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Questionable Union Actions

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

When deciding whether or not to become part of an organization, whether it’s taking a job in a particular company or voting in a particular union, it’s important to consider how that organization treats its people.  Actions of the leaders often affect everyone else in the organization, and behaviors of a few shape how everyone in the organization is viewed.

 

Certainly, corruption can exist in any institution, corporation or government agency.  Like any other organization, unions are not immune to it and, in fact, have many instances of corruption and other crimes in their history.  Unfortunately, it is the members who have been hurt by those actions.

 

The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) maintains a web site that lists criminal actions they have taken against unions and union officials.  To view that site, click here.

 

 

The D.O.L. lists 178 criminal acts by union officials during 2014, and 135 criminal acts during the first 3 quarters of 2015. 

 

 

Here are just a few examples:

  • Former President of International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 82 (South Boston, Mass.) guilty of extortion, extortion conspiracy, racketeering and racketeering conspiracy.

  • Former Representative of International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 82 (South Boston, Mass.) guilty of extortion, extortion conspiracy, racketeering and racketeering conspiracy. 

  • Former payroll clerk for International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 135 (Indianapolis, Ind.) guilty of stealing $8,094.00.

  • Former President of International Brotherhood of Teamsters Local 783 (Louisville, Ky.) guilty of embezzling $17,272.00 and making illegal loans to himself totaling $23,760.00.

  • Former secretary/bookkeeper for the United Brotherhood of Carpenters Local 1846 (Metairie, La.) guilty of embezzling $82,414.00.

  • Former office secretary for United Brotherhood of Carpenters Local 943 (Tulsa, Okla.) guilty of embezzling $23,015.00.

  • Former Financial Secretary of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters Local 2247 (Juneau, Alaska) guilty of embezzling $41,770.00.

  • Former Financial Secretary of United Brotherhood of Carpenters Local 59 (Spokane, Wash.) guilty of embezzling $10,762.00.

  • Former office secretary for the United Brotherhood of Carpenters Local 200 (Columbus, Ohio) guilty of embezzling $12,933.00.

  • Former Secretary-Treasurer of Utility Workers Union Local 475 (Rochester, Pa.) guilty of embezzling $4,246.00.

  • Former President of Utility Workers Union Local 475 (Rochester, Pa.) guilty of embezzling $31,528.00.

  • Another former President of Utility Workers Union Local 475 (Rochester, Pa.) guilty of embezzling $26,605.00.

  • Former Financial Secretary-Treasurer of United Steelworkers Local 10-1338 (Shamokin, Pa.) guilty of embezzling $8,993.00.

  • Former President of United Steelworkers Local 4-318 (Edison, N.J.) guilty of embezzling $93,965.00.

  • Former Financial Secretary of United Steelworkers Local 561 (Lancaster, Ohio) guilty of embezzling $24,833.00.

  • Former Secretary-Treasurer of United Steelworkers Local 15485 (Springfield, Mo.) guilty of stealing $12,284.00 in union funds.

  • Former Unit Griever of United Steelworkers Local 1013 (Fairfield, Ala.) guilty of charged with “theft of property in excess of $2,500.00.”

  • Former President of United Steelworkers Local 2-47 (Green Bay, Wis.) guilty of theft of “an amount between $2,500 and $5,000.00.”

  • Former Treasurer for United Steelworkers Local 12-1097 (Westport, Ore.) guilty of embezzling $19,911.00.

  • Former officer of United Steelworkers Local 1087 (Riceboro, Ga.) guilty of stealing $1,830.00.

  • Former President of United Steelworkers Local 378 (Aynor, S.C.) guilty of embezzling $9,345.00.

  • Former Financial Secretary-Treasurer of United Steelworkers Local 208 (Irving, Tex.) guilty of embezzling $54,416.00 of union funds.

  • Former President and Health & Welfare Fund Trustee of United Steelworkers Local 4-318 (Edison, N.J.) guilty of charged with embezzling $93,965.00 in union and employee benefit funds. 

  • Former Financial Secretary of United Steelworkers Local 458 (Plant City, Fla.) guilty of embezzling $43,941.00 in union funds.

  • Former Treasurer of United Steelworkers Local 9-458 (Plant City, Fla.) guilty of embezzling $65,895.00.

  • Former Financial-Secretary of United Steelworkers Local 480 (Pottsville, Pa.) guilty of embezzling $2,626.00. 

  • Former Financial Secretary of United Steelworkers Local 561 (Logan, Ohio) guilty of embezzling $24,833.00.

Again, these are just some of the criminal acts by union officials the Department of Labor has discovered over the past 2 years.  There's no way of knowing how many other actions have not been discovered.  The Department of Labor has a relatively small number of enforcement officers, so it's possible that this list is just the "tip of the iceberg."

 

 

  • Former Secretary-Treasurer of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) Local 2359 (Sugar Grove, Ohio) guilty of embezzling $158,150.00 in union funds.

  • Former business manager for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 898 (San Angelo, Tex.) guilty of embezzling $11,164.00.

  • Former business manager for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 545 (St. Joseph, Mo.) guilty of embezzling $23,768.00

  • Former dues clerk for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 58 (Detroit, Mich.) guilty of embezzling $101,059.00.  

  • Former business manager for International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 898 (San Angelo, Tex.) guilty of embezzling $11,164.00.

  • Former President of International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 249 (Geneva, N.Y.), and former officer of IBEW System Council U-7 (Johnson City, N.Y.) guilty of embezzling $39,049.00.

  • Former Directing Business Representative of International Association of Machinists District Lodge 65 (St. Cloud, Minn.) guilty of stealing $5,919.00. 

  • Former Directing Business Representative of International Association of Machinists District Lodge 65 (St. Cloud, Minn.) guilty of embezzling $5,918.00 in union funds.

  • Former Secretary-Treasurer of International Association of Machinists Lodge 2458 (Minooka, Ill.) guilty of embezzling $62,263.00 in union funds

  • Former bookkeeper for Laborers Union Local 366 (Sheffield, Ala.) guilty of embezzling $174,283.00.

  • Former cashier for Laborers Union Local 872 (Las Vegas, Nev.) guilty of embezzling approximately $167,500.00.

  • Bookkeeper for Laborers Union Local 1197 (McLeansboro, Ill.) guilty of embezzling $26,491.00.

  • Former bookkeeper assistant for Laborers Union Local 300 (Los Angeles, Calif.) guilty of embezzling $2,417.00.

 

This much is clear:  millions of dollars have been stolen from unions and their dues-paying members.   

 

 

 

In addition to criminal activity, another important consideration is how a union behaves when it is unhappy.  How are members expected to behave during a strike?  What do members do during a protest?  As a union member, you would be expected to participate (and potentially punished if you didn't), so it's important to know what a particular union typically does.  

 

For example, the "Strikes" page of this web site shows an example of how one union, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, behaves during a strike.  Here are some examples of their actions during protests.

 

Scaring hospital patients

 

When Dignity Health Medical Group hired a nonunion contractor to expand one of its hospitals in Clark County, Nevada, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 357 protested.

 

Beginning June 19, 2014, the IBEW placed a large banner on a corner in front of the hospital, stating: “DANGER 1 OUT OF 10 PEOPLE DIE AT THIS HOSPITAL.” The banner included drawings of a coffin and two tombstones.

 

The union also distributed flyers that said:  "1 out of 10 people DIE at Siena Campus, Death among patients with serious treatable complications.”  At the bottom of the flyer was the phrase: “Brought to you by the IBEW Union Local 357 Information Department.”

 

Dignity Health filed a lawsuit against the IBEW saying the union posted the banner “despite its knowledge of the falsehood of the statement.”  The lawsuit seeks punitive damages for "business disparagement" and "tortious interference with prospective business relationships."

 

Unfortunately, it's the members of the union who will have to pay to fight the lawsuit, as well as paying for the punitive damages if the union loses.

 

To read the whole story, click here.

 

Harassing people in restaurants

 

When the owner of a diner in Philadelphia started building another restaurant in a different part of town using a non-union electrician, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 98 protested.

 

However, rather than picketing the construction site, the union chose to picket the owner's diner.  In a report to the police, the owner said “They are picketing at breakfast, lunch and dinner at the diner.  They have a way of stepping into the street and into our driveway and stopping cars in order to annoy our customers.”

 

The owner said the union protesters have also told drivers along Germantown Avenue that they suffered from food poisoning after eating at the diner.  The diner staff also has been targeted with verbal abuse and offensive gestures.  

 

When the protests began at the diner, the owner and his son tried to bring the picketers coffee and doughnuts.  One protester politely declined the offer, but others “turned to us and said, ‘We know where you live and we will visit you.’ It was a direct threat.” 

 

The owner said. “I would never hire a union electrician after watching how they act. Why would you ever hire a union electrician when they threaten you and your family?”

 

To learn more, click here.

Vandalizing a police station

 

When a police precinct in St. Louis hired a non-union subcontractor to do electrical work, members of the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers Local 1 briefly picketed the job site.

 

A few days later, the precinct was vandalized by people who seemed to know their way around electricity.  

 

County officials say the culprits disconnected electricity inside the building before targeting a circuit box, wiring and cables installed by a subcontractor.  Spools of wire were also missing when the incident was discovered.

 

The vandals ignored the plumbing, carpentry and other areas of construction, said St. Louis County Chief Operating Officer Garry Earls.  Nor were any other tools or materials stolen.

 

“I can’t tell you I know who did this,” Earls said. “But whoever it was knew to cut the wires beforehand so they wouldn’t get electrocuted. This was not just some hoodlum walking down the street.” 

 

Frank Jacobs, business manager for IBEW 1, said his organization had no role in the destruction of property or theft of the wiring. 

 

To see the newspaper story, click here.

 

 

 

Each of these examples is for a single union, the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers.  To find similar activities by other unions, go to the website of The National Legal and Policy Center, which compiles instances of questionable activities by unions.  Their web site can be reached by clicking here. 

 

SunCoke strives to be an organization in which people are proud to work.  

 

Unfortunately, many unions don't seem concerned with whether their members are proud to be part of their organization. 

 

It's important to find out as much as you can about a union before deciding whether you want it to represent you. 

 

 

 

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