President Trump and cannot be interpreted as anything other than both a death threat and a direct incitement to violence against a certified candidate for the highest office in the UAW.

“That this was issued by a senior UAW official as part of the campaign for Shawn Fain’s re-election as president raises grave concerns about the climate of retribution within the UAW leadership and the risk it poses to workers’ safety and democratic rights.

“We note that Will Lehman is campaigning on a platform calling for the abolition of the union bureaucracy, the building of rank-and-file committees in every plant, and the transfer of power to workers on the shop floor. This threat is therefore not directed at Lehman alone. It is aimed at silencing every UAW member exercising their democratic right to organise and have their voice heard against union-management collusion.

“We therefore demand:

• The immediate suspension of Raymond L. Jensen Jr. without pay, pending a full investigation.
• A clear and unequivocal public repudiation of the threat by the UAW leadership.
• A formal public apology to Will Lehman.
• Full cooperation with any investigation by the UAW Monitor, the Department of Labor, and relevant law enforcement authorities.
• Concrete measures to guarantee that the 2026 UAW election is conducted free from intimidation, threats, and retaliation.

Any failure by the UAW leadership to act decisively will be seen as implicit endorsement of gangster methods against the members they claim to represent.

“Postal workers here in the UK have supported Will Lehman’s campaign and the struggle he is waging to organise the rank-and-file. The right of workers to decide who speaks and acts in their name is non-negotiable. It cannot be handed over to bureaucrats, corporations, or any institution that denies workers a genuine voice.

“Will Lehman’s campaign has won support from workers in many countries who recognise the common issues we face. The principle ‘an injury to one is an injury to all’ has renewed urgency in today’s globalised economy. Workers confront common attacks on our jobs, rights, and democratic freedoms. In defending Will Lehman and all UAW members against intimidation and violence, we affirm our solidarity with workers everywhere who are fighting for the right to speak, organise, and decide their own future.”

Postal Workers Rank-and-File Committee UK
(Affiliated to the International Workers Alliance of Rank-and-File Committees)

We call on workers to register their opposition to this incitement to violence against Will Lehman by emailing the UAW at feedback@uaw.org and copying the Will Lehman campaign at info@willforuawpresident.org.