Two federal investigators testified Feb. 5 that the leadership of Int'l Bhd. of Teamsters Local 337 in Detroit misused members' dues to fund their own reelection campaigns. At a hearing of the Independent Review Board, retired Dep't of Labor investigator Craig Woodhouse said officers in the local nion voted to give themselves a $100-a-week pay raise in 1996 without approval of the rank and file, and that some of that money went into the local officers' reelection campaign.
On June 2, IRB recommended that six Local 337 board members, including president Lawrence P. Brennan, be disciplined over allegedly funneling at least $14,000 in union dues into their reelection coffers, without members' permission. An IBT panel dismissed the charges and referred its decision to the board, which now will decide whether to take action. Brennan, who is also president of Joint Council 43 and a close ally of IBT boss James P. Hoffa, denied the allegations.
